1 00:00:02,163 --> 00:00:04,803 NARRATOR: 8th of May, 1945, 2 00:00:04,883 --> 00:00:07,083 at last the darkness was lifted. 3 00:00:07,163 --> 00:00:09,083 The people celebrated across Europe 4 00:00:09,163 --> 00:00:12,563 and throughout the world, victory over Nazi Germany. 5 00:00:12,643 --> 00:00:14,363 -(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) -(HEAVY ARTILLERY WHISTLING) 6 00:00:14,443 --> 00:00:15,723 (EXPLOSIVES BOOMING) 7 00:00:16,203 --> 00:00:18,003 From the D-Day landings on the beaches of Normandy 8 00:00:18,083 --> 00:00:22,803 in June 1944, it took almost a full year to win the war. 9 00:00:24,563 --> 00:00:27,563 Facing defeat, Adolf Hitler became ever more 10 00:00:27,643 --> 00:00:31,363 relentlessly determined to fight to the very finish. 11 00:00:33,123 --> 00:00:35,963 As his Third Reich slowly collapsed about him, 12 00:00:36,043 --> 00:00:39,523 the brutality of the warfare, the fanaticism of the Nazis, 13 00:00:39,603 --> 00:00:40,963 have only increased. 14 00:00:42,083 --> 00:00:45,443 Those 11 months, the most relentless and brutal period 15 00:00:45,523 --> 00:00:50,163 of the Second World War left an eternal scar on hearts, 16 00:00:50,243 --> 00:00:52,123 and on history. 17 00:00:52,203 --> 00:00:53,243 (EXPLOSION) 18 00:00:57,683 --> 00:01:00,363 (OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING) 19 00:01:02,723 --> 00:01:08,043 Summer 1944, for nearly five years, Europe had been at war, 20 00:01:08,123 --> 00:01:09,563 awaiting its liberation. 21 00:01:10,483 --> 00:01:11,803 On the 6th of June, 22 00:01:11,883 --> 00:01:14,403 the winds of freedom finally began to blow 23 00:01:14,483 --> 00:01:16,283 over the beaches of Normandy. 24 00:01:16,683 --> 00:01:18,643 On the evening of the longest day, 25 00:01:18,723 --> 00:01:22,123 more than 150,000 soldiers had made it to land. 26 00:01:23,523 --> 00:01:24,723 By July the 1st, 27 00:01:24,803 --> 00:01:28,243 almost one million men were fighting in Normandy. 28 00:01:29,643 --> 00:01:32,083 The Allies had control over the skies. 29 00:01:32,763 --> 00:01:35,003 They were systematically destroying the infrastructure 30 00:01:35,083 --> 00:01:36,523 used by the Germans. 31 00:01:38,403 --> 00:01:41,203 All their convoys of reinforcements were strafed. 32 00:01:42,003 --> 00:01:43,283 Even Field Marshal Rommel, 33 00:01:43,363 --> 00:01:45,283 the head of German forces in Normandy, 34 00:01:45,363 --> 00:01:47,563 was wounded in an aerial attack. 35 00:01:49,723 --> 00:01:52,723 A joke began to do the rounds in the German ranks, 36 00:01:52,803 --> 00:01:55,643 "If you see a white plane, it's an American one, 37 00:01:55,723 --> 00:01:58,283 "if you see a black plane, it's an English one, 38 00:01:58,363 --> 00:02:01,043 "and if you see nothing, it's the Luftwaffe." 39 00:02:03,563 --> 00:02:06,163 And yet, the outcome was far from settled. 40 00:02:06,243 --> 00:02:08,723 Hitler's armies put up fierce resistance. 41 00:02:09,323 --> 00:02:10,563 (FIRING) 42 00:02:10,883 --> 00:02:12,163 The British general, Montgomery, 43 00:02:12,243 --> 00:02:15,163 hoped to take the city of Caen within 24 hours. 44 00:02:15,243 --> 00:02:17,483 In the event, it took six weeks 45 00:02:17,563 --> 00:02:19,843 and carpet bombing that flattened the city. 46 00:02:19,923 --> 00:02:22,323 (BOMBS RUMBLING) 47 00:02:22,403 --> 00:02:26,123 At last, in the final week of July, the front gave way. 48 00:02:26,443 --> 00:02:28,363 The Americans managed to break through 49 00:02:28,443 --> 00:02:30,083 on the Cotentin Peninsula. 50 00:02:30,683 --> 00:02:32,683 Allied troops liberated Brittany, 51 00:02:32,763 --> 00:02:36,523 and soon after, General Patton's rampaging 3rd U.S. Army 52 00:02:36,603 --> 00:02:39,883 liberated town after town and pushed east. 53 00:02:39,963 --> 00:02:43,363 (CROWD APPLAUDING, CHEERING) 54 00:02:43,443 --> 00:02:47,043 The liberation of western Europe was finally underway. 55 00:02:47,363 --> 00:02:49,403 Western France was in ruins. 56 00:02:49,723 --> 00:02:51,683 The population were embittered, 57 00:02:51,763 --> 00:02:54,403 but after four years under the Nazi jackboot, 58 00:02:54,483 --> 00:02:55,923 there was finally hope. 59 00:02:56,403 --> 00:02:59,243 (MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING) 60 00:02:59,443 --> 00:03:01,163 The mood was one of confidence. 61 00:03:01,403 --> 00:03:03,323 "We'll cut through Germany like butter," 62 00:03:03,403 --> 00:03:05,523 predicted those around General Eisenhower, 63 00:03:05,603 --> 00:03:07,643 the Supreme Allied Commander. 64 00:03:12,883 --> 00:03:14,963 This mood of optimism was heightened 65 00:03:15,043 --> 00:03:18,683 since on the Eastern Front, a huge offensive was underway. 66 00:03:18,763 --> 00:03:21,723 (DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) 67 00:03:21,803 --> 00:03:25,843 Stalin had unleashed Russian forces in Operation Bagration. 68 00:03:27,923 --> 00:03:30,123 His objective was to seize Belarus, 69 00:03:30,603 --> 00:03:33,283 with the subsequent aim of opening the route to Warsaw, 70 00:03:33,363 --> 00:03:36,443 which in turn controlled access to Berlin. 71 00:03:37,763 --> 00:03:40,363 (SHELLS WHOOSHING) 72 00:03:42,523 --> 00:03:44,603 (EXPLOSION) 73 00:03:47,723 --> 00:03:50,123 The Red Army was advancing like a steamroller, 74 00:03:50,203 --> 00:03:53,843 crushing everything in its path along a 1,000 km front. 75 00:03:55,283 --> 00:03:58,243 More than a million men, 4,000 tanks, 76 00:03:58,323 --> 00:04:00,323 30,000 artillery pieces, 77 00:04:00,403 --> 00:04:03,363 and over 6,000 planes came at the enemy. 78 00:04:03,843 --> 00:04:05,483 Nothing could stop them. 79 00:04:06,003 --> 00:04:07,883 (UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) 80 00:04:07,963 --> 00:04:11,363 (CHOIR SINGING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) 81 00:04:11,443 --> 00:04:14,363 (HORSES WHINNYING) 82 00:04:21,363 --> 00:04:22,643 NARRATOR: The strongman of the Kremlin 83 00:04:22,723 --> 00:04:24,363 showed he had a sense of history. 84 00:04:25,163 --> 00:04:27,563 Stalin waited until the 22nd of June 85 00:04:27,643 --> 00:04:29,363 to launch his offensive. 86 00:04:29,443 --> 00:04:32,723 Hitler had attacked Russia three years before to the day, 87 00:04:32,803 --> 00:04:35,363 on the 22nd of June 1941. 88 00:04:36,283 --> 00:04:40,123 On this front, the Soviets went from one victory to another. 89 00:04:41,283 --> 00:04:42,523 Hitler had ordered his generals 90 00:04:42,603 --> 00:04:44,563 to apply a fortress strategy, 91 00:04:44,643 --> 00:04:48,563 to dig in at a few well-defended places to contain the enemy 92 00:04:48,643 --> 00:04:51,003 and force him into long and bloody fighting. 93 00:04:52,363 --> 00:04:54,883 By imposing a war of movement in 1940, 94 00:04:55,203 --> 00:04:57,803 Hitler was a step ahead in terms of tactics. 