1 00:00:01,040 --> 00:00:02,079 RAPID GUNFIRE 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:06,079 EXPLOSIONS 3 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:11,039 Stalingrad at the end of October 1942. 4 00:00:11,040 --> 00:00:15,039 The city on the Volga had still not fallen. 5 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:18,959 German soldiers listened to the Fuhrer on the radio. 6 00:00:18,960 --> 00:00:20,479 "We have taken Stalingrad. 7 00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:23,759 "A few pockets of resistance remain. 8 00:00:23,760 --> 00:00:27,759 "We will take them one by one, it's just a question of time." 9 00:00:34,400 --> 00:00:37,839 For Hitler, the fate of the Third Reich 10 00:00:37,840 --> 00:00:41,839 depended on what happened at Stalingrad. 11 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:48,759 This series is the epic story of World War II... 12 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:54,239 ..as it raged across countries and continents, 13 00:00:54,840 --> 00:00:58,839 as millions of soldiers fought from the Atlantic to the Pacific. 14 00:01:00,800 --> 00:01:04,359 It is the moving story of the millions of civilians, 15 00:01:04,360 --> 00:01:08,359 whose homes were destroyed and lives disrupted... 16 00:01:12,120 --> 00:01:16,119 ..as they were caught up in the cataclysm of war. 17 00:01:17,200 --> 00:01:21,199 To tell this story, the best footage of the war has been painstakingly 18 00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:26,119 transformed, using digital techniques, into colour. 19 00:01:29,280 --> 00:01:33,199 Along with original colour home movies, it gives a completely 20 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:37,199 new perspective to one of the greatest events of the last century. 21 00:01:39,480 --> 00:01:43,319 This is the powerful story of the Apocalypse, and of the people 22 00:01:43,320 --> 00:01:47,319 who fought the Second World War. 23 00:02:08,520 --> 00:02:12,479 After two years of bitter fighting in Russia, 24 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:16,479 the Eastern Front was at a standstill. 25 00:02:17,880 --> 00:02:21,879 In the north, Leningrad was still surrounded by the Germans. 26 00:02:22,920 --> 00:02:26,919 After 700 days of siege, the Soviets continued to resist. 27 00:02:32,640 --> 00:02:36,639 In the centre, Moscow had still not been captured by the Germans. 28 00:02:43,640 --> 00:02:47,639 In the south, the drive towards the Baku oilfields had come to a halt 29 00:02:48,640 --> 00:02:52,639 in the Caucasian mountains. 30 00:02:55,280 --> 00:02:59,279 In Stalingrad, the Russians were holding their ground. 31 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:02,559 Contrary to Hitler's declarations, 32 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:06,559 Soviet boats continued to cross the Volga, bringing reinforcements. 33 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:11,959 Every day, thousands of young men, sometimes without any weapons 34 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:16,319 or military training, were disembarked on the riverbank. 35 00:03:16,320 --> 00:03:20,039 Those who backed away from the German shells 36 00:03:20,040 --> 00:03:24,039 were ruthlessly executed by the political commissars. 37 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:34,519 One officer, Colonel Ludnikov declares: 38 00:03:34,920 --> 00:03:37,479 "We fight for each and every metre of earth. 39 00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:40,759 "But our metre is different, it is the Stalingrad metre. 40 00:03:40,760 --> 00:03:43,239 "Every centimetre counts. 41 00:03:43,240 --> 00:03:44,799 "We bite the earth. 42 00:03:44,800 --> 00:03:48,799 "We do not retreat." 43 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:54,279 The Germans tried to drive them out with flame-throwers. 44 00:04:02,840 --> 00:04:06,839 Stalingrad became a raging inferno. 45 00:04:13,160 --> 00:04:14,839 On the 7th of November, 46 00:04:14,840 --> 00:04:18,519 the anniversary of the Revolution, the beleaguered soldiers 47 00:04:18,520 --> 00:04:21,519 holding Stalingrad and the Russian troops along the Front 48 00:04:21,520 --> 00:04:23,639 heard their commander in chief, Stalin, 49 00:04:23,640 --> 00:04:25,559 make this astonishing declaration: 50 00:04:25,560 --> 00:04:29,559 "Tomorrow there will be celebrations in our streets!" 51 00:04:32,600 --> 00:04:36,239 General Georgi Zhukov, the man who had saved Moscow, 52 00:04:36,240 --> 00:04:39,279 had a plan for Stalingrad - 53 00:04:39,280 --> 00:04:42,039 to keep the tiny centres of resistance fighting on 54 00:04:42,040 --> 00:04:45,559 in order to keep the German troops of General von Paulus 55 00:04:45,560 --> 00:04:48,159 inside the city. 56 00:04:48,160 --> 00:04:51,039 Meanwhile, on the other side of the Volga, 57 00:04:51,040 --> 00:04:54,799 Zhukov was secretly assembling a new army. 58 00:04:54,800 --> 00:04:58,039 Every man had to swear an oath to Stalin. 59 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:02,039 IN TRANSLATION FROM RUSSIAN 60 00:05:16,920 --> 00:05:20,399 The Soviet Union had been ravaged. 61 00:05:20,400 --> 00:05:22,639 A quarter of its territory had been lost. 62 00:05:22,640 --> 00:05:25,679 But workers across the entire Soviet Union 63 00:05:25,680 --> 00:05:28,199 were toiling to provide this new army 64 00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:30,559 with huge amounts of equipment. 65 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:34,159 Factories that were moved out and rebuilt on the Asian border 66 00:05:34,160 --> 00:05:38,039 were operating 24 hours a day. 67 00:05:38,040 --> 00:05:41,879 Here, countless lives would also be sacrificed. 68 00:05:41,880 --> 00:05:44,119 In the winter of 1942, 69 00:05:44,120 --> 00:05:48,119 the women working in these unheated workshops were cold and hungry. 70 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:52,079 Many died, simply of exhaustion. 