All language subtitles for BBC.The.First.World.War.08of10.Revolution.720p.HDTV.x264.AAC.MVGroup.Forum_[eng]

'Governments in World War I

'feared one thing almost
as much as military defeat -

'revolution.'

'By 1917, with victory on the
battlefield still elusive,

'and morale weakening,

'both sides hoped to bring
the enemy down from within.'

'Strikes and unrest were sparks
to be fanned into revolution -

'transforming the war.'

'Film from 1917 of one of Germany's
wildest dreams coming true -

'Russian troops stop fighting
on the Eastern Front.'

"It was funny to see our Ivans
greeting the Germans."

"The Germans gave our lads
wine and cigars,

"and they gave the Germans bread."

"It turned out that
one of the Germans had a camera."

"He told us to stand in a line
and took a picture."

CAMERA SNAPS

"Later, the photographer asked our
lads to come and collect the
photos."

'Governments worried
how to contain war weariness,

'prevent discontent growing mutinous,
stop mutiny becoming revolution.'

'And governments realised that
turning this problem on its head

'offered a startling opportunity.

'What if unrest could be harnessed?

'Reined in hard in your own country
but spurred on in the enemy's?'

'In Cairo and Dublin,
Petrograd and Zurich,

'the Allies and Germans
set agents working,

'to exploit unrest
and foment revolution.'

'The glittering prize was to turn
a whole people against its masters -

'taking it out of
the war completely.

'In Russia,
the Germans pulled it off,

'backing the Bolsheviks
to hijack a spontaneous revolution.'

'Russia in 1917 was war-weary.'

'Huge losses,
poor leadership and corruption,

'plus the nightmare logistics
of a 900-mile front

'left her army running on empty.'

"I don't know whether Russia's
dream of destroying Germany

"will ever come true."

"Probably not.
We have nothing to fight with -

"no rifles, no mortars,
no explosives,

"no boots, no overcoats. Nothing."

'But incredibly,
Russia's army held the line.

'It was the home front
that cracked first.'

'Petrograd, now St Petersburg,

'Russia's capital
and industrial powerhouse,

'seethed with discontent.'

'Its factories
were swollen with workers,

'with little to eat
and cramped housing.'

'A demonstration on the 8th of March
1917 began peacefully.'

"It was a glorious sunny, frosty day

"and all the people
were in an excellent mood.

"They were singing the Marseillaise
and asking for bread."

'But the Tsar
ordered the protests crushed.'

'On Znamenskoye Square, in the heart
of Petrograd, the killing began.'

'Sergeant Sergei Kirpichnikov
was there.'

"The ensign ordered the bugler
to play three signals."

"Then he commanded
'Rifles, ready, aim, fire!'"

GUNSHOTS

"Everybody scattered."

"One man was down. A woman fell."

'Over 50 civilians were shot dead.

'The massacre forced
Petrograd's soldiers to choose.

'Whom to defend -
the people or the Tsar?'

'Back in barracks,

'Sergei Kirpichnikov spoke
to his comrades.'

'It would be better to die
with honour

'than obey further orders
to shoot into the crowds.'

'Our fathers, mothers, sisters,
brothers and brides

'are begging for bread.
Are we going to kill them?'

'They shot their duty officer dead
and poured onto the streets,

'joining other mutineers
and workers.'

'British journalist Arthur Ransome
cabled his office in London.'

'About 200 persons killed, stop.
Local police chief lying dead, stop.

'Revolution definitely begun.'

'The troops gathered support
at barracks and factories.'

'They seized the city centre,

'set up barricades, occupied railway
stations and the telephone exchange.'

'Britain's military attache,
Sir Alfred Knox,

'was in the Artillery Administration
when the building came under attack.'

"Outside came a great
disorderly mass of soldiery.

"All were armed and many had
red flags on their bayonets.

CRASH
GLASS SHATTERING

"Soon we heard the windows and door
on the ground floor being broken in

"and the sound of shots.

"Most officers were leaving
the Department by a back door."

'In a matter of days, the Tsar's
regime was spinning into free fall.'

"The revolution has begun."

"What happiness!"

