All language subtitles for Chronicle of the Third Reich 4of4 x264 AC3 org

Narrator: THE GERMAN POPULATION
ON THE HOME FRONT

HAVE BEGUN TO NOTICE THE FULL
IMPACT OF THE WAR BY NOW.

IN ORDER TO BREAK
THEIR RESOLVE,

THE BRITISH USE A STRATEGY
THEY CALL MORAL BOMBING,

ATTACKING RESIDENTIAL AREAS
AND CITY CENTERS.

THE ENSUING CHAOS,
HOWEVER, FACILITATES

THE NAZI AUTHORITIES'
DEPORTATION PLANS FOR JEWS.

[ALY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: THE AREA BOMBINGS
ARE, OF COURSE,

NOT THE ONLY REASON
FOR THE PERSECUTION OF JEWS

OR FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT
OF EXTERMINATION CAMPS,

BUT WITH THE BOMBINGS,

THE NOTION OF THE DEPORTATION
OF JEWS GAINED POPULARITY

AMONG THE LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

SO THE PRESSURE
FROM BELOW GREW.

"GET THEM OFF OUR BACKS AND MAKE
SURE THEY NEVER RETURN."

WHEN YOU LOOK AT
THE BULK OF THOSE TRANSPORTS,

THEY CAME FROM HAMBURG,
FROM THE RHINE-RUHR AREA,

AS WELL AS FROM BREMEN,
BREMERHAVEN, AND SO FORTH.

THE JEWS WERE TAKEN AWAY
FROM THE BOMBED AREAS,

AND THAT MEANT MORE HOUSING
BECAME AVAILABLE,

AND ALSO MORE IMPORTANTLY,

HOUSEHOLD EQUIPMENT
AND CLOTHING,

TO THE EFFECT
THAT GERMAN FAMILIES

THAT HAD SUFFERED
FROM THE BOMBINGS

RECEIVED A KIND OF
UNBUREAUCRATIC EMERGENCY RELIEF.

Narrator: THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE
FOR ORGANIZING THE GENOCIDE

IS THE HEAD OF THE REICH
MAIN SECURITY OFFICE

AND DEPUTY REICHPROTECTOR,
OR GOVERNOR, IN PRAGUE,

REINHARD HEYDRICH.

ON THE 27th OF MAY, 1942,

CZECH SOLDIERS
RETURNING FROM EXILE

MAKE AN ATTEMPT
ON HEYDRICH'S LIFE,

WHO DIES IN HOSPITAL
A FEW DAYS LATER.

THE RETALIATION
OF THE S.S. IS HORRIFIC.

ON THE TENTH OF JUNE,
LIDICE,

A VILLAGE NEAR PRAGUE
IS BURNED AND LEVELED

ON SUSPICION THAT THE ASSASSINS
HAVE BEEN HIDING HERE.

ALL 172 MEN FROM THE VILLAGE
ARE EXECUTED,

WOMEN AND CHILDREN DEPORTED
TO CONCENTRATION CAMPS.

THE PROPAGANDA PLAYS DOWN

THE NEGATIVE ASPECTS
OF THE WAR.

HERE, WOUNDED SOLDIERS
ARE ENTERTAINED IN MUNICH.

ONLY THE SUPREME COMMANDERS

KNOW THE EXTENT
OF DECIMATION

THE GERMAN WAR MACHINERY
HAS SUFFERED.

OVER ONE MILLION SOLDIERS
FROM THE RUSSIAN CAMPAIGN

ARE DEAD, MISSING,
OR CAPTURED.

[ALY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: MOST PEOPLE
WERE EXTREMELY REALISTIC.

1942 SAW A RAPID DECREASE IN
THE NUMBERS OF LIFE INSURANCES

AND MORTGAGES TAKEN OUT.

THE REGIME PROMOTED
THE SO-CALLED IRON SAVINGS PLAN,

WHICH GAVE SAVERS EXEMPTION
FROM BOTH TAXATION

AND SOCIAL SECURITY
CONTRIBUTIONS

AS WELL AS A YIELD
OF BETWEEN 15% AND 20%.

THE CATCH, HOWEVER,
WAS THAT THE MATURITY

WAS LINKED TO THE DAY
OF THE FINAL VICTORY IN THE WAR.

SO NO ONE WAS PREPARED
TO DO IT.

THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO TOOK OUT
THIS SAVINGS PLAN

WERE THOSE WORKING
IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR

OR IN NATIONAL
SOCIALIST ORGANIZATIONS,

AND ONLY BECAUSE
THERE WAS

COLLECTIVE PRESSURE
ON THEM TO DO SO.

Narrator: OIL,
RATHER THAN THE CONQUEST

OF LEIDEN
IN THE EAST,

IS NOW THE MOST IMPORTANT
WAR OBJECTIVE,

PROFESSES HITLER
AFTER THE LAUNCH

OF THE 1942 SUMMER OFFENSIVE

AGAINST THE RED ARMY.

“IF | DON'T SECURE THE OIL

"FROM THE FIELDS
OF MAIKOP AND GROZNY,

| WILL HAVE TO LIQUIDATE
THIS WAR."

HE SWEEPS ASIDE ANY CRITICISM
FROM HIS GENERALS,

CLAIMING THAT ONLY
HIS STEADFASTNESS

HAD PREVENTED
A NAPOLEONIC DISASTER.

THIS WAR WAS NOT SIMPLY
ABOUT VICTORY OR DEFEAT,

BUT OVER TRIUMPH
OR DOWNFALL.

[EXPLOSIONS]

THE WEHRMACHT AMASSES
ALL ITS FORCES

FOR AN OFFENSIVE
IN SOUTHERN RUSSIA.

THE GERMAN TROOPS BREAK
THE SOVIET FRONT AT SOME PLACES,

AND SMALLER UNITS
EVEN MANAGE

TO TAKE THE OIL FIELDS
OF MAIKOP,

BUT IT IS NOT ENOUGH FOR
THE DESPERATELY NEEDED SUPPLIES.

THE GERMANS NO LONGER SHOW
ANY KIND OF RESPECT

FOR THE CIVILIAN POPULATION.

IF THEY ENCOUNTER
ANY RESISTANCE,

THEY BURN DOWN ENTIRE VILLAGES
AND EXECUTE CIVILIANS

UNDER THE PRETENSE
THAT THEY ARE PARTISANS.

THE OCCUPIED AREAS
ARE RUTHLESSLY PILLAGED.

DESPITE THE FACT THAT
SEIZED PRODUCE AND FOODSTUFFS

ARE BEING SENT BACK TO GERMANY
BY THE WAGONLOAD,

THE SUPPLY ON THE HOME FRONT
IS ON THE VERGE OF COLLAPSE.

[ALY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: HITLER WAS
CONSISTENTLY OPPOSED

TO ANY BURDENS
BEING IMPOSED ON GERMANS.

DURING A FAMOUS MEETING
WITH HERMANN GOERING

IN AUGUST, 1942, HE SAID
THAT THE EXPLOITATION

OF THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES FOR
THE BENEFIT OF THE GERMAN PEOPLE

HAD TO BE DOUBLED,

MEANING THAT BOTH
THE FOOD QUOTAS

AND THE AMOUNT OF COMMODITIES
TAKEN FROM THERE

HAD TO BE INCREASED
DRASTICALLY

IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN
STABILITY AT HOME

AND NOT LEAD
TO ANOTHER 1918 GERMANY.

AN UNKNOWN MILITARY PHYSICIAN

DOCUMENTS THE GRUESOME
REALITY OF THE WAR

IN AN ARMY HOSPITAL
NEAR BIELEFELD.

