ABSTRACT
Trampers were some of the original walkers in Germany. Travelling journeymen were graduates from craft apprenticeships who walked from region to region in order to learn new techniques or perspectives in their field of interest. Walking changed dramatically after the Nazis got into power in 1933. It was their goal to return Germany to supposedly traditional "German" and "Nordic" values, and shape a racial community after their principles in which family and race and the Volk represented the highest German values. After the end of the Second World War, walking decreased in importance due to mass motorisation, an increase in disposable income and time, and the urge to travel further for holidays. In general, the institutionalisation of walking is closely linked with industrialisation and urbanisa-tion, in particular, the development of the steam engine and, the internal combustion engine. The view of walking as a leisure activity "arrived" with the enlightenment period.
