Monument to F. L. Jahn in Aš

Aš - the capital of gymnasts

A majestic, powerful old man with a thick white beard that flows down his chest. If you can make it out, he is dressed in a gymnast's costume. This is how the founder of the German gymnastics movement, Friedrich Ludwig Jahn, is always depicted. This image looks at us from many reproductions, busts and statues. Even from period advertising materials. 

Jahn's monument on Háj hill in Aš

We also know her from one of the few gymnastic monuments in our territory, preserved, let's add, in our territory, which we can see under the lookout tower on the Háj u Aše hill. The Aš Jahn monument was ceremonially unveiled on June 20, 1909 on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Aš gymnastics association. A bust of F. L. Jahn rests on a square regular pedestal set in a stone mound. However, it is a new, stone bust, created in September 2013 by the SUPŠ in Český Krumlov. The original bronze bust disappeared after World War II.

Gymnastics consisted of many variants and currents. In Aš itself, gymnasts were workers, original, Christian, Nazi, etc. Nevertheless, we somehow consciously and subconsciously associate them with Nazism. First of all, Turnvatr is to blame - the father of the gymnastics movement, Ludwig Jahn, a nationalist and anti-Semite par excellence, and his followers, who incorporated elements of the völkisch movement into gymnastics, i.e. Germanic mysticism, anti-Semitism and nationalism. And the Nazis, led by Henlein, hardened this music even more.The gymnastics (from German Turnen - gymnastics, gymnastics, which is from the Latin tornare)) physical education system was created during the Napoleonic Wars. Just like the Czech Sokol inspired by it, the gymnastics movement also has two founders - Friedrich Ludvík Jahn (1778-1852) and Ernst Wilhelm Bernard Eiselene (1792-1846). Both were united by the common idea of liberating Europe from Napoleon, which was only possible thanks to the German people hardened by exercise. Friesen mainly organized student resistance associations – burschenschafts and on November 3, 1810, Jahn founded the secret association “Deutschen Bund zur Befreiung und Einigung Deutschlands” (German Association for the Liberation and Unification of Germany) together with eleven friends in Hesenheide near Berlin. It was here that the first public youth exercise took place on June 19, 1811. The exercise consisted of simple, sequential and natural (running, jumping and throwing) exercise sets and exercises on equipment, some of which Jahn invented (bars, parallel bars). Excursions and night exercises also became part of the exercise. Berlin inspired other German cities and new exercise grounds were soon created, which Jahn visited and helped with their preparation.The main symbol of the gymnastics movement is the so-called zj. Turner's cross and the Turner's or Jahn's swastika, which was subsequently derived from it. One of the things that brought the Nazis closer to the Turners. Even though both symbols, although perhaps similar, have completely different genesis. The Turner's cross was created in 1844 by the Hessian engraver and printer Johann Heinrich Felsing (1800-1875). It is a red cross on a white background (the Hessian state colors). The Greek cross is made up of four horizontal and vertical letters F that mirror each other. These four Fs are an abbreviation of the Turner motto, because the correct Turner is frisch, fromm, fröhlich, frei (Czech. fresh, pious, cheerful, free).