A Boy Helps His Friend Put On Hitler's Mask

This striking black‑and‑white snapshot captures two schoolboys on a cobbled London side‑street in 1938. One lad steadies his friend as he dons a caricatured rubber mask of Adolf Hitler—complete with the infamous small moustache—transforming an ordinary afternoon into a moment charged with political theatre. Their worn boots and heavy overcoats speak to the era’s everyday austerity, even as world events loom large in children’s games.

Historical Context
By 1938, Britain was gripped by anxiety over Hitler’s aggressive expansion in Europe. Newspapers and radio bulletins tracked every move of the German Chancellor—now caricatured on postcards, cartoons and even novelty masks like this one. Children’s street play reflected grown‑up concerns: donning a Hitler mask was a way to mimic, mock or simply make sense of the frightening headlines about Anschluss and looming conflict.

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