EVEN AMPUTEE
WEHRMACHT SOLDIERS

ARE TO BE MADE FIT
FOR ACTION HERE,

EITHER IN THE WAR
OR ON THE HOME FRONT.

WITH SUPPLIES AND REINFORCEMENTS
BEING STALLED,

THE WAR IN NORTH AFRICA, TOO,

TURNS INTO A DISASTER
FOR THE GERMANS.

THE BRITISH FORCES,
WHICH NOW OUTNUMBER THE GERMANS,

DEFEAT FIELD MARSHALL ROMMEL
IN EL ALAMEIN.

ROMMEL'S ORDERS TO HIS ARMY
TO RETREAT INFURIATE HITLER.

"YOU CAN SHOW YOUR TROOPS
NO OTHER WAY

THAN THAT WHICH LEADS
TO VICTORY OR DEATH,"

READS THE DICTATOR'S
RADIO MESSAGE.

HITLER ISSUES AN ARREST WARRANT
FOR ROMMEL,

WHICH IS NEVER CARRIED OUT.

DESPITE HIS DEFEAT,

THE PROPAGANDA CELEBRATES
THE FIELD MARSHALL AS A HERO.

YET ROMMEL DISTANCES HIMSELF
MORE AND MORE FROM THE FUEHRER.

ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS,
HE VOICES HIS OPINION

THAT FINAL VICTORY
IS UNATTAINABLE.

ON THE 23rd OF NOVEMBER, 1942,

THE GERMAN SIXTH ARMY,
UNDER GENERAL PAULUS,

BECOMES ENCIRCLED
IN STALINGRAD.

THANKS TO ARMAMENTS SUPPLIED
BY THE WESTERN ALLIES,

THE RED ARMY CAN KEEP
THE GERMANS IN CHECK.

HITLER DECREES TO HOLD
THE POSITIONS

IN STALINGRAD
UNDER ALL CIRCUMSTANCES,

WHICH RESULTS
IN A BITTER BATTLE

OVER THE CITY
ON THE VOLGA RIVER.

THE SUPPLY OF THE TROOPS FROM
THE AIR IS TOTALLY INSUFFICIENT.

IN STALINGRAD,
THE WEHRMACHT

FINALLY LOSES THE AURA
OF INVINCIBILITY

THAT HAD SURROUNDED IT.

Kershaw:
BY THE AUTUMN OF 1942,

GERMAN TROOPS WERE EMBROILED
IN STALINGRAD,

AND OF COURSE,
OVER THE NEXT MONTHS,

THIS BECAME A HUGE, ENORMOUS,
AND DECISIVE DEFEAT

FOR GERMANY.

THE CRUCIAL POINT
PERHAPS TO ADD TO THIS

WITH REGARDS TO
THE GERMAN OFFENSIVE

IS THAT THE WEHRMACHT WAS
ACTUALLY SUBSTANTIALLY WEAKER

IN 1942 THAN IT
HAD BEEN IN 1941.

THE GERMANS HAD LOST ALMOST
A MILLION MEN IN THE MEANWHILE.

REALISTICALLY, THE VICTORY,
THE FINAL VICTORY

AS ENVISAGED IN 1940 AND '41
WAS NO LONGER POSSIBLE.

BUT FROM HITLER'S PERSPECTIVE,
IT STILL LOOKED AS IF VICTORY

COULD BE ATTAINED
AT THAT POINT.

Narrator:
IN THE WOLF'S LAIR,

THE FUEHRER'S MILITARY
HEADQUARTERS IN EAST PRUSSIA,

HITLER RECEIVES THE ROMANIAN
DICTATOR ION ANTONESCU

ON THE TENTH OF JANUARY, 1943.

THE FUEHRER HOLES HIS ROMANIAN
AND ITALIAN ALLIES

JOINTLY RESPONSIBLE
FOR THE SITUATION IN RUSSIA.

HIS GENERALS ARE ORDERED
TO HOLD STALINGRAD

TO THE LAST MAN.

THE FACT THAT
THE TROOPS IN STALINGRAD

HAVE BEEN SURROUNDED FOR WEEKS
IS KEPT SECRET

FROM THE GERMAN PUBLIC
ON HITLER'S ORDERS.

A RECEPTION ON HERMANN GOERING'S
50th BIRTHDAY

ON THE 19th OF JANUARY.

THE REICHSMARSHALL HAS PROMISED,
AGAINST HIS BETTER JUDGMENT,

TO SUPPLY THE ENCLOSED TROOPS
IN STALINGRAD FROM THE AIR,

AND ALTHOUGH GOERING
IS NO LONGER

TAKEN PARTICULARLY SERIOUSLY
AFTER THE FAILURE

OF HIS AIR FORCE, HE STILL
MANAGES TO IMPRESS HITLER

WITH EMPTY PROMISES
TIME AND AGAIN.

THE SIXTH ARMY SURRENDERS
ON THE 31st OF JANUARY.

"SHAKEN AND BROKEN,
OUR PEOPLE BEHOLD THE LOSS

OF THE MEN OF STALINGRAD,"
READS A LEAFLET

DISTRIBUTED IN FEBRUARY

BY THE RESISTANCE GROUP
WHITE ROSE.

"DO WE WANT TO SACRIFICE
THE REST OF GERMAN YOUTH

“TO THE BASE AMBITIONS
OF A PARTY CLIQUE?

NO. NEVER."

THE COURAGEOUS STUDENTS
AROUND SOPHIE AND HANS SCHOLL

ARE ARRESTED AND EXECUTED
BEFORE THE MONTH IS OVER.

FRIEDRICH PAULUS, THE COMMANDER
OF THE SIXTH ARMY,

DURING AN INTERROGATION
BY THE RUSSIANS.

ONE DAY BEFORE THE CAPITULATION,
HITLER HAD PROMOTED PAULUS

TO FIELD MARSHALL,
AN INVITATION TO COMMIT SUICIDE

IN THE FACE OF DEFEAT.

Kershaw: STALINGRAD
WAS AN IMMENSE DEFEAT,

AND THE ENTIRE SIXTH ARMY
WAS LOST.

HITLER HIMSELF--
IT COULD NOT BE CONCEALED--

HAD ACTUALLY STOOD BEHIND THIS
GERMAN DEFEAT IN STALINGRAD,

AND SO FOR THE FIRST TIME NOW,
THE GERMAN POPULATION

BLAMED HITLER PERSONALLY.

THEY WERE VERY CAREFUL
HOW THEY EXPRESSED IT,

BUT IT WAS CLEAR
THE BLAME

WAS BEING ATTACHED TO HITLER
PERSONALLY NOW

FOR THE DEFEAT
IN STALINGRAD.

AND SO THE HITLER MYTH
WAS NOW PUNCTURED DECISIVELY.

IT WAS A KEY MOMENT IN THE...
IN THE DECLINE

OF THE MYTH
THAT HAD SURROUNDED HITLER,

THIS MYTH OF INFALLIBILITY,

THAT HE HAD BEEN, WHEN EVERYBODY
ELSE WAS MAKING MISTAKES,

THE MILITARY, ALL THE REST
OF THE LEADERS,

HITLER WAS STILL UNTOUCHABLE.

NO LONGER, AFTER STALINGRAD,
WAS THAT THE CASE.

Narrator: EVEN THOUGH
BERCHTESGADEN

IS NOT YET WITHIN THE OPERATING
RANGE OF ALLIED BOMBERS,

AIR-RAID PRECAUTIONS ARE TAKEN
AT OBERSALZBERG.

