Blitzkrieg

NARRATOR: IT'S NAZI GERMANY'S UNSTOPPABLE COMBINATION OF SPEED AND FIREPOWER.

FIRE!

[EXPLOSION] THE OUTSIDE OF THIS BUILDING IS ABSOLUTELY POCKMARKED WITH BULLET HOLES.

WE CAN EXAMINE THIS STRUCTURE FORENSICALLY.

NARRATOR: A REVOLUTIONARY STRIKE FORCE WHICH GIVES HITLER THE CHANCE TO CONQUER EUROPE.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] NEW WEAPONS AND TACTICS COMBINE TO CREATE A GIANT MACHINE THAT DELIVERS LIGHTNING VICTORIES.

IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DIVE BOMBER.

NARRATOR: FUELED BY CUTTING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY, IT STORMS ACROSS BATTLEFIELD AFTER BATTLEFIELD.

IT'S AN UNSTOPPABLE FORCE OF FAST AND FURIOUS FIREPOWER.

NARRATOR: SCATTERED ACROSS EUROPE ARE THE ASTONISHING REMAINS OF THE WAR MACHINE THAT TOOK NAZI GERMANY TO THE BRINK OF WINNING WORLD WAR II.

AND CHANGED WARFARE FOREVER.

THIS IS THE STORY OF BLITZKRIEG.

THE BIGGEST CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS OF WORLD WAR II.

ORDERED BY HITLER TO SECURE WORLD DOMINATION... [SHOUTING IN GERMAN] NOW THEY SURVIVE AS DARK REMINDERS OF THE FUEHRER'S FANATICAL MILITARY AMBITIONS.

OH, MY GOD.

THESE ARE THE SECRETS OF THE NAZI MEGA WEAPONS.

NARRATOR: JULY 1941.

IN THE SKIES OVER THE SOVIET CITY OF SMOLENSK, STUKA DIVE BOMBER PILOT HANS-ULRICH RUDEL SEARCHES FOR HIS TARGET 13,000 FEET BELOW.

[MUFFLED SPEAKING IN GERMAN] [SHOUTING] MAN, AS RUDEL: ANY POSITIONS BLOCKING OUR PANZERS' ADVANCE ARE ATTACKED IMMEDIATELY.

NOTHING IS ALLOWED TO SLOW THEM DOWN.

[EXPLOSION] NARRATOR: RUDEL IS FLYING BOMBING MISSIONS IN SUPPORT OF THE LARGEST MILITARY OFFENSIVE IN HISTORY: OPERATION BARBAROSSA.

COMMANDING ONE OF THE TANKS LEADING THE INVASION IS KARL FUCHS.

[SHOUTING IN GERMAN] INTERPRETER: YES!

THAT'S IT, BOYS!

MAN, AS FUCHS: RUSSIAN RESISTANCE IS FEEBLE.

WHEREVER THEY TRY TO STOP US, WE JUST BRUSH THEM ASIDE.

THE STUKAS BACK US UP 100%.

THE PILOTS ARE FANTASTIC.

NARRATOR: ADOLF HITLER HAS LAUNCHED 3 MILLION MEN IN AN ALL-OUT ATTACK ON THE SOVIET UNION.

[MAN SPEAKING GERMAN] MAN, INTERPRETING: BEFORE 3 MONTHS HAVE PASSED, WE SHALL WITNESS A COLLAPSE OF RUSSIA THE LIKE OF WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN IN HISTORY.

NARRATOR: HISTORIAN JAMES HOLLAND HAS TRAVELED TO POLAND TO FIND THE SECRET HEADQUARTERS CONTROLLING THIS HUGE INVASION.

ITS CODE NAME IS MAUERWALD.

AH, YES.

THIS IS WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR.

THIS IS A--ONE OF A LARGE NUMBER OF CONCRETE BUNKERS THAT FILLED THIS ENTIRE WOOD.

THIS IS PART OF A-- A HUGE COMPLEX THAT WAS THE FORMER FIELD HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, JUST BEFORE OPERATION BARBAROSSA--THE INVASION OF THE SOVIET UNION.

MAUERWALD HAS BEEN BUILT TO CONTROL THE INVASION AND THE NEW WAR-FIGHTING TECHNIQUE KNOWN AS BLITZKRIEG, OR LIGHTNING WAR.

HOLLAND: AS AN HISTORIAN, IT FEELS VERY ODD TO BE...

STANDING HERE SO CLOSE TO WHAT WAS REALLY THE BEATING HEART OF THE GERMAN ARMY'S OPERATIONS ON THE EASTERN FRONT.

AND SO, YOU'RE OVERWHELMED, REALLY, WITH KIND OF HOW IMPORTANT THIS PLACE MUST HAVE BEEN BACK IN 1941.

NARRATOR: THE STORY OF BLITZKRIEG BEGINS IN THE AFTERMATH OF WORLD WAR I, WHEN A HUMILIATED GERMANY IS FORCED TO ACCEPT THE ALLIES' TERMS.

THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES REDUCES THE GERMAN ARMY TO JUST 100,000 MEN AND BANS IT FROM HAVING ANY TANKS OR AIRCRAFT, BUT DEVELOPMENT OF BOTH MACHINES CONTINUES IN SECRET.

THEN, IN 1933, HITLER COMES TO POWER.

HE EXPANDS THE ARMY TO HALF A MILLION MEN, CONTINUES WITH TANK PRODUCTION, AND CREATES A NEW AIR FORCE, THE LUFTWAFFE.

HITLER WANTS GERMANY TO BECOME THE MOST POWERFUL NATION IN EUROPE... SIEG HEIL!

BUT THE LATEST WEAPONS ARE NOT ENOUGH.

HE NEEDS A WAY OF DEFEATING SUPERIOR NUMBERS AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.

GERMANY HAS ALWAYS CARRIED OUT QUICK WARS.

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING NEW, AND THE REASON IS IS BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE ENOUGH RESOURCES FOR WAR THEMSELVES.

SO, THE--THE THEORY IS, GET YOUR VICTORY QUICKLY AND DECISIVELY, AND THEN YOU DON'T GET DRAWN IN TO A LONG WAR THAT YOU CAN'T AFFORD.

NARRATOR: IN 1937, A NEW BOOK SEEMS TO OFFER A SOLUTION TO HITLER'S PROBLEM.

CALLED "ACHTUNG--PANZER!"

OR "LOOK OUT--TANKS!"

IT IS WRITTEN BY PANZER GENERAL HEINZ GUDERIAN.

[TYPEWRITER KEYS CLICKING] HE MAKES THE CLAIM THAT MOTORIZED FORCES CAN MAKE THE TRENCH WARFARE OF WORLD WAR I A THING OF THE PAST.

GUDERIAN'S NEW CONCEPT DOESN'T JUST DEPEND ON TANKS.

HIS IDEA IS TO COMBINE ALL THE ATTACK ELEMENTS OF THE ARMY IN A FULLY MOBILE, SELF-CONTAINED UNIT: THE PANZER DIVISION.

A PANZER DIVISION IS MADE UP OF 3 DIFFERENT ARMS, REALLY.

IT'S MADE UP OF MOTORIZED INFANTRY, MOTORIZED, MECHANIZED ARTILLERY, AND TANKS AS WELL.

AND THE POINT IS, THEY'RE ALL MUTUALLY SUPPORTING.

EACH CAN HELP THE OTHER.

AND TOGETHER, THEY'RE A WINNING COMBINATION.

NARRATOR: THE KEY TO PANZER DIVISION OPERATIONS IS SPEED...

BUT THE HEAVY ARTILLERY NEEDED TO TAKE OUT MAJOR FORTIFICATIONS IN THEIR PATH IS JUST TOO SLOW-MOVING.

THE SOLUTION IS PINPOINT AERIAL ATTACKS.

IN 1935, THE LUFTWAFFE INTRODUCES A NEW AIRCRAFT: THE JUNKERS JU87.

IT SOON BECOMES BETTER KNOWN AS THE STUKA, AN ABBREVIATION OF STURZKAMPFFLUGZEUG, OR DIVE BOMBER.

NEARLY 6,500 ARE BUILT, BUT, INCREDIBLY, ONLY 2 SURVIVE INTACT.

LUFTWAFFE HISTORIAN DR. JAMES CORUM IS IN HENDON IN LONDON TO EXAMINE ONE OF THESE LEGENDARY AIRCRAFT.

NOW, LOOK AT THIS.

THIS IS A BIG, VERY HEAVY, VERY UGLY AIRPLANE.

UH, I'M A PILOT MYSELF, AND FRANKLY, THIS DOES NOT LOOK LIKE IT WOULD BE A FUN AIRCRAFT TO FLY.

LOOKING AT THIS AIRPLANE, IT MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE FLYING A TANK.

UH, THERE IS A LOT OF, UM, MASSIVE ARMORPLATING AROUND THE--THE PILOT AND THE REAR GUNNER AND THE ENGINE.