95 00:04:58,283 --> 00:05:00,283 By pegging his generals in citadels, 96 00:05:00,363 --> 00:05:04,603 the Fuhrer had now taken a step back to old-school war. 97 00:05:05,483 --> 00:05:07,483 The Soviets surrounded the towns 98 00:05:07,563 --> 00:05:10,363 and waited for them to fall like ripe fruit. 99 00:05:11,243 --> 00:05:16,483 Vitebsk, Orsha, Mogilev, Bobruysk, Minsk, 100 00:05:16,563 --> 00:05:19,803 the cities of Belarus fell one by one. 101 00:05:19,883 --> 00:05:23,043 (GENTLE SOLEMN MUSIC PLAYING) 102 00:05:23,243 --> 00:05:24,523 Vassili Grossman, 103 00:05:24,603 --> 00:05:26,523 correspondent for the Soviet Army newspaper, 104 00:05:26,603 --> 00:05:30,003 the Red Star, noted, "The road to Bobruysk 105 00:05:30,083 --> 00:05:32,403 "is the road of retribution. 106 00:05:32,683 --> 00:05:35,203 "Here, the cauldron of death boils, 107 00:05:35,283 --> 00:05:37,763 "swallowing up in merciless vengeance 108 00:05:37,843 --> 00:05:40,443 "all those who have not laid down their weapons 109 00:05:40,523 --> 00:05:42,083 "and fled west." 110 00:05:42,483 --> 00:05:44,963 (TRAIN CREAKING) 111 00:05:45,483 --> 00:05:47,163 To slow the Russian advance, 112 00:05:47,243 --> 00:05:50,083 the Germans carried out a scorched earth policy, 113 00:05:50,163 --> 00:05:53,163 ravaging towns and destroying all infrastructure. 114 00:05:54,363 --> 00:05:58,283 (EXPLOSIONS) 115 00:06:00,483 --> 00:06:04,643 (OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING) 116 00:06:11,163 --> 00:06:13,283 But nothing could halt the Red Army, 117 00:06:13,363 --> 00:06:14,723 neither the blown-up bridges 118 00:06:14,803 --> 00:06:17,563 nor the thousands of mines laid by the Germans. 119 00:06:17,643 --> 00:06:19,563 (EXPLOSION) 120 00:06:25,483 --> 00:06:27,243 Their progress was so rapid 121 00:06:27,323 --> 00:06:29,283 that they were running out of fuel. 122 00:06:29,363 --> 00:06:30,763 To keep up the pace, 123 00:06:30,843 --> 00:06:34,123 Russian soldiers sometimes mixed vodka and diesel oil 124 00:06:34,203 --> 00:06:36,003 to keep the tanks rolling. 125 00:06:37,483 --> 00:06:39,803 One German corporal wrote to his wife, 126 00:06:40,243 --> 00:06:42,563 "If the Russians continue in this direction, 127 00:06:42,643 --> 00:06:43,963 "you won't have to wait long 128 00:06:44,043 --> 00:06:45,923 "before they're on your doorstep." 129 00:06:48,963 --> 00:06:51,003 (FIRE CRACKLING) 130 00:06:52,083 --> 00:06:54,443 The liberated territories were in flames. 131 00:06:55,363 --> 00:06:58,683 The liberated population had lost everything, 132 00:06:58,963 --> 00:07:01,523 their belongings, often their homes, 133 00:07:02,323 --> 00:07:04,963 sometimes even their lives. 134 00:07:10,923 --> 00:07:13,363 (TENSE MUSIC PLAYING) 135 00:07:13,963 --> 00:07:16,283 To celebrate what was one of the biggest defeats 136 00:07:16,363 --> 00:07:18,003 inflicted on the Wehrmacht, 137 00:07:18,083 --> 00:07:22,363 Stalin paraded 57,000 German prisoners in Moscow 138 00:07:22,443 --> 00:07:25,043 on the 17th of July 1944. 139 00:07:25,123 --> 00:07:27,723 (CROWD YELLING) 140 00:07:29,563 --> 00:07:31,083 Three years earlier, 141 00:07:31,163 --> 00:07:34,043 Hitler had promised them they would march through Moscow. 142 00:07:35,323 --> 00:07:37,683 A promise now fulfilled. 143 00:07:45,603 --> 00:07:47,683 Attacked from the west by the British, American, 144 00:07:47,763 --> 00:07:51,163 and Canadian forces, from the east by the Soviets, 145 00:07:51,243 --> 00:07:53,803 the Reich was threatened with sudden collapse. 146 00:07:54,363 --> 00:07:56,283 Especially since a major blow 147 00:07:56,363 --> 00:07:58,683 was about to be dealt to its head. 148 00:07:58,763 --> 00:08:00,883 Convinced of the imminence of defeat, 149 00:08:01,123 --> 00:08:04,403 a circle of German officers wanted to eliminate Hitler 150 00:08:04,483 --> 00:08:07,443 so they could open negotiations with the Allies. 151 00:08:07,523 --> 00:08:09,243 On the 20th of July, 152 00:08:09,323 --> 00:08:11,683 while the Fuhrer was meeting with his top brass, 153 00:08:11,763 --> 00:08:12,923 the bomb went off. 154 00:08:13,763 --> 00:08:16,123 (BROODING MUSIC PLAYING) 155 00:08:17,763 --> 00:08:20,203 The blast caused huge damage. 156 00:08:22,203 --> 00:08:24,563 But despite the violence of the explosion, 157 00:08:24,643 --> 00:08:27,123 Hitler had miraculously survived. 158 00:08:29,083 --> 00:08:32,683 He suffered a burst eardrum and a dressing covered his ear, 159 00:08:32,763 --> 00:08:34,003 but he was alive. 160 00:08:35,123 --> 00:08:36,643 Not everyone was so lucky. 161 00:08:37,403 --> 00:08:39,683 Several men who were with him were gravely wounded, 162 00:08:39,763 --> 00:08:41,243 and would later die. 163 00:08:41,323 --> 00:08:42,643 (INAUDIBLE) 164 00:08:49,723 --> 00:08:52,003 That same day, Benito Mussolini, 165 00:08:52,083 --> 00:08:54,643 who still reigned over the northern half of Italy, 166 00:08:54,723 --> 00:08:55,923 paid him a visit. 167 00:08:58,363 --> 00:09:01,643 When Hitler showed him the location of the attack, he said, 168 00:09:02,043 --> 00:09:04,283 "The bomb exploded just by my feet. 169 00:09:04,363 --> 00:09:06,883 "It's clear nothing can happen to me. 170 00:09:06,963 --> 00:09:10,603 "My destiny is to pursue my course and complete my task. 171 00:09:10,883 --> 00:09:13,363 "I am more certain than ever that the great cause 172 00:09:13,443 --> 00:09:17,243 "which I serve will triumph, despite the current dangers." 173 00:09:18,483 --> 00:09:21,643 Hitler interpreted his survival as a sign from heaven, 174 00:09:21,723 --> 00:09:24,403 Mussolini refrained from contradicting him. 175 00:09:25,363 --> 00:09:27,883 Before leaving, Il Duce told him, 176 00:09:27,963 --> 00:09:29,283 "After this miracle, 177 00:09:29,363 --> 00:09:32,683 "it is unthinkable that our cause might fail!" 178 00:09:34,323 --> 00:09:35,323 (CROWD CHEERING, APPLAUDING) 179 00:09:35,403 --> 00:09:37,603 When the Germans learned that Hitler had survived, 180 00:09:37,683 --> 00:09:39,363 many wept with joy. 181 00:09:39,683 --> 00:09:41,483 "Thank God, the Fuhrer is alive!" 182 00:09:41,563 --> 00:09:44,043 people were saying on the streets of Berlin. 183 00:09:44,123 --> 00:09:48,123 For in July '44, many Germans still thought their fuhrer 184 00:09:48,203 --> 00:09:50,603 represented the only hope of winning. 185 00:09:51,523 --> 00:09:53,523 The very evening of the assassination attempt, 186 00:09:53,603 --> 00:09:55,443 the dictator addressed his people: 187 00:09:55,803 --> 00:09:57,243 (HITLER SPEAKING IN GERMAN) 188 00:10:22,043 --> 00:10:23,443 NARRATOR: The bombing heightened Hitler's 189 00:10:23,523 --> 00:10:25,723 natural tendency towards paranoia. 190 00:10:26,683 --> 00:10:28,523 Five thousand people were arrested. 191 00:10:31,443 --> 00:10:33,963 This was followed by swift trials. 192 00:10:34,043 --> 00:10:37,883 Certain generals, smartly dressed a few weeks earlier, 193 00:10:37,963 --> 00:10:40,683 now appeared before the judges in shabby clothes, 194 00:10:41,003 --> 00:10:42,803 looking dirty and haggard. 