Bringing History to Life

In 1933, Adolf Hitler seizes power in Germany, where he has seduced the population with golden promises of a restoration of the Great German Empire. He allies himself with Mussolini's fascist Italy, Stalin's communist Soviet Union and the military dictatorship in Japan, which has the same dreams of grandeur as Germany. In this series, you get a thorough review of World War II - from the birth of fascism through the war's many dramas to the aftermath, where the victors deal with the war's worst criminals.

» The whole world in flames

1941 january -may

1941 june -september

1941 october -december

AFRIKA KORPS SAVES THE ITALIANS • When Erwin Rommel and his Afrika Korps arrived in Tripoli, Libya, in February 1941, they were greeted by an exhausted, dispirited Italian army. The fact that the city was still in Axis’ hands was a matter of luck. But the men’s low morale was cured when Rommel launched a series of offensives that made him the Allies’ worst enemy…

BLITZKRIEG IN THE BALKANS • In the spring of 1941, Hitler’s forces raced across Yugoslavia and Greece. The newly formed Axis powers’ alliance subjugated the entire Balkan Peninsula in less than one month. Only Crete was still free, but the Germans had a new strategy to use there.

ENIGMA CODES ARE HEADACHE FOR BRITISH • In the opening years of World War II, the Enigma machine enables the Germans to send encrypted radio messages about operations and troop movements without alerting the enemy. The British require several naval raids and the efforts of thousands of codebreakers before finally cracking the German code.

BISMARCK IS HUNTED IN THE ATLANTIC • Confidence is high aboard the Bismarck as the ship sets sail in 1941. But exercises before her departure have revealed a weakness in the otherwise near invincible battleship: the Bismarck’s huge size makes her impossible to control by propellers alone if the rudder is damaged. The captain is aware of the problem, but obeys the order to set sail despite the flaw.

NET TIGHTENS AROUND THE JEWS • In 1941, Europe’s Jews were crammed into ghettos. Stripped of all possessions, the Jews had to work as forced labourers for the Nazis, often building camps where they themselves would be executed. Too few escaped Hitler’s net. For those who did, Shanghai and the Dominican Republic were the top destinations.

HITLER TRIUMPHS OVER RED ARMY • In June 1941, Hitler launches a surprise attack on the Soviet Union. 3.7 million soldiers storm over the border in an incredible display of German Blitzkrieg, but Stalin’s enormous empire turns out to be a tough nut to crack, even for the usually victorious invading forces.

GERMAN RING OF STEEL CHOKES LENINGRAD • In the autumn of 1941, the German ring of steel closes around Leningrad, trapping the residents inside the city. Hitler forbids his generals from taking Leningrad – instead, its 3.5 million citizens must starve to death, thereby allowing German settlers to move into the empty metropolis. A merciless battle against cold and hunger begins.

AN ENTIRE WORLD AT WAR • World War II conflicts took place everywhere from small, uninhabited Alaskan islands to impassable jungles in Central Africa. Battles on these forgotten fronts were often as long-lasting and fierce as the better-known clashes on the Eastern Front or in Western Europe.

THE BLITZKRIEG FREEZES • Hitler’s troops launch their assault on Moscow. Everything points towards a magnificent victory as the Kremlin’s spires appear in the advance force’s sights. But the icy winter has set in, and as the temperature plunges, Stalin deploys his reserves into the battle on the Eastern Front.

U-BOATS FORCE BRITAIN TO ITS KNEES • The threat from the depths is close to choking Britain’s supply lines. German U-boats sink thousands of merchant ships laden...