71 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:56,079 But the country's industrial production increased tenfold. 72 00:05:58,640 --> 00:06:02,639 The United States was also providing massive aid to Russia. 73 00:06:03,320 --> 00:06:05,999 The Allies were able to reduce the threat 74 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:08,559 posed by German U-boats in the North Atlantic 75 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:12,559 by forming convoys protected by the Navy to bring supplies to Britain. 76 00:06:13,640 --> 00:06:16,439 Anti-Communism was a thing of the past. 77 00:06:16,440 --> 00:06:20,439 For the Americans, Joseph Stalin was now "Uncle Joe". 78 00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:24,919 In Britain, he was "Good old Joe". 79 00:06:28,280 --> 00:06:32,279 The Russians received huge shipments of Jeeps, tanks, planes, trucks, 80 00:06:34,120 --> 00:06:38,119 and corned beef. 81 00:06:38,280 --> 00:06:41,679 When they opened the tinned meat, the Russian soldiers joked, 82 00:06:41,680 --> 00:06:44,719 "We're opening the second front." 83 00:06:44,720 --> 00:06:48,439 Everyone expected the Allies to do more to help the Russians. 84 00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:52,439 Stalin called for a Second Front, for landings in occupied Europe. 85 00:06:56,640 --> 00:07:00,639 In Egypt, however, the British were pushed back by the Germans. 86 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:05,039 Rommel was promoted by Hitler to Field Marshall after his victories 87 00:07:05,520 --> 00:07:07,279 in the desert, and his tank army, 88 00:07:07,280 --> 00:07:11,279 the Afrika Korps, was getting dangerously close to the Suez Canal. 89 00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:16,959 They had reached El Alamein - 90 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:19,039 just 80 miles from Cairo. 91 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:23,039 CHEERING 92 00:07:24,880 --> 00:07:27,879 Prime Minister Winston Churchill paid a visit to Egypt 93 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:30,279 to encourage his army in the desert. 94 00:07:30,280 --> 00:07:34,279 The situation was grim, but he retained his sense of humour. 95 00:07:35,520 --> 00:07:39,519 He said, "The secret to good health is to drink, smoke and, above all, 96 00:07:40,320 --> 00:07:43,159 "to do no exercise." 97 00:07:43,160 --> 00:07:47,159 And yet he had already suffered a minor heart attack. 98 00:07:50,600 --> 00:07:54,599 He met with the newly-appointed General, Bernard Montgomery. 99 00:07:57,800 --> 00:08:01,759 Montgomery wasn't Churchill's first choice, but he was now in command 100 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:05,759 of the 8th Army, made up of British, Australians, New Zealanders, 101 00:08:05,760 --> 00:08:09,759 South Africans and Free French soldiers. 102 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:14,519 As soon as he arrived, Montgomery ordered a new programme 103 00:08:14,520 --> 00:08:18,519 of physical exercises and discipline to be imposed. 104 00:08:20,960 --> 00:08:24,919 One of his officers, Captain Belchem, remembered: 105 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:28,919 "What struck us was that he was small and thin. 106 00:08:29,240 --> 00:08:31,519 "He wasn't tanned like the rest of us. 107 00:08:31,520 --> 00:08:34,119 "He said a few words for the occasion. 108 00:08:34,120 --> 00:08:37,479 "'We're going to fight at El Alamein, and we'll come out of it 109 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:41,479 "'dead or alive.' And he hung a picture of Rommel in his tent." 110 00:08:42,120 --> 00:08:45,319 Montgomery was the opposite of Rommel. 111 00:08:45,320 --> 00:08:46,959 He was cautious, not daring. 112 00:08:46,960 --> 00:08:49,239 He waited until his army was superior 113 00:08:49,240 --> 00:08:53,239 in terms of both men and equipment. He was lucky to get the new, 114 00:08:53,920 --> 00:08:57,639 American, Sherman tanks, built for speed and power. 115 00:08:57,640 --> 00:09:00,119 But paths still needed to be cleared for them 116 00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:04,119 through the desert minefields. 117 00:09:05,960 --> 00:09:09,279 Captain Belchem explained: 118 00:09:09,280 --> 00:09:11,999 "There is nothing more horrible. 119 00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:15,999 "Everyone had planted mines. Millions of them. 120 00:09:18,560 --> 00:09:22,559 "The German mines with the double springs were the most diabolical." 121 00:09:23,160 --> 00:09:26,879 EXPLOSION 122 00:09:26,880 --> 00:09:30,879 "The poor chap who stepped on one would hear the click, 123 00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:32,959 "but nothing would happen. 124 00:09:32,960 --> 00:09:34,719 "Then when he raised his foot..." 125 00:09:34,720 --> 00:09:38,719 EXPLOSION 126 00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:45,719 On the 23rd of October 1942, 127 00:09:45,720 --> 00:09:48,879 Montgomery finally launched his offensive, 128 00:09:48,880 --> 00:09:52,879 with an artillery barrage followed by a massive tank assault. 129 00:09:56,040 --> 00:10:00,039 But the German 88mm guns caused tremendous losses. 130 00:10:01,560 --> 00:10:05,559 Rommel's soldiers counter-attacked relentlessly. 131 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:14,999 The battle turned into a bayonet charge, 132 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:18,399 just like at the Battle of the Somme in 1916, 133 00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:22,399 with heavy casualties on both sides. 134 00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:27,119 But in this deadly game, the side with most men and guns would win. 135 00:10:28,920 --> 00:10:30,479 Rommel wrote: 136 00:10:30,480 --> 00:10:34,479 "We're simply being crushed by the enemy's weight." 