A new stimulant for everyday use
Methamphetamine was first synthesized by Japanese chemists at the end of the 19th century, and its production process was patented by the pharmaceutical company Temmler in 1937. Marketed from 1938 under the name Pervitin, it was advertised as a home remedy for a range of ailments.
Methamphetamine suppresses feelings of tiredness, hunger, anxiety and stress, making its user feel confident and even euphoric. The effects come at the price of addiction and can also cause circulatory problems, depression and delusions.
Pervitin quickly became very popular: students revising for examinations, ambitious managers and even depressed housewives all appreciated its effects. Chocolate for Housewives laced with Pervitin was launched to attract the latter group. As more and more consumers complained about side effects, Pervitin was made prescription-only from 1941.
An advertisement for Pervitin from the 1940s
Stimulants for the Blitzkrieg
Pervitin gained fame through its mass use by German soldiers during the lightening invasion of Poland and France, known colloquially as the Blitzkrieg. The tablets distributed to the fighting soldiers were given a number of nicknames such as Stuka tablets (Stuka was the abbreviation for dive bomber), Hermann Göring pills (Göring was commander-in-chief of the Luftwaffe), Tank chocolate or Airman’s marzipan.
The stimulant was taken most commonly in tablet form: the exhibition of the Deutschlandmuseum shows a roll of 30 x 0.003 mg methamphetamine tablets. The usage instructions recommended taking between two and four tablets a day, unless otherwise prescribed. Depending on the dose, the effect lasted for up to eleven hours.
Days of forced marches made possible by Pervitin: German troops in France in 1940 (Source: Bundesarchiv, Bild 146-1981-060-03 / Bauer / CC-BY-SA 3.0)
The pills enabled soldiers to march and fight for days at a stretch without needing to rest or eat. Despite undergoing considerable hardship, the soldiers remained optimistic and even euphoric. Suppressing pain, Pervitin was the ideal drug to fuel the German conquest of Europe.
The downside to this phenomenon was the extreme side effects of the drug. Soldiers using it often suffered from paranoia and were known to commit suicide or shoot their comrades; others died of heart failure. Many soldiers became addicted to the stimulant, including Heinrich Böll, future holder of the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Methamphetamine in the post-war world
Pervitin found continued use in a range of civilian and military applications after the Second World War. The armed forces of both East and West Germany stockpiled the stimulant in preparation for war, and a number of US units used it during the Vietnam War. Pervitin was still available on prescription in Germany until 1988. One prominent user was the first West German chancellor Konrad Adenauer, who took it regularly in the 1960s.
Today, methamphetamine is best known as a party drug, taken to boost energy and keep people going all night. It also makes its users more communicative and increases sexual desire. Known as crystal meth, it takes this name from the crystalline form in which it is produced.
References to its use in the Third Reich still remain, and some on the drugs and party scene refer to it as Hitler speed.
Property information
Designation
- Date from 1938
- Gallery The Third Reich
- Category Medicine
- Origin Germany
- Dimensions 5x1x1 cm (WxHxD)
- Material metal, Methamphetamine
Property information
Designation
- Datierung from 1938
- Epochenraum The Third Reich
- Kategorie Medicine
- Herkunft Germany
- Dimensionen 5x1x1 cm (WxHxD)
- Material metal, Methamphetamine
About the Deutschlandmuseum
An immersive and innovative experience museum about 2000 years of German history
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