World War I: Videos

A two-part series that tells the story of the three monarchs who reigned over Europe’s Greatest powers at the outbreak of the First World War: Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany and King George V of England. The emerging divisions and rivalries between the inter-related houses of Europe brought change, tragedy and personal humiliation. Of the three great Imperial dynasties only George V remained standing. Monarchy was finished as a serious political force.

Experience fourteen true and emotional accounts of World War One from the letters and journals of those that actually lived it: Sarah Broom Macnaughtan, a Scottish nurse who witnessed the gas attack at Ypres; Charles Edward Montague, a journalist and former pacifist who volunteered for the British Army; Käthe Kollwitz, a German socialist whose son volunteered for service; Ethel Cooper, an Australian musician trapped in Germany at the outbreak of war; Louis Barthas, a French barrel-maker who experienced the terror of trench warfare; Karl Kasser, a German farmer who became prisoner of the Russian forces; Gabrielle West, an upper-class volunteer worker in a British munitions factory; Paul and Marie Pireaud, a farming couple separated by Paul’s service in the French armed forces; Vincenzo D’Aquila, an Italian-American who returned to fight for the country of his birth; Ernst Jünger, a decorated soldier who became one of Germany’s leading intellectuals; Marina Yurlova, a Cossack child soldier who fought in the Russian and Turkish armies; Elfriede Kuhr (later known as Jo Mihaly, dancer and author), a 12-year-old German girl living near the Russian border; and Yves Congar (later a prominent Catholic theologian), a 10-year-old French boy who experienced the German occupation of his home town.

An outstanding cast of acclaimed British actors bring the First World War to life in this stirring documentary created to commemorate the conflict’s centennial in 2014. This unique four-part series mixes archival footage with reenactments by actors playing real participants in the war and performing excerpts from their original letters, memoirs, and diaries of the time.

In conjunction with the 100th anniversary of America's entry into the war on April 6, 1917, a six-hour documentary presented over three nights, explores how World War I changed America and the world. Drawing on the latest scholarship, including unpublished diaries, memoirs and letters, it tells the rich and complex story of the conflict through the voices of nurses, journalists, aviators and the American troops who came to be known as 'doughboys.'

On May 7, 1915, the passenger ship Lusitania was en route to England from New York City when a torpedo from a German U-boat sent the luxury liner and more than 1,000 passengers to an icy grave. The sinking of this ocean liner shocked the world and "Avenge the Lusitania!" was the rallying cry that lured many young American men to enlist during World War I.

Discusses the experiences of Native-American veterans who served in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

At the start of World War I, German imperial troops burn down a mission in Africa. The mission’s reverend was so overtaken with disappointment that he passes away. Shortly after his well-educated, snooty sister Rose buries her brother, she must leave on the only available transport, the ’African Queen’ steamboat. The boat is manned by the ill-mannered bachelor, Charlie. Together they embark on a long difficult journey, without any comfort. Rose grows determined to assist in the British war effort and presses Charlie until he finally agrees and together they steam up the Ulana encountering an enemy fort, raging rapids, bloodthirsty parasites and endlessly branching steam which always seem to lead them to what appear to be impenetrable swamps. Despite their opposing personalities, the two grow closer to each other and ultimately carry out their plan to take out a German warship.

Recounts one of the strangest legends of the First World War - the disappearance of the Sandringham Company in action in Gallipoli in 1915.

A group of young World War I German recruits pass from idealism to disillusionment with war.

The story of T.E. Lawrence, the heroic and troubled man who organized the Arab nations to fight the Turks in World War I and then, having reached a pinnacle of power in Mideast politics, retired to postwar military obscurity.

The French General Staff, safely behind the lines, sends orders for what amounts to a suicide mission. To cover up their fatal blunder, three soldiers are arrested and made scapegoats.

The story of the Australian miners and soldiers who tunnelled under Hill 60 near Ypres and eventually broke through to create a new frontline and enabled the march to Berlin.

It’s 1914 and the British Empire’s greatest supporter, Rudyard Kipling, is at the peak of his literary fame. Kipling’s son, Jack, is determined to play his part in the immiment war with Germany but finds himself rejected due to his poor eyesight. Kipling uses his influence to land Jack a commission in the Irish Guards. Kipling’s wife, Caroline, is bitterly upset, failing to see the glory in losing her only son to the war.

A compilation of 10 war films dating between 1933 and 1972. The compilation includes: The eagle and the hawk, The last outpost, Wake Island, Bengal Brigade, To hell and back, Battle hymn, Jet pilot, In enemy country, Raid on Rommel, and Ulzana’s raid.

AMERICAN EXPERIENCE's acclaimed Presidents series continues with a two-part profile of one of the most effective Democrat incumbents of the 20th century -- Woodrow Wilson.