HITLER PERSONALLY
WATCHES AN EXERCISE

IN THE SPRING OF 1943.

HE NOW SPENDS MORE AND MORE TIME
IN HIS MOUNTAINSIDE RETREAT.

[HAMANN SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator:
HE WAS USED TO WINNING

ALL THE BATTLES HE FOUGHT,
BECAUSE UNTIL THEN,

EVERYTHING HAD GONE
SO WELL FOR HIM.

HE WAS SURE THAT HE WAS
THE SAVIOR OF THE GERMAN NATION

AND BELIEVED THAT THE GERMAN
PEOPLE WOULD ATTAIN VICTORY

WITH HIM AS THEIR LEADER.

AND BECAUSE OF ALL THE
SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGNS HE HAD LED,

HE FELT VINDICATED
IN HIS ROLE AS A SAVIOR.

THE GREAT SHOCK CAME
WHEN THE VICTORIES

ON THE BATTLEFIELD ENDED,
AND IT WAS THEN THAT HE STARTED

TO FALL APART.

Narrator: HITLER CONFIDES
IN JOSEPH GOEBBELS

THAT THE FALL OF THE THIRD REICH
COULD BE BROUGHT ABOUT

ONLY THROUGH THE WEAKNESS
OF THE POPULACE.

IF THE GERMAN PEOPLE
WAS TO BE OBLITERATED

BY A STRONGER NATION,

THEN ONE COULD FEEL
NO PITY FOR IT.

[CHEERING]

ON THE EIGHTH OF FEBRUARY,

AT BERLIN'S SPORTPALAST,

THE PROPAGANDA MINISTER DELIVERS
HIS FAMOUS "TOTAL WAR" SPEECH.

[SPEAKING GERMAN]

[SHOUTING "SIEG HEIL!"]

[CHEERING]

" WILL CERTAINLY SEE TO IT
THAT THIS IS A TOTAL WAR

NOT ONLY ON PAPER,"
GOEBBELS WRITES IN HIS DIARY.

[AUDIENCE SHOUTING]

IN THE STYLE OF EUROPE'S
ECONOMIC DICTATOR,

THE NEW REICH'S ARMAMENTS
MINISTER, ALBERT SPEER,

TRIES TO SECURE SUPPLIES

FOR BOTH THE FRONT
AND THE HOME TERRITORIES.

IN AN ATTEMPT
TO COMPENSATE

FOR THE SHORTAGE
IN LABOR FORCE,

SPEER DECREES THE COMPULSORY
RECRUITMENT OF WORKERS

IN OCCUPIED AREAS, INCLUDING
CONCENTRATION CAMP INMATES

TO WORK AS SLAVE LABORERS
IN THE ARMS INDUSTRY.

HERE, FOR THE NEWSREEL,
THE MINISTER PRESENTS

THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
IN GERMAN WEAPONS TECHNOLOGY.

DESPITE THE SHORT SUPPLY
OF RAW MATERIALS,

SPEER INTERMITTENTLY MANAGES
TO RAISE THE PRODUCTION NUMBERS

IN ALL SECTORS.

DURING THIS STAGE
OF THE WAR,

THERE IS AN INCREASED DEMAND
FOR ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNS,

AS THE FLYING FORTRESSES
OF THE U.S. AIR FORCE

HAVE NOW STARTED TO ENGAGE
IN AIR RAIDS OVER GERMANY.

GERMAN ARMAMENT PLANTS
ARE THE NUMBER-ONE TARGETS

OF THE AMERICAN BOMBERS,

WHILE THE BRITISH CONCENTRATE
ON THE DESTRUCTION

OF ENTIRE CITIES
IN NAZI GERMANY.

FOR SOME TIME, GERMAN
ANTI-AIRCRAFT ARTILLERY

AND NIGHT-FIGHTERS SUCCEED
IN SHOOTING DOWN MANY BOMBERS.

HUNDREDS OF ALLIED PILOTS
AND CREWMEMBERS

ARE LYNCHED
BY ENRAGED CROWDS

WITH THE CONSENT
OF THE NAZI| LEADERSHIP.

YET MORE AND MORE BOMBERS
REACH THEIR TARGETS

AND DROP THEIR DEADLY LOAD
UNHINDERED.

THE SCENES ARE
ALWAYS THE SAME,

WHETHER IN BERLIN,
COLOGNE, OR LEIPZIG.

FIREMEN TRY TO PUT OUT
THE FIRES,

HELPERS RECOVER THE DEAD,

PEOPLE TRY TO SAVE
WHAT CAN BE SAVED.

THE HELPLESS REACTION
OF THE AUTHORITIES

RAISES MORE AND MORE VOICES
OF CRITICISM,

BUT NO OPPOSITION
MAKES ITSELF FELT.

[ELY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: IT'S IMPORTANT
TO UNDERSTAND

THAT EVERY TOTALITARIAN RULE,

BUT ESPECIALLY THIS NATIONAL
SOCIALIST REGIME,

AIMS TO DESTROY
THE SETTINGS

WHERE PUBLIC OPINION
CAN BE FORMED.

THERE WAS NO PRESS.
THERE WERE NO ORGANIZATIONS.

AND ALL ASSOCIATIONS
AND SOCIETIES

WERE TRANSFERRED INTO THE HANDS
OF THE PARTY

AND ORGANIZED ACCORDINGLY.

THERE WERE NO PLACES
IN WHICH THE OPPOSITION,

WHICH UNDOUBTEDLY EXISTED,
PUBLIC DISCONTENT,

OR PEOPLE WITH A CONVICTION
THAT IT WOULD ALL END HORRIBLY

COULD BECOME ORGANIZED
AND GAIN A VOICE.

Narrator:
FOR A LONG TIME NOW,

HITLER'S OPPONENTS
IN THE WEHRMACHT

HAVE HAD NO DOUBTS
THAT THE FUEHRER

MUST DIE FOR THE WAR
AND THE KILLING TO END.

YOUNG OFFICERS PLAN
TO ASSASSINATE THE DICTATOR

DURING A VISIT TO THE TROOPS
IN SMOLENSK,

BUT THEIR GENERAL
STOPS THEM

BECAUSE CHIEF OF S.S. HIMMLER
IS NOT PRESENT.

INSTEAD, HITLER
IS CHEERED BY HIS TROOPS,

AND THE PROPAGANDA MACHINE
RECORDS THE EVENT.

[MEN CHEERING]

THE DICTATOR'S VISITS
TO THE REICH'S CAPITAL

ARE SPORADIC,
SO HIS PUBLIC APPEARANCE

AT THE MEMORIAL DAY CELEBRATIONS
IS A RARE OPPORTUNITY

FOR THE OPPOSITION
IN THE ARMY

TO UNDERTAKE ANOTHER
ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT.

THE PLAN FAILS
BECAUSE HITLER LEAVES

THE TOIGHAUS, THE ARMORY,
TOO EARLY,

AND THE DETERMINED OFFICERS
MISSED THEIR CHANCE.

“"TARGET ANITA ABROAD"
IS THE TITLE

OF A GERMAN PROPAGANDA FILM
SHOWN IN POLAND

WITH THE AIM TO DRAW
LABOR FORCES TO GERMANY.

THE FOOTAGE IS FILMED
IN THE PRODUCTION HALLS

OF THE CAR PLANT

IN THE CITY OF KDF WAGEN,

WHERE THE FIRST VOLKSWAGEN
BEETLES WERE MANUFACTURED

BEFORE THE WAR.

