The Great War poster

The Great War

TV Show 2014 9.3/10 347 episodes
Documentary War & Politics

Synopsis

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1914 - Europe Goes To War Episodes

Episode 1 EP 1
The Outbreak of WWI - How Europe Spiraled Into the GREAT WAR - Week 1

After the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Austria-Hungary is determined to put a lid on Serbia once and for all. Germany wanted to go to …

Episode 2 EP 2
Germany in Two-Front War and the Schlieffen-Plan - Week 2

Austria-Hungary starts the bombardment of Belgrade. What follows is a deployment race of armies between all major powers in Europe. Nobody …

Episode 3 EP 3
To Arms! The Deployment of Troops - Week 3

The first few days of war were a combination of failed organisation and chaos. The Austro-Hungarian supreme command lacks combat experience…

Episode 4 EP 4
A New War with Old Generals – Carnage on the Western Front - Week 4

In the early days of World War 1, warfare is still based on ideas and ideals of 19th century generals. The technological progress during in…

Episode 5 EP 5
The Rape of Belgium and the Battle of Tannenberg - Week 5

During their advance through Belgium, the German Army is committing atrocities against Belgian civilians - justified as response to resista…

Episode 6 EP 6
Plans Are Doomed to Fail - The Battle of Galicia - Week 6

While the Germans on the Western Front are very close to reaching Paris, the Eastern Front proves to become a disastrous failure for the Au…

Episode 7 EP 7
Taxi to the Front – The First Battle of the Marne - Week 7

The German Army is so close to Paris that French soldiers are brought to the front by taxis. Together with the British Expeditionary Forces…

Episode 8 EP 8
Welcome to the Dirt – The Beginning of Trench Warfare - Week 8

After the advances and retreats during the early weeks of war, the front is coming to a grinding hold after the Battle of the Aisne. The Ge…

Episode 9 EP 9
The Russian War Machine and the Race to the Sea - Week 9

parked by the desperate state of the Austrians, the Russian army goes on the offensive. General Ivanov even tries to use his numerical supe…

Episode 10 EP 10
Dying in the Mud - Autumn Is Taking Its Toll - Week 10

he autumn rain turns the battlefields into muddy landscapes. Mud in which the soldiers are hardly able to dig trenches and in which no arti…

Episode 11 EP 11
Back for Christmas? - The Illusion of a Short War - Week 11

In the trenches on the Western Front and in the mud on the Eastern Front, hundreds of thousands of soldiers die and with them dies the illu…

Episode 12 EP 12
Learning From Napoleon – Russia, The Underestimated Enemy - Week 12

After defeating the Russian Army in the early weeks of the war, the German and Austrian generals hope to push the Russians back with combin…

Episode 13 EP 13
A War to End All Wars - Home Front Propaganda - Week 13

The first weeks of war already took hundreds of thousands of lives and the daily struggle to survive in the trenches on the Western Front h…

Episode 14 EP 14
Fresh Meat - The Search For New Recruits - Week 14

After some heavy casualties during the first months of war, the armies had to look for new recruits. While Great Britain undertook soldiers…

Episode 15 EP 15
The World at War - The Ottoman Empire Enters the Stage - Week 15

Three months after the outbreak of the war, another world power enters the conflict: The Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman war minister Enver Pas…

Episode 16 EP 16
The Defensive War on the Western Front - Week 16

The German army dug in at the Western Front and waited for the next Russian attack at the Eastern Front. Even though the Germans outnumbere…

Episode 17 EP 17
The Enemy Within - The German Army's Power Play - Week 17

The commanders of the German army blame each other for the missing victories. Erich von Falkenhayn and Paul von Hindenburg both believe tha…

Episode 18 EP 18
Iron, Steel and Oil - The Fight for Resources - Week 18

Four months after the outbreak of the war, a new objective develops: the fight for the most valuable resources. The modern warfare and its …

Episode 19 EP 19
Mission Accomplished? - The Austro-Hungarian Empire Conquers Belgrade - Week 19

During the first week of December, Austria manages to capture Belgrade. Thereby Austria is the first nation to achieve one of its war aims.…

Episode 20 EP 20
The Battle at the Falkland Islands - The Death of Maximilian von Spee - Week 20

Near the far away Falkland Islands the story of the German East Asia Squadron is coming to an end: in a naval battle nearly the entire squa…

Episode 21 EP 21
The Raid On Scarborough - A Failed Attempt at Intimidation - Week 21

German admiral Franz von Hipper reluctantly carries out his orders to bomb British costal towns. And indeed, this attempt to intimidate Bri…

Episode 22 EP 22
The First Battle of Champagne - Dying in Caucasus Snow - Week 22

Right before Christmas the allied powers begin the Champagne offensive, which will last several months. In snow, mud,and under horrible liv…

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