195 00:10:43,163 --> 00:10:45,683 (OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING) 196 00:10:45,843 --> 00:10:48,123 Judge Freisler, a fanatical Nazi, 197 00:10:48,203 --> 00:10:50,043 showered them with insults. 198 00:10:50,563 --> 00:10:52,003 (FREISLER SPEAKING IN GERMAN) 199 00:11:07,083 --> 00:11:10,083 NARRATOR: He shouted so loud that the technicians responsible 200 00:11:10,163 --> 00:11:12,363 for recording this parody of justice 201 00:11:12,443 --> 00:11:14,683 asked him to bring the volume down. 202 00:11:15,523 --> 00:11:18,083 The sentence gave no recourse for appeal. 203 00:11:18,323 --> 00:11:21,323 (SPEAKING IN GERMAN) 204 00:11:28,803 --> 00:11:31,243 NARRATOR: Some 200 people were executed. 205 00:11:36,003 --> 00:11:38,683 (DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) 206 00:11:38,763 --> 00:11:40,603 Following this brutal purge, 207 00:11:40,683 --> 00:11:42,803 Germans tended to become more fervent, 208 00:11:42,883 --> 00:11:45,483 to avoid being suspected of half-heartedness. 209 00:11:46,163 --> 00:11:49,323 One had to show loyalty to the Fuhrer to the bitter end. 210 00:11:49,643 --> 00:11:51,963 In the army, the "Heil Hitler" salute 211 00:11:52,043 --> 00:11:54,283 replaced the traditional military salute. 212 00:11:55,643 --> 00:11:58,883 The regime placed its most trusted men in the top posts. 213 00:11:59,163 --> 00:12:01,843 Starting with the head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, 214 00:12:01,923 --> 00:12:04,723 who was appointed head of the Replacement Army. 215 00:12:05,283 --> 00:12:09,203 He now had full authority over almost two million men. 216 00:12:10,923 --> 00:12:13,003 Goebbels, the minister of propaganda, 217 00:12:13,083 --> 00:12:15,923 became the Reich's overall minister for war. 218 00:12:17,803 --> 00:12:20,003 Pleased with these enlarged powers, 219 00:12:20,083 --> 00:12:21,843 he confided to his friends, 220 00:12:21,923 --> 00:12:25,283 "It takes a bomb under his ass to make Hitler see reason." 221 00:12:26,923 --> 00:12:29,043 The bombing hadn't broken the regime. 222 00:12:29,403 --> 00:12:32,403 On the contrary, it had consolidated it. 223 00:12:34,923 --> 00:12:37,843 However, the Allies were still advancing, 224 00:12:37,923 --> 00:12:40,043 both from the east and the west. 225 00:12:41,643 --> 00:12:43,403 Farther south, in mid-August, 226 00:12:43,483 --> 00:12:46,123 French and American forces landed in Provence. 227 00:12:46,563 --> 00:12:49,083 (MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING) 228 00:12:51,923 --> 00:12:53,883 The GIs of General Patch 229 00:12:53,963 --> 00:12:55,843 and the soldiers of the 1st French Army 230 00:12:55,923 --> 00:12:57,643 commanded by General de Lattre 231 00:12:57,883 --> 00:13:00,883 began to make inroads into southern France. 232 00:13:05,483 --> 00:13:08,883 Helped by the FFI, the French Forces of the Interior, 233 00:13:08,963 --> 00:13:10,723 they liberated Marseilles, 234 00:13:10,803 --> 00:13:12,763 before moving up the Rhone Valley. 235 00:13:13,003 --> 00:13:15,923 (TANK RUMBLING) 236 00:13:16,003 --> 00:13:18,363 But these images of a humiliated Wehrmacht 237 00:13:18,443 --> 00:13:19,723 are misleading. 238 00:13:20,043 --> 00:13:21,843 The large majority of Hitler's soldiers 239 00:13:21,923 --> 00:13:23,163 managed to pull back. 240 00:13:23,963 --> 00:13:27,083 More than 400,000 made it back to Germany 241 00:13:27,163 --> 00:13:29,763 and prepared to defend the fatherland. 242 00:13:32,643 --> 00:13:35,403 (UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) 243 00:13:37,723 --> 00:13:40,083 Far from the front, back in Germany, 244 00:13:40,163 --> 00:13:42,123 news reports screened in cinemas 245 00:13:42,203 --> 00:13:44,523 strived to brighten up daily life. 246 00:13:45,083 --> 00:13:48,483 In the summer of '44, despite the bombardments, 247 00:13:48,563 --> 00:13:50,283 and while the Reich was crumbling, 248 00:13:50,643 --> 00:13:53,843 for many Germans the war was still distant. 249 00:13:53,923 --> 00:13:55,483 (AUDIENCE CHEERING) 250 00:13:55,563 --> 00:13:58,523 (AUDIENCE APPLAUDING) 251 00:13:59,563 --> 00:14:02,043 The images testify to the comfortable lifestyle 252 00:14:02,123 --> 00:14:05,243 and folklore traditions that reigned in the country. 253 00:14:05,603 --> 00:14:08,243 (MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING) 254 00:14:08,323 --> 00:14:11,163 The Germans still had faith in Hitler. 255 00:14:11,483 --> 00:14:15,643 How could they do otherwise, when the party was omnipresent? 256 00:14:18,003 --> 00:14:19,843 The population was well-fed, 257 00:14:19,923 --> 00:14:21,963 the factories continued to operate. 258 00:14:22,323 --> 00:14:24,083 The administration was functioning, 259 00:14:24,443 --> 00:14:26,803 and Berlin Zoo remained open. 260 00:14:31,443 --> 00:14:33,043 It was a wonderful summer, 261 00:14:33,123 --> 00:14:35,163 and those at home made the most of it. 262 00:14:35,843 --> 00:14:36,923 The war? 263 00:14:37,483 --> 00:14:38,523 What war? 264 00:14:42,683 --> 00:14:46,163 Yet this swimming scene filmed in August 1944 265 00:14:46,723 --> 00:14:48,843 was in the town of Dachau. 266 00:14:49,843 --> 00:14:51,683 A few kilometers away, 267 00:14:51,763 --> 00:14:54,443 the oldest concentration camp in Germany 268 00:14:54,523 --> 00:14:56,843 continued to eliminate deportees 269 00:14:56,923 --> 00:14:58,323 arrested from across Europe. 270 00:15:00,083 --> 00:15:02,363 While Germany basked in the summer sun, 271 00:15:02,443 --> 00:15:06,203 occupied Europe remained in the grim shadow of the Nazis. 272 00:15:06,283 --> 00:15:07,803 (OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING) 273 00:15:07,883 --> 00:15:10,603 The regime pursued its policy of annihilation. 274 00:15:12,443 --> 00:15:14,763 Between May and July 1944, 275 00:15:15,003 --> 00:15:18,603 more than 435,000 Hungarian Jews 276 00:15:18,683 --> 00:15:20,163 were sent to the death camps. 277 00:15:21,163 --> 00:15:23,843 In August '44, the crematoriums at Auschwitz 278 00:15:23,923 --> 00:15:26,843 could not keep pace with the number of bodies piling up. 279 00:15:28,803 --> 00:15:31,763 The SS began to burn them in open pits. 280 00:15:36,403 --> 00:15:38,763 (TRAIN RATTLING) 281 00:15:40,323 --> 00:15:41,723 (LATCH CLUNKING) 282 00:15:41,923 --> 00:15:44,243 Even as the Allies approached Paris, 283 00:15:44,403 --> 00:15:47,603 one last convoy of deportees left the Paris region 284 00:15:47,683 --> 00:15:51,763 for the death camps on the 17th of August 1944. 285 00:15:55,163 --> 00:15:58,963 -(CROWDS APPLAUDING) -(PENSIVE MUSIC PLAYING) 286 00:15:59,083 --> 00:16:02,123 Only a week later, on the 25th of August, 287 00:16:02,203 --> 00:16:03,603 Paris was liberated. 288 00:16:04,723 --> 00:16:07,803 The Allies did not expect to make such swift progress. 289 00:16:08,963 --> 00:16:12,363 The Americans paraded triumphantly amid the cheers. 