137 00:10:34,560 --> 00:10:37,759 He received a message from Hitler telling him, 138 00:10:37,760 --> 00:10:41,159 "There can be no other thought than to stand fast, 139 00:10:41,160 --> 00:10:44,399 "yield not a yard of ground." 140 00:10:44,400 --> 00:10:46,999 Rommel wrote in his secret diary: 141 00:10:47,000 --> 00:10:50,559 "I rack my brains for a way out of this plight for my poor troops. 142 00:10:50,560 --> 00:10:54,559 "We are facing perhaps the most difficult days a man can undergo. 143 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:58,879 "The dead are lucky - it's all over for them." 144 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:04,879 Finally, Rommel ordered a retreat. 145 00:11:05,480 --> 00:11:09,199 He saved his men by stealing petrol from his Italian allies, 146 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:11,719 who were left to be taken prisoner, 147 00:11:11,720 --> 00:11:15,719 even though they had fought courageously during the battle. 148 00:11:27,000 --> 00:11:28,399 CHURCHILL'S VOICE OVER PA 149 00:11:28,400 --> 00:11:30,599 In London, 150 00:11:30,600 --> 00:11:34,599 Churchill announced what was the first good news of the war. 151 00:11:34,680 --> 00:11:38,199 Now, this is not the end. 152 00:11:38,200 --> 00:11:42,199 It is not even the beginning of the end. 153 00:11:42,400 --> 00:11:46,399 But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. 154 00:11:48,320 --> 00:11:50,519 "The end of the beginning." 155 00:11:50,520 --> 00:11:53,879 Churchill's words rang out around the world. 156 00:11:53,880 --> 00:11:57,879 The British lion had stood up to Hitler. 157 00:11:59,840 --> 00:12:03,839 Back in his headquarters, the Wolf's Lair, Hitler was scornful. 158 00:12:05,600 --> 00:12:09,479 He declared, "It's just a setback. 159 00:12:09,480 --> 00:12:13,479 "The war will go on." 160 00:12:24,480 --> 00:12:27,079 Two weeks after the victory at El Alamein, 161 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:31,079 the Allies opened up a new Front with landings in North Africa. 162 00:12:32,880 --> 00:12:36,879 A first step towards controlling the Mediterranean. 163 00:12:42,040 --> 00:12:43,879 As in the First World War, 164 00:12:43,880 --> 00:12:47,879 American troops sailed across the Atlantic to join a European war. 165 00:12:50,800 --> 00:12:54,679 Outside Casablanca and Oran, the British and Americans landings 166 00:12:54,680 --> 00:12:58,679 were greeted with heavy gunfire from the French. 167 00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:04,959 North Africa was still controlled by the French Vichy regime, 168 00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:07,319 which collaborated with the Germans. 169 00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:11,319 So now Frenchmen were fighting against British and American troops. 170 00:13:13,200 --> 00:13:16,159 The Free French leader, General de Gaulle, 171 00:13:16,160 --> 00:13:20,159 broadcast over the radio from London. 172 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:38,319 After two days of heavy fighting, the French guns fell silent. 173 00:13:38,800 --> 00:13:42,799 The Allied landings then continued unopposed. 174 00:13:48,680 --> 00:13:51,639 In Algiers, the pragmatic US Commander-In-Chief, 175 00:13:51,640 --> 00:13:54,759 General Dwight D Eisenhower, 176 00:13:54,760 --> 00:13:58,759 negotiated with the Vichy regime's military commander, Admiral Darlan. 177 00:13:59,680 --> 00:14:03,679 Darlan was one of France most diehard collaborators. 178 00:14:04,200 --> 00:14:06,159 He had even met Hitler. 179 00:14:06,160 --> 00:14:10,159 But now he decided to switch sides, and the French forces in Algeria 180 00:14:11,160 --> 00:14:13,439 and Morocco joined the Allies. 181 00:14:13,440 --> 00:14:15,599 A few weeks later, 182 00:14:15,600 --> 00:14:19,599 Darlan would be assassinated by a French Resistance fighter. 183 00:14:20,360 --> 00:14:21,919 CHEERING 184 00:14:21,920 --> 00:14:24,119 At last, the Americans were greeted 185 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:28,119 warmly by the French in North Africa. 186 00:14:28,320 --> 00:14:32,239 But Hitler had countered the Allies by occupying Tunisia, 187 00:14:32,240 --> 00:14:35,159 a country still controlled by the Vichy regime, 188 00:14:35,160 --> 00:14:39,159 which allowed the Germans to stay. 189 00:14:43,680 --> 00:14:45,999 Rommel was retreating towards Tunisia. 190 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:49,639 Then, in order to secure the Mediterranean coast, 191 00:14:49,640 --> 00:14:53,639 Hitler invaded the southern half of France, the unoccupied Free Zone. 192 00:14:56,680 --> 00:14:59,239 Hitler's orders were to take the port of Toulon, 193 00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:02,279 where most of the French navy was based. 194 00:15:02,280 --> 00:15:05,959 Petain's admirals decided to scuttle their fleet. 195 00:15:05,960 --> 00:15:09,719 They sunk their own ships in order to keep them from falling into 196 00:15:09,720 --> 00:15:12,159 the hands of the Germans. 197 00:15:12,160 --> 00:15:13,719 Or the Allies. 198 00:15:13,720 --> 00:15:17,719 This was the price paid for the compromises of the Petain regime. 199 00:15:18,040 --> 00:15:22,039 But also, it was a blow for Hitler. 200 00:15:27,080 --> 00:15:30,519 The arrival of the Germans spread terror throughout the former 201 00:15:30,520 --> 00:15:34,519 Free Zone, where many Jews had found a precarious refuge. 202 00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:40,159 Amid the increasingly sinister atmosphere of round-ups 203 00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:42,279 and denunciations all over Europe, 204 00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:45,719 children were saved by courageous families, 205 00:15:45,720 --> 00:15:49,719 like Carl de Brouwer's family. 206 00:15:52,560 --> 00:15:55,359 De Brouwer was a Belgian banker. 207 00:15:55,360 --> 00:15:58,519 He filmed his four children, while he and his wife Denise 208 00:15:58,520 --> 00:16:02,519 hid two Jewish children. 