"The cursed autocracy is destroyed."

"The soldiers have gone onto the
streets, the officers are hiding."

"It's all so unexpected and
everything's going at a gallop."

"We've all gone mad with joy."

'Soldiers ordered into
the city to restore control

'simply joined the mutiny.'

'The Tsar was forced to abdicate

'and a provisional government
formed at the Tauride Palace.'

'Russia's new rulers had
their hands full running a war

'while riding a revolution.'

'Germany looked to exploit
the turmoil in Russia.

'And Russia's allies, Britain
and France, crossed their fingers.

'They too had experienced
worker discontent.'

'March 1916,

'Londoners gather at Tower Hill
to protest against conscription.'

'There was also opposition
in Scotland,

'inspired by the fiery speeches of
trade union leader Willie Gallacher.'

'Thousands of our fellows
have sacrificed their lives

'fighting against the Prussianism
they propose to foist upon us here.

'Workers of the Clyde,
you must prepare for action.

'When this loathsome enemy
of freedom raises its head,

'you must strike to kill.'

'Workers march down Whitehall
for better wages and lower prices.

'Around 17 million working days
were lost to strikes in Britain
between 1915 and 1918.'

'There were strikes
by miners in South Wales,

'engineers in Coventry,
Sheffield and Manchester

'and shipbuilders on Teesside,
Tyneside and the Clyde.'

'The army kept 200,000 troops
in Britain

'to guard against invasion
and civilian uprising.'

'But David Lloyd George, as Minister
of Munitions and then Prime Minister,

'preferred to give in to strikers,
rather than crush them.'

'Father of the state pension
and National Insurance schemes,

'Lloyd George commanded
working class support.'

'He used concession,
not confrontation

'to maintain industrial output.'

'Negotiators with the unions
were given strict instructions.'

'If a strike appears
to be inevitable,

'all the concessions asked for
should be granted.'

'But while Britain kept a lid
on unrest, France could not.'

'Throughout the First World War,

'Paris lived under the shadow
of German invasion.'

'But after three winters of fighting,

'France's stability
was being undermined

'by a wave of stoppages
and protests.'

'Many of the dissenters were women

'who couldn't be intimidated
by the threat of military service.'

"Everybody is complaining in Paris."

"People are on strike over the
price rises and the lack of fuel.

"Can't you just hear
the rising strains of revolution?"

"These troubles are justified.

"While the people work themselves
to death to scrape a living,

"the bosses and big industrialists
grow fat in record time,

"and all we can do
is grin and bear it."

'These ideas did reach the front,

'but what pushed the French army
towards mutiny in 1917

'was a history of poorly planned
and ill-conducted battles.

'The final straw was a doomed attack

'devised by its own
Commander-in-chief,

'General Robert Georges Nivelle.'

'The offensive alone
can give victory.'

'The defensive
gives only defeat and shame.'

'On the 16th April 1917, Nivelle
ordered over a million Frenchmen

'to attack a heavily defended
German-held ridge

'known as the Chemin des Dames.'

'After storming this ridge,

'Nivelle expected his armies
to smash through

'seven miles of German defences.'

GUNFIRE

'We were faced by a forest of wire.
Machine guns appeared everywhere.

'There were traps
of every description.

'The ground was impassable.

'40,000 Frenchmen were killed
in the first days,

'but Nivelle ordered the assault
to continue.'

GUNFIRE

'Casualties reached 150,000
by the 5th of May.

'Then the men snapped.'

"I am one of the most persistent
in spreading propaganda.

"I know that I am risking my hide,
but by this means I might save it.

"My darling, say with me 'Down
with the war that separates us,

and long live the revolution that
in bringing peace will reunite us.'

"I love you and
I don't want to die."

'The village of Coeuvres, 20 miles
south of the Chemin des Dames.'

'The mayor watched what happened

'when the 370th infantry regiment
was ordered to the front.'

'The soldiers spilled out into the
whole village screaming with rage,

'firing rifles
and singing the Internationale.'

'Toward morning, they formed columns
and made their way to the woods.'

'By June 1917,
half the French army was affected.

'Men refused
to return to the trenches.'

