The First World War

Universally acclaimed as one of the finest documentary series ever made about the Great War, Channel 4's The First World War is a powerful, original and truly comprehensive account of the conflict. It places the war in a truly global military context as never before, exploring many of the little-known campaigns, battles, and actions as well as the better-known conflict on the Western Front. The series combines previously unseen footage from newly accessible archives in Central and Eastern Europe with the exclusive film of many of the battlefields as they are today, studies of key participants and weaponry, and diary entries and letters home from soldiers, officers, and commanders.

Episodes:

To Arms 1914 The complex origins of the Great War, and how seemingly insignificant local tensions in the Balkans exploded into World War

Under the Eagle 1914 – 1915 The German invasion of Belgium and France was brutal and fanned the flames of war

Global War 1914 – 1916 The European Empires clashed all across the world, from the South Atlantic Seas to the plains of Africa

Jihad 1914 – 1916 The Turkish Ottoman Empire proved a formidable foe, as Allies found to their cost at Gallipoli and in the Middle East

Shackled to a Corpse 1914 – 1916 As the Germans and Austrians clashed with the Russians on the bitter Eastern Front, Italy became embroiled in a terrible slaughter, where people fought in the worst of terrains under harsh conditions

Breaking the Deadlock 1915 – 1917 The Somme and Verdun saw carnage on an unprecedented scale, as armies fought to break the stalemate on the Western Front

Blockade 1916 – 1917 The war at sea was every bit as bitter as the war on land. The battle at Jutland proved inconclusive, but the U-Boat menace threatened Britain as never before. Meanwhile, America entered the war.

Revolution 1917 The effects of The Great War shattered nations, inspired mass mutinies by desperate troops, caused great upheaval on the home front and changed the world forever.

Germany’s Last Gamble 1918 Over 1 million German troops were committed to Kaiserschlacht – the last great offensive of the war, while conflict still raged on many other fronts

War Without End The dramatic Allied victory at Amiens led to victory in just 100 days and the signing of a bitterly resented peace, while other nations stumbled towards their own ceasefire agreements