209 00:16:02,560 --> 00:16:06,559 Monique Mogoulsky, the 12-year-old daughter of an engineer - 210 00:16:06,880 --> 00:16:09,159 who was himself in hiding somewhere - 211 00:16:09,160 --> 00:16:13,159 and six-year-old Adrien Sapcaru. 212 00:16:13,800 --> 00:16:17,119 Adrien's mother was arrested and deported to a work camp 213 00:16:17,120 --> 00:16:19,519 in Eastern Europe. 214 00:16:19,520 --> 00:16:23,519 She would never return from Auschwitz. 215 00:16:25,040 --> 00:16:29,039 By now, many people began to suspect that when the occupiers used words 216 00:16:30,120 --> 00:16:34,119 like "work camp", what they really meant was "death camp". 217 00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:40,679 Carl and Denise de Brouwer were everyday heroes who would 218 00:16:40,680 --> 00:16:44,679 later be awarded the title of Righteous Among The Nations, 219 00:16:45,440 --> 00:16:49,119 along with nearly 20,000 other men and women 220 00:16:49,120 --> 00:16:53,119 from all over occupied Europe. 221 00:16:57,960 --> 00:17:00,639 1,200 miles away, outside Stalingrad, 222 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:04,639 the Germans were enjoying a brief respite before returning to fight 223 00:17:04,680 --> 00:17:08,679 the Russians and to eliminate the remaining pockets of resistance. 224 00:17:18,320 --> 00:17:21,199 The German army's flanks were defended by units from 225 00:17:21,200 --> 00:17:25,039 the Reich satellite countries - Romanians, Hungarians 226 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:29,039 and Italians, who were totally unaware of the danger looming. 227 00:17:32,920 --> 00:17:36,919 A few miles away, the Soviet troops were preparing to attack. 228 00:17:43,720 --> 00:17:46,839 They were filled with hate. And there were more than 229 00:17:46,840 --> 00:17:50,839 a million of them. 230 00:17:52,280 --> 00:17:55,919 Their plan was to storm the enemy's weakest units in order to surround 231 00:17:55,920 --> 00:17:59,919 the German army occupying Stalingrad. 232 00:18:03,760 --> 00:18:05,479 At 5am on November 19th, 233 00:18:05,480 --> 00:18:09,479 3,000 guns and Katyushas opened up on the enemy lines. 234 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:20,879 An Italian soldier fighting alongside the Germans, 235 00:18:20,880 --> 00:18:24,319 Eugenio Corti, described the scene. 236 00:18:24,320 --> 00:18:26,119 The rockets came down as fast as hail. 237 00:18:26,120 --> 00:18:30,119 The ground was shaking, just like in an earthquake. 238 00:18:34,760 --> 00:18:38,759 Zhukov's massive army now went on the offensive. 239 00:18:50,560 --> 00:18:54,559 The Hungarians collapsed because they didn't have enough ammunition. 240 00:18:54,600 --> 00:18:57,839 The Romanians were defeated because they didn't have 241 00:18:57,840 --> 00:19:01,839 any anti-tank weapons. 242 00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:05,999 The Italians were slaughtered. 243 00:19:13,200 --> 00:19:16,959 The two Russian armies from the north and the south met up, 244 00:19:16,960 --> 00:19:20,959 and Soviet film-makers recreated the moment of glory. 245 00:19:29,120 --> 00:19:33,119 The Germans watched as the Russian tanks closed the circle around them. 246 00:19:36,880 --> 00:19:40,879 General von Paulus's Sixth Army was now trapped inside Stalingrad. 247 00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:48,359 Hitler was at the Berghof, his retreat in the Bavarian Alps, 248 00:19:48,360 --> 00:19:52,279 when he was informed of the Soviet offensive. 249 00:19:52,280 --> 00:19:54,999 His immediate reaction was to tell his associates, 250 00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:58,999 "We have to hide this news from the German people." 251 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:05,439 He rushed to his headquarters in East Prussia, declaring, 252 00:20:05,440 --> 00:20:08,479 If the Sixth Army withdraws from Stalingrad, 253 00:20:08,480 --> 00:20:12,479 the Wehrmacht will never be able to return there. 254 00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:18,199 General von Paulus could still have broken out of the encirclement, 255 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:20,799 but he would have had to disobey orders. 256 00:20:20,800 --> 00:20:23,599 For when Hitler arrived at the Wolf's Lair, 257 00:20:23,600 --> 00:20:25,639 he sent him this message. 258 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:27,199 "Stand firm. 259 00:20:27,200 --> 00:20:31,199 "An army will come to rescue you." 260 00:20:31,840 --> 00:20:35,279 But no army was able to reach them and the aircraft of the Luftwaffe 261 00:20:35,280 --> 00:20:38,559 failed to provide them with sufficient supplies, 262 00:20:38,560 --> 00:20:40,399 in spite of the promises made by 263 00:20:40,400 --> 00:20:44,399 the head of the air force, Hermann Goering. 264 00:20:47,120 --> 00:20:49,519 At Christmas, rations were reduced 265 00:20:49,520 --> 00:20:53,519 to 50 grams of bread and 12 grams of fat. 266 00:20:56,840 --> 00:21:00,839 Paul Gerhardt Moeller, a 30-year-old medical corps soldier, wrote home. 267 00:21:03,040 --> 00:21:04,759 Dearest Magdalena. 268 00:21:04,760 --> 00:21:06,759 This letter is an attempt, 269 00:21:06,760 --> 00:21:10,759 probably the last, to contact the outside world. 270 00:21:10,760 --> 00:21:11,839 My darling, 271 00:21:11,840 --> 00:21:15,839 I don't want to cause you any needless pain, but you should be 272 00:21:15,880 --> 00:21:18,599 aware of what things are like here. 273 00:21:18,600 --> 00:21:21,399 There are so many wounded. 274 00:21:21,400 --> 00:21:24,199 The situation is much more miserable than anything 275 00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:27,439 we have experienced until now. 276 00:21:27,440 --> 00:21:31,439 I want to thank you again for being so faithful and for your love. 277 00:21:31,600 --> 00:21:35,599 I've caused you to suffer too often, and that makes me very sad. 278 00:21:36,400 --> 00:21:40,399 Please forgive me. 279 00:21:45,640 --> 00:21:47,759 Lieutenant von Loebbecke wrote... 