UH, IF YOU SEE THIS, IT'S AN EXTREMELY STURDY AIRPLANE, BUT IT'S A VERY DANGEROUS-LOOKING AIRCRAFT, AND THAT'S BECAUSE IT WAS BUILT FOR ONE REASON, AND THAT WAS TO DROP BOMBS ON PEOPLE, AND IT WAS VERY, VERY GOOD AT THAT.

IN THE EARLY PART OF WORLD WAR II, THIS WAS GERMANY'S MOST PRECISE WEAPON.

UNDERNEATH THE PILOT, FROM THE PILOTS VIEW, YOU HAVE A CLEAR SIGHTING AREA, AND THE PILOT COULD ACQUIRE THE TARGET.

WHEN THE PILOT ACQUIRED THE TARGET, WHETHER IT'S A RAIL JUNCTION, AN ENEMY COLUMN, HE WOULD, UH, PUT IN THE DIVE BRAKES.

AND THE ONE THING THAT WAS REALLY SPECIAL ABOUT THE JU87 STUKA IS THAT IT WOULD GO BEAUTIFULLY WING OVER INTO A VERY STEEP DIVE.

NARRATOR: THE STUKA'S 80-DEGREE DIVE ANGLE MEANS THE BOMB COULD HIT THE PROPELLER IF DROPPED STRAIGHT OFF THE AIRCRAFT.

SO THE BOMB IS MOUNTED ON A CRADLE ARM.

THIS RELEASES THE BOMB SO THAT IT CLEARS THE PROPELLER ON ITS WAY TO THE TARGET.

AND IT WOULD DROP-- IT'S A 500- OR 1,000-POUND BOMB.

IT ALSO CARRIED, NORMALLY, A COUPLE OF 100-POUNDER BOMBS ON THE WINGS.

SO, YOU COME IN, AND IT WOULD DROP 5 BOMBS TOGETHER, UH, TAKING OUT THE TARGET.

IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DIVE BOMBER.

AND, UH--AND IT REALLY, REALLY WORKED.

NARRATOR: STUKAS CAN BE OVERHEAD IN A FRACTION OF THE TIME IT TAKES HEAVY GUNS TO REACH THE BATTLEFIELD AND CAN PUT THEIR BOMBS WITHIN YARDS OF THE TARGET.

BUT DIVE BOMBING TAKES STRONG NERVES AND THE STRENGTH TO WITHSTAND G-FORCE AS THE AIRCRAFT PULLS UP AFTER DROPPING ITS BOMBS.

NOVICE STUKA PILOT HANS-ULRICH RUDEL STRUGGLES TO MAKE THE GRADE.

MAN, AS RUDEL: WE LEARNED TO DIVE OUR AIRCRAFT AT ALL ANGLES, INCLUDING VERTICALLY.

THE TRAINING IS REALLY TOUGH, BUT THE CREWS WHO MAKE IT THROUGH ARE EXPERTS.

CONSTANT PHYSICAL TRAINING MAKES SURE EVERYONE IS AT THE PEAK OF FITNESS.

NARRATOR: THE STUKA SQUADRONS GIVE GUDERIAN THE HEAVY PUNCH HE NEEDS TO BLAST A PATH FOR HIS PANZER DIVISIONS.

THE COMPONENTS OF THE NAZI BLITZKRIEG MACHINE ARE READY.

NOW COMES THE CHALLENGE OF SETTING THE MACHINE IN MOTION AND CONTROLLING IT ON THE BATTLEFIELD.

FOR BLITZKRIEG TO SUCCEED, THE STUKAS MUST WORK HAND-IN-HAND WITH ANOTHER ELITE FORCE: THE TANK CREWS.

TO GIVE HITLER THE BEST TANK FLEET IN THE WORLD, NEW PANZER TRAINING SCHOOLS ARE SET UP.

MILITARY HISTORIAN DR. PETER LIEB IS EXPLORING ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT, AT WUENSDORF, NEAR BERLIN.

THIS IS THE MAIN ENTRANCE TO WUENSDORF GARRISON.

THE YOUNG MEN WHO MARCHED THROUGH THESE GATES KNEW THEY WOULD FORM PART OF A NEW ELITE.

YOU CAN SEE GUARD HOUSES TO THE LEFT... AND TO THE RIGHT.

SINCE 1935, THE GERMAN ARMY IS A CONSCRIPT ARMY, BUT MOST MEN WHO JOIN THE PANZER FORCES ARE VOLUNTEERS.

THEY WANT TO BE PART OF THE CUTTING EDGE OF THE GERMAN ARMY.

80 YEARS AGO, THIS PARADE GROUND IS PACKED WITH YOUNG MEN IN THEIR BLACK SHINY UNIFORMS-- UNIFORMS THAT DISTINGUISH THEM FROM THE REST OF THE GERMAN ARMY.

[NO AUDIO] NARRATOR: KARL FUCHS IS ONE OF THE YOUNG MEN WHO VOLUNTEERS FOR THE PANZER FORCE.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: EVERYTHING READY?

OK. LET'S GO.

MAN, AS FUCHS: FOR THE FIRST TIME, ALL OF US WERE DRESSED IN OUR BLACK ...UNIFORM.

NOW, MORE THAN ANYTHING, WE WANT TO SEE SOME ACTION.

AH!

LOOK AT THIS.

A PANZERHALLE-- IN ENGLISH, A TANK HALL.

THIS IS WHERE THE GERMANS KEPT THEIR TANKS.

THE SHEER SIZE OF IT!

80 YEARS AGO, YOU CAN HEAR OFFICERS SHOUTING THEIR ORDERS, NCOs DOING DRILLS WITH THEIR MEN.

IT WAS NOT JUST TRAINING FOR PEACE TIME.

IT WAS TRAINING AND PREPARING FOR WAR.

TWO INTERESTING DETAILS, WHEN WE LOOK HERE.

FIRST, THIS CONCRETE BLOCK.

WHAT IS IT FOR?

THIS BLOCK HELPS TO PROTECT THE WALLS.

IF A TANK REVERSES INTO THE HALL, AND THE DRIVER IS QUITE A NOVICE, THAT HE DOESN'T BUMP INTO THIS PILLAR AND DAMAGES THE HALL.

ALSO ON TOP... YOU'VE GOT HERE...SOME METAL TO PROTECT THE HALL.

AND HERE, YOU CAN PROBABLY SEE THAT SOMEONE TRIED TO GO IN OR GO OUT TOO FAST.

NARRATOR: PANZER CREWS ARE TRAINED TO KNOW THEIR TANKS INSIDE OUT.

TANK CREWS WERE TRAINED TO MASTER THE VEHICLE-- TO LOOK AFTER IT, TO MAINTAIN IT, AND TO DO MINOR REPAIRS.

IN A WAR OF MANEUVER AND MOVEMENT, SPEED IS CRUCIAL.

IF YOUR VEHICLE BREAKS DOWN, YOU CANNOT WAIT FOR A SLUGGISH MAINTENANCE SYSTEM TO COME IN.

YOU NEED TO DO THE JOB YOURSELF AND KEEP UP THE MOMENTUM TO KEEP THE TANK GOING.

NARRATOR: SOME ARMORED WARFARE EXPERTS THINK TANKS SHOULD OPERATE INDEPENDENTLY.

GUDERIAN SEES THEM AS PART OF A SYNCHRONIZED FORCE, ALONG WITH INFANTRY, ENGINEER, AND ARTILLERY UNITS.

HE GETS HIS WAY, THANKS TO A POWERFUL SUPPORTER-- HITLER HIMSELF.

CORUM: HITLER BELIEVES THAT WARFARE IS THE WAY FOR GERMANY TO BECOME GREAT.

SO HE'S FASCINATED WITH MOTORS.

HE'S FASCINATED WITH AIRPLANES.

HE GETS THE, UH, THE IDEA THAT GERMANY'S DEVELOPED TANKS.

THIS IS THE WAY FOR THE FUTURE.

HITLER WILL--WILL ENTHUSIASTICALLY SUPPORT THESE KINDS OF WEAPONS.

NARRATOR: GUDERIAN NOW MAKES SURE ALL THE ELEMENTS HE WANTS IN HIS PANZER DIVISIONS FUNCTION AS AN INTEGRATED TEAM.

AS A JUNIOR OFFICER, GUDERIAN WAS ATTACHED SEVERAL TIMES TO A SIGNALS UNIT.

THAT MADE HIM AWARE OF THE IMPORTANCE OF MEANS OF COMMUNICATION.

AND SO, HE INSISTED THE WHOLE DIVISION, ALL ELEMENTS, SHOULD HAVE RADIO COMMUNICATION.

WHAT'S DIFFERENT ABOUT THE PANZER DIVISIONS IS THAT ALL THOSE DIFFERENT ARMS-- INFANTRY, ARTILLERY, AND TANKS-- ARE ALL CONNECTED BY RADIO.

AND THAT GIVES THEM THE CRUCIAL EDGE IN MOBILITY, MANEUVERABILITY AND FLEXIBILITY.