"We seemed absolutely powerless.

"From every section of the front,

news arrived of regiments
refusing to man the trenches.

"The slightest German attack
would have been enough

"to tumble our house of cards
and bring the enemy to Paris."

'But the Germans had no inkling
of the French mutiny.'

'It was a massive
intelligence failure.'

'Four days after their mutiny,

'the troops from Coeuvres gave
themselves up at a nearby village.'

"They emerged from the wood in
perfect order, in columns of four -

"all flawlessly groomed
and polished"

'The French soldiers' actions were
more like a strike, than a mutiny.

'They won important concessions -

'better leave arrangements, more
rest, improved medical conditions.'

"All we wanted was to call
the government's attention to us,

"make it see that we are men and
not beasts for the slaughterhouse."

CHEERING

'Nivelle was sacked.

'His replacement, General Philippe
Petain reversed French strategy,

'making defence
the order of the day.'

'The men were given
patriotic instruction

'and reminded why they were
fighting.

'But Petain also knew
that discipline had to be restored.

'The tactic was to execute a few
but force thousands to watch.'

'Photographs taken secretly
at a French military execution.

'A man is tied to a post.'

'The order is given to fire.'

GUNFIRE

'Soldiers are paraded past the body.'

'Louis Flourac was one of
the 49 death sentences carried out.'

'He was shot here in Chacrise
by his comrades,

'some of whom hated
what they were doing.'

"I see the dead every single day
in the trenches.

"But this is different.
I'm a man who has shot his friends."

'Italy's soldiers
were also growing war weary.

'Unlike its French counterpart,

'Italian High Command saw punishment
as the way to maintain morale.

'Chief of Staff General Cadorna
was merciless.'

"Every soldier
must be convinced of the fact

"that his superior has
the sacred duty

"to shoot all cowards
and recalcitrants immediately."

'Cadorna's iron grip
led to massive discontent.'

'For months,
it simmered below the surface,

'until the Battle of Caporetto
in October 1917.'

'The Italian army was hit here,
in the Isonzo River Valley,

'by a massive
Austro-Hungarian/German attack.'

GUNFIRE

'Resistance in armies
took many forms.

'The Italians
didn't openly refuse to fight,

'they just began surrendering
to the enemy en masse.'

"By dawn, we were surrounded and the
Germans finally took us prisoner

"and we were happy
because we'd saved our lives.

"Farewell Italy. Farewell family,

"I am now in the hands
of the Germans."

'A young lieutenant in
the German Alpenkorps, Erwin Rommel,

'took over 1,000 Italians prisoner
without firing a single shot.'

"The soldiers threw away
their weapons and hurried to me.

"In an instant, I was surrounded
and hoisted onto Italian shoulders.

"'Eviva Germania!'
sounded from 1,000 throats.

"An Italian officer
who hesitated to surrender

"was shot down by his own troops.

"For the Italians on Mrzli Peak,
the war was over.

"They shouted with joy."

"I am writing
this at 11:00 at night,

"most comfortably ensconced
in the Italian officer's mess.

"There is a huge stock
of delicious wines

"which we are getting through
in record time

"so I hope there is no question
of a counter-attack.

"We've captured machine guns, heavy
artillery and personal weapons.

"These are of the highest order but
show little sign of actual use."

SINGING

'Some 300,000 Italian soldiers
surrendered in the winter of 1917.

'As many again retreated
down these mountain tracks,
with fleeing civilians.'

"They stroll past,
with their hands in their pockets.

"When questioned,

"they say they pulled out
because they were told to."

'Who told them?
No-one knows - the next man along.'

SINGING

"What a terrible
and heart-wrenching sight it was -

"the poor women
with their little ones bundled up

"walking towards Italy
to save their lives."

SINGING

'Italy's high command sacked
General Cadorna and regained control

'by easing discipline and
making concessions to the soldiers

'as the French had done.'

'But the price of unrest was high -

'the fighting strength
of the Italian army had been halved.'

'And while governments
wrestled with unrest at home,

'they were also
stirring up trouble abroad.'

CAMELS GRUNT

'Britain had been plotting
to destabilise the Ottoman Empire
since the war began.'

