World War II: Total War

Season 1

Not Rated

Examining WWII's totality through expert interviews and footage - mobilizing nations, aerial bombing, the Holocaust, and a world forever changed. Charting strategies that brought cities to rubble and populations to impossible choices.

6 Episodes

A Terrible Precedent
E1
A Terrible PrecedentThe Second World War was the closest the world has come to a complete total war. But it was in the interwar years that nations honed the methods of destruction which were unleashed on a much wider scale in the Second World War. We look to wars in Manchuria, China, Abyssinia and Spain to see how each served as a 'terrible precedent,' revealing elements of total war that soon engulfed the globe.
Arsenal of Democracy
E2
Arsenal of DemocracyTotal War demands resources - economic, agricultural and industrial. When it became clear that strategies of appeasement would not prevent another war, nations across the globe mobilized.
Unprecedented, Unmerciful and Unrelenting
E3
Unprecedented, Unmerciful and UnrelentingWWII shattered the boundaries between battlefield and homefront in much of the world. We examine the impact of occupation and the stories of those who fought to resist their occupiers.
Fear of the Air
E4
Fear of the AirIn WWII, civilians became defenders against and targets of aerial warfare on a scale that had never before been seen.
Rejoice in Life
E5
Rejoice in LifeWWII was not the cause of the Holocaust, but it did provide a means for its execution. Episode #5 explores what role total war played in this genocide.
Enduring Peace
E6
Enduring PeaceThe end of WWII was met with destruction and liberation, relief mixed with grief. In its wake, tens of millions were dead and millions more displaced.