The German Propaganda Kompanien (PK) captured the events of Hitler's war on every front. Their footage was used to produce Die Deutsche Wochenschau, a weekly cinema newsreel detailing the events of World War II on land, sea and air. For the first time these unique primary source films have been collated, edited and translated into English in order to produce a complete military history of the Third Reich drawn exclusively from German primary sources. This amazing range of films captures the events of World War II exactly as they were presented to contemporary cinema audiences while the actions on the battlefield were still unfolding. This volume features translated Wochenschau newsreels dating from June through to August 1940 and records the military events following the collapse of French resistance and the withdrawal of the BEF from France. Particular emphasis is placed on Hitler s triumphal return to Munich and Berlin.
In 1919 the first wave of fascism is created in Italy by Benito Mussolini and in Germany by Adolf Hitler. In his infamous rise to power Il Duce (Mussolini) bans all other parties, freedom of the press is abolished and opponents butchered. Adolf Hitler's ascent to absolute power is equally violent with all enemies either assassinated or imprisoned. The Swastika - the party emblem becomes a symbol of fear and hatred wherever it is displayed. This video, using some of the most unique library footage currently in existence, takes you through all the major events leading up to the second World War and the ultimate demise of both dictators.
When Adolf Hitler inherited political power in Germany, he became the idol of a country that had been brought to its knees and humiliated after defeat in World War I. Following the Great War, Germany was engulfed in total poverty, financial collapse and violent social disarray. Hitler seized this opportunity to elicit favor, and remodeled an entire nation to his idealistic view. At first, his fiery rhetoric encouraged people's faith in 'A New Order', but as unprecedented incursions into neighboring countries rapidly escalated into the outbreak of World War II, Hitler began to make seriously catastrophic errors in military strategy. Despite the urgent pleas of his military generals, Hitler continued to pursue an extraordinary course of action that would eventually end in total defeat for Germany. This fascinating documentary highlights the fundamental mistakes made by Germany's once revered Fiihrer, and accurately follows Hitler's 'Strategy of Failure'
This fascinating BBC drama is set in the darkest days of World War II when Winston Churchill (Timothy West) and his Generals - Montgomery (Ian Richardson), Alexander (Terence Alexander), Wavell (Patrick Magee) and Brooke (Eric Porter) were lacing disaster on every front. Timothy West brings a superb and convincing performance in the title role as the erratic, instinctive leader pitted against the traditional, staid and in Churchill's opinion over cautious Generals in a personal battle which influenced the future of the world. Churchill and his Generals saved over 300,000 men at Dunkirk and won the Battle of Britain. With enormous amounts of courage and skill they fought off the Luftwaffe and were instrumental in the success of the Allied invasion of Europe. This superb BBC television drama reveals that Churchill's relationships with these remarkable men and the American Generals who followed them -Dwight Eisenhower and George Marshall, were full of tension and discord.
This is the story of the German Panzer forces of World War II, when these awsome fighting machines came of age.
The Light and Medium Panzers
This is the story of the early war panzers: the Mark I and II machine which formed the bulk of the Panzerwaffe in the early years of the war. These machines were already considered unfit for service in 1939, but nonetheless had to be pressed into action in Poland, France, Norway, Greece Africa and Russia. Featuring rare footage and incisive commentary this unique film illustrates the follies of war. The versatile Panzer III, the German medium tanks, were forced into action to plug the gaps torn in the Wehrmacht ranks by the T-34. The medium tanks were quickly eclipsed by the superior numbers of tanks fielded by the Red Army, but nonetheless had to be kept in service in all theatres until the end of the war.
The Tiger
This is the story of the legendary heavy tank developed by the Panzerwaffein response to the Soviet T-34 and KV1 tanks. This fearsome machine was the equal of any other tank on the battlefield, but there were simply never enough to turn the tide which was already flowing against Hitler's Germany.