290 00:16:13,843 --> 00:16:16,123 The Parisian women hugged their liberators. 291 00:16:17,243 --> 00:16:19,563 Euphoria could be read on their faces. 292 00:16:19,683 --> 00:16:20,763 -(CROWD LAUGHING) -(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) 293 00:16:20,843 --> 00:16:24,643 (MAN SINGING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) 294 00:16:40,403 --> 00:16:42,803 NARRATOR: Many GIs thought the worst was over, 295 00:16:42,883 --> 00:16:44,203 and that defeating the Reich 296 00:16:44,283 --> 00:16:46,643 was now no more than a formality. 297 00:16:49,283 --> 00:16:51,803 Summer held the promise of victory. 298 00:16:52,563 --> 00:16:55,563 Autumn would deliver a series of setbacks. 299 00:16:57,483 --> 00:17:00,923 -(CAMERA FLASHES THUDDING) -(PEOPLE CHATTERING) 300 00:17:01,163 --> 00:17:04,603 Since the D-Day landings, the U.S. general, Eisenhower, 301 00:17:04,683 --> 00:17:07,363 had distrusted the commander of Allied land troops, 302 00:17:07,443 --> 00:17:09,323 Britain's General Montgomery, 303 00:17:09,403 --> 00:17:12,323 who had overseen a string of failures in Normandy. 304 00:17:13,203 --> 00:17:14,723 Despite these setbacks, 305 00:17:14,803 --> 00:17:17,763 Montgomery demanded to run operations against the Reich, 306 00:17:17,843 --> 00:17:21,323 placing all Anglo-American forces under his command. 307 00:17:21,883 --> 00:17:24,363 But this demand was unacceptable for Eisenhower. 308 00:17:26,563 --> 00:17:29,283 To avoid putting all his troops under Montgomery, 309 00:17:29,363 --> 00:17:32,323 Eisenhower divided his forces into two groups. 310 00:17:32,883 --> 00:17:35,163 The first was under Montgomery's command. 311 00:17:36,003 --> 00:17:37,523 It would attack via the north 312 00:17:37,603 --> 00:17:39,363 towards Belgium and the Netherlands, 313 00:17:39,723 --> 00:17:42,323 with the objective of seizing the port of Antwerp. 314 00:17:42,883 --> 00:17:45,843 Once in Allied control, tanks and munitions 315 00:17:45,923 --> 00:17:48,043 could then be shipped closer to the front. 316 00:17:49,043 --> 00:17:51,843 The second group was assigned to the U.S. General Bradley, 317 00:17:51,923 --> 00:17:53,683 and would attack to the east, 318 00:17:53,763 --> 00:17:56,723 backed by the armies of Generals Patton and Simpson. 319 00:18:00,123 --> 00:18:02,963 (UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) 320 00:18:03,043 --> 00:18:05,843 Things moved fast from September 1944, 321 00:18:06,683 --> 00:18:08,803 the British and Canadians under Montgomery 322 00:18:08,883 --> 00:18:11,123 continued their advance and took Brussels. 323 00:18:15,763 --> 00:18:17,763 The following day, in Antwerp, 324 00:18:17,843 --> 00:18:20,363 the victors captured hundreds of prisoners 325 00:18:20,443 --> 00:18:22,323 but did not know what to do with them. 326 00:18:23,763 --> 00:18:26,283 The zoo was quickly reassigned. 327 00:18:28,723 --> 00:18:31,163 Although the Belgian authorities hailed Montgomery, 328 00:18:31,363 --> 00:18:32,763 he made a mistake. 329 00:18:33,203 --> 00:18:35,243 In the rush to invade Germany, 330 00:18:35,323 --> 00:18:38,243 his troops had taken the port of Antwerp, as planned, 331 00:18:38,883 --> 00:18:40,963 but they had neglected to clean out the islands 332 00:18:41,043 --> 00:18:43,483 and the riverbanks which control its access. 333 00:18:43,883 --> 00:18:46,803 They were held by heavily-armed German units. 334 00:18:47,243 --> 00:18:50,603 As a result, no Allied shipping could use the port 335 00:18:50,683 --> 00:18:52,163 and supply the front. 336 00:18:52,243 --> 00:18:56,363 This new failure enraged Eisenhower and for good reason. 337 00:18:56,443 --> 00:19:00,203 For two longs months, Allied troops now had to break down 338 00:19:00,283 --> 00:19:04,083 German resistance through dangerous amphibious operations. 339 00:19:05,043 --> 00:19:08,923 The failed offensive cost Montgomery 13,000 casualties. 340 00:19:09,923 --> 00:19:13,043 But it would take more than that to undermine Montgomery. 341 00:19:13,803 --> 00:19:15,923 He persuaded the skeptical Eisenhower 342 00:19:16,003 --> 00:19:18,363 to give him all available resources. 343 00:19:18,443 --> 00:19:21,883 His objective, to launch a huge parachute operation 344 00:19:21,963 --> 00:19:24,043 on Arnhem in the Netherlands. 345 00:19:24,123 --> 00:19:27,163 Code name, Operation Market Garden. 346 00:19:28,203 --> 00:19:30,683 On the 17th of September 1944, 347 00:19:31,203 --> 00:19:33,283 over 20,000 parachutists 348 00:19:33,563 --> 00:19:36,363 and more than 13,000 troops in gliders 349 00:19:36,443 --> 00:19:38,883 took off heading for the Netherlands. 350 00:19:39,203 --> 00:19:42,843 -(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) -(SOLDIERS YELLING) 351 00:19:47,283 --> 00:19:50,643 NARRATOR: It was the biggest airborne operation in history. 352 00:20:00,843 --> 00:20:03,803 The American, British, and Polish parachutists 353 00:20:03,883 --> 00:20:05,643 were dropped behind the German lines 354 00:20:05,723 --> 00:20:08,603 to take a series of bridges across the Maas, 355 00:20:08,683 --> 00:20:10,363 the Waal, and the Rhine, 356 00:20:10,443 --> 00:20:12,523 to stop the Germans destroying them. 357 00:20:13,403 --> 00:20:15,603 Once these bridges had been secured, 358 00:20:15,683 --> 00:20:17,483 land troops could go round the defenses 359 00:20:17,563 --> 00:20:20,883 of the Siegfried Line by the north and invade the Reich. 360 00:20:27,803 --> 00:20:29,523 Monty was sure of himself, 361 00:20:29,603 --> 00:20:31,843 the war would be won by Christmas. 362 00:20:34,483 --> 00:20:36,443 (GLIDERS CLATTERING) 363 00:20:38,003 --> 00:20:40,403 (GLIDERS WHOOSHING) 364 00:20:42,643 --> 00:20:45,083 Unfortunately, the situation on the ground 365 00:20:45,163 --> 00:20:46,803 soon became tricky. 366 00:20:46,923 --> 00:20:49,603 The gliders landed, but some crashed. 367 00:20:49,683 --> 00:20:51,243 (GLIDER SMASHING) 368 00:20:51,323 --> 00:20:54,323 The drop zones were too far from their objectives. 369 00:20:54,723 --> 00:20:56,443 (GENTLE SOLEMN MUSIC PLAYING) 370 00:20:57,963 --> 00:21:00,043 The Germans got hold of a glider 371 00:21:00,123 --> 00:21:02,603 and recovered some equipment and supplies. 372 00:21:06,123 --> 00:21:07,643 But more importantly, 373 00:21:07,723 --> 00:21:10,083 they also found a plan of the operation 374 00:21:10,163 --> 00:21:12,083 that an officer had taken with him, 375 00:21:12,163 --> 00:21:14,043 in contravention of orders. 376 00:21:16,883 --> 00:21:18,243 When the 4th Parachute Brigade 377 00:21:18,323 --> 00:21:19,963 was dropped as reinforcements, 378 00:21:20,043 --> 00:21:23,123 its soldiers were shot out of the sky like pigeons 379 00:21:23,283 --> 00:21:25,083 by Germans who were expecting them. 380 00:21:25,163 --> 00:21:27,363 (FIRING) 381 00:21:34,843 --> 00:21:35,923 (SOLDIER YELLING) 382 00:21:36,003 --> 00:21:37,083 NARRATOR: In the town of Arnhem, 383 00:21:37,163 --> 00:21:39,723 two panzer divisions raced towards the British paras 384 00:21:39,803 --> 00:21:40,803 and besieged them. 385 00:21:41,123 --> 00:21:44,163 (HEAVY ARTILLERY FIRING) 386 00:21:46,803 --> 00:21:49,283 After five days of dogged fighting, 387 00:21:49,363 --> 00:21:51,963 Montgomery's soldiers were forced to surrender. 