Divided by the Iron Curtain, united by nudity
Germany’s passion for clotheslessness finds its origins in late-19th-century health drives when stripping off was seen as part of a route to fitness and sunbathing a possible cure for TB and rheumatism.
In 1920, while the rest of Europe was still getting feverish over the sight an exposed ankle, Germany established its first nude beach on the island of Sylt. Barely a decade later, the Berlin School of Nudism, founded to encourage mixed sex open-air exercises, hosted the first international nudity congress.
The Nazi era brought mixed fortunes for nudism, its ongoing popularity tempered by a moral clampdown. Laws passed in 1933 limited mixed-sex nudism as “a reaction to the increased immorality of the Weimar state.” More restrictions followed amid claims the scene was a “breeding ground for Marxists and homosexuals.”
Nevertheless, it remained popular, enjoying support among members of the paramilitary SS.