THE WORKERS
ARE LED TO BELIEVE

THAT THE CONDITIONS
WILL BE BLISSFUL,

WITH EXCELLENT BOARDING,

FIRST-RATE MEDICAL CARE,
GOOD PAY,

AND FREQUENT HOLIDAYS
AT HOME.

IN THE SMALL VILLAGE
OF STEINDORF IN POMERANIA,

AN AMATEUR FILMMAKER DOCUMENTS
THE BRUTAL REALITY.

WHEN GERMAN GIRLS BECOME
INVOLVED WITH FOREIGN WORKERS,

THE POPULACE
SHOWS NO PITY

AND PILLORIES THE GUILTY
PARTIES OPENLY.

DURING THE LAST WEEK
OF JULY, 1943,

HUNDREDS OF R.A.F. BOMBERS

FLY SEVERAL NIGHT RAIDS
OVER HAMBURG.

[EXPLOSIONS]

THE BOMBS CREATE
A HORRIFIC FIRESTORM.

ENTIRE CITY DISTRICTS
ARE CONSUMED WITHIN HOURS.

PEOPLE ARE ENGULFED
IN THE HUGE INFERNO.

THE TORNADIC FIRE INCINERATES
EVERYTHING IN ITS WAY.

FIREMAN HANS PONSVY
SHOOTS THIS FOOTAGE

WITH THE CONSENT
OF THE AUTHORITIES

FOR DOCUMENTATION PURPOSES.

OVER 35,000 PEOPLE
ARE KILLED

DURING THE SO-CALLED
OPERATION GOMORRAH.

BUT THE ALLIED ATTACKS
CANNOT BREAK

THE SPIRIT
OF THE SURVIVORS.

Translator: PEOPLE
IN HAMBURG HAD HARDLY SLEPT

THROUGH A SINGLE NIGHT
SINCE 1940.

THEY WERE TOTALLY SHATTERED,

EVEN MORE SO AFTER THOSE HUGE
RAIDS IN THE SUMMER OF 1943.

SO RESISTANCE TO THE REGIME
IS NOT A TOP PRIORITY HERE.

IN A SITUATION
AS BAD AS THIS,

THE PEOPLE'S INTERESTS ARE
REDUCED TO AN INDIVIDUAL LEVEL.

A KIND OF LOYAL APATHY DEVELOPS,
WHICH ARISES

FROM THE LACK
OF ALTERNATIVES,

WHEN EITHER DOESN'T RECOGNIZE
THE PATHS THAT LEAD TO A CHANGE

OR PERCEIVES THEM
AS BEING BLOCKED.

ALSO, WITH THE WAR
AGAINST THE SOVIET UNION,

THE REGIME HAD ALREADY
DEFINED ITS OWN PATH.

“"THERE'S NO TURNING BACK.

“THERE IS ONLY VICTORY
OR DEFEAT.

"AND IF WE ARE DEFEATED,
WE WILL ALL DIE,

AND WITH US, A LARGE SECTION
OF THE GERMANS."

Narrator: IN THE SUMMER
OF 1943,

HEINRICH HIMMLER VISITS

THE TOP-SECRET ARMY RESEARCH
CENTER IN PEENEMUNDE.

THE REICHSFUHRER S.S.
HAS PROFESSED HIS INTEREST

IN THE A-4 ROCKET
FOR SOME TIME

AND WANTS TO SEE
THE DEVELOPMENTS FOR HIMSELF.

THE TRIAL RESULTS STILL LEAVE
MUCH TO BE DESIRED,

BUT THE NAZI LEADERSHIP
HAS HIGH HOPES

THAT THE WUNDERWAFFE
WILL SOON BE OPERATIONAL

AND PROMISES THE POPULATION
DEVASTATING RETALIATION STRIKES

AGAINST BRITISH CITIES.

THE FUEHRER WANTS TO HALT

THE SOVIET ADVANCES
ON THE EASTERN FRONT

WITH A COLOSSAL DEMONSTRATION
OF POWER NEAR KURSK.

ACCORDING TO HIS CALCULATIONS,
OPERATION CITADEL

IS TO BE
A FORMIDABLE OFFENSIVE

AND THE COMEBACK OF HIS ARMY
IN THE EAST,

WHICH WOULD ALSO SERVE
TO UNNERVE THE WESTERN ALLIES.

BUT THESE PLANS PROVE TO BE
TOTALLY UNREALISTIC.

700,000 WEHRMACHT FORCES
STORM IN VAIN

AGAINST THE LAYERED
RED ARMY DEFENSES,

FOR THE GERMAN OFFENSIVE LACKS
ANY STRATEGIC PLANNING.

HITLER FINALLY CALLS OFF
THE POINTLESS OPERATION.

FROM THIS POINT ON, THE RED ARMY
TAKES THE INITIATIVE

AND THE WEHRMACHT
FINDS ITSELF IN RETREAT.

[HAMANN SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: THE WORST OF ALL IS
THAT HE NEVER CAME FACE TO FACE

WITH THE HARDSHIP
OF THE GERMAN PEOPLE.

HE TRAVELED ACROSS GERMANY
IN HIS SPECIAL TRAINS,

AND WHEN HE PASSED
THROUGH CITIES,

HE WOULD DRAW
THE CURTAINS.

HE DIDN'T WANT TO SEE
GERMANY'S CITIES IN RUINS.

IT WAS LIKE
A SELF-PROTECTION MECHANISM

WHICH SOMETIMES
MUST HAVE HELPED HIM

TO MAKE HIMSELF BELIEVE
THAT THE FINAL VICTORY WAS NEAR.

BUT THESE PROMISES
AND SPEECHES

WERE MORE FOR THE BENEFIT
OF HIS AUDIENCES.

HE COULDN'T REALLY HAVE
BELIEVED IT HIMSELF.

Narrator: AT STALIN'S COMMAND,
THE RED ARMY LAUNCHES

A LARGE-SCALE OFFENSIVE
AGAINST THE ARMY GROUP NORTH

ON THE 14th OF JANUARY.

WITHIN A FEW WEEKS,
THE SOVIET TROOPS

MANAGE TO LIBERATE LENINGRAD

AFTER 900 DAYS
UNDER GERMAN SIEGE.

DESPITE THE INCREASINGLY
HOPELESS SITUATION,

HITLER REJECTS A STRATEGIC
RETREAT OF THE WEHRMACHT,

STICKING TO HIS
"HOLD OR DIE" MAXIM.

THE RESULT IS THAT BOTH SIDES
SUFFER SEVERE LOSSES,

AND LARGE NUMBERS
OF GERMAN SOLDIERS

ARE CAPTURED
BY THE SOVIETS.

THE DICTATOR KNOWS
THAT THE TROOPS

OF THE WESTERN ALLIES
IN BRITAIN

WILL EVENTUALLY TRY TO LAND
IN NORTHERN FRANCE

AND ORDERS ALL AVAILABLE
UNITS TO DEPLOY

FOR THE DEFENSE OF THE SO-CALLED
ATLANTIC WALL.

THIS FOOTAGE IS FILMED
BY A CAMERAMAN

OF THE STURMGESCHUTZ ABTEILUNG,

ASSAULT GUN BATTALION 200,
IN JANUARY, 1944.

FIELD MARSHALL ERWIN ROMMEL

DURING AN INSPECTION
OF THE TROOPS.

ALTHOUGH HIS CAMPAIGN
IN NORTH AFRICA

DID NOT FURNISH
THE EXPECTED SUCCESS,

THE DESERT FOX IS REGARDED
AS A GIFTED COMMANDER

AND IS GIVEN THE MISSION OF
COORDINATING FORCES IN NORMANDY.