NARRATOR: IT'S A REVOLUTIONARY IDEA.

EVERY TANK COULD COMMUNICATE WITH ITS UNIT COMMANDER.

AND HE CAN CALL ON THE OTHER ELEMENTS OF THE DIVISION.

IT MEANS THAT SPECIALIZED UNITS, INCLUDING STUKAS, CAN SUPPORT THE TANKS AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE.

CRUCIALLY, DIVE-BOMBING ATTACKS CAN BE SYNCHRONIZED WITH THE GROUND FORCES MOVEMENTS.

ALONGSIDE CLOSE TEAMWORK, GUDERIAN DEMANDS INITIATIVE AND DRIVE FROM HIS PANZER CREWS.

PANZER SOLDIERS WERE TRAINED ALWAYS TO THINK 2 LEVELS UP OF THEIR CHAIN OF COMMAND, OF THEIR MILITARY HIERARCHY, IN ORDER TO STAR--UNDERSTAND THEIR ROLE IN THE WHOLE MISSION.

IT REQUIRED A THINKING SOLDIER.

NARRATOR: TO GET THE BEST OUT OF THIS SYSTEM, A WHOLE NEW STYLE OF COMMAND IS NEEDED THAT ALLOWS THE MAN ON THE SPOT TO MAKE DECISIONS.

LIEB: CORE TO GERMAN MILITARY DOCTRINE, AND PARTICULAR TO THE PANZERWAFFE IS AUFTRAGSTAKTIK-- MISSION COMMAND.

IN MISSION COMMAND, YOU TELL YOUR SUBORDINATES WHAT TO DO BUT NOT HOW TO DO IT.

YOU LEAVE YOUR SOLDIERS A CERTAIN ROOM FOR INTERPRETATION WITHIN CERTAIN BOUNDARIES.

NARRATOR: BUT WITH FREEDOM OF ACTION COMES RESPONSIBILITY TO MAINTAIN THE ATTACK, WHATEVER HAPPENS.

AGGRESSIVENESS IS SOMETHING THAT IS INGRAINED IN EVERY GERMAN PANZER COMMANDER.

INACTIVITY IS NOT FORGIVEN.

A BAD DECISION IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN NO DECISION.

[KEYS CLICKING] NARRATOR: IT'S NOT JUST THE PANZER CREWS WHO WERE TAUGHT TO PUSH FORWARD AT ALL COSTS.

TO KEEP UP THE RELENTLESS PRESSURE OF ATTACK, GUDERIAN TRAINS HIS PANZER DIVISION COMMANDERS TO LEAD FROM THE FRONT.

INTERPRETER: OVER THERE!

ALL OF YOU, TO THE RIGHT!

NARRATOR: SPECIALIZED VEHICLES ARE PRODUCED TO ACT AS MOBILE COMMAND POSTS.

LIEB: THIS TYPE OF VEHICLE ENABLES COMMANDERS, LIKE GUDERIAN, TO RUSH FROM ONE FOCAL POINT TO THE NEXT FOCAL POINT, SO HE COULD REACT FLEXIBLY TO THE EVER-CHANGING SITUATION ON THE BATTLEFIELD.

NARRATOR: COMMAND VEHICLES ARE PACKED WITH THE EXTRA RADIOS AND EQUIPMENT NEEDED TO CONTROL MOTORIZED UNITS.

WITH ITS NEW MOBILE STRIKING FORCE AND A SYSTEM OF COMMAND YEARS AHEAD OF ITS RIVALS, GERMANY IS READY TO REVOLUTIONIZE WARFARE.

BLITZKRIEG IS THE POWERFUL NEW WEAPON HITLER NEEDS TO EXPAND HIS REICH.

BUT LIKE ANY MACHINE, IT NEEDS ONE MORE CRUCIAL INGREDIENT... FUEL.

SOME OF NAZI GERMANY'S MOST IMPORTANT MEGASTRUCTURES ARE BUILT TO POWER THE BLITZKRIEG MACHINE.

JAMES HOLLAND HAS TRAVELED TO THE FORMER GERMAN TOWN OF POELITZ ON THE BALTIC COAST.

NOW PART OF POLAND, IT WAS THE SITE OF A REVOLUTIONARY OIL REFINERY, WHICH HELPED MAKE BLITZKRIEG POSSIBLE.

EVERYWHERE YOU TURN IN THESE WOODS, YOU CAN SEE REMNANTS OF THE OLD POELITZ PLANT-- BITS OF CONCRETE, BITS OF BRICKWORK EVERYWHERE, AND--AH, HERE'S SOMETHING PRETTY BIG.

THIS IS A VERY BIG STRUCTURE.

AND THERE'S NOT JUST ONE.

THERE'S TWO OF THEM.

THESE ARE CLEARLY OLD OIL STORAGE TANKS.

IF WE HAVE A LOOK IN HERE, POELITZ, BACK IN THE WAR, WAS JUST AN ENORMOUS PLANT.

I MEAN, THE SCALE OF IT WAS REALLY, REALLY MASSIVE.

BUT NOW IT'S JUST RUINED.

IT'S--IT'S A KIND OF A LOST LEGACY FOR...

I SUPPOSE, IN MANY WAYS, THE MANIACAL WILL OF HITLER.

YOU KNOW, THIS IS WHAT IT CAME TO.

THIS IS THE RUINS OF THE THIRD REICH, IN MANY WAYS.

NARRATOR: IN THE 1920s, GERMANY IMPORTS MOST OF ITS OIL FROM AMERICA.

IN WARTIME, IT WOULD BE ALL TOO EASY FOR THIS VITAL SUPPLY LINE TO BE CUT, STARVING THE BLITZKRIEG MACHINE OF FUEL.

[JACKHAMMERING] BUT GERMANY HAS HUGE RESERVES OF COAL.

A NEW PROCESS CALLED HYDROGENATION, WHICH TURNS COAL INTO SYNTHETIC OIL, COULD BE THE ANSWER.

[STEAM HISSING] AT FIRST, PRODUCTION IS LOW BECAUSE THE PROCESS IS SO EXPENSIVE, BUT COST MEANS NOTHING TO HITLER.

HOLLAND: THE GERMANS HAVE STARTED MAKING SYNTHETIC FUELS IN THE EARLY 1930s, BUT WHEN HITLER COMES TO POWER, HE DECIDES THAT GERMANY'S GOTTA BECOME AS SELF-SUFFICIENT AS IT POSSIBLY CAN, AND THAT INCLUDES SYNTHETIC FUELS.

POELITZ HERE BECOMES ONE OF THE GREAT SYNTHETIC FUEL PLANTS OF THE THIRD REICH, BUT THERE'S A BIG CATCH WITH THIS PROCESS, AND THAT IS THAT IT TAKES FUEL TO MAKE FUEL.

CONVERTING COAL INTO OIL IS INCREDIBLY INEFFICIENT.

IT ALSO REQUIRES DEDICATED COAL-HUNGRY POWER STATIONS TO RUN THE PROCESS.

THE SYNTHETIC FUEL INDUSTRY MAY BE VITAL FOR HITLER'S AIRCRAFT AND TANKS, BUT IT'S ALSO A MAJOR DRAIN ON GERMANY'S RESOURCES.

OH, MY GOODNESS!

THAT IS ABSOLUTELY EXTRAORDINARY.

I'VE BEEN WARNED THAT THIS MILLING PLANT WAS HERE, BUT WHEN YOU SEE IT IN THE MIDDLE OF THESE WOODS IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, IT REALLY IS...

IT'S MIND-BLOWING, REALLY.

NARRATOR: BEFORE IT CAN BE CONVERTED TO OIL, THE COAL HAS TO BE PULVERIZED.

THIS MILL HERE IS THE START OF THE SYNTHETIC FUEL PROCESS.

YOU HAVE COAL COMING IN, AND IT GETS GROUND DOWN AND-- AND LOOK HERE, THESE ARE-- THESE ARE THE FLUES THROUGH WHICH THE GROUND COAL WOULD DROP.

AND ACTUALLY, YOU CAN SEE STAINS OF THIS WHOLE PROCESS ON THE WALLS.

AND ACTUALLY DOWN HERE!

THAT'S COAL DUST.

THAT IS 70-YEAR-OLD COAL DUST.

NARRATOR: GERMANY IS A WORLD LEADER IN CHEMICAL RESEARCH.

NOW SOME OF ITS BEST SCIENTISTS AND MOST ADVANCED EQUIPMENT ARE SENT TO OIL PLANTS LIKE POELITZ.

OUTPUT INCREASES DRAMATICALLY UNTIL IT MAKES UP HALF GERMANY'S TOTAL OIL SUPPLY.

CRUCIALLY, THE LUFTWAFFE IS ALMOST TOTALLY RELIANT ON SYNTHETIC FUEL.

A NETWORK OF AERIAL PIPELINES CARRIES POELITZ FUEL TO BE DISTRIBUTED AROUND THE REICH.

EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK IN AMONGST THESE TREES, THERE'S BUNKERS, BROKEN STRUCTURES, EVEN BRIDGES.