History is always written by the victors...this is the other side of the coin. This is the ultimate overview of World War II as seen through the eyes of the losing side, the men who fought for Hitler. The four video's (with a total running time of eight hours) draw extensively from footage of the German news crews on all fronts. This is the tale of the men of the Kriegsmarine, the Luftwaffe and the Wehrmacht. These are the men who fought in vain at Stalingrad, El Alamein, Monte Cassino, Moscow and Berlin. These are the U-boat men, the Panzer crews. This is military history at its best from primary sources.
This is the story of 'Operation Market-Garden', the code name of the offensive which was supposed to bring the Allies victory before the end of 1944. Despite the bravery of the Allied troops, the attack was a costly failure...the war would not be over by Christmas. Taken from the hugely-popular television series 'Line of Fire', this programme harnesses state-of -the-art computer technology to explore, explain and bring new perspectives to one of the most notorious battles of World War Two. It also features archive film, specially treated recreations and authoritative comment by leading military historians from the Royal Military Academe, Sandhurst. About the 'Line of Fire' - 'Line of Fire' is history with a difference. For the first time, the great battlefields of war are presented in a unique animated environment, providing new insights into military history's most compelling events. Each powerful episode combines unrivalled graphics with atmospheric recreations to analyse every facet of famous battles from the medieval period to modern times.
Experience the terrible final battle for Berlin in 1945 from the perspective of the attacking Red Army . and the positions of the shattered German forces who made a final desperate defence of the city. Taken from the hugely-popular television series 'Line Of Fire', this programme harnesses state-of-the-art computer technology to explore, explain and bring new perspectives to the last major battle of the War in Europe. It also features rare archive footage, specially treated recreations and authoritative comment by leading military historians from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
Using never-before-seen footage, this DVD, narrated by Brian Cox, tells a previously untold story. It recounts the history of the Second World War from a Japanese perspective, combining original colour film with letters and diaries written by Japanese people. It tells the story of a nation at war from the diverse perspectives of those who had lived through it, the leaders and the ordinary people, the oppressors and the victims, the guilty and the innocent. Until recently, it was believed that no colour film of Japan existed prior to 1945. However, specialist research has now unearthed a remarkable colour record from as early as the 1930s. Examples of these extraordinary scenes include Japanese troops in Manchuria, the visit of Prince Chichibu (Emperor Hirohito's brother) to Britain and his meeting with Adolf Hitler, Japanese aggression in China, unique colour film of the surprise attack on Pearl Harbour and the vibrant scenes of life on the Japanese home front. For eight years the Japanese fought what they believed was a necessarily Imperialistic war that became a fight to the death. 'Japan's War In Colour' shows how militarism took hold, describes why Japan felt compelled to launch an attack on America, explains what drove the Japanese resolve to resist the Allies for so lone and reveals how the intensely proud nation dealt with defeat.
Discover why the last major German offensive of World War Two so nearly succeeded and how heroic defensive actions by American GIs thwarted their plans. Taken from the hugely-popular television series 'Line Of Fire', this programme harnesses state-of-the-art computer technology to explore, explain and bring new perspectives to one of the most vital battles of World War Two. It also features rare archive footage, specially treated recreations and authoritative comment by leading military historians from the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst.
About 'Line of Fire'
'Line of Fire' is history with a difference. For the first time, the great battlefields of war are presented in a unique animated environment, providing new insights into military history's most compelling events. Each powerful episode combines unrivalled graphics with atmospheric recreations to analyse every facet of famous battles from the medieval period to modern times.
- Introduction
- The Plan
- The American Army
- The Offensive
- Primary Objective
- Kampfgruppe Peiper
- The Race Against Time
- Conclusion
This is the incredibly powerful story of the Stalin years. It is based on rarely seen archival footage, contemporary diaries and documents and personal memoirs, as well as interviews with relatives and those people who survived the Gulag labour camps and World War II. It follows events from Stalin's rise to power, his association with Hitler and the Soviet involvement in the Second World War right through to his death. With an introduction by Nobel Peace Prize winner, diplomat and statesman Dr. Henry Kissinger, this is the incredibly powerful story of the Stalin years. It is based on rarely seen archival footage, contemporary diaries and documents and personal memoirs as well as interviews with relatives and those people who survived the Gulag labour camps and World War II.