'Ottoman Turkey was Germany's ally
in the Middle East.

'Her empire stretched across
Arabia into the Hejaz,

'a vast desert area which included
the holy cities of Medina and Mecca.

'Their loss would undermine
the Turks' standing

'in the Muslim world and
boost Britain's.'

'The British turned
to the Hejaz Arabs holding out
the carrot of independence

'if they rose up
against their Turkish masters.'

'If the Arab nation assist England

'in this war that has been
forced upon us by Turkey,

'England guarantees
that no internal intervention
will take place in Arabia,

'and will give Arabs every
assistance against foreign
aggression.'

'The idea of Britain
backing Arabian independence
worried the India Office.'

"A strong Arab state might be
more dangerous to Christendom
than a strong Ottoman state,

"and Lord Kitchener's policy
of destroying one Islamic state

"merely for the purpose
of creating another,

"has always seemed to me
disastrous."

'The India Office
needn't have worried.

'Kitchener was playing
a cynical game,

'never intending to hand real power
to the Arabs of the Hejaz.'

'But the British showered the Emir
of Mecca, Sherif Hussein, with gold,

'and dropped hints
that if all went well,

'he might realise his dream
of becoming leader of the Arabs.'

'On the 5th June 1916,
the Arab Revolt began.'

'Mecca quickly fell to the rebels

'but the main Turkish garrison
at Medina held its ground.

'The Turkish commander, Fahri Pasha,
refused to surrender.'

"Until my soldiers are buried
under the rubble of Medina,

"in a crimson shroud
of blood and fire,

"the red flag of the Ottomans
shall never be removed from Medina."

'The uprising
commanded no popular support.'

'But the British
did have a man on the spot -

'TE Lawrence,
a charismatic 28-year-old officer

'attached to Sherif Hussein's forces
in the Hejaz.

'Lawrence spoke Arabic. He saw
where the Arabs' strengths lay.'

'I think one company of Turks,
properly entrenched in open country,

'would defeat the Sherif's armies.

'Their real sphere is guerrilla
warfare. They'd dynamite a railway,

'plunder a caravan,
steal camels better than anyone.'

'The Turks were most vulnerable

'along their stretched lines
of communication.

'Lawrence and the Arabs
became experts in railway sabotage.'

"The last stunt
was the hold-up of a train.

"The whole job took ten minutes
and they lost 70 killed.

"My loot was a superfine
red baluch prayer rug.

"I hope this sounds the fun it is.

"It's the most amateurish,
Buffalo Billy sort of performance."

'A German on the train
saw the attack differently.'

"The Bedouin mob came bursting into
the carriage to kill and plunder.

"I could feel the blood pouring down
my body, but I was left alone.

"The thieves' minds
were drawn towards looting,

having killed 40 men, women and
children and taken the rest
captive."

'TE Lawrence adopted
the cause of Arab nationalism.'

"I hope that the Turkish flag may
disappear from the Arabia.

"It is so good to have
helped in making a new nation

"and I hate the Turks so much

"that to see their own people
turning on them is very gratifying."

'TE Lawrence now dressed as an Arab.'

'He asked his mother
for help with his costume.'

"If that silk headcloth
with the silver ducks on it,

"last used, I believe,
as a tablecloth still exists,

"will you send it out to me?

"Such things
are hard to get here now."

'Capturing Turkish-held Jerusalem
was a key British objective in 1917.

'Seizing the port of Akaba

'would strengthen the Arabs' case
for a role in the campaign.

'Lawrence realised that all
Akaba's guns pointed out to sea -

'the town was defenceless
from the rear.'

'That meant a 600-mile ride across
the Hejaz, at the height of summer.'

"Mud flats are purgatory.

"Sun reflects from them like mirror,
flame yellow,

"cutting into our eyes."

'Seven weeks later, the Arab force
reappeared outside Akaba -

'catching the Turks
totally off guard.'

GUNFIRE

'The town fell just four days later.'

'The Middle East was stunned.'

'General Allenby, commanding
British forces in the region,

'now wrote the Arab Revolt
into his Jerusalem campaign -

'reinforcing it with armoured cars,
air support, artillery

'and colonial troops.'