BUT THEN AGAIN, YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT THERE WERE 24,000 PEOPLE WORKING HERE, 3 SHIFTS A DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK, EVERY SINGLE DAY OF THE YEAR.

THIS PLACE WAS VAST.

[HORSE NICKERS] NARRATOR: BUT EVEN WITH THE SYNTHETIC OIL, THERE IS STILL ONLY ENOUGH FUEL TO POWER A FRACTION OF HITLER'S FORCES.

THE ARMORED ELEMENT AND THE TANKS WERE ONLY A MINORITY OF THE GERMAN ARMY.

THE VAST MAJORITY WAS INFANTRY AND HORSE-DRAWN.

NARRATOR: ALTHOUGH IT IS STILL SMALL AND UNTESTED, HITLER BELIEVES HIS BLITZKRIEG MACHINE COULD BE THE WEAPON TO LEAD GERMANY TO VICTORY.

HE DECIDES TO RISK EVERYTHING BY SWIFT AND BRUTAL ACTION AGAINST HIS WEAKEST ENEMY: POLAND.

IF BLITZKRIEG DELIVERS, IT CAN BE TURNED ON OTHER NATIONS BEFORE THEY LEARN FROM POLAND'S EXPERIENCE.

HOLLAND: ONCE THE BLITZKRIEG IS LAUNCHED IN POLAND IN SEPTEMBER 1939, GERMANY HAS TAKEN ON AN UNSTOPPABLE JUGGERNAUT.

THEY'VE EITHER GOTTA HAVE COMPLETE VICTORY, OR THERE'S GONNA BE ARMAGEDDON.

THIS IS THE KIND OF BLACK-AND-WHITE GAMBLER'S TERMS THAT HITLER COMPLETELY UNDERSTANDS, AND HE'S ABSOLUTELY PREPARED TO TAKE GERMANY DOWN WITH HIM IF IT FAILS.

NARRATOR: THE RUSH TO WAR LEAVES THE PANZER FORCE EQUIPPED WITH MANY LIKELY ARMED TANKS DESIGNED FOR TRAINING, NOT COMBAT.

BUT SPEED AND SUPERIOR TACTICS HELP THEM SMASH THROUGH POLISH DEFENSES.

WHEN HITLER VISITS THE FRONT LINE, GUDERIAN HAS A SURPRISE IN STORE.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: SO, THIS IS WHAT OUR BOMBERS CAN DO.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: NO, MEIN FUEHRER.

THIS WAS DONE BY OUR PANZERS.

INCREDIBLE.

THANK YOU, MEIN FUEHRER.

WITH YOUR PERMISSION, THERE'S MORE TO SEE OVER THERE.

NARRATOR: THE STUDENTS HAVE ALSO PLAYED THEIR PART, REACHING AHEAD OF THE ARMORED COLUMNS TO PULVERIZE AIR FIELDS AND COMMUNICATION LINES.

BLITZKRIEG HAS COME THROUGH THE TEST OF BATTLE.

NOW HITLER WILL UNLEASH ITS FULL POWER AGAINST THE BRITISH AND FRENCH.

SPRING 1940.

HITLER'S ARMIES ARE LINED UP ALONG THE GERMAN BORDER FACING THOSE OF BRITAIN AND FRANCE.

BUT THANKS TO HIS BLITZKRIEG MACHINE, HITLER IS SURE THERE WILL BE NO RERUN OF THE YEARS OF BLOODY STALEMATE IN WORLD WAR I.

[SPLASH] THE BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 1914 AND 1940 IS THAT THE POINT OF THE SPEAR IS SO MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE.

AND IT'S NOT JUST IN TERMS OF THE PANZER ARM, BUT ALSO THE LUFTWAFFE AS WELL.

NARRATOR: THE GERMAN ARMY WILL ATTACK AT 2 POINTS.

IN THE NORTH, THEY WILL CROSS NEUTRAL BELGIUM AND THE NETHERLANDS TO DRAW THE ALLIES INTO BATTLE.

BUT AT THE SAME TIME, A CRUCIAL PANZER THRUST WILL BE MADE FURTHER SOUTH, CUTTING THE ALLIED ARMIES OFF FROM THE REST OF FRANCE AND SURROUNDING THEM.

[NO AUDIO] [SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: GENTLEMEN, LISTEN.

NARRATOR: THE JOB GOES TO THE ARCHITECT OF BLITZKRIEG: GUDERIAN.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: I WILL ADVANCE IN 3 COLUMNS THROUGH LUXEMBOURG AND SOUTHERN BELGIUM.

5 DAYS AFTER THE ATTACK IS LAUNCHED, I WILL HAVE REACHED THE WEST BANK OF THE MEUSE.

AND THEN?

THEN I WILL TAKE MY PANZERS STRAIGHT TO THE CHANNEL COAST.

NARRATOR: GUDERIAN'S OBJECTIVE ON THE RIVER MEUSE IS THE TOWN OF SEDAN.

HOLLAND: THE REASON THE GERMANS GO FOR SEDAN IS BECAUSE IT'S ON THE HINGE OF THE ALLIED DEFENSES.

BELOW IS THE MAGINOT LINE.

WELL, THEY'RE NOT GONNA TRY AND GO THROUGH THAT.

THAT'S JUST IMPREGNABLE.

BUT ABOVE THAT, AT AN ANGLE, IS THE MOBILE DEFENSES OF THE ALLIES-- THE FRENCH, BRITISH, DUTCH, AND BELGIANS-- AND THIS IS THE WEAK SPOT.

NARRATOR: THE ATTACK BEGINS ON MAY 10, 1940.

NOW A FINAL SECRET ELEMENT OF BLITZKRIEG IS REVEALED.

[MACHINE GUN FIRE] FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY, PARACHUTE TROOPS ARE USED TO CAPTURE BRIDGES AHEAD OF THE ADVANCING NORTHERN ARMY.

[MEN SHOUTING IN GERMAN] [GUNFIRE CONTINUES] AAH!

[EXPLOSION] HOLLAND: THE AIRBORNE FORCES ARE REALLY EXCITING DEVELOPMENT IN WARFARE BECAUSE THEY'VE NEVER BEEN TRIED BEFORE, AND THEY CAN GIVE YOU 2 THINGS.

THEY CAN GIVE YOU A HUGE TACTICAL ADVANTAGE, BUT ALSO A PSYCHOLOGICAL ONE AS WELL.

AND IN--IN THE BLITZKRIEG IN 1940, THEY MANAGED TO ACHIEVE BOTH.

NARRATOR: THE AIRBORNE OPERATIONS CONVINCED THE ALLIES THE NORTHERN ATTACK IS A MAJOR THREAT, AND THEY ADVANCE INTO BELGIUM TO STOP IT.

BUT 100 MILES TO THE SOUTH, GUDERIAN'S MIGHTY ARMORED FORCE IS MOVING THROUGH A HEAVILY WOODED AREA ON THE FRENCH BORDER-- THE ARDENNES.

CONFLICT ARCHAEOLOGIST DR. TONY POLLARD IS EXPLORING THIS FOCAL POINT IN THE BATTLE FOR FRANCE.

THE FRENCH PLACE GREAT STORE IN DEFENSE FOR THEIR NATIONAL SECURITY.

THERE ARE PLACES THAT THEY KNOW THEY NEED TO DEFEND, AND THEY SPEND A LOT OF TIME BUILDING FORTIFICATIONS, BUT THERE ARE OTHERS THAT THEY THINK ARE IMPREGNABLE.

AND LOOKING BACK FROM THIS HILLSIDE AT THE FORESTS OF THE ARDENNES, IT'S REALLY EASY TO UNDERSTAND WHY THEY THINK THIS PLACE IS IMPREGNABLE.

NARRATOR: SPLIT INTO 3 COLUMNS, GUDERIAN'S PANZER FORCE HAS TO COVER 60 MILES THROUGH THE ARDENNES.

NEARLY 800 TANKS AND 22,000 OTHER VEHICLES HAVE TO USE ITS NETWORK OF COUNTRY ROADS AND FARM TRACKS.

WHAT HAPPENS IS AS THE PANZER FORCE IS MOVING FORWARD THROUGH THE ARDENNES, THE WORLD'S BIGGEST TRAFFIC JAM UNFOLDS.

I MEAN, IT'S ABSOLUTELY TOE-TO-BUMPER STUFF, AND ONLY THE VERY FRONT ONES MANAGE TO GET OUT OF IT IN ANY TIME SOON.

THERE ARE ROADS THROUGH THE ARDENNES, BUT THEY ARE NOT FREEWAYS.

THIS LITTLE TRACK IS VERY TYPICAL.

IT'S ONE TANK WIDE, AND THE PROBLEM FOR THE GERMANS IS THAT THEY'RE BRINGING THOUSANDS OF VEHICLES IN HERE.

THEY'VE GOTTA DRIVE THEIR WAY THROUGH.

