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Founders, Absent Friends, Returning Brothers


"Scouts of the World, Brothers Together" From a drawing by Baden-Powell

In his book on the history of the World Scout Movement, 250 Million Scouts, Laszlo Nagy, former Chief Scout of the World Scout Bureau (WOSM), documented the founder countries, and countries where Scouting has been disbanded. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, many of these nations have experienced the emergence or rebirth of Scouting.

Founders of the World Scout Movement in 1922

Founder	Established	Founder	Established
Argentina	1912	Japan	1911
Austria	1912	Latvia	1919
Belgium	1911	Liberia	1918
Brazil	1914	Luxembourg	1914
Chile	1909	Netherlands	1910
Czechoslovakia	1911	Norway	1911
Denmark	1910	Peru	1916
Ecuador	1920	Poland	1919
Estonia	1911	Portugal	1913
Finland	1910	Rumania	1915
France	1910	Sweden	1911
Great Britain	1907	Switzerland	1912
Greece	1910	Thailand	1917
Hungary	1919	United States of America	1910
Italy	1912	Yugoslavia	1915

	Absent Friends documents the countries in which Scouting existed but was disbanded.
	Departures: Thirty years before "The Wall" came down in Berlin, and the Soviet Empire came to an end, John S. Wilson, Director of the Boy Scouts International Bureau (now the World Bureau of the World Organization) told this story of the departure of good friends,the Scout organizations of Romania, the Baltic States, Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary, as the result of the rise of totalitarian regimes in Europe in the 1930’s and early 1940’s.
	In his book, The Left Handshake, Hilary St. George Saunders recounts the history of the Boy Scout Movement during the Second World War 1939-1945. It is a story of bravery and devotion to duty. Ralf Bell, a member of the BdP (Bund der Pfadfinderinnen und Pfadfinder) in Germany, shares the early chapters on the World Wide Web. They are worthwhile reading for every Scout who wishes to better understand the challenge of the Scout Oath and Law.
	Returning Brothers provides data on countries returning to Scouting and countries new to the worldwide family of Scouting.
	A Chronicle of Scouting in Eastern Europe presents information on the growth of Scouting in 19 countries formerly behind the "Iron Curtain," including: Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Ukraine, and Yugoslavia.
	Cousins: Scouting Abroad and In Exile. The Communists and the Nazis were quick to supress Scouting when they came to power. Scouting and its traditions were maintained by emigres and refugees of several Eastern Bloc countries. Though unaffiliated with the World Organization of the Scout Movement, many maintain ties and provide support to the re-emerging Scouting movements in the countries of their birth.

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Lewis P. Orans