THE FUEHRER EXPECTS AN INVASION
AT THE NARROWEST POINT

OF THE CHANNEL
NEAR CALAIS.

SO THE GERMANS HAVE STATIONED
OVER 100,000 MEN IN NORMANDY.

THE RECENT DEFEATS DON'T FAIL
TO MAKE AN IMPRESSION

ON THE ALLIES
OF THE NAZIS.

ON THE 18th OF MARCH, 1944,
HITLER ACCUSES HUNGARY'S REGENT,

ADMIRAL HORTHY,

OF CONDUCTING SECRET
NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE ALLIES

AS WELL AS OF ALLOWING

NEARLY ONE MILLION JEWS TO LIVE
IN FREEDOM IN HIS COUNTRY.

HORTHY IS ASKED TO IMMEDIATELY
INVITE THE WEHRMACHT

INTO UNOCCUPIED HUNGARY.

THE REGENT ACCEDES
TO THE PRESSURE

AND RETURNS TO BUDAPEST

ACCOMPANIED BY HIGH-RANKING
S.8. OFFICIALS.

THE WEHRMACHT
OCCUPIES BUDAPEST.

GERMAN PROPAGANDA
PROCLAIMS THE OCCUPATION

TO SERVE ONLY THE SECURITY
OF THE COUNTRY.

ONE MONTH LATER, THE
DEPORTATIONS OF HUNGARIAN JEWS

TO THE EXTERMINATION
CAMPS BEGIN.

IN A PERIOD OF JUST TWO MONTHS,

400,000 PEOPLE ARE MURDERED
IN AUSCHWITZ.

ADOLF EICHMANN,
THE MAN RESPONSIBLE

FOR THE LOGISTICS IN THE REICH'S
MAIN SECURITY OFFICE,

ORGANIZES THE TRANSPORTATION
OF JEWS ALL ACROSS EUROPE.

THE RELEVANT MINISTRIES
IN BERLIN ARE HAPPY

TO OFFER ADMINISTRATIVE
ASSISTANCE.

THE ONLY KNOWN FILM FOOTAGE
OF ONE SUCH TRANSPORT

IS FILED IN THE WESTERBORK
CONCENTRATION CAMP

IN HOLLAND IN 1944.

THE FILM WAS COMMISSIONED BY
THE COMMANDING OFFICER HIMSELF.

ON ARRIVAL IN AUSCHWITZ,

APPROXIMATELY 2/3
OF THE PRISONERS

ARE MURDERED IMMEDIATELY,
AND THE REST ARE SENT TO WORK

AS SLAVE LABORERS IN POLAND
OR IN THE THIRD REICH.

[ELY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: THE SELECTION
OF PEOPLE FIT TO WORK

WAS INTENSIFIED AGAIN.

IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING
THAT THOSE FIT TO WORK

WERE ALSO TO DIE

AFTER THEY HAD DONE
THEIR WORK.

BUT DUE TO THE FACT

THAT THEY WERE SELECTED
TO BECOME LABORERS,

THEY WERE AT LEAST
GIVEN A CHANCE

TO SURVIVE FOR SOME TIME.

Narrator:
FOR THE FIRST TIME,

THE CELEBRATIONS
FOR THE FUEHRER'S BIRTHDAY,

HIS 55th, TAKE PLACE
WITHOUT HIM.

[APPLAUSE]

ON THE OCCASION
OF THE CELEBRATIONS,

GOEBBELS HAS BERLIN DECORATED
WITH FLAGS AND SLOGANS

BRIMMING WITH PATHOS--

"OUR WALLS ARE BROKEN
BUT NOT OUR HEARTS."

THE PARTY NEWSPAPER,
"VOLKISCHER BEOBACHTER," WRITES,

"NEVER BEFORE
HAS THE GERMAN PEOPLE

“LOOKED UP TO ITS LEADER
AS TRUSTINGLY AS IN THESE HOURS,

"AS HE HAS BECOME AWARE
OF THE WHOLE EXTENT

OF THIS STRUGGLE
FOR OUR LIVES."

ON THE THIRD OF JUNE, 1944,
EVA BRAUN'S SISTER GRETL

MARRIES S.S. GRUPPENFUHRER
HERMANN FEGELEIN IN SALZBURG.

FEGELEIN WAS THE COMMANDER
OF AN S.S. CAVALRY DIVISION

IN THE EAST
AND HAS THE LIVES

OF TENS OF THOUSANDS
OF CIVILIANS ON HIS CONSCIENCE.

THE CELEBRATION IS HELD
ON THE BERGHOF.

IT IS THE LAST PARTY THAT
HITLER'S LOVER WILL ORGANIZE

IN THE MOUNTAIN RESIDENCE.

THE GROUP PORTRAIT SHOWS
THE BRIDE AND GROOM WITH HITLER.

THE SIXTH OF JUNE, 1944,
IS TO BECOME

THE LONGEST DAY
OF WORLD WAR II.

THE LANDINGS IN NORMANDY
COMMENCE AT DAWN.

SUFFERING HEAVY CASUALTIES,
THE ALLIED FORCES

STORM THE FRENCH COAST
ALONG AN 80-KILOMETER STRETCH.

AT THE OMAHA BEACH SECTION,

THE AMERICANS ENCOUNTER
FIERCE RESISTANCE.

MACHINE GUNS MOW DOWN

THE CHARGING SOLDIERS
IN THE HUNDREDS.

Kershaw: AN INVASION
WAS EXPECTED

AND EXPECTED IMMINENTLY,

BUT THE GERMAN HIGH COMMAND
OF THE WEHRMACHT

WAS UNSURE PRECISELY WHERE THIS
INVASION WOULD TAKE PLACE.

HITLER HIMSELF
HAD ACTUALLY THOUGHT

THAT IT WOULD TAKE PLACE
IN NORMANDY,

OR SO HE LATER SAID,

BUT ONLY IN ONE
OF THE FOUR BEACHES

IN WHICH THE ALLIES
LANDED IN NORMANDY

WERE GERMAN TROOPS
AT THE READY,

AND THAT WAS OMAHA BEACH,

BECAUSE THERE WAS VERY TOUGH
FIGHTING BY THE AMERICANS

WITH HUGE NUMBERS
OF CASUALTIES

ON THE FIRST DAY
OF THE FIGHTING.

BUT EVEN THERE, AT THE END
OF THIS LONGEST DAY

OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR,
THE LANDING HAD BEEN SECURED,

AND HITLER HIMSELF, EVEN AFTER
THE LANDING HAD BEEN SECURED,

THOUGHT THAT...
WAS STILL OPTIMISTIC

THAT THE INVASION
COULD BE REPULSED.

UNTIL THEN, HE'D BEEN
ABSOLUTELY ADAMANT

THAT THE INVASION--
HE WAS WAITING FOR THE INVASION,

BECAUSE WHEN THE INVASION TOOK
PLACE, IT WOULD BE REPELLED.

Narrator: 10,000 ALLIED
SOLDIERS ARE KILLED OR WOUNDED

ON D-DAY.

"NOW WE FINALLY HAVE THEM
WHERE WE CAN BEAT THEM,"

COMMENTS HITLER WHEN HE HEARS
THE NEWS OF THE LANDING.

BY THE EVENING OF THE FIRST DAY,
THE ALLIED FORCES

HAVE MANAGED TO ESTABLISH
SEVERAL BRIDGEHEADS IN FRANCE.