'On the 11th December 1917,
Allenby entered Jerusalem on foot

'with his officers,
including Lawrence.'

'The Arabs would find they had won
not self-rule, but new masters.'

'Lawrence knew all along that
the Arabs of the Hejaz

'were merely the tools
of British subversion,

'as he admitted long after.'

"The Arabs saw in me a free agent
of the British Government

"and demanded from me an endorsement
of its written promises.

"So, I joined the conspiracy
and assured the men of their reward.

"I was continually
and bitterly ashamed.

"Had I been an honest advisor
of the Arabs,

"I would have advised them
to go home

"and not risk their lives
fighting for such stuff."

'While Britain was sponsoring
subversion against Germany's ally,
Turkey,

'she had her own weak spot,
right on her doorstep - Ireland.'

'Britain had promised Ireland
Home Rule,

'but the First World War
shelved all that.'

'200,000 Irishmen, Catholics and
Protestants, would fight for Britain.

'About 30,000 of them would die.'

'But the Irish Republican
Brotherhood, forerunners of the IRA,

'believed England's difficulty
was Ireland's opportunity.

'Padraic Pearse saw the war

'as a chance for Ireland
to free herself from British rule.'

"The European war has brought about
a crisis which may contain,

"as yet hidden within it,

"the moment for which
generations have been waiting.

"We shall see whether,
if that moment reveals itself,

"we have the sight to see
and the courage to do."

'Germany, for many republicans,

'had always been a good place
to plot revolution.'

'Erskine Childers
was famous in Britain,

'the country he now sought
to undermine.'

'His best-selling novel,
The Riddle Of The Sands,

'had warned Britain of the dangers
she faced from the German Navy.

'By July 1914,
his sympathies had switched.

'He put to sea in his yacht,
the Asgard, to run guns.

'He photographed the operation.'

'Leaving Hamburg under tow.'

'Sailing back to Ireland.

'His wife and a friend
with two of the 900 rifles
they'd collected from Germany.

'And the scene after Childers
docked outside Dublin.

'Crowds cheer as the guns
are driven away by car.'

GUNFIRE

'Two years later,
the German guns were put to use

'when 1,600 Irish revolutionaries
rose up in Dublin.'

"Easter Monday, 1916.

"Sinn Feiners occupy railway
stations, the GPO and other places.

"They've blocked the streets
near Stephen's Green

"and are shooting
at anyone they see in khaki.

"We used to think we were
clear of the war here in Ireland,

"but we've certainly
got it close enough now."

'The moment for which Padraic Pearse
had been waiting had come.

'He read out the historic
proclamation of the Irish Republic -

'a document
which acknowledges the support
of "gallant allies in Europe."'

'Who were these gallant allies
and what had they done?'

'Germany had long seen
subversion in Ireland

'as a way of destabilising Britain.'

'In August 1914, Sir Roger Casement,

'an Irish republican and one-time
darling of the British establishment,

'gave the Germans the opportunity
they were looking for.

'He wrote to the Kaiser
with an offer.'

"We draw Your Majesty's attention

"to the part that Ireland
necessarily, if not openly,
must play in this conflict.

"Ireland must be freed
from British control.

"Thousands of Irishmen will do
their part to aid the German cause,

"for they recognise
that it is their own."

'Casement sailed for Berlin
in disguise

'and in the winter of 1914
he met Arthur Zimmermann -

'a future Foreign Minister,

'and the man in charge
of Germany's subversive operations.'

'Zimmermann was impressed by Casement

'and began to wonder if a
small German landing on Irish soil

'might cause the British
massive problems.'

'His diplomats in America
raised funds from

'the Irish community in New York.'

"It is proposed to undertake
an invasion with 25,000 troops
with 50,000 extra guns.

"Then undoubtedly,
the co-operation of all Irish
in the British Army will follow.

"There is strong friction
between Irish and English
in northern France."

'Zimmermann's uprising
was to be four-pronged.

'The dispatch of German weapons
to Irish rebels,

'the landing of a German
expeditionary force on the
west coast,

'German submarines
to seize Dublin harbour

'and diversionary zeppelin
bombing raids on London.'

