Video Documentaries

Bravery and sacrifice define our new nation as war erupts across Europe. Canada, as a British Dominion, joins in the fight – a young country seeking to find its place on the world stage. It's not long before nearly half a million Canadians, including thousands of Indigenous soldiers, travel to Europe to serve beside their allies in the First World War. This post was moved here: https://clumphd.com/canada-the-story-of-us-service-and-sacrifice-1916-1929/ Over 10 hours, the drama-documentary tells the extraordinary tale of some of the people, places and events that shaped Canada — stories of change makers and rule breakers, dreamers and visionaries, scientists and entrepreneurs who forged a nation in a vast and harsh land.

Poison gas killed 80,000 soldiers in World War I. Nearly a million more were victims who suffered its lingering effects. Initially the wind distributed chlorine gas across the battlefields of the western front but an arms race quickly developed until one in three shells contained some form of toxic gas. Deadly Battles of World War I -  Ypres the Gas Inferno part 1 It's not the statistics, however, that make this a successful documentary. A surprising amount of black-and-white footage and interviews with survivors and relatives of key players tell a compelling tale of motivations and consequences. Deadly Battles of World War I - Verdun the Nightmare part 2 For those who adhere to the maxim that history repeats itself, it's worth noting that despite an international convention banning chemical weapons, both sides of the Great War deployed poison gases with few reservations. As one interviewee puts it, patriotism defeated morality.

14 Diaries of the Great War Part 1: The Abyss - Following the murder in Sarajevo, the European nations call for the battle. A war seems inevitable. We are witnessing the beginning of the war through the eyes of 14-year-old Russian Marina Yurlova, who is left behind by her father, a soldier at a cossack regiment.  German artist Kathe Kolwitz sees her son enthusiastically leaving the front. The Austrian Karl Kasser, initially rejected for the service, is eventually called for the army. 10-year-old boy Yves Congar from Sedan believes France will soon win. Elfriede Kuhr, a 12-year-old girl from the German Posen, believes that it will soon be over. "By Christmas we're back" promise the soldiers. But at the end of 1914 there have already been a million casualties and the war does not seem to be over yet. 14 Diaries of the Great War Part 1 104 years after its outbreak, this series lets viewers experience WWI solely through the eyes of those who lived it. History tells us 'w