S1 E1 ∙ A New Germany ∙

Legendary actor Laurence Olivier narrates the definitive series on World War II. Hear why Germany, stricken by defeat in WWI, looked to Adolf Hitler for hope.

G

Contains Mature Themes

Series Selector for The World at War

All episodes for series 1 of The World at War

S1 E2 · Distant War

An uneasy calm settles on Britain as Churchill replaces Chamberlain as prime minister.

S1 E3 · France Falls

France relied on the fortified Maginot Line but the Germans skirted it and forged south.

S1 E4 · Alone

After Dunkirk, Britain faces the Germans across the English Channel. The outlook is grim.

S1 E5 · Barbarossa

The German-Soviet pact ends, and Hitler turns his tanks and troops against Russia.

S1 E6 · Banzai!

The Japanese launch the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor and sweep through Southeast Asia.

S1 E7 · On Our Way

The European and Pacific conflicts were separate - until Hitler declared war on America.

S1 E8 · The Desert

The North Africa conflict took nearly three years to resolve, culminating at El Alamein.

S1 E9 · Stalingrad

After initial successes, Hitler's invasion of Russia is decisively stopped at Stalingrad.

S1 E12 · Whirlwind

Bomber Command hit German cities at night and the Americans reinforce the daytime attacks.

S1 E15 · Home Fires

The Luftwaffe changes the direction of bombing raids from London to the provincial cities.

S1 E18 · Occupation

The Germans strike Holland, a country with a Nazi movement but also liberal traditions.

S1 E19 · Pincers

With the liberation of Paris in August 1944, the war seems to be as good as over.

S1 E20 · Genocide

This edition recounts Himmler's plans to realise Hitler's vision of a pure Aryan Germany.

S1 E21 · Nemesis

As the net closes upon Berlin, Hitler retreats to an underground bunker.

S1 E22 · Japan

A look at Japan's fight for survival in 1944, as it was crippled by food shortages.

S1 E24 · The Bomb

This episode looks at the Allied scientists' attempts to develop a new, powerful weapon.

S1 E25 · Reckoning

This episode looks at how a new political order was established at the end of the war.

S1 E26 · Remember

Final episode: a sombre reminder of the human cost of the bloodiest conflict in history.