388 00:21:55,483 --> 00:21:59,043 Overall, the Allies lost over 17,000 men 389 00:21:59,123 --> 00:22:01,563 and liberated only a part of the Netherlands. 390 00:22:04,803 --> 00:22:07,523 The failure of the expedition was only the beginning 391 00:22:07,603 --> 00:22:09,163 of a terrible disaster. 392 00:22:09,683 --> 00:22:11,803 To help Operation Market Garden, 393 00:22:11,883 --> 00:22:14,203 Dutch railwaymen went on strike. 394 00:22:15,563 --> 00:22:18,803 As a reprisal, the Reich blocked all food imports 395 00:22:18,883 --> 00:22:20,403 to occupied the Netherlands. 396 00:22:21,603 --> 00:22:23,883 The queues lengthened outside the food stores, 397 00:22:23,963 --> 00:22:25,843 which were all but empty. 398 00:22:25,923 --> 00:22:29,283 (SPARSE SOMBER MUSIC PLAYING) 399 00:22:30,283 --> 00:22:34,243 From October onwards, famine took a terrible toll. 400 00:22:34,563 --> 00:22:37,403 Thousands of civilians died of hunger. 401 00:22:40,163 --> 00:22:43,003 Henri, aged 10 at the time, recalls, 402 00:22:43,323 --> 00:22:45,723 "Nothing was more important than food. 403 00:22:46,523 --> 00:22:48,923 "I woke up in the morning thinking about food. 404 00:22:49,483 --> 00:22:51,683 "We used to talk about food all day long. 405 00:22:52,083 --> 00:22:55,683 "And when I went to bed, hungry, I dreamt of food." 406 00:23:00,003 --> 00:23:02,283 The Dutch suffered for longs months 407 00:23:02,363 --> 00:23:06,843 in what they call the Hongerwinter, the winter of hunger. 408 00:23:07,883 --> 00:23:10,763 At least 16,000 civilians perished. 409 00:23:13,883 --> 00:23:15,523 (DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) 410 00:23:15,603 --> 00:23:17,643 While Monty was halted in the Netherlands, 411 00:23:17,723 --> 00:23:20,203 Bradley's U.S. forces were making progress. 412 00:23:21,323 --> 00:23:24,763 In September, his troops reached the German town of Aachen. 413 00:23:25,883 --> 00:23:27,563 (TANK GUNS FIRING) 414 00:23:27,643 --> 00:23:31,403 Hitler ordered his forces to defend the town to the last bullet. 415 00:23:31,883 --> 00:23:33,643 (GUNS FIRING) 416 00:23:34,883 --> 00:23:38,163 The First U.S. Army had to take the town street by street, 417 00:23:38,243 --> 00:23:40,923 house by house, in a fierce combat. 418 00:23:41,523 --> 00:23:43,523 (GUNS FIRING) 419 00:23:45,603 --> 00:23:47,643 "I don't understand," said one GI. 420 00:23:47,963 --> 00:23:49,923 "They know they will most likely get killed. 421 00:23:50,003 --> 00:23:52,123 "Why on earth don't they just surrender?" 422 00:23:52,363 --> 00:23:54,043 (EXPLOSION) 423 00:23:54,123 --> 00:23:56,323 (GUNS FIRING) 424 00:23:57,643 --> 00:23:59,083 (HEAVY ARTILLERY FIRING) 425 00:23:59,283 --> 00:24:01,523 (EXPLOSION) 426 00:24:02,563 --> 00:24:04,283 After five weeks of siege, 427 00:24:05,163 --> 00:24:08,283 during which more than 1,000 GIs were killed, 428 00:24:08,363 --> 00:24:10,123 the town finally fell. 429 00:24:10,203 --> 00:24:13,243 -(SOMBER MUSIC PLAYING) -(CROWD APPLAUDING) 430 00:24:17,723 --> 00:24:20,243 The Germans experienced for the first time 431 00:24:20,323 --> 00:24:23,523 what many people across Europe had felt a few years earlier 432 00:24:23,603 --> 00:24:25,963 when they fled the Wehrmacht hordes. 433 00:24:37,923 --> 00:24:40,003 The taking of Aachen was a symbol. 434 00:24:40,603 --> 00:24:44,323 It was the first German town to fall into Allied hands. 435 00:24:46,523 --> 00:24:48,763 This toehold in German territory 436 00:24:48,843 --> 00:24:50,883 was a long way from spelling victory. 437 00:24:51,883 --> 00:24:53,603 The Allies were stalling 438 00:24:53,683 --> 00:24:56,123 in the face of fierce German resistance. 439 00:24:56,443 --> 00:24:58,963 Monty had failed in his operation in the Netherlands, 440 00:24:59,323 --> 00:25:02,043 the port of Antwerp was still impracticable. 441 00:25:02,723 --> 00:25:04,803 And the hard-driving General Patton, 442 00:25:04,883 --> 00:25:07,523 who was eager to pursue his advance eastwards, 443 00:25:07,843 --> 00:25:09,443 was deprived of fuel. 444 00:25:09,963 --> 00:25:11,403 "My men can eat their belts, 445 00:25:11,483 --> 00:25:14,083 "but my tanks have gotta have gas!" he raged. 446 00:25:14,883 --> 00:25:16,443 He was at a standstill. 447 00:25:16,883 --> 00:25:18,483 In a further twist of irony, 448 00:25:18,883 --> 00:25:21,843 part of his fuel had been diverted to the British. 449 00:25:22,883 --> 00:25:26,443 By slowing down Patton, the Allies were unable to exploit 450 00:25:26,523 --> 00:25:28,563 the breakdown of the Western Front. 451 00:25:29,203 --> 00:25:32,763 As a result, the Germans had time to regroup their defenses, 452 00:25:32,843 --> 00:25:35,123 taking up positions beyond the Rhine. 453 00:25:35,603 --> 00:25:37,683 The Western Front was blocked. 454 00:25:38,403 --> 00:25:40,483 The war over by Christmas? 455 00:25:41,083 --> 00:25:42,963 That dream had evaporated. 456 00:25:44,763 --> 00:25:46,443 The war would go on. 457 00:25:48,123 --> 00:25:50,003 (MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING) 458 00:25:50,923 --> 00:25:54,683 On the Soviet front, Operation Bagration was a success. 459 00:25:55,163 --> 00:25:58,963 Between the 22nd of June and the 31st of August 1944, 460 00:25:59,323 --> 00:26:03,363 Russian offensives had put 700,000 Germans out of combat. 461 00:26:04,123 --> 00:26:06,203 The troops under General Zhukov's command 462 00:26:06,283 --> 00:26:09,123 covered 500 km in five weeks. 463 00:26:10,083 --> 00:26:12,723 The Soviets were approaching Warsaw. 464 00:26:15,763 --> 00:26:18,563 Radio Moscow called on the population to rise up. 465 00:26:19,523 --> 00:26:21,883 Convinced they would be backed by the Red Army, 466 00:26:21,963 --> 00:26:24,563 the Polish Home Army launched an insurrection 467 00:26:24,643 --> 00:26:25,723 on the 1st of August. 468 00:26:25,803 --> 00:26:27,003 (GUNS FIRING) 469 00:26:27,083 --> 00:26:31,683 (CHOIR SINGS IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) 470 00:26:36,363 --> 00:26:38,323 NARRATOR: The first days were euphoric. 471 00:26:38,523 --> 00:26:40,803 Barricades went up in every neighborhood. 472 00:26:41,443 --> 00:26:44,563 Everyone took part in the combat in their own way. 473 00:26:45,403 --> 00:26:47,003 (CHOIR SINGS IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) 474 00:26:47,843 --> 00:26:49,563 (UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) 475 00:26:50,483 --> 00:26:53,243 NARRATOR: These resistance fighters threw everything into it 476 00:26:53,363 --> 00:26:55,083 and drove back the Germans. 