AND IF YOU CAN'T SPREAD OUT, YOU'VE ONLY GOT ONE OPTION, AND THAT'S GO STRAIGHT AHEAD.

AND LOOK AT THIS BRIDGE.

THIS IS TYPICAL.

YOU'VE GOT A STEEP BANK DOWN TO A RIVER.

YOU'VE GOT A STEEP BANK DOWN THIS SIDE.

THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY AHEAD.

NOW, IGNORE THESE TREES.

THESE WEREN'T HERE AT THE TIME, AND THEY WEREN'T HERE FOR A REASON.

THE REASON THEY'VE CUT THE TREES DOWN IS BECAUSE THEY'VE CREATED A FIELD OF FIRE, A KILLING ZONE, BECAUSE JUST HERE, THEY BUILT A FORTIFIED POSITION.

AND IT MUST HAVE BEEN A SHOCK FOR THOSE PANZER DRIVERS TO COME DOWN THIS NARROW ROAD AND SUDDENLY BE FACING THIS.

NARRATOR: THE ARDENNES IS NOT COMPLETELY UNDEFENDED.

THE FRENCH HAVE BUILT WHAT ARE KNOWN AS MAISON FORTE, OR HOUSE STRONG POINTS, BY SOME ROADS.

AND AT 3 PM ON MAY 12th, ONE COLUMN COMES UP AGAINST MAISON FORTE 11 IN THE VALLEY OF LA HATRELLE.

THERE ARE ONLY 6 FRENCH SOLDIERS IN THIS CONCRETE BOX, BUT BECAUSE OF THAT NARROW ROAD, THEY CAN HOLD OFF THE GERMANS.

THEY'VE GOT THEM TRAPPED.

AND FROM THERE, FOR A WHILE, IT MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE SHOOTING FISH IN A BARREL.

IT'S JUST A BOX IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.

BUT...BECAUSE THEY'RE DETERMINED, THEY MANAGE TO HOLD BACK THESE GERMANS FOR 4 HOURS.

NARRATOR: THE MEN IN MAISON FORTE 11 ARE COMPLETELY ISOLATED, BUT LINED UP NOSE-TO-TAIL ON THE NARROW TRACK, ONLY THE LEAD PANZERS CAN TARGET THEIR BUNKER.

THE INFANTRY ALONGSIDE THEM JOIN IN THE FIGHT.

THE OUTSIDE OF THIS BUILDING IS ABSOLUTELY POCKMARKED WITH BULLET HOLES.

AND IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY, THEY'VE GOT A STORY TO TELL.

YOU CAN EXAMINE THIS STRUCTURE FORENSICALLY AND WORK OUT WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED.

WE'VE GOT MACHINE GUN FIRE AROUND THAT CORNER.

THAT LOOKS LIKE IT WAS PROBABLY THE FIRST SHOTS FIRED BY THE GERMANS.

THEY'RE TRYING TO TAKE OUT THAT POSITION ON THE CORNER THERE, WHICH MAY BE SPRAYING THE ROAD WITH MACHINE GUN FIRE.

WE'VE GOT THE ANTI-TANK EMBRASURE HERE.

BUT SOMETHING DIFFERENT IS HAPPENING HERE ON THIS CORNER.

LOOK AT THE DAMAGE HERE.

THEY BLASTED AWAY THE CONCRETE, EXPOSING THE IRON REINFORCING RODS.

WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT AT SOME POINT, THE GERMANS HAVE MOVED AROUND ON TO THE LEFT FLANK OF THE POSITION.

THIS FIRE THAT'S CREATED THIS DAMAGE CAN ONLY HAVE COME FROM OVER THERE.

NARRATOR: THE STUKA FORCE HAS TO CONCENTRATE ON MAJOR TARGETS, SO THE MEN IN THE PANZER COLUMN HAVE TO TAKE OUT THE BUNKER THEMSELVES.

THEY MUST KEEP TO GUDERIAN'S BLITZKRIEG TIMETABLE.

JUST STEPPING IN HERE, YOU GET AN IDEA OF HOW CLAUSTROPHOBIC IT IS.

6 MEN, ALL USING AUTOMATIC WEAPONS.

YOU'VE GOT ANGLES IN EVERY DIRECTION, AND THAT'S THE REAL PROBLEM FOR THE GERMANS.

LOOKING THROUGH HERE, I'VE GOT CLEAR LINES OF SIGHT DOWN ONTO THAT ROAD.

AND THIS IS WHERE THE ANTI-TANK GUN WOULD HAVE BEEN, AGAIN, TARGETED DIRECTLY ON THE ROAD.

ALL OF THE MECHANIZED ARMOR COMPONENTS ARE IN PLACE HERE, ALL POINTING AT THIS BLOCKHOUSE.

THE PROBLEM FOR THE GERMANS, THOUGH, IS THAT THERE'S ONE VITAL ELEMENT MISSING, AND THAT'S A HEAVY ARTILLERY ELEMENT.

AND IN THIS LOCATION, THAT WILL BE DELIVERED BY THE STUKAS FROM THE AIR, BUT THEY ARE BUSY ELSEWHERE.

AND THAT'S WHY, JUST BECAUSE OF THAT ONE MISSING PIECE OF THE JIGSAW, THESE MEN, THESE 6 FRENCH SOLDIERS, MANAGED TO HOLD OFF A GERMAN COLUMN FOR 4 HOURS.

NARRATOR: THE RESISTANCE AT LA HATRELLE PRESENT THE FRENCH WITH AN INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY TO STOP BLITZKRIEG IN ITS TRACKS.

BUT NO ATTEMPT IS MADE TO LAUNCH AIR STRIKES ON THE SLOW-MOVING GERMAN COLUMNS IN THE ARDENNES.

THE PROBLEM IS IS THAT WHEN RECONNAISSANCE PLANES GO OVER AND SPOT THIS, THE FRENCH HIGH COMMAND JUST REFUSE TO BELIEVE IT'S TRUE.

[EXPLOSIONS] NARRATOR: AFTER A BITTER FIGHT, MAISON FORTE 11 IS FINALLY DESTROYED, AND THE COLUMN MOVES ON.

GUDERIAN HAS REACHED THE MEUSE IN JUST 3 DAYS, EVEN FASTER THAN HE PLANNED.

NOW HE LAUNCHES THE NEXT STAGE OF HIS LIGHTNING ADVANCE.

TO GET HIS TANKS ACROSS THE RIVER, GUDERIAN NEEDS TO TAKE OUT FRENCH DEFENSIVE POSITIONS.

HE CALLS IN THE STUKAS.

FOR 5 HOURS, THEY LAUNCH NONSTOP ATTACKS.

[EXPLOSION] MAN, AS GUDERIAN: THE FRENCH GUNS DIDN'T DARE FIRE A SHOT WHEN THE STUKAS WERE OVERHEAD.

NARRATOR: WHILE THE STUKAS POUND THE FRENCH DEFENDERS, GUDERIAN'S INFANTRY CROSSED THE RIVER IN ASSAULT BOATS.

ONCE THEY HAVE ESTABLISHED A FOOTHOLD, HIS ENGINEERS BUILD BRIDGES FOR THE TANKS.

A DAY LATER, THE FIRST PANZER ROLLS ACROSS THE MEUSE.

HOLLAND: THE GREATEST BARRIER FACING THE GERMANS IS THE RIVER MEUSE.

AND ONCE YOU'VE BROKEN THROUGH THAT, THE FLOODGATES ARE OPEN.

AND REALLY, IT'S ALL ABOUT CHARGING HELL-FOR-LEATHER STRAIGHT TO THE COAST.

IN MANY WAYS, THE BREAKTHROUGH AT SEDAN IS THE HIGH POINT OF BLITZKRIEG.

NARRATOR: THE ONE CHANCE FOR THE FRENCH IS TO TAKE CONTROL OF THE HIGH GROUND AROUND THE TINY VILLAGE OF STONNE.

FROM THERE, EVERY MOVE GUDERIAN'S ADVANCING COLUMNS MAKE CAN BE SEEN AND BLASTED BY ARTILLERY AND AIR STRIKES.

FRENCH TANKS STORM INTO THE VILLAGE, BUT GUDERIAN HAS SENT HIS PANZERS TO MEET THEM.

AND WHEN THE GERMANS GET TO THE TOP OF THE HILL, THIS IS WHAT THEY'RE FACED WITH.

THIS IS A FRENCH CHAR B TANK.

IT'S THE MAINSTAY OF THE FRENCH TANK FLEET.

THE PROBLEM FOR THE GERMANS IS, IT'S MUCH HEAVIER THAN THEIR PANZERS.

ITS ARM IS THICKER AND ITS GUNS ARE BIGGER.

SO THEY HAVE A REAL CHALLENGE TO TAKE THESE BEASTS ON.

THE FIRST THING THAT STRIKES YOU ABOUT THIS TANK IS ITS SIZE AND ITS BULK.

IT'S SMALL BY TODAY'S STANDARDS, BUT IN 1940, IT WAS THE BIGGEST TANK ON THE BATTLEFIELD, MUCH BIGGER THAN THE GERMAN PANZERS.

