Secrets of War: Espionage (2013)

Unearth the amazing true stories of cunning deception and sabotage that pulsed through the most significant moments of the 20th Century! From double agents to secret weapons, spy planes, and guerrilla campaigns this 10 episode instant classic reveals a wealth of undercover tactics used by history's most influential leaders. Narrated by Oscar Award winner Charlton Heston, this series brings to life the hidden and unique conflicts of war that were once declared classified information.

Crucible of Empire: The Spanish-American War (1999)

Crucible of Empire demonstrates how and why the Spanish-American War constitutes such an important milestone in U.S. history. This program examines the events and attitudes that led to war, followed by an exploration of the conflict and its outcome. Early film footage and stills of battle scenes, plus rich visuals, a compelling story, and intriguing analogies to current foreign policy make Crucible of Empire a riveting documentary.

Escape from Nazi Alcatraz (2014)

Colditz Castle, a notorious prisoner of war camp in Nazi Germany, was supposed to be escape-proof. But at the end of World War II, a group of British officers dreamt up the ultimate escape plan: a two-man glider made out of bed sheets and floorboards. Now a crack team of engineers and carpenters rebuild the glider in the same attic using the same materials to find out if the legendary glider plan would have succeeded.

* Victoria Cross Heroes (2014)

"The most democratic and at the same time the most exclusive all orders of chivalry - the most enviable order of the Victoria Cross." Edward VIII (when Prince of Wales)

Seventy years after that statement, Edward's great nephew, HRH Prince Charles, introduces the definitive history and a landmark series to commemorate and celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Victoria Cross. It pays fitting tribute to the men who have been awarded the highest medal for gallantry. As President of the VC and GC Association and with the Royal Family's long connection with Britain's armed forces, the Prince believes the medal has a particular resonance and significance.

The Empire
'The Empire' centres upon the VCs of the 19th Century, from its hugely popular instigation by Victoria in 1856 after the Crimean war to the war that ended her era, the Boer war at the turn of the century. The Victoria Cross was immediately taken to heart, its winners becoming celebrities equivalent to the pop stars and footballers of now. It includes dramatic reconstructions of Rorke's Drift, from the Indian Mutiny and the Crimea.

The Great War
'The Great War' tells the story of the VC through the first World War. Half of all VCs awarded to date were done so between 1914 and 1919. From the Western Front, through the Somme to Gallipoli, such was the variety of battle that every facet of human bravery was exposed. Stories featured include that of Noel Chavasse, one of only three men to win the VC twice, Boy Cornwell, the youngest recipient, and Billy Leefe-Robinson who shot down a Zeppelin over London to national acclaim.

The Modern Age
'The Modern Age' brings the story of the VC up to date. From the air and sea battles of WWII, through Korea, Vietnam, the Falklands and the current Gulf War, British soldiers have been fighting every year for the last 60 years. And through these years the VC has been awarded less and less. Has the nature of battle changed so much that men are no longer faced with such danger, or has the attention around the VC become so great that the Generals are scared to award it?

42 Ways To Kill Hitler (2014)

We visits locations and use reconstructions to shed new light on the many attempts that were made to assassinate Hitler.

Civil War 360 (2013)

Take a journey back in time and immerse yourself in a 150-year-old battle that nearly split our nation in two. This three-part series explores famous and little known aspects of the Civil War, from the perspectives of the Union, the Confederacy and the millions of enslaved people struggling for freedom. Hosted by Ashley Judd, Trace Adkins, and Dennis Haysbert, all of whom had ancestors greatly affected by the war; this series delivers fresh insights and untold tales, brought to life through dramatic recreations and the Smithsonian Institution's vast collection of artifacts.

Part 1: The Union
We all know who won the Civil War, but there were many moments when victory was anything but certain. Join Ashley Judd, great-great-great granddaughter of a Union soldier, as she takes us back 150 years for an intimate and comprehensive look at the North's battles and struggles during those bloody four years. From iconic artifacts like Old Glory to small objects like field medical kits and soldiers' photos, discover the stunning backstories of seemingly ordinary pieces from our past.

Part 2: The Confederacy
Slave badges from South Carolina. Sheet music filled with boasts of triumph. The jewelry of the First Lady of the Confederacy. Smithsonian curators have collected thousands of Confederate objects from the Civil War, which collectively offer a rich understanding of the South's viewpoint during this pivotal era in American history. Join country music singer Trace Adkins, whose ancestors fought for the South, as he follows the rise and fall of the Confederacy, from the men who fought to define "freedom" on their own terms to those who were caught in the wake of war.

Part 3: Fight for Freedom
A century and a half ago, North battled South in a conflict that would kill more Americans than any other war. The outcome would change our nation forever, and no one had more to gain, or to lose, than American slaves. Join actor Dennis Haysbert as he looks at their struggles through the objects in the Smithsonian's collection. From a child's shackles to the inkwell Lincoln used to write the Emancipation Proclamation, these artifacts transport us to a brutal and complicated time when our country tore itself apart.