280 00:21:47,760 --> 00:21:51,399 On our radios, we heard a Russian repeating over and over in German, 281 00:21:51,400 --> 00:21:55,399 "A German soldier dies in Russia every seven seconds. 282 00:21:56,680 --> 00:21:58,399 "Stalingrad Massengrab." 283 00:21:58,400 --> 00:22:02,399 Stalingrad, a mass grave. 284 00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:21,559 Mussolini, who had just lost an army at Stalingrad, was desperate 285 00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:25,119 for a way to end the war. 286 00:22:25,120 --> 00:22:29,119 He said to Hitler, "I am convinced that Russia can never be destroyed. 287 00:22:30,560 --> 00:22:34,559 "A territory that big could never be conquered." 288 00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:39,519 He took Hitler aside and added, "The Russian chapter is over. 289 00:22:40,760 --> 00:22:44,759 "We should make peace with Stalin." 290 00:22:45,800 --> 00:22:49,719 But for Hitler, to agree to negotiate was to admit that 291 00:22:49,720 --> 00:22:52,959 the campaign in Russia had been a huge failure. 292 00:22:52,960 --> 00:22:56,959 Nonetheless, secret talks were started through the intermediary 293 00:22:57,000 --> 00:22:59,639 of Sweden and the Vatican. 294 00:22:59,640 --> 00:23:03,639 Future events, however, would not give Hitler any choice. 295 00:23:13,040 --> 00:23:16,599 On the 13th of January 1943 296 00:23:16,600 --> 00:23:19,559 Roosevelt, the President of the United States, 297 00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:23,359 arrived in Casablanca to attend his first big conference overseas. 298 00:23:23,360 --> 00:23:25,439 He and Churchill wanted to 299 00:23:25,440 --> 00:23:29,439 agree on the priorities for the next stage of the war in the west. 300 00:23:34,080 --> 00:23:38,079 Churchill and the British team were clearly focused on their objectives. 301 00:23:39,280 --> 00:23:42,719 After several days of talks, the Prime Minister and the President 302 00:23:42,720 --> 00:23:44,919 agreed on the way ahead. 303 00:23:44,920 --> 00:23:48,399 At the closing press conference, Roosevelt and Churchill 304 00:23:48,400 --> 00:23:51,479 made a declaration of the utmost importance. 305 00:23:51,480 --> 00:23:55,479 They announced that the ultimate objective of Allied policy 306 00:23:55,640 --> 00:23:59,639 was the unconditional surrender of Germany, Japan and Italy. 307 00:24:03,520 --> 00:24:07,199 There would be no more negotiating. 308 00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:11,199 The Allies would keep fighting the Axis powers until the very end. 309 00:24:12,760 --> 00:24:16,439 The price in lives would be high, and many believed that this position, 310 00:24:16,440 --> 00:24:19,439 whose purpose was to reassure the Russians, 311 00:24:19,440 --> 00:24:23,439 would only increase the devotion of the German people to their Fuhrer. 312 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:31,999 Stalin was satisfied. 313 00:24:32,000 --> 00:24:35,759 He feared that Hitler would conclude a separate peace with the Allies 314 00:24:35,760 --> 00:24:39,759 in order to pit all of his forces against Russia. 315 00:24:39,760 --> 00:24:42,839 He now launched his offensive to annihilate 316 00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:46,839 the remains of the German Army still inside the ruins of Stalingrad. 317 00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:04,039 A Soviet captain, Joseph Praoutov, wrote to his wife: 318 00:25:05,960 --> 00:25:08,279 "I feel better now. 319 00:25:08,280 --> 00:25:10,559 "We've got the better of those snakes. 320 00:25:10,560 --> 00:25:14,159 "We've captured a lot of them." 321 00:25:14,160 --> 00:25:16,959 "They're starting to pay for the blood they have shed, 322 00:25:16,960 --> 00:25:19,079 "for the tears of our people. 323 00:25:19,080 --> 00:25:22,959 "I'll be home soon. I'm sending you 500 roubles. 324 00:25:22,960 --> 00:25:26,959 "Joseph." 325 00:25:32,680 --> 00:25:36,679 The Russians fought their way to the centre of the city. 326 00:25:42,320 --> 00:25:46,319 Beyond the Red Flag was a building where the commander of the 6th Army, 327 00:25:47,520 --> 00:25:51,319 General Friedrich von Paulus, was entrenched. 328 00:25:51,320 --> 00:25:54,519 His men surrendered one by one. 329 00:25:54,520 --> 00:25:58,519 Then Von Paulus himself surrendered, on the 31st of January 1943. 330 00:26:01,560 --> 00:26:05,439 The day before, Hitler had promoted him to Field Marshal, 331 00:26:05,440 --> 00:26:09,439 thinking it would compel him to commit suicide in order to save his honour. 332 00:26:10,880 --> 00:26:14,879 But Von Paulus, on the verge of collapse, weakened by dysentery 333 00:26:16,000 --> 00:26:17,919 and disgusted by the absurdity 334 00:26:17,920 --> 00:26:21,919 of Hitler's orders, let himself be captured. 335 00:26:23,800 --> 00:26:27,799 Field Marshal Von Paulus was a fantastic prize for the Russians. 336 00:26:28,880 --> 00:26:32,839 He was the man who had masterminded Operation Barbarossa, 337 00:26:32,840 --> 00:26:35,799 the invasion of the Soviet Union. 338 00:26:35,800 --> 00:26:38,559 The Soviet officials could hardly believe it 339 00:26:38,560 --> 00:26:42,559 and asked him for his military papers to verify his identity. 340 00:26:47,800 --> 00:26:50,679 Von Paulus went on to collaborate with the Russians 341 00:26:50,680 --> 00:26:54,679 and testified at the Nuremberg Trials against his former commanders. 342 00:27:01,240 --> 00:27:05,239 He later chose to live in Communist East Germany. 343 00:27:06,600 --> 00:27:10,599 His reaction was mainly a rejection of Hitler's senseless policies. 344 00:27:11,160 --> 00:27:14,799 Many of his men felt the same way. 345 00:27:14,800 --> 00:27:18,799 "Hitler can go to the devil", the German prisoners dared to mutter 346 00:27:19,520 --> 00:27:23,519 in the few words of Russian they knew. "We want to go home." 347 00:27:30,720 --> 00:27:33,839 After the German defeat at Stalingrad, hope was revived 348 00:27:33,840 --> 00:27:37,839 among the people in every country occupied by Nazi Germany. 