DESPITE ITS BIG SIZE, ONE OF ITS REAL PROBLEMS IS THE REALLY BAD ERGONOMICS.

THE COMMANDER OF THE TANK IS IN THE TURRET.

AND HE'S GOT TO BASICALLY STEER THE THING, GUIDE IT TO WHERE IT'S GOING.

HE'S GOT TO FIRE THE GUNS IN THE TURRET, AND KEEP CONTROL OF THE ENTIRE MACHINE.

AND THAT'S A REAL POINT OF WEAKNESS.

NARRATOR: THANKS TO THEIR TRAINING, THE PANZER MEN ARE QUICK TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FRENCH TANK'S WEAKNESSES.

YOU CAN SEE ON THE BACK OF THE TURRET, THERE ARE 5 HITS IN A VERY TIGHT GROUPING.

WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING IS THAT A PANZER OR SEVERAL PANZERS HAVE BEEN MANEUVERING BEHIND THE TANK.

ALL OF THE ARMOR IS UP AT THE FRONT.

ALL OF THE GUNS ARE UP THERE.

THE VULNERABLE BITS ARE AT THE BACK.

AND SO WHAT WE'VE GOT IS MOVEMENT AROUND, AND THAT IS FANTASTIC SHOOTING.

NARRATOR: USING THEIR RADIOS, THE LIGHTER PANZERS ARE ABLE TO COMBINE THEIR EFFORTS.

THIS SIDE IS REALLY TELLING.

AND AGAIN, LOOKING AT THE DESIGN OF THE TANK, YOU CAN SEE HOW THE TRACKS ARE REALLY QUITE EXPOSED.

AND THERE'S A HOLE HERE AND A HOLE HERE, WHERE THEY'VE BEEN TRYING TO DISABLE THOSE TRACKS.

AND ON THIS SIDE, WE'VE GOT ANTI-TANK ROUNDS GOING STRAIGHT THROUGH THIS THICK ARMOR.

THIS ONE'S REALLY INTERESTING BECAUSE IT SHOWS THE ANGLE.

IT'S COMING IN FROM THIS DIRECTION.

SO, LOOKING AT THE VEHICLE OVERALL, THE IMPRESSION IS THAT THE PANZERS ARE ALMOST OPERATING LIKE A WOLF PACK, COORDINATING THEIR MOVEMENTS TO BRING DOWN THE BIGGER PREY.

BECAUSE ALL OF THE ATTACKS SEEM TO BE COMING FROM THE HAUNCHES, FROM THE REAR OF THE BIG TANK.

NOW, THE REASON THE GERMANS CAN DO THAT IS BECAUSE THEY'VE GOT COMMUNICATIONS.

THEY'VE GOT RADIOS IN THEIR VEHICLES, WHICH GIVES THEM THAT ULTIMATE ADVANTAGE, DESPITE THE SIZE OF THIS BEAST.

NARRATOR: STONNE CHANGES HANDS 17 TIMES, UNTIL THE WHOLE VILLAGE BECOMES A TANK GRAVEYARD.

BUT THANKS TO THEIR BETTER COMMUNICATIONS AND TACTICS, THE BATTLE GOES TO THE GERMANS.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] GUDERIAN'S ARMORED SPEARHEAD CAN NOW ROLL ON.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: ALL RIGHT, LADS.

KEEP GOING.

NARRATOR: ONE TANK MAN WHO HAS MISSED OUT ON THE PANZER'S INCREDIBLE SUCCESS IS VOLUNTEER KARL FUCHS.

MAN, AS FUCHS: WE PULL EVERY STRING WE CAN TO GET SENT TO FRONT-LINE UNIT, BUT IT'S USELESS.

THE WAR WILL BE OVER BEFORE I HEAR A SHOT FIRED, AND PEOPLE WILL THINK I'M A COWARD.

NARRATOR: ON MAY 20th, 10 DAYS AFTER THE ATTACK ON FRANCE BEGAN, GUDERIAN'S TANKS REACH THE CHANNEL COAST.

THE GERMAN ARMY HAS SLICED CLEAN THROUGH FRANCE, CUTTING OFF A SUPERIOR FORCE OF MORE THAN A MILLION ALLIED TROOPS.

A FEW WEEKS LATER, FRANCE SURRENDERS.

BUT THERE IS TO BE NO REST FOR THE VICTORIOUS MEN OF THE PANZER FORCE AND THEIR STUKA FLYING ARTILLERY.

JULY 1940.

THE BLITZKRIEG MACHINE HAS PROVED ITSELF IN FRANCE.

NOW HITLER HAS GREATER AMBITIONS.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: GENTLEMEN.

FRANCE IS DEFEATED.

I CONGRATULATE YOU.

AND NOW, WE MUST DEAL WITH RUSSIA.

NARRATOR: HITLER SEES THE COMMUNIST SOVIET UNION AND ITS HUGE ARMY AS NAZI GERMANY'S MOST DANGEROUS ENEMY.

BUT SINCE THE WAR BEGAN, HE HAS HAD TO BUY MILLIONS OF BARRELS OF OIL FROM THIS HATED RIVAL TO FUEL HIS WAR MACHINE.

HITLER'S ORIGINAL PLANS ARE TO TURN EAST MUCH LATER.

BUT BECAUSE HE HASN'T BEEN ABLE TO DEFEAT BRITAIN IN 1940, HE FEELS HE'S GONNA BRING IT FORWARD, GET THOSE RESULTS AS HE CAN FROM THE SOVIET UNION, AND THEN TURN BACK WEST.

ANNOUNCER: NOW, BY UNLEASHING HIS BLITZKRIEG ON THE SOVIET UNION, HITLER PLANS TO HELP HIMSELF TO ALL THE OIL AND RESOURCES HE NEEDS TO MAKE THE THIRD REICH A GLOBAL SUPERPOWER.

FOR HITLER, THIS IS HIS ULTIMATE AIM.

TO GET INTO THE SOVIET UNION-- IT'S--IT'S AN ECONOMIC WAR, POLITICAL WAR, AN IDEOLOGICAL WAR, AS WELL.

AND FOR HIM, IT'S KIND OF ALL OR NOTHING.

NARRATOR: COLOSSAL BUILDING PROJECTS ARE STARTED TO TURN HITLER'S DREAMS OF EMPIRE INTO REALITY.

IN PRESENT-DAY POLAND, JAMES HOLLAND IS EXPLORING THE REMAINS OF A CANAL SYSTEM INTENDED TO BRING EASTERN RESOURCES BACK TO GERMANY.

WELL, MY GOODNESS!

THAT'S-- THAT'S JUST ENORMOUS.

AND YOU CAN SEE THE BRANDING THERE.

JUST--IT'S A-- IT'S QUITE SINISTER, REALLY.

I MEAN, THAT'S SO OBVIOUS WHAT THAT SYMBOL IS.

THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN AN EAGLE AND A SWASTIKA.

NARRATOR: LIKE EVERYTHING IN HITLER'S GERMANY, THE CANAL IS DESIGNED ON AN EPIC SCALE.

THIS REALLY IS A MONUMENT TO HITLER'S VISION FOR... NOT A 12-YEAR REICH BUT A THOUSAND-YEAR REICH.

YOU KNOW, WHEN HE-- WHEN HE'S THINKING ABOUT HIS GRANDIOSE PLANS, THIS--THIS SORTS INTO IT.

IT'S ABOUT AUTOBAHNS, IT'S ABOUT HUGE NEW CANAL SYSTEMS, ABOUT MORE RAILWAYS, ABOUT MOVEMENT AND FLEXIBILITY, THAT CHANCE TO BE ABLE TO MOVE TROOPS AND MATERIALS AND MACHINERY FROM ONE SIDE OF THE REICH TO THE OTHER, FROM ONE PART OF HIS NEW EMPIRE, THESE DREAMS OF NEW EMPIRE TO ANOTHER.

WELL, I'M GUESSING HERE IS WHERE THE GATES WOULD HAVE BEEN.

AND YOU CAN SEE WHERE THEY WOULD HAVE, UH, HAVE SLOTTED IN.

YOU KNOW, THIS IS SUGGESTIVE OF A MUCH MORE SINISTER AMBITION.

YEAH, THE SCALE OF IT.

IT JUST--GOD, IT BLOWS YOU AWAY.

IT REALLY DOES.

I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE.

NARRATOR: WORK ON THE CANAL STOPS WHEN WAR BREAKS OUT.

THE WORKFORCE AND BUILDING MATERIALS ARE NEEDED TO CONSTRUCT THE HUGE NEW ARMY HEADQUARTERS AT NEARBY MAUERWALD.

IT WILL BE THE BRAIN CONTROLLING HITLER'S GIANT ARMY AS IT STORMS INTO THE SOVIET UNION.

OPERATION BARBAROSSA.

OF ALL THE BUNKERS IN THIS VAST COMPLEX, THESE TWO WERE THE LARGEST AND MOST IMPORTANT.