During the First World War, the Canadian government commissioned artists from around the world to go to the frontlines and capture the war on canvas. CANVAS OF CONFLICT looks at the artists who risked their lives and the profound effect the war had on them.

If it wasn’t for attaching cameras to First World War biplanes the Allies may have not won the war, Canada and the world would have taken much longer to map, and Google Earth might not exist. This documentary surprisingly reveals that the greatest tactile weapon of the First World War was not a “weapon” in the traditional sense. Rather it was made of paper... accurate and reliable maps!

The past and the present dramatically come together during the 100th Anniversary celebrations of the Battle of Vimy Ridge in Vimy, France. This program presents the epic journey of a squadron of former and active RCAF pilots and their replica FWW biplanes as they travel from British Columbia to France to participate in Canada’s official commemoration event on April 9th, 2017. Experience a gracious and historic homage to the bravery and sacrifices of Canadian pilots and soldiers who fought and died at the site of one of Canada’s greatest First World War victories.

Drawing on unpublished diaries, memoirs and letters, THE GREAT WAR tells the rich and complex story of World War I through the voices of nurses, journalists, aviators and the American troops who came to be known as "doughboys." The series explores the experiences of African-American and Latino soldiers, suffragists, Native American "code talkers" and others whose participation in the war to "make the world safe for democracy" has been largely forgotten.

The shattering experience of the Great War took its toll on a generation of men who were called up to fight in the nightmare of the trenches. The experience proved so unlike any previous war that for some it could only be described in verse. This powerful documentary revisits the battlefields where the war poets found their inspiration and presents a moving and comprehensive survey of their lives and work.

The Imperial War Museum in London holds an extraordinary treasure trove of First World War eyewitness testimony. Filmed 50 years ago for the BBC’s landmark series The Great War, only a tiny fraction of this footage ever made it to air. This program delves into this vault of powerful, personal interviews with soldiers and civilians, so that their voices can be heard for the first time. This poignant film brings the conflict to vivid and shocking new life: from the horrors of artillery bombardment and the anguish of young men forced to become killers, to fleeting outbreaks of peace on the battlefield, and the heartbreaking stories of the women on the home front who lost those closest to them. This is the Great War as visceral, lived experience, with eyewitnesses still spry, alert and passionate. Finally, they are given their chance to speak directly to us across time.

This Prelinger Archives film illustrates World War I on the Western, Italian, and Middle East Fronts. "As the Hun line bends back, thousands of eager soldiers--fighting for the freedom of the world--pass on to join the fighting." Non-combat scenes spotlight pontoon bridge and railway construction, hastily dug fighting positions by advancing troops, a mountain machine gun nest, infantry and transports on the move, camel corps soldiers, and German and Ottoman prisoners. The U.S.A., the British Empire, France, Italy, Germany, and the Ottoman Empire are represented.

Explores the racial tensions in the Austro-Hungarian empire that led to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie by 18-year-old Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo in 1914. Describes how their assassination started a chain of events that rapidly led to the outbreak of World War I.

This segment of Sunday Morning is about World War I, the way it changed the world and the way people think about war.

An exploration of the air battles that marked World War I as the first aerial war.

In 1914 women all over Europe were experiencing the impact of a war that reached into every corner of people's lives. In Britain, war came to the Home Front and in doing so ushered in a seismic shift in the lives of women far from the front line of battle, and this fascinating programme is filled with examples of women from all walks of life, every class and every corner of Britain, and their contributions to the war effort - in the factories, the banks, pulpits and even football pitches.

World War 1 - American Legacy vividly tells the many forgotten stories of the men and women who served in the Great War, reminding Americans of their impact on our country that can still be felt today. Charles Whittlesey of the Lost Battalion and Father Duffy of the Fighting 69th became famous for surviving against impossible odds. Pilots Victor Chapman and Quentin Roosevelt and ambulance drivers like Richard Hall made the supreme sacrifice

WWI: The War To End All Wars is a unique, 10-part, comprehensive look at the war that shaped the 20th Century. Through rare, actual battle footage and rare veteran interviews, The War To End All Wars takes you from the assassination of the Austrian Arch Duke in 1914, to the final desperate battles of 1918. Unique and stunning, you will go-over-the-top on the Western Front and witness the carnage in Russia. You'll take to the skies in the world's first air war and ride with the legendary Lawrence of Arabia.

Based on true events, this uplifting drama tells the story of five Australian and New Zealand nurses during World War I. Drawing on the real participants’ diaries and letters, this six-part drama celebrates the contributions of women to the war effort.

This three-part political thriller follows the catastrophic chain of events leading up to World War I from the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914 to Britain's declaration of war on Germany 37 days later. This tense and gripping mini-series set amongst the corridors of power in Whitehall and Berlin tracks the unfolding crisis through the eyes of leading politicians and civil servants struggling to prevent the world's first global war.