477 00:26:56,083 --> 00:26:58,843 (CROWD JEERING) 478 00:27:00,883 --> 00:27:03,603 The Polish knew the Russians were just nearby, 479 00:27:03,923 --> 00:27:05,883 on the other side of the Vistula. 480 00:27:06,283 --> 00:27:08,803 With this powerful ally waiting in the wings, 481 00:27:08,883 --> 00:27:11,203 the insurgents had nothing to fear. 482 00:27:11,283 --> 00:27:15,483 -(AIRPLANES WHIRRING) -(OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING) 483 00:27:16,643 --> 00:27:20,323 But on the 4th of August, the Germans sent reinforcements. 484 00:27:22,683 --> 00:27:25,803 Their mission, to eliminate the Polish problem, 485 00:27:25,883 --> 00:27:27,083 by whatever method. 486 00:27:30,323 --> 00:27:31,723 (CANNON FIRING) 487 00:27:32,603 --> 00:27:33,803 -(SHELLS WHISTLING) -(EXPLOSIONS) 488 00:27:33,883 --> 00:27:36,403 The city was mercilessly shelled. 489 00:27:38,883 --> 00:27:40,523 (EXPLOSIONS) 490 00:27:44,083 --> 00:27:46,163 (GUNS FIRING) 491 00:27:46,883 --> 00:27:48,923 (AIRPLANES ENGINE WHIRRING) 492 00:27:49,283 --> 00:27:50,963 (EXPLOSIONS) 493 00:28:00,083 --> 00:28:02,843 Gradually, the Germans retook control of the city 494 00:28:02,923 --> 00:28:04,803 and crushed the insurgents. 495 00:28:06,003 --> 00:28:09,643 The hospital was torched, the wounded executed. 496 00:28:13,083 --> 00:28:14,803 (HEAVY ARTILLERY FIRING) 497 00:28:15,603 --> 00:28:18,043 The resistance movement could have tipped the balance 498 00:28:18,123 --> 00:28:19,403 if it had had support. 499 00:28:20,883 --> 00:28:23,443 But the Red Army stood on the sidelines. 500 00:28:24,603 --> 00:28:27,363 While the German forces destroyed the city, 501 00:28:27,443 --> 00:28:30,483 the Soviet troops camped on the banks of the Vistula. 502 00:28:38,443 --> 00:28:40,243 Stalin was unmoved. 503 00:28:40,843 --> 00:28:42,483 He would not intervene. 504 00:28:42,963 --> 00:28:44,923 For a while, he even refused permission 505 00:28:45,003 --> 00:28:47,683 for the Americans and British to use his airfields 506 00:28:47,763 --> 00:28:51,403 to supply the insurgents, leaving them to face slaughter. 507 00:28:51,483 --> 00:28:53,763 (GENTLE SPARSE MUSIC PLAYING) 508 00:28:53,843 --> 00:28:55,403 He had a dual motive, 509 00:28:55,803 --> 00:28:58,363 he had to allow his troops to recoup their strength 510 00:28:58,443 --> 00:29:00,123 after Operation Bagration. 511 00:29:00,843 --> 00:29:03,443 The supply corps had to bring up fresh fuel, weapons, 512 00:29:03,523 --> 00:29:05,283 munitions, and spare parts 513 00:29:05,363 --> 00:29:07,723 to this new front line on the Vistula. 514 00:29:08,603 --> 00:29:09,683 (EXPLOSION) 515 00:29:09,763 --> 00:29:13,003 Meanwhile, Stalin left the non-Communist Polish resistance 516 00:29:13,083 --> 00:29:16,363 to be wiped out, a cynical move 517 00:29:16,443 --> 00:29:18,803 he may have hoped would clear the way for the communists 518 00:29:18,883 --> 00:29:21,003 to assume power at a later date. 519 00:29:22,243 --> 00:29:24,083 The Anglo-Americans protested. 520 00:29:24,763 --> 00:29:25,843 But not so strongly 521 00:29:25,923 --> 00:29:28,563 as to threaten their relationship with Moscow. 522 00:29:29,203 --> 00:29:32,963 That was the price of the Soviet alliance against Hitler. 523 00:29:33,203 --> 00:29:35,043 (SOMBER MUSIC PLAYING) 524 00:29:35,883 --> 00:29:38,803 The uprising in Warsaw ended in a bloodbath: 525 00:29:40,083 --> 00:29:42,683 Some 250 000 civilians 526 00:29:42,763 --> 00:29:46,003 and 15,000 Polish insurgents were killed. 527 00:29:49,083 --> 00:29:51,243 After two months of fierce combat, 528 00:29:51,683 --> 00:29:53,123 the guns fell silent. 529 00:29:56,723 --> 00:29:58,443 The resistance army surrendered. 530 00:30:03,603 --> 00:30:06,363 Warsaw was almost totally destroyed. 531 00:30:08,243 --> 00:30:11,323 The Polish, who had hoped for support from the Soviets, 532 00:30:11,403 --> 00:30:13,803 now feared falling into their hands. 533 00:30:14,883 --> 00:30:19,003 As one poet put it, "We await you, red plague, 534 00:30:19,083 --> 00:30:21,843 "to deliver us from the black death." 535 00:30:34,203 --> 00:30:36,323 While the Red Army camped on the Vistula, 536 00:30:36,763 --> 00:30:38,643 to the west, the Allied armies 537 00:30:38,723 --> 00:30:41,323 had at last been able to open the port of Antwerp. 538 00:30:42,123 --> 00:30:44,083 The Americans had reached the Rhine. 539 00:30:44,643 --> 00:30:47,323 The Reich was finally caught in a pincer. 540 00:30:47,803 --> 00:30:49,563 (MAJESTIC MUSIC PLAYING) 541 00:30:50,203 --> 00:30:52,403 But despite this attack on two fronts, 542 00:30:52,843 --> 00:30:55,923 the Nazi regime showed no sign of crumbling. 543 00:30:56,683 --> 00:30:57,923 On the contrary. 544 00:30:58,003 --> 00:31:00,843 The army blindly obeyed its supreme leader. 545 00:31:06,083 --> 00:31:09,483 In October, Himmler unleashed the Volkssturm, 546 00:31:09,643 --> 00:31:11,363 the People's Storm Troop. 547 00:31:11,643 --> 00:31:14,683 This militia recruited men who were not already serving 548 00:31:14,763 --> 00:31:16,043 in a home defense force. 549 00:31:16,203 --> 00:31:18,603 (MAN SINGING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) 550 00:31:20,683 --> 00:31:23,283 NARRATOR: At a stroke, a provincial solicitor, 551 00:31:23,363 --> 00:31:26,323 a teenager in the countryside, or a village baker, 552 00:31:26,403 --> 00:31:28,643 found himself armed with a rocket launcher 553 00:31:28,763 --> 00:31:30,283 to defend the Reich. 554 00:31:32,123 --> 00:31:35,643 The German people were still solidly behind their fuhrer. 555 00:31:39,323 --> 00:31:42,843 They couldn't imagine any alternative to the Nazi regime. 556 00:31:43,763 --> 00:31:46,923 This was because during the 12 years he had been in power, 557 00:31:47,203 --> 00:31:49,883 Hitler had indoctrinated the Germans. 558 00:31:52,843 --> 00:31:55,123 -(SIGNAL BELL DINGING) -(TRAIN CHUFFING) 559 00:31:55,563 --> 00:31:57,643 In December 1944, 560 00:31:57,763 --> 00:32:00,003 Germany had been holding out on two fronts 561 00:32:00,203 --> 00:32:01,803 for almost six months. 562 00:32:01,883 --> 00:32:04,403 The Reich was wounded. It was bleeding. 563 00:32:04,803 --> 00:32:06,283 But on the economic level, 564 00:32:06,523 --> 00:32:10,083 the country redoubled efforts in factories producing tanks, 565 00:32:10,163 --> 00:32:12,803 planes, submarines, and munitions. 566 00:32:14,123 --> 00:32:16,963 -(TANK WHIRRING) -(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) 567 00:32:17,163 --> 00:32:19,723 While they couldn't win the battle in terms of quantity, 568 00:32:20,243 --> 00:32:22,403 the Germans employed new weapons, 569 00:32:22,843 --> 00:32:26,043 like remote-controlled miniature tank-buster vehicles... 570 00:32:26,763 --> 00:32:28,323 (EXPLOSION) 571 00:32:30,523 --> 00:32:33,203 ...and one-man torpedo submarines. 