'Germany's High Command got cold feet

'and refused to commit
an invasion force.'

'But in April 1916,
the zeppelin raids did take place,

'a submarine was sent to
the west coast

'and an arms boat carrying
20,000 rifles, ten machine guns

'and a million rounds of ammunition

'was dispatched for Ireland,

'under the command of Captain
Karl Spindler.'

"Gradually rising out of the water
was Inishtooshkert Island -

"our rendezvous.

"Within half an hour, at the latest,

"the pilot boat
must make her appearance."

'But the Irish expected him
two days later,

'so the Germans sat in the bay
till caught by a British patrol.'

'Captain Spindler scuttled his boat
rather than surrender the arms.'

"The German naval ensign was run up,
bidding defiance to the British.

"Then there was
a muffled explosion."

EXPLOSION

"Beams and splinters
flew up in the air.

"The Aud sank
with a loud hissing noise."

'The Uprising's hope of success
sank with the German arms.

'Many rebels now abandoned
the project.

'But a hard core minority,

'armed with the rifles Childers
brought from Hamburg two years
before,

'decided to make
a symbolic gesture of defiance.'

GUNFIRE

'On Easter Monday 1916,
they seized key points in Dublin.'

'The British responded
with machine guns and artillery fire

'and shipped in 10,000 men
from the mainland.'

'Few Dubliners mourned
the crushing of the rebellion.'

'Guinness brewer Edward Phillips

'had his disused boilers converted
into armoured cars for the British.'

"Rang up military and offered
motor lorries, gladly accepted.

"Sent out for drivers who
lived close - they all consented."

'Over 1,000 civilians
were caught in the crossfire,

and as the British
took the rebels into custody,

'the people of Dublin
pelted them with vegetables

'and emptied chamberpots
over their heads.'

'Many had sons and fathers
fighting on the Western Front

'and were outraged by
the Uprising's German connections.

'But now the British made
a terrible blunder -

'throwing away their moral authority

'and transforming the Easter Rising

'into the seminal event
of Irish statehood.'

SINGING IN GAELIC

'They sentenced the leaders
of the Uprising to death,

'starting with Pearse.'

'He admitted to the court...'

"I asked for and accepted
German aid

"in the shape of arms
and an expeditionary force.

"My aim was to win Irish freedom."

SINGING IN GAELIC

'Over ten days, the men
were brought into the execution yard

'at Kilmainham Jail and shot.'

GUNFIRE

'James Connolly
was so wounded in the uprising

'that he had to be shot
sitting down.'

GUNFIRE

SINGING IN GAELIC

'Dublin fell silent as
Britain turned 16 men into martyrs.'

GUNFIRE

'People who had thrown rotten fruit
at them now saw them as heroes.'

GUNFIRE

'Britain turned the failed uprising
into a national cause.'

GUNFIRE

'Zimmermann's next challenge
was in a different league.'

'Could Germany exploit
Russia's revolution of March 1917

'to lever Russia
out of the First World War?'

'Almost all the ingredients
were in place -

'a major civilian uprising,

'restless troops at the front

'and a toothless leadership
in the rear.'

'The Germans lacked just one piece of
the jigsaw - a charismatic leader.

'But they had someone in mind.'

'Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
was leader of the Bolsheviks -

'a small group
of extreme Russian radicals.

'They'd spent many hours
over the past 14 years

'plotting revolution
in coffeehouses and prison cells.

'When at last it came,
they were caught on the hop.

'Stalin was in Siberia, Bukharin was
in New York and Lenin was in Zurich.'

'"What torture it is for us,"
Lenin wrote,

"to be sitting here
at such a time."

'He knew the Allies
would never allow him passage.

'The obvious route
lay through Germany and Sweden,

'but would Germany let him through?'

'German agents
had long watched Lenin.

'They knew he wanted their enemy,
Russia, out of the war.'

"Lenin's strong side
is his organisational talent.

"He possesses the most brutal
and relentless energy.

"Lenin's view is 'It doesn't
matter who wins the war.