349 00:27:41,120 --> 00:27:43,108 The German news broadcasts did not, of course, 350 00:27:43,120 --> 00:27:45,119 show any of these images. And Hitler said: 351 00:27:46,720 --> 00:27:48,959 "We must not use the word surrender. 352 00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:50,999 "We must explain that our men 353 00:27:51,000 --> 00:27:54,999 "were unable to receive supplies, and that's why they were beaten. 354 00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:59,079 "We have to use the word sacrifice." 355 00:28:01,160 --> 00:28:05,039 The Nazis tried to turn this disaster into an opportunity 356 00:28:05,040 --> 00:28:09,039 for galvanizing the German people. 357 00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:13,239 At a huge rally in Berlin's Sports Palace, Joseph Goebbels, 358 00:28:13,240 --> 00:28:17,239 the Minister of Propaganda, tried to mobilize the nation's energy 359 00:28:17,840 --> 00:28:21,839 and resources after the defeat. 360 00:28:50,000 --> 00:28:53,999 CROWD SINGS 361 00:29:11,160 --> 00:29:15,159 In the audience, ecstatic, was Albert Speer. 362 00:29:17,920 --> 00:29:21,919 He provided Hitler with the means to implement total war. 363 00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:26,279 Hitler called him his only friend. 364 00:29:28,080 --> 00:29:32,079 This 38-year-old architect, creator of the Fuhrer's 365 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:36,559 wild architectural dreams, had been appointed Minister of Armaments. 366 00:29:39,840 --> 00:29:43,559 Speer gave a new impetus to German war industry. 367 00:29:43,560 --> 00:29:47,559 He was a brilliant organiser but, above all, he was an ardent Nazi. 368 00:29:49,560 --> 00:29:53,559 Under his orders, four million Soviet civilians were rounded up 369 00:29:54,480 --> 00:29:57,239 and worked to exhaustion or death. 370 00:29:57,240 --> 00:30:01,239 After Russia and Poland, it was occupied France 371 00:30:02,000 --> 00:30:05,999 that provided the Nazis with the greatest number of workers. 372 00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:08,519 The Vichy regime handed out 373 00:30:08,520 --> 00:30:12,519 compulsory work permits and sent 600,000 French workers to Germany. 374 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:26,439 Behind the walls of the Warsaw Ghetto, 375 00:30:26,440 --> 00:30:30,439 the Germans were confronted by a Jewish uprising. 376 00:30:33,160 --> 00:30:37,159 EXPLOSION 377 00:30:38,280 --> 00:30:42,279 Before the war, the Warsaw Ghetto had been a lively, 378 00:30:42,320 --> 00:30:46,319 open district, filmed in colour here by an American tourist. 379 00:30:52,880 --> 00:30:56,559 These Jews were just like the characters in the Yiddish novels 380 00:30:56,560 --> 00:31:00,559 of Sholem Aleichem, who wrote, "May everyone remember us with a smile." 381 00:31:12,960 --> 00:31:16,959 These were the same human beings in 1940. 382 00:31:18,680 --> 00:31:22,679 The Nazis had turned the ghetto into an overpopulated prison. 383 00:31:23,560 --> 00:31:25,839 This woman shrieks in grief 384 00:31:25,840 --> 00:31:29,839 as she carries her dead child through its streets. 385 00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:38,159 This was the ghetto in 1941. 386 00:31:45,320 --> 00:31:49,319 In 1942. 387 00:31:52,840 --> 00:31:56,839 In 1943. 388 00:31:58,720 --> 00:32:02,719 The Nazis deliberately starved the people in order to weaken them 389 00:32:02,920 --> 00:32:04,999 and prevent any kind of revolt. 390 00:32:05,000 --> 00:32:08,999 But the Jews managed to smuggle in weapons, and they died fighting. 391 00:32:12,360 --> 00:32:14,479 The survivors were deported to 392 00:32:14,480 --> 00:32:18,479 the Treblinka extermination camp, and murdered. 393 00:32:23,480 --> 00:32:27,479 The ghetto was razed to the ground. 394 00:32:33,560 --> 00:32:37,279 At the same time, the Allies won another victory. 395 00:32:37,280 --> 00:32:40,919 British and American armies triumphantly entered Tunis. 396 00:32:40,920 --> 00:32:44,919 CROWDS CHEER 397 00:32:48,080 --> 00:32:52,079 Behind these gates, the Germans had already initiated policies 398 00:32:52,600 --> 00:32:56,599 to persecute the Jews in Tunisia during their short-lived occupation. 399 00:32:57,120 --> 00:33:01,119 The Allies immediately told them to remove their yellow stars. 400 00:33:05,640 --> 00:33:09,639 The Italian prisoners were jeered at by the crowds. 401 00:33:23,320 --> 00:33:27,159 Rommel, stranded in Tunisia, was filmed by one of his officers 402 00:33:27,160 --> 00:33:31,159 before he boarded one of the last planes leaving for Germany. 403 00:33:31,880 --> 00:33:33,079 He wrote: 404 00:33:33,080 --> 00:33:34,799 "I have received instructions 405 00:33:34,800 --> 00:33:37,799 "to take sick leave and get myself back into shape. 406 00:33:37,800 --> 00:33:41,799 "All my efforts to save my men and get them back to Europe have been fruitless. 407 00:33:42,240 --> 00:33:45,239 "Orders have been issued by the Fuhrer's headquarters 408 00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:48,999 "to maintain the utmost secrecy concerning my recall to Germany. 409 00:33:49,000 --> 00:33:52,999 "My military reputation is still to serve as a deterrent." 410 00:34:04,040 --> 00:34:08,039 Rommel's entire army, the Afrika Korps, 411 00:34:08,160 --> 00:34:11,879 was captured and was now marching in long lines towards the ships of 412 00:34:11,880 --> 00:34:15,879 the American fleet, to be taken away to the other side of the Atlantic. 413 00:34:19,400 --> 00:34:23,399 During the war, 380,000 German prisoners 414 00:34:23,880 --> 00:34:27,879 were sent to Canada and the United States, where escape was impossible. 415 00:34:29,840 --> 00:34:33,839 These prisoners were about to embark on a strange odyssey. 416 00:34:33,960 --> 00:34:36,839 It began on these military transport ships. 417 00:34:36,840 --> 00:34:39,799 Many felt like they were in a dream. 418 00:34:39,800 --> 00:34:43,799 For them, the war was over and they were safe. 419 00:34:46,400 --> 00:34:50,399 But for these German soldiers, even here, the Nazis remained in control. 