FROM THIS POINT ON,
THE ASSAULT ON FORTRESS EUROPE

WILL BE UNSTOPPABLE.

AT THE WEHRMACHT HIGH COMMAND
IN EAST PRUSSIA,

OFFICERS WHILE AWAY THEIR TIME
BY MAKING A FILM

THAT DOCUMENTS THE DAILY ROUTINE
OF THE GENERAL STAFF.

MEANWHILE, THE FUEHRER'S
MILITARY HEADQUARTERS

IN THE NEARBY WOLF'S LAIR

IS MOVED INTO
A BOMBPROOF FORTIFICATION

DURING HITLER'S ABSENCE.

THE DICTATOR AND HIS ENTOURAGE

DO NOT RETURN TO EAST PRUSSIA
UNTIL MID-JULY.

ON THE AFTERNOON
OF THE 20th OF JULY,

HITLER WELCOMES BENITO MUSSOLINI
AT THE RAILWAY STATION

OF THE WOLF'S LAIR COMPLEX.

JUST A FEW HOURS EARLIER,
THE FUEHRER HAD SURVIVED

AN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
BY MEANS OF A BRIEFCASE BOMB

DURING THE DAILY
STRATEGY MEETING.

THE PROPAGANDA MINISTER
DESCRIBES THE SCENERY

IN THE DEMOLISHED BARRACKS
ON THE RADIO.

Kershaw: WHAT HE NEVER ENVISAGED
WAS A STRIKE

FROM WITHIN HIS OWN
ARMED FORCES LEADERSHIP.

SO FOR HITLER, THIS WAS
SOMETHING WHICH WAS JUST

AN EXTRAORDINARY BLOW,

AND HE RESPONDED,
AS HE ONLY WOULD,

WITH ENORMOUS RUTHLESSNESS
AND BRUTALITY.

THIS WAS A STAB
IN THE BACK

FROM WITHIN THE ARMED
FORCES LEADERSHIP.

IT LEFT WITHIN HIM NOW
A VERY PRONOUNCED SENSE

OF BETRAYAL,
OF TREASON FROM WITHIN,

AN OBSESSION WITH THIS
TREASON FROM WITHIN,

AND IT PROVIDED HIM
WITH THE ALIBI, OF COURSE,

FOR WHY EVERYTHING
HAD GONE WRONG.

SO NOW HE WAS ABLE
TO BLAME EVERYTHING--

THE COLLAPSE
OF THE EASTERN FRONT,

THE SUCCESS OF THE INVASION
IN THE WEST, WHATEVER--

ON THE PEOPLE AROUND HIM

WHO HAVE BEEN
PERPETRATING TREASON.

AND THIS SENSE OF INTENSE
DISTRUST AND OBSESSION

WITH TREASON FROM WITHIN
REMAINED WITH HIM

TO THE VERY END.

Narrator: AFTER THE FAILURE
OF THE COUP D'ETAT,

THE PLOT LEADERS AROUND
GRAF VON STAUFFENBERG

ARE COURT-MARTIALED
AND EXECUTED BY FIRING SQUAD

ON THE SAME NIGHT.

HITLER HAS THE SURVIVING
CONSPIRATORS

RELENTLESSLY ROUNDED UP
AND SENTENCED TO DEATH

IN SHOW TRIALS BEFORE HIS BLOOD
JUDGE, ROLAND FREISLER.

ONE OF THEM IS ULRICH
GRAF SCHWERIN VON SCHWANENFELD.

[ALY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: THE HEROES
OF THE 20th OF JULY,

AS WE CALL THEM TODAY, WERE
THE TRAITORS IN THOSE TRIALS,

WHICH WERE ALL FILMED
FOR THE NEWSREEL.

BUT FREISLER'S BEHAVIOR WAS
SO OUT OF LINE DURING THE TRIAL,

THAT GOEBBELS REALIZED
IT WOULDN'T BE GOOD

FOR THE PROPAGANDA.

IN ORDER FOR THE TRIALS
TO BE EFFECTIVE

FOR PROPAGANDA PURPOSES,
HE WOULD HAVE PREFERRED

A DIFFERENT,
FAIRER ATMOSPHERE

DURING THE PROCEEDINGS.

Narrator: THE PEOPLE'S COURT
CONDEMNS OVER 100 DEFENDANTS

TO DEATH BY HANGING

AND ANOTHER 30
TO PRISON SENTENCES.

ALONG WITH MANY
POLITICAL PRISONERS,

THE BRANDENBURG-GEURDEN
PENITENTIARY

ALSO HOUSES NORMAL CITIZENS
WHO HAVE PUBLICLY RAISED DOUBTS

ON THE FINAL VICTORY.

THE NAZI JUDICIAL SYSTEM
PROCEEDS MERCILESSLY

AGAINST ANY FORM
OF OPPOSITION.

[ALY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: OF ALL
THE DEATH SENTENCES

IMPOSED ON GERMANS
BY THE PEOPLE'S COURT,

95% WERE HANDED OUT
IN THE YEARS 1943 TO '44.

AS A RESULT,
POLITICAL DEBATE IN PUBLIC

WAS PRACTICALLY SILENCED.

IN THIS RESPECT, THE NAZI|
PROPAGANDA WAS SUCCESSFUL,

IN AS MUCH AS IT MANAGED
TO RESTRAIN PEOPLE

FROM SPEAKING OUT.

Narrator: A MASS FUNERAL
FOR THE DEAD

AFTER A BOMBING RAID
IN NORDENHAM,

A TOWN AT THE MOUTH
OF THE WESER RIVER.

THE PHRASE "DIED
FOR THE FUEHRER,

THE PEOPLE,
AND THE FATHERLAND,"

APPEARS LESS AND LESS OFTEN
IN OBITUARIES.

“IF ONE RECEIVES SUCH BLOWS,

ONLY AN IDIOT CAN BELIEVE
THAT THE WAR WILL BE WON,"

REASONS A CITIZEN
IN BERLIN,

ACCORDING TO
A CONFIDENTIAL REPORT.

DESPITE THE FACT THAT
THE BOMB DAMAGE IN PLANTS

CONTRIBUTING
TO THE WAR EFFORT

IS OFTEN PATCHED UP
WITHIN HOURS

AND THE FACTORIES
CAN MANUFACTURE AGAIN SOON,

ARMAMENTS MINISTER ALBERT SPEER
HAS LONG LOST THE RACE

AGAINST THE ALLIES.

IN 1944 ALONE, THE AMERICANS
BUILD AS MANY AIRCRAFT

AS GERMANY HAD PRODUCED OVER
THE COURSE OF THE ENTIRE WAR.

THE WONDER WEAPONS
PROMISED BY THE PROPAGANDA,

SUCH AS THE MESSERSCHMITT
ME-262 JET FIGHTER HERE,

MAY BE DEPLOYED
IN OPERATIONAL SERVICE

IN ISOLATED CASES,
BUT CANNOT WIN BACK

THE AIR SUPREMACY
FROM THE ALLIED AIR FORCES.

AND ALSO, HITLER'S ROCKETS
FROM PEENEMUNDE

FAIL TO HALT THE ADVANCE
OF THE ALLIES.

THE REICH PLENIPOTENTIARY
FOR TOTAL WAR, JOSEPH GOEBBELS,

MUST NOW MOBILIZE THE LAST
RESERVES ON THE HOME FRONT.

ANYONE WHO IS CAPABLE
OF CARRYING A GUN

IS CONSCRIPTED
FOR THE VOLKSSTURM.