"'The defeat of Russia is
preferable, victory worse.'"

'Zimmermann counselled the Kaiser
to approve Lenin's passage.'

"Since it is in our interests that
the influence of the radical wing

"of the Russian revolutionaries
should prevail,

"it seems advisable
to allow transit."

'The Kaiser exploited Lenin as
cynically as Lenin used the Kaiser,

'each thinking
he had the better of the bargain.'

'On 10th April 1917, Lenin,

'his wife, Nadezhda Krupskaya

'and his former mistress,
Inessa Armand,

'boarded the train for Germany
with other Bolsheviks.'

'"The Kaiser's paying for the
journey" jeered rival Russian
socialists.'

'"You'll be hanged as German spies."'

"Lenin stood listening
and smiled."

"'Hiss as much as you like'
he said,

'we Bolsheviks will shuffle
your cards and spoil your game.'"

'To counter charges
of working with the enemy,

'Lenin devised the fiction
of a sealed train,

'claiming total isolation
from the outside world.'

'In fact, the group travelled
in a regular carriage

'on a train that stopped frequently,
taking four days to cross Germany.'

'Though the train halted in Berlin,

'there's no evidence that Lenin
met any German representatives.

'He knew the Germans gave money
to his party but avoided direct
contact.'

'Germany's greatest help to Lenin's
cause was getting him back to
Russia.'

'The night he arrived in Petrograd,
Lenin addressed the crowd.

'Some were hostile.'

"Ought to stick our bayonets
into a fellow like that,

"must be a German."

'But Lenin was soon winning converts,
as Countess Irina Skariatina saw.'

"Lenin is bald, terribly ugly,
wears a crumpled old brown suit,

"speaks without
any oratorical power,

"more like a college professor
giving a lecture,

"yet what he says
drives the people crazy."

'And what he said was end the war,

'and by doing so
give the people what they want

'and what the provisional government
had failed to deliver -

'peace, land and bread.'

'Zimmermann had agents in Petrograd
monitoring Lenin's progress.'

'Lenin's entry into Russia
successful.'

'He's working
exactly as we would wish.'

'Just as the Germans hoped,
Lenin's ideas spread to the front.'

"The regiments have turned
into hordes of bastards,

"holding meetings
led by the Bolsheviks.

"Military life has
come to a standstill.

"The soldiers want peace,
no matter what the conditions are.

"They want to go home and enjoy
the results of the revolution."

'On the 18th June 1917,

'news of secret German funding
of the Bolsheviks leaked.

'Lenin fled the city,
heavily disguised.'

'But the Bolsheviks countered
claims that Lenin was a spy,

'using printing presses
bought with German money.

'And they set about
building worker support -

'helping arm the most militant
to create the Red Guard.'

'Lenin reappeared on the night
of the 6th November 1917,

'leaving this safe house
for the Bolshevik HQ.'

'He knew power had to be seized now.'

"We must not wait.
We may lose everything.

"The government is tottering.
We must deal it the deathblow.

"To delay action
is the same as death."

'Journalist John Reed was at the HQ.'

"In the hall, I ran into
some of the Bolshevik leaders.

"One showed me a revolver.

"'The game is on', he said.
His face was pale."

'Throughout that night the Bolsheviks
secured key points across Petrograd

with hardly a shot fired.'

'The city awoke
to a new world order.'

"I've just heard stunning news -

"the provisional government
is overthrown."

"The telegraph wires are buzzing

"with decrees of
the new Bolshevik government -

"all land is to be
transferred to the people."

'The first thing the Bolsheviks did
was to take Russia out of the war,

'freeing the Germans from
a crippling fight on two fronts.'

'Germany's gamble on Lenin
had paid off.'

"The Bolsheviks have brought about
the crucial event of the century.

"They've discharged millions
of Russian soldiers

"and freed the Germans' hands.

"A hot steam bath
awaits the Allies."

'Revolution and subversion
had released 44 German divisions
for the Western Front.

'Germany now had a chance
to win the First World War.'

In the next episode of
The First World War,

Germany launches a huge
offensive on the Western Front

but her alliances start to crumble.

It will be a race between victory
and collapse.