BACK THEN, THEY WERE EVEN BIGGER THAN THEY ARE NOW BECAUSE THERE WERE 2 HUGE WOODEN STRUCTURES ON TOP.

NARRATOR: THESE OFFICES HOUSED THE DOZENS OF TELEPHONE AND RADIO OPERATORS TRANSMITTING ORDERS TO THE FRONT LINE.

AND FROM THE WOODEN HUTS UP ABOVE, WE GO DOWN INTO THE OPERATIONS ROOM BELOW-- A BOMB-PROOF SHELTER.

AND THIS IS THE HUB.

IT'S ONE OF TWO COMMUNICATION BUNKERS.

AND IT'S FROM HERE THAT OPERATION BARBAROSSA IS BEING CONTROLLED AND COMMANDED.

IT LOOKS A BIT DARK AND DANK NOW, BUT...

THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN A ROOM OF LIGHT AND ACTIVITY, THE SOUND OF TELEPRINTERS AND CODING MACHINES.

YOU KNOW, IT'S BOMB-PROOF.

IT'S--THIS IS A PLACE WHERE ALL THE CODES AND CIPHERS GO BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN HERE AND THE FIELD HEADQUARTERS AND THE ARMY AT THE FRONT.

THIS IS A PLACE THAT NEVER EVER GOES TO SLEEP.

THIS IS A PLACE THAT NEVER STOPS.

NARRATOR: BARBAROSSA IS BIGGER THAN ANYTHING THE WORLD HAS SEEN.

3 MILLION MEN AND MORE THAN 3,000 TANKS WILL TAKE ON THE RED ARMY.

IN THE SPRING OF 1941, HITLER SETS OUT BARBAROSSA'S TIMETABLE.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: IS EVERYTHING READY?

OUR TROOPS HAVE RECEIVED THEIR ORDERS TO BEGIN THE ATTACK AT 3:30 A.M. ON THE 22nd?

EXCELLENT.

BEFORE 3 MONTHS HAVE PASSED, WE SHALL WITNESS THE COLLAPSE OF RUSSIA...

THE LIKE OF WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN IN HISTORY.

NARRATOR: HE IS CERTAIN THAT THE PANZERS AND STUKAS OF THE BLITZKRIEG MACHINE CAN DELIVER ONCE AGAIN.

BUT THEY FACE A BIGGER CHALLENGE, WITH FORCES ONLY SLIGHTLY LARGER THAN THEY WERE IN FRANCE.

THERE WAS ABOUT-- STUKA FORCE OF ABOUT 300-SOMETHING AIRPLANES, UH, AVAILABLE TO THE ACTIVE LUFTWAFFE UNITS ON THE FRONT.

UH, THAT'S NOT A LOT OF AIRPLANES.

NARRATOR: AND, CRUCIALLY, OVER 400 PANZERS HAD BEEN DESTROYED IN FRANCE.

DESPITE THIS, HITLER ORDERS THE NUMBER OF ARMORED DIVISIONS TO BE DOUBLED.

THERE IS ONLY ONE SOLUTION.

THEY GRABBED EVERYTHING FROM THE CAPTURED VEHICLES FROM THE FRENCH AND FROM THE CZECHOSLOVAKIAN STOCK.

BUT WITH ALL THESE DIFFERENT TYPES OF MODELS, THIS CAUSED A HUGE LOGISTICAL NIGHTMARE.

NARRATOR: JUST KEEPING THIS ASSORTMENT OF VEHICLES ON THE ROADS BECOMES A MAJOR HEADACHE FOR PANZER LEADERS LIKE GUDERIAN.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: THIS CAN'T BE RIGHT.

THE 6th DIVISION REPORTS ONLY 10 WORKING TANKS, AND ONE BATTALION NONE OPERATIONAL.

WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?

I DON'T CARE HOW, BUT I WANT THAT BATTALION MOBILE IMMEDIATELY!

THE PROBLEM WITH GERMANY AND THE BLITZKRIEG IS THE MOTOR INDUSTRY WAS NOT WELL-DEVELOPED IN GERMANY.

UH, FAR TOO MANY SMALL COMPANIES PRODUCING SMALL NUMBERS OF VEHICLES IN OBSCURE MODELS.

UH, THEY'D NEVER GOTTEN THE STANDARDIZATION OR THE MASS PRODUCTION OF VEHICLES DOWN THE WAY THE WESTERN POWERS DID.

[EXPLOSIONS] NARRATOR: AT 3:15 A.M. ON JUNE 22, 1941, A MASSIVE BOMBARDMENT OPENS THE ATTACK THAT HITLER SAYS WILL MAKE THE WORLD HOLD ITS BREATH.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: YES, THAT'S IT.

STOP.

FIRE!

NARRATOR: ONE YOUNG PANZER SOLDIER AT LAST GETS HIS CHANCE TO SEE SOME ACTION.

MAN, AS FUCHS: YESTERDAY, I TOOK OUT ANOTHER RUSSIAN TANK, THE SECOND IN 3 DAYS.

WAR ISN'T HALF AS BAD AS THEY SAY, AND WE ARE HOT ON THE HEELS OF THE RUSSIANS.

VICTORY IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER.

NARRATOR: ALONG A THOUSAND-MILE FRONT, STRETCHING FROM THE BALTIC TO THE BLACK SEA, PANZERS AND STUKAS USE THEIR BETTER COMMUNICATIONS AND TACTICS TO SMASH THROUGH THE RED ARMY'S LINES.

YES!

GO ON, LADS!

GET THE SWINES!

YEAH!

[GUNSHOT] NARRATOR: IT'S A WINNING COMBINATION, BUT THE BLITZKRIEG MACHINE'S SUCCESS BEGINS TO SLOW IT DOWN.

HOLLAND: WHAT HAPPENS IS, AS THEY'RE TRYING TO ENVELOP THESE VARIOUS POCKETS OF RUSSIAN ARMIES, JUST DESTROYING THOSE TAKES UP A HUGE AMOUNT OF TIME AND ENERGY AND ATTRITION.

AND THEN THEY NEED TO LEAP FORWARD AND GET TO THE NEXT BUNCH OF RUSSIAN ARMIES.

THE FOOT-SLOGGING INFANTRY DIVISIONS WITH THEIR HORSE-DRAWN ARTILLERY ARE HUNDREDS OF MILES BEHIND.

THE PANZERS WASTE PRECIOUS TIME WAITING FOR THEM TO CATCH UP.

DESPITE THIS, THE BLITZKRIEG MACHINE STILL SEEMS TO BE ON COURSE FOR ANOTHER INCREDIBLE VICTORY.

IN JUNE AND JULY 1941, THE SOVIET UNION SUFFERS APPALLING CASUALTIES.

THE VICTORIES THE GERMAN ARMY ACHIEVES IN THE OPENING WEEKS AND MONTHS OF BARBAROSSA ARE UNPRECEDENTED.

NO ARMED FORCES HAD EVER DESTROYED SO MANY ARMIES, CAPTURED SO MANY TROOPS, AND DESTROYED SO MUCH WAR MATERIAL IN SUCH A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.

IT'S ABSOLUTELY ASTONISHING.

NARRATOR: HITLER IS CONVINCED HIS BLITZKRIEG HAS SUCCEEDED.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: YOU SEE, GENTLEMEN?

IT'S AS I SAID.

THE RED ARMY HAS NUMBERS BUT NO CONTROLLING BRAIN.

ANOTHER FEW WEEKS, AND THE BOLSHEVIK MENACE WILL BE NO MORE.

HITLER IS THE ARCH GAMBLER.

AND AGAINST FRANCE AND THE LOW COUNTRIES, HE'S ROLLED THE DICE AND AGAINST ALL THE ODDS MANAGED TO PULL IT OFF.

SO HE BELIEVES, LIKE ANY GAMBLER, THAT HE CAN PULL IT OFF AGAIN.

THE PROBLEM IS IS THE TIMETABLE IS SO TIGHT FOR OPERATION BARBAROSSA-- IT'S JUST 12 WEEKS THAT THEY'VE GOTTA DO IT IN-- AND FOR--FOR THEM TO ACHIEVE THAT VICTORY, THAT COMPLETE ANNIHILATION OF THE RED ARMY, THAT TIMETABLE HAS TO GO EXACTLY ACCORDING TO PLAN.

NARRATOR: BUT CONDITIONS IN THE SOVIET UNION ARE TOTALLY DIFFERENT TO THOSE IN WESTERN EUROPE.

THE BAD ROADS AND VAST DISTANCES SOON EXHAUST GERMANY'S FUEL SUPPLIES.

PANZER LOSSES BECOME CRITICAL.

EVERYTHING IN GERMAN MILITARY DOCTRINE IS TURNED AROUND SPEED.

HENCE, THE TANK CREWS COULD REPAIR THE TANKS IF THEY WERE SLIGHTLY DAMAGED.