Translator:
I'VE READ MANY DIARIES

FROM THAT TIME--
'43, '44, '45--

AND WHAT STANDS OUT
IS THAT PEOPLE

DIDN'T ACTUALLY CRITICIZE
HITLER HIMSELF,

BUT THE PEOPLE
IN HIS ENVIRONMENT.

GOERING, IN PARTICULAR,
WAS VERY UNPOPULAR.

BUT MANY PEOPLE COULDN'T
STAND GOEBBELS EITHER.

“THEY DON'T LET OUR FUHRER GET
BACK ON HIS FEET," PEOPLE WROTE.

AND BECAUSE BY THEN,
HITLER HAD PRACTICALLY WITHDRAWN

FROM PUBLIC LIFE,

PEOPLE WERE MORE PREPARED
TO FORGIVE HIM.

THEN AT SOME POINT
AROUND THE END OF 1944,

A RUMOR STARTED GOING AROUND
THAT HITLER WAS NO LONGER ALIVE.

Narrator: ARMAMENTS MINISTER
ALBERT SPEER VISITS

THE DEPLOYMENT ZONE
OF THE ARDENNES OFFENSIVE.

IN MID-DECEMBER, 1944,

THE WEHRMACHT HAD MOBILIZED
ALL REMAINING RESERVES

AND LAUNCHED
OPERATION AUTUMN MIST.

“"THE LOW POINT
HAD BEEN OVERCOME,"

DECLARED THE DICTATOR
AT THE TURN OF THE YEAR

FROM HIS HEADQUARTERS
IN BAD NAUHEIM.

"ULTIMATELY THE REICH
WOULD BE VICTORIOUS."

AN UNKNOWN FILMMAKER CAPTURES
THESE SEEMINGLY CAREFREE SCENES

AT AN ANTI-AIRCRAFT
ARTILLERY POSITION

SOMEWHERE IN THE SOUTH
OF GERMANY.

WOMEN, ADOLESCENTS,
AND MEN UNFIT FOR THE FRONT

ARE THE LAST CONTINGENT
THE NAZI LEADERS CAN MUSTER.

THEY ARE TO HALT
THE WAVES OF ALLIED BOMBERS

WHICH BY NOW ENTER THE GERMAN
AIRSPACE ALMOST UNHINDERED.

BRITISH AND U.S. FORCES
INTENSIFY THE AIR RAIDS

OVER GERMANY ONCE AGAIN.

THE LISTS OF TARGETS
GROW LONGER,

AND EVEN SMALLER TOWNS

WITH NO APPARENT STRATEGIC
SIGNIFICANCE ARE LEVELED.

WITHIN THE SPACE
OF A FEW WEEKS,

MASSIVE DESTRUCTION
IS WREAKED ON GERMAN CITIES.

ON THE THIRD
OF FEBRUARY, 1945,

1,000 AMERICAN BOMBERS
FLY A LARGE RAID ON BERLIN.

SOME 3,000 PEOPLE ARE KILLED
DURING OPERATION THUNDERCLAP,

AND OVER 120,000
BECOME HOMELESS.

AND ALTHOUGH CITIES
LIKE DRESDEN, POTSDAM,

WURZBURG, OR TRAUNSTEIN ARE
ALMOST COMPLETELY DESTROYED,

THE PEOPLE CONTINUE
TO STICK IT OUT,

FOR MANY CANNOT IMAGINE
A FUTURE WITHOUT HITLER.

[ALY SPEAKING GERMAN]

Translator: ON THE ONE HAND,
WE HAVE THE FEAR OF DEFEAT,

ESPECIALLY AFTER EVERYTHING
PEOPLE HAD LEARNED

ABOUT THE CRIMES
COMMITTED BY GERMANS

AND ABOUT HOW THE CONQUERED

AND THE DISCRIMINATED PEOPLES
HAD BEEN TREATED,

IN PARTICULARLY THE JEWS.

THEY WERE EFFECTIVELY
FRIGHTENED.

THEN WE HAVE THE PROPAGANDA
SAYING THAT SUBHUMANS

ARE INVADING THE GERMAN REICH,

MEANING THE RUSSIANS
FROM THE EAST,

COMBINED WITH SOME
REAL REPORTS ABOUT THE CONDUCT

OF RED ARMY UNITS
IN THE CITIES THEY HAD TAKEN.

Narrator:
THE 13th OF JANUARY

MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE MAJOR
RED ARMY OFFENSIVE

IN EAST PRUSSIA.

THE DEPLETED WEHRMACHT
DIVISIONS CANNOT HALT

THE SUPERIOR SOVIET FORCES.

MANY REFUGEE TREKS
OUT OF EAST PRUSSIA

ARE WIPED OUT
BY THE RED ARMY.

“"THE AMOUNT OF GUILT
HITLER HAS INCURRED

IS ENORMOUS," A SOLDIER WRITES,
AND CONTINUES,

“IF | CAN'T SEE
MY FAMILY AGAIN,

THEN | DON'T WANT TO
LIVE ANYMORE."

RED ARMY UNITS
LIBERATE AUSCHWITZ,

HITLER'S DEATH FACTORY
IN POLAND,

ON THE 27th OF JANUARY, 1945.

ONLY ABOUT 7,000 INMATES
REMAIN ALIVE IN THE CAMP,

SICK PEOPLE AND CHILDREN

WHO HAVE BEEN SUBJUGATED
TO MEDICAL EXPERIMENTS.

NEARLY 6 MILLION JEWS
WERE METHODICALLY MURDERED

IN THE EXTERMINATION CAMPS--

MEN, WOMEN,
AND OVER 1.5 MILLION CHILDREN

SHOT BY DEATH SQUADS,
GASSED, POISONED,

OR BEATEN TO DEATH.

THEY ARE THE VICTIMS OF THE MOST
HEINOUS CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY,

ORGANIZED AND CARRIED OUT IN THE
NAME OF THE GERMAN PEOPLE.

ON THE WESTERN FRONT, TOO,

THE WAR COMES
INTO GERMANY.

ON THE SIXTH OF MARCH,
AMERICAN TROOPS ADVANCE

INTO THE CENTER OF COLOGNE.

THE NAZI FUNCTIONARIES
WANT TO DEFEND THE CITY

TO THE LAST MAN ALIVE.

[GUNFIRE]

U.S. ARMY CAMERA CREWS
CAPTURE THE DRAMATIC SCENE

SHOWING HOUSE-TO-HOUSE
FIGHTING AT FIRSTHAND.

AT 5 P.M. LOCAL TIME,
THE BATTLE FOR COLOGNE IS OVER.

AMERICAN FORCES REACH
THE BANK OF THE RHINE RIVER.

ON THE 20th OF MARCH,

HITLER APPEARS
FOR THE LAST TIME

BEFORE THE NEWSREEL CAMERAS
IN THE GARDEN

OF THE CHANCELLERY
OF THE REICH.

HE WANTS GERMANY
TO GO DOWN WITH HIM.

Kershaw: HITLER HAD SAID
ON A NUMBER OF OCCASIONS,

“IF THIS WAR IS LOST,
IT WILL BE BECAUSE

“"THE GERMAN PEOPLE
IS NOT STRONG ENOUGH,

"AND IF THAT IS THE CASE,
IT DESERVES TO GO UNDER,

IT DESERVES
TO SUFFER DEFEAT."

HITLER HAS SAID,
“IF WE GO DOWN,

WE'LL TAKE
A WORLD WITH US."

SO THIS WAS HITLER'S
MENTALITY THERE,

THAT HE WOULD...

