6 weeks before D-Day, British, American, and Canadian soldiers took part in a dangerous rehearsal for the Normandy invasion which claimed more American lives than the attack on Utah Beach. So what happened? How many Americans died? And who is to blame?
During World War II, Allied operatives went on secret missions to kill Adolph Hitler and his top officers, including Erwin Rommel. Allied Special Forces launched daring wartime missions to capture or kill Nazi generals where they were stationed on the front lines of war. National Geographic Channel captures the real-time drama felt as the Special Forces commanded these dangerous and complicated missions to exotic locations.
Experience the terrifying air and sea war of WWII as it was fought in Europe and the Pacific. Digitally remastered close-up uncensored footage and sound puts you behind the shoot-to-kill gun sights of American and Nazi fighters. See P-51s, P-47s, P-38s and P-40s as they charge into battle. Watch air-to-air pursuits, aerial shootdowns, factory, train and ammo dumps strafing.
With testimony from the UK, the US, the Commonwealth and Germany, 'D-Day: The Shortest Day' documents the meticulous planning leading up to the world's biggest amphibious invasion, the terror and triumph of the landings and the bitterness of the fighting in the days that followed.
A documentary focusing on the life stories of Jewish American World War II veterans. The film explores their unique experiences of being Jewish soldiers during a time of extreme anti-Semitism both abroad, and in America.
In 1941, Hong Kong was the Casablanca of the East, a city full of war refugees, profiteers and spies. With the sudden attack by Japanese troops, a Canadian soldier's Christmas promise is broken during the Battle of Hong Kong.
In February 1945, Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal captured the image of five U.S. Marines and one U.S. Navy Corpsman hoisting the American flag atop a mountain in Iwo Jima.
From M16 rifles to Huey helicopters, the Vietnam War launched weapons that went on to become legendary. This is the untold story of one such weapon built not by the Pentagon, but by teenage soldiers trying to keep themselves alive: the gun truck. Through interviews and home movies, meet the U.S. Army's unsung heroes: the self-made, five-ton, moving monsters that defended convoys from enemy attack and went on to influence today's combat tactics.
In honour of the 15th Anniversary of 9/11, National Geographic Channel is looking back at the very best reporting we have done since this world-changing tragedy first happened using extended excerpts from past specials that relate directly to events leading up to and following the attacks on New York City and Washington DC.
World War II Italy...1943. After parachuting behind enemy lines on an espionage mission, an American soldier is imprisoned by the enemy. He escapes with four Italian prisoners, enlisting their aid in exploding a bridge.
Just prior to the end of World War II, the German military secretly undertook a massive push to design miracle weapons - colossal tanks, the world's first guided missiles, and high-speed jets that could attack New York. Now, nearly 60 years later, a team of experts examines the original blueprints to determine if these so-called "Wunderwaffen," or "wonder weapons," could have changed the outcome of the war. One of Adolf Hitler's most top secret bombs: The Fritz X grandfather of the modern smart bomb. Prototype testing revealed that the success rate with this radio-guided bomb was over 80 times higher than with conventional free-falling bombs of the time. In every documented case the destructive power of the Fritz X proved so strong that it would completely rip through any battleship it hit. It would never explode while still inside the ship, but on exiting or in the water.
How much should you negotiate with the enemy? In Israel, the debate over that question evoked fury to the point of assassination. Such was the case of Kasztner. Dr Israel (Rezso) Kasztner, a Hungarian Jew who tried to rescue the last million Jews of Europe by negotiating face to face with Nazi leader Adolf Eichmann, was gunned down by another Jew who never set foot in Nazi Europe. After 50 years, his assassin Ze'ev Eckstein breaks his silence on the fateful night he shot and killed Kasztner. (Storyville)