420 00:34:52,040 --> 00:34:53,759 These men disembarking in Canada 421 00:34:53,760 --> 00:34:57,399 insisted on making the "Heil Hitler" salute - 422 00:34:57,400 --> 00:35:01,399 even if they only had one arm. 423 00:35:09,560 --> 00:35:13,479 On the Eastern Front, since the fall of Stalingrad, 424 00:35:13,480 --> 00:35:17,479 the Wehrmacht was no longer the same. 425 00:35:19,200 --> 00:35:23,199 The soldiers exchanged rumours about the Fuhrer. 426 00:35:25,520 --> 00:35:27,639 "Apparently, he's lost his head. 427 00:35:27,640 --> 00:35:30,999 "He's being secretly held in Berchtesgaden. 428 00:35:31,000 --> 00:35:34,999 "It's his double that we're seeing." 429 00:35:36,720 --> 00:35:38,839 But the rumours were untrue. 430 00:35:38,840 --> 00:35:42,839 Hitler, here in the Berghof, was filmed by his mistress Eva Braun. 431 00:35:47,280 --> 00:35:51,039 Since his army's defeat at Stalingrad and El Alamein, 432 00:35:51,040 --> 00:35:55,039 he had changed. His famous moustache had greyed. 433 00:35:56,400 --> 00:36:00,399 One of his generals, von Senger, was struck by his appearance. 434 00:36:02,280 --> 00:36:05,399 "His skin was flaccid. The look in his blue eyes, which had 435 00:36:05,400 --> 00:36:09,399 "so mesmerised the crowds, was reddened by insomnia." 436 00:36:12,680 --> 00:36:16,679 His physician, Dr Morell, made up cocaine eye drops for him. 437 00:36:20,120 --> 00:36:24,119 Morell was able to make him presentable for public ceremonies. 438 00:36:24,280 --> 00:36:27,079 But Hitler was careful to hide his left arm. 439 00:36:27,080 --> 00:36:29,519 It tended to tremble, 440 00:36:29,520 --> 00:36:33,519 because he was starting to show signs of Parkinson's disease. 441 00:36:44,120 --> 00:36:47,399 As a result, the head of the SS, 442 00:36:47,400 --> 00:36:51,399 Heinrich Himmler, became even more important. 443 00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:56,999 The SS, whose recruits came from the Hitler Youth, 444 00:36:57,240 --> 00:37:00,759 started out as the Schutzstaffel, the protection squad 445 00:37:00,760 --> 00:37:03,159 for Nazi officials. 446 00:37:03,160 --> 00:37:07,159 Later, it provided the guards for the concentration camps. 447 00:37:07,920 --> 00:37:11,919 The SS had now created a powerful army of its own, the Waffen SS. 448 00:37:15,880 --> 00:37:19,759 In the future, these elite troops under Himmler's orders were expected 449 00:37:19,760 --> 00:37:23,759 to replace the Wehrmacht, which was no longer considered 450 00:37:24,320 --> 00:37:26,679 completely loyal. 451 00:37:26,680 --> 00:37:30,599 Himmler recruited increasingly in the occupied countries, like these 452 00:37:30,600 --> 00:37:34,599 fanatics in the Bosnian SS. 453 00:37:36,640 --> 00:37:40,279 In the occupied areas of Russia, the SS also had no difficulty 454 00:37:40,280 --> 00:37:44,279 recruiting two divisions of Cossacks who, in the time of the Tsars, 455 00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:48,359 had been notorious for their bloody anti-Semitic pogroms. 456 00:37:49,080 --> 00:37:53,079 They formed the fearsome 15th SS Cavalry Corps. 457 00:37:59,560 --> 00:38:02,079 The Wehrmacht enlisted one 458 00:38:02,080 --> 00:38:06,079 million Soviet prisoners who were given a simple choice - 459 00:38:06,640 --> 00:38:10,639 die of hunger or fight alongside the Germans. 460 00:38:11,400 --> 00:38:13,959 Some, like former Soviet 461 00:38:13,960 --> 00:38:17,959 general Andrei Vlasov, were also against Stalin. 462 00:38:17,960 --> 00:38:21,959 Vlasov, a hero of the battle of Leningrad, was taken prisoner 463 00:38:22,640 --> 00:38:25,319 and then changed sides. 464 00:38:25,320 --> 00:38:28,559 He went on to command the Russian Liberation Army 465 00:38:28,560 --> 00:38:32,559 under the flag of the Wehrmacht. 466 00:38:33,960 --> 00:38:37,719 The Germans kitted out these foreign troops with the best equipment, 467 00:38:37,720 --> 00:38:41,559 such as the Tiger tank, designed by the brilliant engineer 468 00:38:41,560 --> 00:38:44,359 Ferdinand Porsche. 469 00:38:44,360 --> 00:38:47,079 And with its 88mm gun, 470 00:38:47,080 --> 00:38:51,079 the most effective in the war, one Tiger was worth ten Allied tanks. 471 00:38:58,120 --> 00:39:02,119 Back in the Wolf's Lair, Hitler now began to feel hopeful again. 472 00:39:03,000 --> 00:39:06,999 He could renew his obsession with destroying the Red Army. 473 00:39:10,960 --> 00:39:13,199 He planned a new attack 474 00:39:13,200 --> 00:39:16,559 at Kursk. 475 00:39:16,560 --> 00:39:19,999 The Russians had pushed forward into the German front line, 476 00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:23,559 offering an opportunity to encircle and crush them. 477 00:39:23,560 --> 00:39:27,559 It was called Operation Zitadelle. 478 00:39:29,960 --> 00:39:33,959 It was the biggest armoured clash in history, 479 00:39:34,520 --> 00:39:38,519 2,700 German tanks against 3,600 Soviet tanks. 480 00:39:39,440 --> 00:39:43,439 But the technical superiority of the Tiger was overwhelming. 481 00:39:44,200 --> 00:39:47,079 Hitler was confident. 482 00:39:47,080 --> 00:39:51,079 To lead his force of 600,000 soldiers, he had chosen the man 483 00:39:51,600 --> 00:39:54,119 who had won the Battle of France - 484 00:39:54,120 --> 00:39:58,119 Field Marshal Erich von Manstein. 485 00:40:15,680 --> 00:40:18,839 The offensive, led by the Tiger tanks, 486 00:40:18,840 --> 00:40:22,439 broke through the Soviet lines but encountered massive anti-armour 487 00:40:22,440 --> 00:40:26,439 defences built by the Russians along with dense concentrations of tanks. 488 00:40:35,280 --> 00:40:37,759 The Wehrmacht's troops were pushed back. 489 00:40:37,760 --> 00:40:41,759 They had the impression that the enemy knew exactly where they were going to attack. 490 00:40:41,760 --> 00:40:44,799 Each time, the T-34 Russian tanks 491 00:40:44,800 --> 00:40:48,799 were already there, waiting in ambush. 