What The Dambusters Did Next (2014)

The daring raid is undoubtedly one of the most famous in the history of the Second World War, the subject of a great British blockbuster and countless books. But what did the elite fliers of No 617 Squadron RAF, otherwise known as the Dambusters, do after Operation Chastise? This new documentary provides a wealth of insight into the spectacular missions undertaken by the squadron after the deployment of the famous bouncing bombs in 1943.

The World Wars (2014)

An assassination in Sarajevo sparks a global war. For the next 30 years, deadly fighting rages across Europe, Africa, China and the Pacific. Hitler. Churchill. De Gaulle. MacArthur. Patton. Stalin. Mussolini. We know them as legends. But they first learn what it will take to rise to greatness as young soldiers, fighting for their lives on the frontlines.

Iris Chang: The Rape of Nanking (2007)

About a young Chinese-American author's journey into the darkest reaches of humanity as she researched and wrote her best selling book "The Rape of Nanking". Iris Chang's harrowing experience and dogged determination uncovers in graphic detail the forgotten holocaust of World War II when almost 300,000 Chinese women, children and soldiers were in a matter of weeks systematically raped, tortured and murdered by the invading Japanese forces.

America's Secret D-Day Disaster (2014)

Six weeks before D-Day, British, American, and Canadian soldiers took part in a vigorous and dangerous dress rehearsal for their Normandy invasion. Shockingly, the exercise would ultimately claim more American lives than the attack on Utah Beach. So what happened, exactly? How many Americans actually died? And who is to blame? Join us as we investigate the Exercise Tiger disaster, uncover the veil of secrecy surrounding it, examine the conspiracy theories it has inspired, and for the first time, tell the full story of the catastrophe.

* Britain's Greatest Pilot: The Extraordinary Story of Captain 'Winkle' Brown (2014)

Captain Eric 'Winkle' Brown recounts his flying experiences, encounters with the Nazis and other adventures leading up to and during the Second World War. Illustrated with archive footage and Captain Brown's own photos.

World War One At Home (2014)

World War One At Home reveals how the momentous events of the war affected life on the Home Front. Around 1400 stories will be broadcast throughout 2014 and beyond, on BBC local and national radio and television, and online.

Ninja: Shadow Warriors (2014)

Turn out the lights, hide in the shadows, and enter the secretive realm of the infamous ninja. We explore the untold history of these shadow soldiers; from their formation in the 14th Century to their battles against Samurai forces, led by ninja master Tanba, one of the most feared warriors in ancient Japan. Uncover guarded ninja techniques in spying, sabotage and ruthless undercover warfare, tactics that have earned them a reputation in their homeland as both heroic fighters and cunning, cold-hearted killers.

D-Day Sacrifice (2014)

On the 70th anniversary of D-Day, revisit the Allied forces’ June 6, 1944 Normandy landings and the 100 days leading up to the liberation of Paris from the Nazis.

* Normandy '44: The Battle Beyond D-Day (2014)

As veterans gather to relive one of the turning points of the Second World War, historian James Holland moves beyond the D-Day beaches to reassess the brutal 77-day Battle for Normandy that followed the invasion. Challenging some of the many myths that have grown up around this vital campaign, Holland argues that we have become too comfortable in our understanding of events, developing shorthand to tell this famous story that does great injustice to those that saw action in France across the summer of 1944. Including perspectives from those who fought on both sides, Holland examines not only the nature of the fighting and the higher aims of the campaign, but also the operational level - the nuts and bolts - and in so doing reveals the true complexity of this bitter and bloody battle.

Heroes of War: Poland (2014)

2014 marks the 75th anniversary of the beginning of World War II. This new series takes us back to a time when ordinary people became extraordinary heroes, freedom fighters, spies and code-breakers, often in deadly battles with Nazi forces.
Set in Poland, which was home to some of the war's worst atrocities, Heroes of War uncovers tales of heroism and sacrifice from a number of unsung heroes of World War II. Featuring interviews with the few remaining eyewitnesses, access to newly released documents, re-enactment and archive footage, it reveals the true and, until now, hidden stories of heroism during wartime.

Part 1: Witold Pilecki
The series begins with the extraordinary story of Witold Pilecki, the “Auschwitz Volunteer” who stepped into a German roundup one day in order to see for himself the conditions at the new concentration camp outside Warsaw, known to Poles as Oswiecim. He not only survived the experience but after nearly three years escaped to report the facts to London and eventually to write the story in excruciating detail. Executed in 1948 by Poland’s Russian-controlled secret police

Part 2: Cichociemni
The second program tells the story of the Cichociemni, the Special Operations commandos who trained in Scotland and who were parachuted into Poland and other German-occupied countries to support local resistance groups under the control of the London-based Polish government in exile.

