The Great War: World War I

Episode 1: On the Idle Hill of Summer

The series, unparalleled at the time for its depth of research, range of source material and historical accuracy – all presented in a sequence of clear narratives – is now considered one of the finest achievements of BBC documentary.

Many of the interviewed participants in the First World War were still relatively young – in their late sixties or early seventies – and their memories are still fresh, vivid and disconcertingly frank, giving the series an honesty and a sense of charting still recent history.

For that and many other reasons, it remains arguably the definitive television account of the First World War.

In 1914, the world was on the brink of enormous change:

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andreja

I’ve just watched the 1st episode. And it reminded me of so much of what is going on today, or at least since 2008 until now. only the main actors have changed a little bit. we’ll see if history does repeat its self in so many details.
Tyler

Amazing documentary. Watched alot of WWI shows but this one has lots of unseen footage and interviews with people that were actually there.
Michael Kinsey

The destruction of Orthodoxy and it’s people seems to be a primary outcome and goal of WWI. Armenia, Serbia, and Russia, suffered beyond reason. Only Greece survived this onslaught relatively intact. They are next in the next great conflict, whatever remains of them now.
Joe

Finished 3 episodes so far and I must say its great from the get go!

This is the World War I documentary ive been looking for =) I dont know if its just me, but I have this fascination with WWI
Lynn B.

Just finished the entire twenty-six epsodes. Very deserving of the accolades posted in the comments section odf this website. Little wonder BBC documentaries are so consistently good when this early effort set such a high standard.

The war itself still reaches out to us in many ways. The emergence of total war by martialing industrialization and through blockades to disrupt economies was effective for the first time in this conflict. Technologically, the development of the airplane, battle tank, and sumbarine has had long lasting tactical and strategic importance on the conduct of war since 1918.

The causes and aftermath of Word War I are still salient points in academic circles. Graduate histroy seminars still ask students to debate who is to blame for World War I. Many of the students point, predicatably enough, to Germany, Austria, and Russia. But France and England also bare some repsondsibility.

For an excellent survey of this alliance system taken up in epsode one I would direct anyone interested to Barabar Tuchman’s classic work “The Guns of August.” Balancing the alliances with the diplomatic practices and politiacl realties within the individaul nation-states and empires as well as European imperialism along with the foibles of the Kaiser and the Czar are just some of complexities Tuchnman addresses.

As for the aftermath. the fall of the Hapsburg’s, Romanovs (The Bolshevik Russian Revoituion itself is worth studying WW I alone.), and the elimination of Bismark’s united and autocratic Germany and the abdication of the Kaiser all have far reaching consequences for all of us.

For those interested in the aftermath and the Versailles Treaty, Canadian historian Margaret MacMillan’s “Paris, 1919.” is a well written and organized study. One of the most controversial ideas from the study of Versailles and the end of World War I is that it laid the groundwork for the inevitable emergence of Hitler’s Nazi Germany and World War II. That was certainly covnentional wisdom fro decades. But recently other ideas that shake this histocal interepreation have behgun to emerge.

MacMillan has argued that the reparations paid by the Germans wasn’t that much and that Germany and all of Europe had begun to imrove their economies and that Hitler cancelled most of the payments anyway. From a European point of view these are just a few ideas on why WW I is important.

As for the American perspective, the last episode mentions Wilson’s “fourteen points” and the re-drawing oif the map of Europe. But just as importantly the map of the Middle East was not just re-drawn but essentially created as we know it today. The Brtish Balfour Declaration of 1917 went a long way in legitimizing the Zionst movment that established Israel in 1949 and Truman recognized Israel within minutes.

Wilsonian Internationalism has had a long-term influence on American foreign policy particularly after World War II and continues today. Can anyone say nation-building?
Viking

This was an awesome documentary series. I had never seen it before and was compelled to watch all the episodes nearly back to back. I have seen many documentaries about WW II when my grandfather fought on Omaha Beach and also many documentaries about the Vietnam War where my father fought. Sadly, I don’t recall our history lessons between grade school and college being this detailed with facts and footage about WW I. It makes me wonder, with world events events as they are now, if we have learned any lessons from two past world wars, many localized wars, and the ensuing pain, death, and destruction of our fellow people. Sometimes it seems we as a species are doomed to repeat past mistakes because we collectively forget the absolute horror of war. I’d like to think we could get along and put aside our differences. Watching this series made me very thankful my family and friends never had to deal with the death and total destruction of their homes. I cannot fathom how painful it must have been living through the many years of that conflict. It’s absolutely mind boggling and humbling to think on.
M Theory

Brilliant series. Just finished 4 episodes so far. Will have to spend a long time on this one
gabriellle

cannot get a single documentary to stream or work am sad

http://www.documentarystorm.com Jonas

Are the videos blocked in your country? Did you try reloading the page?

Lee Donaldson

I was very impressed by this documentary , there was lots of new footage I had not seen before. Footage also that had been cleaned up & digitized maybe? many strong images and the commentary is pleasant on the ear .
I spent about 8 hrs watching them and now I gotta stop.
When I was a wee laddie I knew a few elderly men who had been through the Great War and then in my teens I worked with elderly men some of whom had also survived the ordeal. I heard their stories of the horror & the humor. Old Peters tales really put a hook in me.

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