Part 1
Part One begins with the death of Lenin and the power struggle that followed. Stalin's rise to power saw him launch an assault on the peasantry and his political rivals, as well as a disastrous purge of the Red Army. An alliance with Nazi Germany was soon to follow, yet would be quickly rendered meaningless as the Germans invaded the Soviet Union, leading to chaos and confusion as the Red Army fell back. Stalin, paralysed by the shock, retreated to his dacha. Minsk, Kiev and Smolensk fell. Stalin returned from hiding and signed the infamous Order 270, branding captured Soviet officers as traitors and committing their wives to forced labour. All too soon, the Wehrmacht would arrive at the gates of Moscow.
Part 2
Part Two begins with the Germans at the gates of Moscow, as the winter closed in and starvation claimed thousands of lives in the besieged city of Leningrad. During the war in the occupied Soviet Union, many oppressed Soviet citizens welcomed Hitler, but their enthusiasm was shortlived as they discovered his plans. The Partisan resistance began without Stalin's support, but he would soon grow to accept the Partisans, providing them with supplies. As the Wehrmacht moved south toward the oil fields of the Caucasus, Stalin specifically prohibited any retreat on the battlefield on pain of death. The battle for Stalingrad would test that resolve.
Part 3
Part Three opens with 'the spring stalemate'. Soviet war production, now moved out of the reach of German bombers, had begun to increase dramatically. The Germans prepared to meet the Red Army on the plains of Kursk, in the greatest tank battle in the history of warfare. After a 900-day siege, the Soviets finally liberated Leningrad. The Red Army pushed westward and began to retake the territories that had been occupied by the Germans for so long. Once again, Stalin had plans for the people who suffered under the occupation.
Part 4
Part Four begins with Germany on the brink of defeat. As the Red Army approached Berlin, Hitler mobilised both young and old to defend the doomed city. Following the fall of Berlin and the death of his old enemy, Stalin turned once again to the control of his own people. As old age crept up on him, Stalin's obsessive paranoia continued and he further persecuted his people. With the threat of the atomic bomb blocking his plans for territorial expansion, the world entered the new era of the Cold War.
Professor John Erickson, the award-winning author of "Road to Stalingrad" and "Road to Berlin", reassesses the titanic struggle between Hitler and Stalin on the Eastern Front. This volume covers the final phase of the war, as the mighty Red Army rolled back the tide of German conquests and surged on the gates of Berlin, the very heart of Nazi Germany. This video features rare archive footage from both Russian and German sources, informative graphics and maps, and incisive commentary and analysis by Professor John Erickson.
The infamous Japanese attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii was one of the most significant events of World War II. Brilliantly planned and executed though it was, the attack bought the mighty USA into the war with disastrous consequences for the Axis powers. Meanwhile in Malaya, the Japanese Army was sweeping through the country towards the vital British base at Singapore. This episode, brand new, is from the land mark television series "Battlefield". Featuring fascinating archive footage from all over the world the programme includes a review of the political and military situation before the battle, portraits of leaders and commanders, an explanation of weapons and tactics and the story of the battle itself. Vivid graphics place the battle into the context of the war as a whole.
The battle for Okinawa claimed more lives than any US campaign against Japan in the Pacific war. Situated between the Ryukyu group of islands north of Formosa and the Japanese home islands, it was chosen as the final springboard for the invasion of Japan itself that was for so long felt vital to bring the war to an end. The Japanese, under Lieutenant General Ushijima, fought for every inch of ground and had constructed a formidable series of defensive lines against the US invasion force. The fighting on the island itself was some of the most savage of the war, while at sea at 700-plane Kamikaze raid sank several US destroyers. The Japanese could not resist the US invasion assault force forever though, and despite seeing their commander General Buckner killed in action, had won victory by June 1945. US casualties were estimated to be 49,000. More than 110,000 Japanese were killed and 7,000 taken prisoner. Within weeks, the atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki had done their work, bringing the war to a sudden end.
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