Part 3: Cracking Enigma
The third episode takes up the story of how the British broke the “Enigma” encryption machines of the German armed forces using the knowledge gained by Poland in the 1930s. Working for the Cypher Bureau of the Polish General Staff, and using only encrypted messages, mathematician Marian Rejewski and two colleagues reverse-engineered an Enigma machine and built a “cryptologic bomb” to translate messages

Part 4: Zegota
Less known today is Zegota, an underground organization with cells in Warsaw, Krakow, Vilnius, and Lwow that helped thousands of Jews survive the German occupation. Contrary to the well-established belief in Polish anti-Semitism, Poland was the only country in occupied Europe to have such an organization.

Part 5: Krystyna Skarbek
Finally, one of the best spies in WW2 gives us the astonishing story of Krystyna Skarbek, whose father was a Polish aristocrat and her mother a Jewish banking heiress. She and her second husband were en route to Nairobi where he was to assume a diplomatic post when the war broke out. They immediately changed course and sailed from Cape Town to England and once there she immediately displayed her remarkable gift for persuasion by overcoming the obvious objections. She wasn’t British! She was Polish! She was Jewish! And worst of all, she was a woman! Skarbek made her way home to Poland by way of still-neutral Hungary, crossing the mountainous frontier in December 1939 with the help of a Polish Olympic skier. Captured by the Gestapo, she gained her release and that of a comrade by biting her tongue until it bled, then feigning a tubercular cough. Later she worked in France for the Special Operations Executive,

The American Invasion (2014)

The arrival in Britain of the aircraft and crews of the US air force the largest air force in the world - had a profound effect on the military and social history of World War Two. Presented by renowned actor Michael Brandon, this revealing documentary provides a powerful record of a momentous period in American and British history. The memories and experiences of the local population and surviving US airmen provide the key to understanding the courage of men plucked from home and plunged into the terror of combat in the air.

D-Day (2014)

For the 70th Anniversary of the Allied invasion of Nazi-held Europe, History tells the story of D-Day in HD. Rare footage is rendered in High Definition, then combined with interviews from the men who lived through it. Allied and German survivors tell their first-hand stories about the war that changed the course of the world. Through these stories, the long held belief that an Allied victory was secured after a single, bloody day will be dispelled. In truth, it would take weeks of back and forth struggle before the Allies could cement their foothold in enemy territory. And the final death toll far exceeds anything seen on the beaches. D-Day remains one of the most important turning points of WWII, yet very few of us know the real story…until now.

* Apocalypse: The Second World War (2009)

This series tells the epic story of World War II, providing an insight into the experiences of the millions of soldiers who fought across countries and continents, and the moving stories of the millions of civilians who saw their homes destroyed and lives disrupted by the cataclysm of war.

To tell this story, the best footage of World War II has been painstakingly transformed into colour, using digital techniques. Along with original colour home movies, it gives a new perspective on one of the great events of the last century.

Episode 1: Hitler's Rise to Power (1933-1939)
This first episode covers Hitler's invasion of Poland, when the world stood on the brink of war, and features stunning colourised footage of the catastrophe faced by the Polish army as it was crushed by the Nazi war machine.

Episode 2: Collapse of France (1939-1940)
The story of Hitler's lightning invasion of France and its rapid collapse, of the evacuation from Dunkirk, and of the summer of 1940 when Britain fought on alone. In new digital colour, this episode shows the Battle of Britain and the Blitz.

Episode 3: Origins of the Holocaust (1940-1941)
The story of Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union, of Rommel's war against the British in North Africa and of the horrors of the murder of Russian Jews - sometimes known as the Holocaust by Bullets.

Episode 4: American Allies (1941-1942)
The story of the sudden Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the early days of the war in the Pacific. Back in Europe, this episode looks at the bombing offensive against Germany and at the appalling crime of the Holocaust.

Episode 5: Allies Strike Back (1942-1943)
This episode looks at the turning of the war against Germany, with Allied victory at El Alamein and Russian triumph at Stalingrad. Inside Hitler's Germany the SS gain more power, and in southern Europe the Allies fight their way though Italy.

Episode 6: Retreat and Surrender (944-1945)

The dramatic story of the D-Day landings and of the liberation of Paris. In the east the Soviets liberate Auschwitz and fight their way to the heart of Berlin. Germany finally surrenders, but Japan fights on until the atom bombs are dropped.

* This was produced by a French company.

* 5 Broken Cameras (2013)

Nominated for an Oscar, 5 Broken Cameras is a deeply personal first-hand account of life and nonviolent resistance in Bil’in, a West Bank village where Israel is building a security fence. Palestinian Emad Burnat, who bought his first camera in 2005 to record the birth of his youngest son, shot the film and Israeli filmmaker Guy Davidi co-directed. The filmmakers follow one family’s evolution over five years, witnessing a child’s growth from a newborn baby into a young boy who observes the world unfolding around him. The film is a Palestinian-Israeli-French co-production.