492 00:40:51,760 --> 00:40:55,759 In fact, code breakers at Bletchley Park in Britain had succeeded in 493 00:40:56,440 --> 00:41:00,439 capturing and decoding the German encryption machine called Enigma, 494 00:41:01,720 --> 00:41:03,279 and they were now able to read 495 00:41:03,280 --> 00:41:04,919 almost all of the top-secret 496 00:41:04,920 --> 00:41:08,919 German orders. 497 00:41:09,280 --> 00:41:12,879 Churchill passed on much of this information to Stalin 498 00:41:12,880 --> 00:41:16,239 without telling him where the intelligence came from. 499 00:41:16,240 --> 00:41:18,279 The Soviets thought the British 500 00:41:18,280 --> 00:41:22,279 had very good agents inside Nazi Germany. 501 00:41:22,520 --> 00:41:26,519 This war was also an espionage war. 502 00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:31,999 At Kursk, the outcome was devastating for 503 00:41:32,480 --> 00:41:36,479 the Germans, who lost 50,000 men in the first phase of the battle. 504 00:41:45,120 --> 00:41:49,119 Von Manstein wanted reinforcements in order to continue his offensive. 505 00:41:51,760 --> 00:41:55,759 Hitler came to visit the front. 506 00:41:56,640 --> 00:42:00,639 Manstein immediately told him, "We've suffered losses, but the 507 00:42:01,320 --> 00:42:04,679 "Russians have, too, even worse." 508 00:42:04,680 --> 00:42:07,159 Hitler seemed very hesitant. 509 00:42:07,160 --> 00:42:09,559 He muttered a few inanities. 510 00:42:09,560 --> 00:42:13,559 Von Manstein later wrote, "He seemed to me to be quite feeble." 511 00:42:15,200 --> 00:42:18,679 This impression was confirmed when von Manstein 512 00:42:18,680 --> 00:42:22,679 showed Hitler the figures of the losses incurred at Kursk. 513 00:42:22,840 --> 00:42:26,839 Since the beginning of the war, two million German soldiers had 514 00:42:26,880 --> 00:42:30,519 been killed, wounded or gone missing in action. 515 00:42:30,520 --> 00:42:34,079 The Waffen SS would never be able to fill that void. 516 00:42:34,080 --> 00:42:37,399 Things were now a far cry from the victories of the 517 00:42:37,400 --> 00:42:41,399 lightning-war campaigns, like the Blitzkrieg conquest of France. 518 00:42:42,600 --> 00:42:45,559 Kursk was the real turning point in the war, 519 00:42:45,560 --> 00:42:48,919 because Hitler moved onto the defensive. 520 00:42:48,920 --> 00:42:52,919 Overcome by paranoia, he insisted on having stenographers present to 521 00:42:54,000 --> 00:42:57,999 record for posterity everything that was said at this crucial moment. 522 00:42:59,640 --> 00:43:03,479 Von Manstein argued that not everything was lost. 523 00:43:03,480 --> 00:43:05,359 But Hitler disagreed. 524 00:43:05,360 --> 00:43:09,359 Von Manstein pleaded with him to continue the offensive. 525 00:43:09,880 --> 00:43:13,879 Hitler refused. The Battle of Kursk was over. 526 00:43:16,680 --> 00:43:20,679 For Hitler, the priority was now to send reinforcements to Sicily, 527 00:43:21,560 --> 00:43:25,559 where the American and British armies had just landed. 528 00:43:26,320 --> 00:43:28,479 The noose was tightening. 529 00:43:28,480 --> 00:43:32,479 Things were moving fast. 530 00:43:34,480 --> 00:43:38,479 All Hitler could do was try to hold back the advancing Allies. 531 00:43:44,000 --> 00:43:47,999 But he was unable to prevent the fall of Mussolini, which led Italy 532 00:43:48,080 --> 00:43:52,079 to surrender and to change sides. 533 00:44:00,120 --> 00:44:03,039 The new Italian government had Mussolini imprisoned up in the 534 00:44:03,040 --> 00:44:05,239 mountains. 535 00:44:05,240 --> 00:44:09,239 Hitler sent an airborne commando squad to rescue him. 536 00:44:12,400 --> 00:44:15,399 Hitler wanted Mussolini back in power. 537 00:44:15,400 --> 00:44:17,199 He sent him back to Italy 538 00:44:17,200 --> 00:44:21,199 to re-establish his fascist regime with the help of the German army. 539 00:44:23,440 --> 00:44:24,959 Hitler ordered 540 00:44:24,960 --> 00:44:28,559 the military occupation of Italy and had no qualms about slaughtering 541 00:44:28,560 --> 00:44:32,559 any of his former allies who attempted to resist. 542 00:44:34,400 --> 00:44:38,399 He occupied Rome and immediately started rounding up Jews. 543 00:44:40,720 --> 00:44:44,719 Hitler's main concern was to prevent any further Allied landings in Italy 544 00:44:45,360 --> 00:44:49,359 but above all in France. 545 00:44:51,080 --> 00:44:54,639 This was the idea behind the construction of Fortress Europe with 546 00:44:54,640 --> 00:44:58,639 its Atlantic wall, a vast system of fortifications stretching from 547 00:45:00,120 --> 00:45:04,079 Norway down to the Spanish border. 548 00:45:04,080 --> 00:45:08,079 Rommel was put in charge of defending Fortress Europe. He said, 549 00:45:09,120 --> 00:45:11,399 "It is absolutely necessary 550 00:45:11,400 --> 00:45:15,159 "that we push the British and the Americans back from the beaches. 551 00:45:15,160 --> 00:45:17,399 "Afterwards, it will be too late. 552 00:45:17,400 --> 00:45:21,399 "The first 24 hours of the invasion will be decisive. 553 00:45:21,480 --> 00:45:25,479 "It will be the longest day." 554 00:45:27,960 --> 00:45:31,959 For Rommel and the Nazis, this was the beginning of the end. 555 00:45:34,400 --> 00:45:38,399 But these German newsreel images of Rommel, who had been 556 00:45:38,520 --> 00:45:42,519 invited to tea by Magda Goebbels, the wife of the propaganda minister, 557 00:45:43,320 --> 00:45:47,319 show how the Nazis wanted to project themselves at this point in the war. 558 00:45:48,680 --> 00:45:52,679 Nazi ideology put total faith in victory and vanquished all doubt. 559 00:45:55,360 --> 00:45:59,359 Magda Goebbels worshipped Hitler like a god even 560 00:46:00,400 --> 00:46:04,399 though he was driving Germany into a frenzy of bloodshed and death. 561 00:46:06,400 --> 00:46:10,399 She had given her six children first names that all begin with H, 562 00:46:10,680 --> 00:46:12,719 just like Hitler - 563 00:46:12,720 --> 00:46:16,719 Helga, Hildegard, Helmut, Holdine, Hedwig and Heidrun. 564 00:46:19,280 --> 00:46:23,279 She would kill them all, one by one, on the last day of the Reich.