572 00:32:33,643 --> 00:32:35,523 (WATER SPLASHING) 573 00:32:36,323 --> 00:32:38,843 (SUBMARINE WHOOSHING) 574 00:32:40,723 --> 00:32:42,523 (V1 WHOOSHING) 575 00:32:43,763 --> 00:32:46,563 But above all, Hitler put great store 576 00:32:46,643 --> 00:32:49,323 in what he called miracle weapons. 577 00:32:49,403 --> 00:32:51,723 -(V1 WHIRRING) -(EXPLOSION) 578 00:32:51,803 --> 00:32:55,203 The V1 flying bombs which had been raining down on London 579 00:32:55,283 --> 00:32:58,683 since June and had killed thousands of civilians. 580 00:32:59,323 --> 00:33:02,003 (OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING) 581 00:33:04,643 --> 00:33:08,203 The V2 was the first ballistic missile in history. 582 00:33:09,883 --> 00:33:12,083 For several years, they had been secretly developed 583 00:33:12,163 --> 00:33:13,963 in the Reich's factories. 584 00:33:14,043 --> 00:33:17,523 In the fall of '44, they were finally ready. 585 00:33:18,883 --> 00:33:22,563 These rockets could carry one ton of high explosives. 586 00:33:23,363 --> 00:33:26,723 Although these retaliatory weapons had a limited impact, 587 00:33:27,123 --> 00:33:28,963 they galvanized the Germans. 588 00:33:29,043 --> 00:33:30,803 (ROCKET ROARING) 589 00:33:30,883 --> 00:33:32,203 One young man wrote, 590 00:33:33,003 --> 00:33:35,123 "All we talk about is the V2. 591 00:33:35,483 --> 00:33:37,683 "Perhaps we can launch them against America. 592 00:33:37,963 --> 00:33:40,843 "I'm sure that victory is ours." 593 00:33:44,843 --> 00:33:49,283 This industrial prowess was due to one man, Albert Speer. 594 00:33:49,803 --> 00:33:52,883 The Fuhrer's architect supervised this reorganization, 595 00:33:52,963 --> 00:33:55,203 which he portrayed as a miracle. 596 00:33:55,883 --> 00:33:58,323 Because despite the Allied bombardments, 597 00:33:58,523 --> 00:34:02,963 weapons production had actually increased up to July 1944. 598 00:34:03,883 --> 00:34:08,323 But this unholy miracle bore a name, slavery. 599 00:34:10,683 --> 00:34:12,923 The Reich exploited millions of workers. 600 00:34:13,003 --> 00:34:16,603 Deportees, Jews, Communists, resistance fighters. 601 00:34:17,403 --> 00:34:19,243 There was also labor conscripts, 602 00:34:19,323 --> 00:34:21,323 rounded up from across Europe. 603 00:34:21,843 --> 00:34:24,283 Prisoners of war were turned into workers. 604 00:34:29,603 --> 00:34:31,803 Almost nine million men and women 605 00:34:31,883 --> 00:34:35,203 work in atrocious conditions on behalf of the Reich. 606 00:34:37,723 --> 00:34:41,163 German industry could thus keep up with the war effort. 607 00:34:41,883 --> 00:34:45,043 The Reich was even able to go from being on the defensive 608 00:34:45,883 --> 00:34:47,283 to the offensive. 609 00:34:49,043 --> 00:34:51,003 (SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) 610 00:34:51,563 --> 00:34:52,923 On the Western Front, 611 00:34:53,003 --> 00:34:55,883 the division of Allied forces into two blocs 612 00:34:55,963 --> 00:34:57,683 had left the sector of the Ardennes 613 00:34:57,763 --> 00:34:59,483 dangerously ill-defended. 614 00:34:59,803 --> 00:35:02,803 That was where Hitler decided to strike. 615 00:35:03,603 --> 00:35:05,523 (CANNONS FIRING) 616 00:35:06,523 --> 00:35:09,883 On the 16th of December, to the astonishment of the Allies, 617 00:35:10,043 --> 00:35:13,203 1,900 cannon guns opened fire. 618 00:35:14,523 --> 00:35:16,163 -(EXPLOSION) -SOLDIER 1: Here, Hurry! 619 00:35:18,283 --> 00:35:19,963 (SOLDIER 2 COUGHING) 620 00:35:20,763 --> 00:35:22,203 NARRATOR: In the first few hours, 621 00:35:22,283 --> 00:35:24,923 the element of surprise gave the German high command 622 00:35:25,003 --> 00:35:26,843 an unexpected success. 623 00:35:27,363 --> 00:35:30,323 The Allies thought they were dealing with a routed army. 624 00:35:30,883 --> 00:35:33,243 Instead, they found themselves facing 625 00:35:33,323 --> 00:35:34,683 a fierce counter-attack. 626 00:35:37,603 --> 00:35:39,363 For Hitler, it was a big gamble. 627 00:35:39,563 --> 00:35:42,683 He hoped this offensive might stabilize the Western Front, 628 00:35:43,083 --> 00:35:46,083 convincing the Anglo-Americans that they could never win, 629 00:35:46,163 --> 00:35:47,763 and, who knows? 630 00:35:47,843 --> 00:35:50,203 Maybe even prompt them to side with him 631 00:35:50,283 --> 00:35:52,123 against the Bolshevik demon. 632 00:35:53,323 --> 00:35:54,763 The Fuhrer was convinced 633 00:35:54,843 --> 00:35:57,323 the east-west coalition was against nature 634 00:35:57,643 --> 00:35:59,403 and was destined to break up. 635 00:35:59,883 --> 00:36:03,963 Marxists allied with capitalists, it was simple heresy. 636 00:36:04,203 --> 00:36:06,443 This alliance would crumble. 637 00:36:06,643 --> 00:36:09,603 It just needed to be dealt the coup de grace. 638 00:36:13,283 --> 00:36:16,323 The Germans made progress, helped by the bad weather 639 00:36:16,403 --> 00:36:19,363 which prevented Allied aviation from intervening. 640 00:36:24,123 --> 00:36:26,003 The advance was spectacular. 641 00:36:26,563 --> 00:36:28,483 One lieutenant wrote to his wife, 642 00:36:29,003 --> 00:36:30,723 "You cannot imagine the days of glory 643 00:36:30,803 --> 00:36:32,923 "that we're experiencing at the moment. 644 00:36:33,003 --> 00:36:34,803 "It's as if the Americans cannot withstand 645 00:36:34,883 --> 00:36:36,643 "the might of our thrust." 646 00:36:36,723 --> 00:36:38,803 (DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) 647 00:36:39,283 --> 00:36:41,763 The news spread in Belgium and Alsace, 648 00:36:41,843 --> 00:36:43,443 both of which had only just been delivered 649 00:36:43,523 --> 00:36:45,083 from the brown plague. 650 00:36:45,163 --> 00:36:46,923 "The Germans are coming back." 651 00:36:47,923 --> 00:36:50,803 Civilians who had only just returned to their homes 652 00:36:50,883 --> 00:36:52,123 took to the road again. 653 00:36:54,403 --> 00:36:56,803 As they prepared to celebrate Christmas, 654 00:36:56,883 --> 00:37:00,123 German families also celebrated this new offensive. 655 00:37:00,563 --> 00:37:02,603 "What a wonderful Christmas present!"... 656 00:37:02,683 --> 00:37:04,043 one could hear in the streets. 657 00:37:05,043 --> 00:37:06,803 Goebbels' pollsters noted, 658 00:37:06,883 --> 00:37:08,763 "People are profoundly happy 659 00:37:08,843 --> 00:37:10,803 "that we have seized back the initiative, 660 00:37:10,883 --> 00:37:13,203 "especially since no one expected it." 661 00:37:17,843 --> 00:37:21,083 This operation reinvigorated the German population. 662 00:37:22,443 --> 00:37:24,403 One soldier wrote to his wife, 663 00:37:24,963 --> 00:37:28,123 "The snow must be stained red with the blood of Americans. 664 00:37:28,403 --> 00:37:30,883 "We're going to cast them into the ocean, the arrogant, 665 00:37:30,963 --> 00:37:33,083 "loud-mouthed apes from the New World. 666 00:37:33,403 --> 00:37:36,163 "They will not set foot on our Germany." 