THAT IF THERE WERE TO BE
NO SUCCESSFUL OUTCOME

TO THIS WAR FOR GERMANY,

THEN IT WILL BE
WITH TOTAL DESTRUCTION,

DESTRUCTION WITHIN GERMANY
AS WELL AS WITHOUT.

HE WOULD TAKE HIS ENEMIES
DOWN WITH HIM INTO THE ABYSS.

AND THE GERMAN PEOPLE WOULD HAVE
NO NEED FOR ANY PROVISIONS,

AND THEREFORE EVERYTHING WITHIN
GERMANY COULD BE DESTROYED.

Narrator: HAVING
CROSSED THE RHINE,

BRITISH AND U.S. TROOPS
CONTINUE TO ADVANCE EASTWARD.

HITLER IS SURPRISED

THAT THE WESTERN FRONT
HAS COLLAPSED SO SOON.

HE SENSES TREASON.

MANY WEHRMACHT UNITS
SURRENDER MUCH TOO QUICKLY.

THE SPELL THAT HAD HELD THE
SOLDIERS BOUND TO HIM FOR YEARS

IS NOW COMPLETELY BROKEN,

ESPECIALLY HERE, FAR AWAY FROM
HIS REMAINING SPHERE OF POWER.

THE ATROCITIES CAN
NO LONGER BE CONCEALED.

IN EARLY APRIL, 1945,
U.S. SOLDIERS LIBERATE

THE OHRDRUF CONCENTRATION CAMP
IN THURINGIA.

SOME 10,000 SLAVE LABORERS
HAD BEEN LOCKED UP HERE.

ONLY A FEW SURVIVE
THE NAZI| BARBARITY.

THE AMERICANS ARE SHOCKED.

OHRDRUF IS ONE
OF THE FIRST CAMPS

THEY HAVE SET EYES ON.

ON ORDERS FROM THE VICTORS,
THE RELUCTANT RESIDENTS

OF THE NEARBY VILLAGE

ARE CONFRONTED
WITH THE GRUESOME TRUTH.

THE ADVANCING RED ARMY

HAS CONCENTRATED
HALF A MILLION SOLDIERS

ALONG THE ODER RIVER.

ON THE 16th OF APRIL,
THE SOVIETS LAUNCH

THE OFFENSIVE ON BERLIN.

HOUSE-TO-HOUSE FIGHTING RAGES
IN THE STREETS OF THE CAPITAL.

DESPITE FIERCE RESISTANCE,

THE SOVIETS TAKE
ONE DISTRICT AFTER ANOTHER

AND ADVANCE TOWARD
THE CITY CENTER.

HITLER HAS WITHDRAWN
TO HIS UNDERGROUND BUNKER

BELOW THE REICH'S CHANCELLERY.

HE ORDERS TROOP UNITS
THAT NO LONGER EXIST

OR ARE TOO FAR AWAY
TO INTERVENE TO PUSH FORWARD.

EVEN IN THIS
DESPERATE SITUATION,

CAPITULATION IS OUT
OF THE QUESTION FOR THE FUEHRER,

AND THUS, TENS OF THOUSANDS
OF SOLDIERS FROM BOTH SIDES

AS WELL AS COUNTLESS
CIVILIANS MUST DIE

IN THE STREETS OF BERLIN.

Kershaw:
AT THE VERY END,

WE ONLY KNOW EFFECTIVELY THAT HE
WAS NOW RESIGNED TO HIS FATE,

THAT HE HAD, IN A SENSE,
PREPARED THIS ENDING,

WITH WAS ALMOST A THEATRICAL
END TO THE THIRD REICH

WITH HIS OWN...
HIS OWN SUICIDE NOW

WITH THE RUSSIANS ALMOST
LITERALLY AT THE VERY DOORS

AND AGAIN WITH
THE NOTION THAT...

WHICH WAS PUT OUT
BY PROPAGANDA THEN,

THAT THE FUEHRER HAD FALLEN
WITH HIS TROOPS--

WHICH, OF COURSE,
A LAST LIE--

FALLEN WITH HIS TROOPS
AT THE VERY END,

AGAIN A PORTRAYAL
OF THIS IMAGE

OF HEROIC LEADERSHIP
TO THE VERY END,

THE IMAGE THAT HE WANTED TO BE
THAT WHICH WOULD OUTLAST HIM

AND GO INTO POSTERITY
AS THE IMAGE OF HEROISM,

SURVIVING TO THE VERY END,

UNLIKE 1918,
NOT FOLLOWING

THE COWARDLY WAY OUT
OF CAPITULATION,

BUT FIGHTING HEROICALLY ON
TO THE BITTER END.

Narrator: THE DICTATOR
MARRIES EVA BRAUN

IN THE FUEHRER BUNKER
ON THE 30th OF APRIL, 1945,

AT 3:30 IN THE AFTERNOON.

THE NEWLYWEDS RETREAT
TO HITLER'S PRIVATE CHAMBERS

AND COMMIT SUICIDE.

JOSEPH GOEBBELS
ASSUMES THE TASK

OF ORGANIZING THE END
OF THE NAZI RULE.

TWO DAYS LATER, THE FORCES
DEFENDING BERLIN SURRENDER.

THE VICTORS SEIZE THE CENTER
OF POWER OF THE THIRD REICH.

ON THE THIRD OF MAY,

THE CORPSES OF JOSEPH GOEBBELS
AND HIS FAMILY

ARE LINED UP IN THE GARDEN
OF PRITSENZIE PRISON

WHILE SOVIET CAMERAS ROLLED.

THE GOEBBELS FAMILY
THAT WOULD NOT EVEN SPARE

THEIR OWN CHILDREN
ARE MADE A SYMBOL

OF A DEADLY FANATICISM
WHICH IN THE END

CLAIMED THE LIVES
OF 16 MILLION PEOPLE.

ON THE 30th OF JANUARY, 1933,

A CHEERING CROWD
OF HITLER'S FOLLOWERS

MARCHED THROUGH BRANDENBURG
GATE HOLDING TORCHES

AFTER HIS APPOINTMENT
AS REICH CHANCELLOR.

12 YEARS, 3 MONTHS,
AND 9 DAYS LATER,

EVERYTHING IS OVER.

GERMANY LIES IN RUINS,

OCCUPIED AND SOON
TO BE DIVIDED.

HIGH-RANKING NAZIS
COMMIT SUICIDE

OR SURRENDER
TO THE VICTORS.

REICHS MARSHALL HERMANN GOERING
BELIEVES HE MAY HAVE

A POLITICAL FUTURE, BUT IS
ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL.

JUST LIKE MANY OTHER NAZIS,

HE IS UNAWARE
OF ANY WRONGDOING.

THE FINAL ACT TAKES PLACE
ON THE EIGHTH OF MAY

IN THE BERLIN BUREAU
OF KLAUSHORST.

IT IS INCUMBENT UPON
THE MILITARY LEADERS

TO FORMALLY END
THE NAZI RULE OVER GERMANY

AND HALF OF EUROPE.

IN THE PRESENCE
OF ARMY COMMANDERS

OF THE VICTORIOUS
ALLIED POWERS,

FIELD MARSHALL WILHELM KEITEL
SIGNS THE CAPITULATION

OF THE GERMAN ARMED FORCES
ON LAND, AT SEA, AND IN THE AIR

SHORTLY AFTER MIDNIGHT.

AT EXACTLY 11:01 P.M.,
THE GUNS HAD FALLEN SILENT

ON ALL FRONTS.

THE SECOND WORLD WAR IS OVER.

THE THIRD REICH
HAS CEASED TO EXIST.