IF THEY WERE HEAVILY DAMAGED, THEY HAD TO BE BROUGHT FROM THE BATTLEFIELD BACK TO THE FACTORIES IN GERMANY.

THIS WAS NOT A PROBLEM IN FRANCE WHEN IT IS HUNDREDS OF KILOMETERS THAT NEED TO BE COVERED.

BUT IF IT'S THOUSANDS OF KILOMETERS THAT NEED TO BE COVERED, LIKE IN THE SOVIET UNION, THIS CAUSED A HUGE PROBLEM.

NARRATOR: THE CAPTURED ALLIED TANKS AND VEHICLES ARE SOME OF THE FIRST TO FAIL.

FOR THE SPEARHEAD, THEY'VE MANAGED TO AMASS AN ASTONISHING 600,000 DIFFERENT VEHICLES, BUT THEY'RE ALSO 2,000 DIFFERENT MAKES AND MANUFACTURERS-- CAPTURED BRITISH, FRENCH, AND SO ON-- AND THEY ALL REQUIRED DIFFERENT PARTS.

AND ONCE THEY START TO WEAR OUT AND BREAK DOWN, THERE'S NO MEANS OF REPLACING THEM.

NARRATOR: THE PANZER DIVISIONS NEED THEIR STUKA FLYING ARTILLERY MORE THAN EVER.

BUT HANS-ULRICH RUDEL AND THE OTHER PILOTS ARE STRETCHED TO BREAKING POINT.

MAN, AS RUDEL: WE HAVE REACHED THE STAGE WHERE EVEN WILLPOWER ISN'T ENOUGH.

WE ARE JUST COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED.

NARRATOR: THE AIRCRAFT THEMSELVES ARE NO LONGER FIT TO FLY.

WHAT STOPS THE LUFTWAFFE IN FRONT OF MOSCOW IS THE FACT THEY'D OUTRUN THEIR LOGISTICS.

THEY ARE OUT OF FUEL.

THEY'RE OUT OF SPARE PARTS.

NARRATOR: DESPITE THE PROBLEMS, GUDERIAN'S MEN ARE LESS THAN 200 MILES FROM MOSCOW, BUT HITLER HAS HIS EYES ON A GREATER PRIZE TO THE SOUTH.

UKRAINE IS THE GATEWAY TO THE HUGE OIL FIELDS OF THE CAUCASUS REGION-- OIL FIELDS THAT COULD PROVIDE LIMITLESS FUEL FOR HIS BLITZKRIEG MACHINE.

GUDERIAN'S PANZERS ARE SENT TO HELP ANNIHILATE UKRAINE'S SOVIET DEFENDERS.

WHEN GUDERIAN'S FORCES ARE SHIFTED FROM THE CENTRAL FRONT DOWN TOWARDS THE SOUTH, WHAT THAT IS UNDERLYING IS JUST THE VASTNESS OF THE SCALE OF THE SOVIET UNION BUT ALSO OF THE CHALLENGE FACING THE GERMAN ARMY IN OPERATION BARBAROSSA.

YOU KNOW, THEY'RE TRYING TO DO EVERYTHING ALL AT ONCE, AND THEY JUST CAN'T.

[GUNFIRE] NARRATOR: THE SOUTHERN SOVIET ARMIES ARE TRAPPED AND DESTROYED IN ANOTHER COLOSSAL BATTLE.

HITLER NOW HAS THE JUMPING-OFF POINT HE NEEDS TO ADVANCE ON THE VITAL CAUCASIAN OIL FIELDS.

GUDERIAN'S PANZERS ARE SENT BACK TOWARD MOSCOW, BUT PRECIOUS TIME HAS BEEN LOST.

NOW ANOTHER ENEMY ATTACKS THE GERMAN ARMY: THE RUSSIAN WINTER.

MAN, AS FUCHS: THE FIRST SNOW HAS MELTED, LEAVING US UP TO OUR NECKS IN MUD.

EVEN THE TANKS ARE BUCKED DOWN AND TRYING TO WALK AROUND IS LIKE WADING THROUGH QUICKSAND.

YOU JUST CAN'T MOVE.

NARRATOR: FEROCIOUS SOVIET RESISTANCE AND THE TERRIBLE WEATHER ARE TOO MUCH FOR THE WORN-OUT MEN AND MACHINES OF HITLER'S BLITZKRIEG.

THE WHOLE CAMPAIGN HAS BEEN SO FRONT-LOADED, SO COMPLETELY GEARED TO THE FACT THAT IT'S ONLY GONNA LAST 12 WEEKS THAT WHEN IT GOES ON INTO THE AUTUMN AND THEN TO WINTER, THEY'RE SIMPLY NOT PREPARED FOR IT.

AND THAT GOES DOWN TO SUCH BASICS AS WINTER CLOTHING.

THERE JUST ISN'T ANY AT ALL.

NARRATOR: ON NOVEMBER 21st, KARL FUCHS TRIES TO HOLD BACK A SOVIET COUNTERATTACK, BUT HE'S VULNERABLE IN HIS CZECH-BUILT TANK.

WHERE?

WHERE?

NARRATOR: FUCHS DIES JUST 50 MILES FROM THE ULTIMATE BLITZKRIEG OBJECTIVE... OH, MY GOD.

MOSCOW.

[EXPLOSION] [KNOCK ON DOOR] DESPERATE TO SALVAGE THE REMAINS OF HIS ONCE- INVINCIBLE PANZER FORCE, BLITZKRIEG LEADER HEINZ GUDERIAN TRIES TO EXPLAIN THE SITUATION TO HITLER.

[SPEAKING GERMAN] INTERPRETER: MEIN FUEHRER, CONDITIONS FOR THE MEN AT THE FRONT ARE GETTING IMPOSSIBLE.

THEIR CLOTHES ARE WORN-OUT, AND NONE OF THE WINTER UNIFORMS WE HAVE BEEN PROMISED HAVE ARRIVED.

CASUALTIES FROM EXPOSURE AND FROSTBITE ARE CLIMBING DAY BY DAY.

INTERPRETER: YOU ARE LETTING YOURSELF BE TOO DEEPLY AFFECTED BY YOUR SOLDIERS' PROBLEMS.

YOU MUST CLOSE YOUR MIND TO THESE DETAILS.

YOU HAVE YOUR ORDERS!

NARRATOR: HITLER BLAMES HIS GENERALS FOR BLITZKRIEG'S FAILURE.

GUDERIAN IS RELIEVED OF HIS COMMAND WHEN HE PUTS HIS MEN FIRST AND ORDERS A RETREAT.

MAN, AS GUDERIAN: THINKING ABOUT MY MEN FREEZING TO DEATH OUT IN THE OPEN MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO SLEEP.

THE STAFF BACK AT MAUERWALD HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IT'S LIKE IN THIS FROZEN WASTELAND.

NARRATOR: EVEN AT MAUERWALD, THE HIGH COMMAND REALIZES ITS PLANS TO DEFEAT THE SOVIET UNION IN A MATTER OF WEEKS ARE IN RUINS.

THAT AMBITION WAS A STEP TOO FAR FOR BLITZKRIEG.

AND WHEN YOU LOOK AROUND AT THE EMPTY, DERELICT BUNKERS NOW, WHAT YOU'RE REMINDED OF IS THE FAILURE OF THAT AMBITION AND REALLY, THE FAILURE OF BLITZKRIEG.

NARRATOR: FOR HANS-ULRICH RUDEL, THE WAR IN THE EAST GOES ON.

FLYING HUNDREDS OF COMBAT MISSIONS, HE BECOMES GERMANY'S MOST HIGHLY DECORATED FIGHTER.

HE BECOMES A LEGEND IN THE LUFTWAFFE WHEN HE CONTINUES FLYING EVEN AFTER LOSING A LEG.

HITLER'S GAMBLE HE COULD SMASH THE RED ARMY AND PLUNDER THE SOVIET UNION HAS FAILED.

NOW HE IS TRAPPED IN A BRUTAL WAR OF ATTRITION.

HOLLAND: ON THE EVE OF BARBAROSSA, HITLER HAS JUST ONE ENEMY: GREAT BRITAIN.

BY THE TIME THAT BARBAROSSA HAS EVENTUALLY GROUND TO A HALT THE END OF DECEMBER 1941, HE'S GOT 3.

HE'S GOT BRITAIN, UNITED STATES, AND THE SOVIET UNION.

AND THEY TOGETHER HAVE UNPARALLELED ACCESS TO RESOURCES AND MANPOWER.

AND WITH THAT, THE GERMANS SIMPLY CAN NEVER HOPE TO COMPETE.

NARRATOR: IN THE LAST MONTHS OF THE WAR, HITLER BECOMES OBSESSED WITH DEVELOPING NEW SUPERWEAPONS TO DEFEAT THE ALLIES-- ROCKETS, JETS, AND GIANT TANKS.

BUT NONE ARE ABLE TO DELIVER THE SAME STUNNING SUCCESS ON THE BATTLEFIELD THAT MADE BLITZKRIEG THE GREATEST NAZI WAR MACHINE.