667 00:37:36,443 --> 00:37:38,163 (WIND WHISTLING) 668 00:37:38,243 --> 00:37:40,523 But the determination of the Germans soldiers 669 00:37:40,803 --> 00:37:43,603 sometimes escalated into acts of brutality, 670 00:37:44,003 --> 00:37:46,443 as they committed numerous war crimes. 671 00:37:48,083 --> 00:37:49,803 On the 17th of December, 672 00:37:49,883 --> 00:37:53,923 69 American prisoners of war were shot dead by the SS. 673 00:37:55,483 --> 00:37:57,883 The same day in the little town of town Malmedy, 674 00:37:58,403 --> 00:38:02,563 the bodies of 86 GIs executed by the same SS unit 675 00:38:02,723 --> 00:38:03,803 were discovered. 676 00:38:13,643 --> 00:38:16,923 Belgian civilians, men, women, and children, 677 00:38:17,003 --> 00:38:18,483 were also massacred. 678 00:38:19,883 --> 00:38:21,803 They spared no one. 679 00:38:21,963 --> 00:38:23,763 (CHURCH BELL TOLLING) 680 00:38:25,003 --> 00:38:27,163 (PRAYING, IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) 681 00:38:27,883 --> 00:38:31,443 NARRATOR: Meanwhile, chaos reigned on the American lines. 682 00:38:31,883 --> 00:38:33,363 To add to the confusion, 683 00:38:33,443 --> 00:38:35,803 German commandos disguised as Americans 684 00:38:35,883 --> 00:38:38,323 had infiltrated Allied territory, 685 00:38:38,403 --> 00:38:41,683 switching road signs and carrying out sabotage. 686 00:38:42,083 --> 00:38:45,443 The GIs were suspicious of everyone and everything. 687 00:38:45,883 --> 00:38:47,363 They intercepted vehicles 688 00:38:47,443 --> 00:38:50,003 and carefully checked identity papers. 689 00:38:50,403 --> 00:38:52,083 They were told to ask questions 690 00:38:52,163 --> 00:38:54,203 that only an American could answer. 691 00:38:55,443 --> 00:38:58,883 In one of the most critical periods of winter 1944, 692 00:38:59,363 --> 00:39:01,723 the military police would ask at every checkpoint, 693 00:39:02,203 --> 00:39:04,003 "Who is Donald Duck's girlfriend? 694 00:39:04,483 --> 00:39:06,283 "What is Roosevelt's dog's name?" 695 00:39:07,043 --> 00:39:09,243 (TRUCK ENGINE REVVING) 696 00:39:11,083 --> 00:39:13,723 Sometimes, spies were captured. 697 00:39:13,803 --> 00:39:16,483 (SPARSE OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING) 698 00:39:22,083 --> 00:39:24,283 (SOLDIER YELLING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) 699 00:39:24,363 --> 00:39:25,883 (GUNS FIRING) 700 00:39:28,883 --> 00:39:31,403 NARRATOR: The German troops pushed on with their breakthrough. 701 00:39:31,803 --> 00:39:34,563 They besieged the small Belgian town of Bastogne, 702 00:39:34,883 --> 00:39:36,323 a crucial strategic point 703 00:39:36,403 --> 00:39:38,403 for the success of their operation. 704 00:39:38,923 --> 00:39:41,603 Eighteen thousand GIs were defending the town. 705 00:39:41,683 --> 00:39:43,323 (GUNS FIRING) 706 00:39:46,123 --> 00:39:47,283 (EXPLOSION) 707 00:39:47,363 --> 00:39:50,843 In their ranks, the rumor spread that the Germans didn't take prisoners. 708 00:39:51,763 --> 00:39:53,123 The American soldiers redoubled 709 00:39:53,203 --> 00:39:55,243 their determination to resist. 710 00:39:56,083 --> 00:39:58,803 But the town was quickly surrounded by panzers. 711 00:39:59,123 --> 00:40:01,243 The U.S. troops were caught in a trap. 712 00:40:04,483 --> 00:40:07,043 While he was preparing an offensive farther south, 713 00:40:07,123 --> 00:40:09,483 General Patton was called to the rescue. 714 00:40:09,883 --> 00:40:13,563 In mid-winter, he swung his army round 90-degrees 715 00:40:13,643 --> 00:40:16,763 and headed straight north, pushing hard for Bastogne. 716 00:40:18,003 --> 00:40:19,803 He had promised Eisenhower that this maneuver 717 00:40:19,883 --> 00:40:22,443 would take him no more than three days. 718 00:40:22,923 --> 00:40:24,843 (TRUCK ENGINE REVVING) 719 00:40:24,923 --> 00:40:28,003 His tanks drove day and night through appalling conditions. 720 00:40:28,723 --> 00:40:31,523 But they had not planned for icy roads. 721 00:40:32,243 --> 00:40:35,443 (SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) 722 00:40:42,763 --> 00:40:44,643 Meanwhile, in Bastogne, 723 00:40:44,723 --> 00:40:48,043 the GIs were up against the Germans and the weather. 724 00:40:49,003 --> 00:40:51,963 Many died frozen in their fox-holes. 725 00:40:52,043 --> 00:40:54,203 (WIND WHOOSHING) 726 00:40:58,643 --> 00:41:00,963 (DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) 727 00:41:01,203 --> 00:41:02,723 On the 23rd of December, 728 00:41:03,083 --> 00:41:05,483 the Germans looked up at the sky in horror. 729 00:41:06,043 --> 00:41:07,483 The snow had stopped. 730 00:41:09,243 --> 00:41:11,483 The snowflakes had been replaced by the planes 731 00:41:11,563 --> 00:41:15,243 of the U.S. Air Force, which pounded the German positions. 732 00:41:16,203 --> 00:41:18,123 (BOMBS WHISTLING) 733 00:41:21,163 --> 00:41:23,163 (BOMBS EXPLODING) 734 00:41:30,683 --> 00:41:32,803 Soon after, as he had promised, 735 00:41:32,883 --> 00:41:36,323 Patton's Third Army came to relieve the siege of Bastogne. 736 00:41:37,683 --> 00:41:38,763 Just in time. 737 00:41:41,363 --> 00:41:43,323 Hitler's gamble had backfired. 738 00:41:43,763 --> 00:41:45,603 The human cost was high. 739 00:41:46,443 --> 00:41:50,403 On the Allied side, 80,000 men killed or injured. 740 00:41:50,883 --> 00:41:53,603 The Germans counted 120,000. 741 00:41:54,603 --> 00:41:58,523 Overall, the battle merely pushed back the hour of reckoning 742 00:41:58,603 --> 00:42:02,403 for the Reich, but it came as a wake-up call for the Allies. 743 00:42:03,003 --> 00:42:07,643 They had realized one thing, Germany was still dangerous. 744 00:42:08,523 --> 00:42:11,243 (SOLEMN MUSIC PLAYING) 745 00:42:16,963 --> 00:42:20,363 At the Fuhrer's headquarters, the mood was one of concern. 746 00:42:21,003 --> 00:42:24,163 Goering suggested to Hitler that he should seek an armistice. 747 00:42:24,683 --> 00:42:26,723 "The war is lost," he explained. 748 00:42:28,163 --> 00:42:29,483 Hitler replied, 749 00:42:29,563 --> 00:42:32,523 "I forbid you to take any such decision on this point. 750 00:42:32,603 --> 00:42:35,363 "If you disobey my orders, I'll have you shot." 751 00:42:37,603 --> 00:42:39,883 Hitler was wrapped up in his delusions. 752 00:42:40,723 --> 00:42:43,043 He insisted: "We will never surrender. 753 00:42:43,443 --> 00:42:47,083 "We may go down, but we will take a world with us." 754 00:42:54,883 --> 00:42:58,043 Despite the withdrawal of Hitler's armies on all fronts, 755 00:42:58,123 --> 00:43:01,243 five months of war and chaos still lay ahead 756 00:43:01,323 --> 00:43:04,883 before the fall of Berlin and the defeat of the Third Reich. 757 00:43:14,643 --> 00:43:17,763 The beast was weakened but not yet dead, 758 00:43:18,403 --> 00:43:21,243 and the Germans seemed ready to follow the Fuhrer 759 00:43:21,763 --> 00:43:23,083 to the very end. 760 00:43:23,843 --> 00:43:26,803 (DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING) 761 00:43:46,883 --> 00:43:48,963 (HEAVY ARTILLERY FIRING)