I worked with a "Tommy" of the 8th Army, just a rifleman with a .303 Enfield who happened to be in the front lines from 1940 onwards. He never said anything insulting about the Italians and certainly never called them cowards. Italian special forces sunk two British battleships in one day at Alexandria, something only the IJN could match. A vastly outgunned Italian gunboat saved a German troop convoy from British destroyers at Crete. These were acts of courage.
@AmanitaPersicina That's an extremely poignant question and one I'm certainly not qualified to answer ... but maybe you're being ironic and have already written your thesis on Pius XI and ambushing dunderheads like me. Either way it's worth researching from the Lateran Treaty to old Benito at one point asking his holiness to excommunicate Hitler. Throw in that malignant dwarf King Victor Emmanuel and it gets really confusing. But worth knowing. P.S. love your name.
@yamsid I was being serious, I am curious what the popes thoughts on things at that time were.
Yes my user-name is about me, part of what I do is work with fungi. I am studying several genera of fungi, the genus Amanita is the one I am focusing on at the moment. The correct name is Amanita muscaria var. persicina, recent DNA analysis shows that this species of Amanita is its own distinct species, it will be getting its own species status soon and will be called Amanita persicina.
@AmanitaPersicina That's astounding. Research, I believe, is the key to progress in any field and you should be proud. Have you discovered what you wanted to know about Pius XI and Mussolini?
Gotta love the Italians. They weren't cowards just didn't have the heart for a fight, and who can blame them? Sent there poorly equipped by a nutjob dictator, they did the right thing by surrendering and saved many more lives - both Italian and British. No comparison with the Russians at Barbarossa - their country was being invaded and they were fighting for their very existence, whereas the Italians were fighting in an alien country for something they didn't care about. Good on 'em I say!
This shit is fucking awesome i never thought history could be so sick! i wish i could of lived every culture's life atleast once in ww2 to see what it was like from there position. But there are still questions i want to know like what africa was doing? what about iraq/ iran?
best war doc ever made. world at war is all you need to know about about the 2nd ww. And im not talking about numbers i.e the mk 2.309 tank or the 20mm .419 gun Im talking about the hard facts from start to finish including political and eveyrhing else. thanks for posting.
i remember watching this as a kid in the late 70's. it came on at night on the weekends here in memphis, tn back then when kids really played and there was no cable tv. after playing and i had to come in 4 the night , i would watch this and i liked it. thanks to whoever posted these.
how about asking the questions what happend before mussulini declared war like supporting poland to bully germany into declaring war. ^^
or what were the english going in egypt in the first place anyway? maybe defending an empire they force on the people there with force and war 100 years earlier?
nice how the brits always portrait themself as heroes of freedom and democracy lol
@happosai27 All the major powers had empires in those days (including America.) If the Germans and Italians hadn't been invading North Africa we wouldn't have been fighting them there. What a freak you are: Poland "bullied" Germany into invading? "Nice" how retarded Germans like you always whine that if you'd just been allowed to pulverise all your neighbours and carry out the perverted slaughter of millions of inoccents, there need not have been a war.
@happosai27 "Brits always portray themselves as heroes of freedom and democracy"??
You must have got us mixed up with the U.S son! lol
And you can shut the fuck up anyway! The Third Reich was responsible for ethic cleansing on a scale never even dreamed of before!! and in only a few years.
Hitler wanted to own Europe, and he would torture to death anyone who didn't fit his dream.
Don't talk to about Forcing Empires dick head lol
03:00 i think he was thinking of cesar in that moment... i love these series, they re very good. sometimes i think that we re pretty lucky about not having a nazi regime on this world today...
@JAGDPANTHER20 Yes I have seen some of the newer WWII series and they are not nearly as good as this old one. The footage is amazing, and how everything ties together is amazing such as the editing, dubbing, narration.
Yeah, a great insight. But to do what he says he should have done would have been to disobey Churchill. It was the right thing to do and there probably would have been no more North Africa campaign had he done it.
But disobey Churchill? That's a tough decision, even when you're right and you know it.
@Spaceweed10 You need to read more about Operation Compass. The Italian artillery frequently fought to the death. Hardly the mark of cowardice. The rest were just poorly equipped and badly led and the British always had the upper hand.
@Spaceweed10 LOL!! Is that all the factual information you've got? Jesus mate you'll have to do better than that. Obviously you know nothing at all of the campaign. The Italians never had command of the air or sea and in a campaign along the coast you need both. Clearly you do not understand the importance of control of the air. Nobody doubts that it was remarkable victory but I have interviewed and written about people who fought in this campaign so prove me wrong or shut up little bully boy.
You should also note that the Italians had no counter to the Matilda tank. They had no gun which could penetrate its armour. I don't know what mind altering substances you're on but it can't make up for total ignorance no matter how you spin it.
So having 'no counter to the Matilda tank..' means the Italians weren't cowards? You truely are a fruit cake - don't forget your meds, fool.
Regardless of their 'equipment', 200k downed tools and surrendered to a force of 30k. Did you see the Russians do this during 'Barbarossa', when they were equally ill-armed and trained compared to the Nazi's? No you didn't, because they had some balls, and looked for another way to win = Stalingrad.
Wow. So little information you're forced to use ad hominems. You have not proven cowardice and you have no references. The British Army was a much better balanced and more competent force. Air power wins wars and your evidence is irrelevant. You show me one competent historian who agrees with you. In fact, show me one historian - competent or not!
You have no idea what you're talking about so show me some credible sources or shut up sonny.
"You truely are a fruit cake - don't forget your meds, fool."
Abuse. The last resort of an ignoramus. This is an example of what is known as "the arrogance of ignorance". Since you're the one indulging in these pathetic, psychotic attacks, I'd suggest it's probably you who is in greater need of medication.
italians are such bitches...they like to puff their chests and act tough but in the end they just lay down ...bitches!!...whatever happened to the good ol' roman empire state of mind? the phalanx? ceasar? italians are so stupid and weak
@maciverandy This is not true. I have interviewed and written about the men of 6th Australian Division who fought them at Bardia and they found it tough going. The Italians did not control the air or the sea so they were almost always under intense bombardment and the Allies always had good reconnaissance photos.
The Italian artillery were first class troops. The rest were not of such quality because they were very poorly led. Their commanders got their rank because of their social position.
Italian men are tough and strong, but they are too much individualists to make good soldiers. An Army is a team where one man lies down his life for his buddy. Italian men are brave and strong, but not too big on self sacrifice. The poor Italians suffered low morale being stuck in that lousy desert so far from their families. I don't think the average Italian soldier's heart was "in the fight", but they were NOT cowardly!
@randy95023,there is no shame in cowardness and I think it is the wrong word to use as I would say that wanting to live has nothing to do with being a coward,but I wouldnt say that the majority of Italian soldiers were brave and strong,I think that this is not a true portrayal and it is an overstatement as would be calling them cowards,but this is just my opinion as you have your own which is what my nation fought to ensure for their country and the world
fusilier- Maybe you misread my comment or I didn't explain myself well enough. The Italian Soldier was NOT a coward. He just had a stronger will to survive than to lie down his life for Mussolini. They were fairly quick to surrender in order to survive but NOT because they were cowardly. Strong individualists don't make for good soldiers. Italian men, regardless of how brave are strong individualists and reluctant to die for their cause.
@randy95023,I read your comment fine and I stated that what they did was not cowardly as there is nothing cowardly about the wish to survive,I dont get the point your trying to make about being individualists because soldiers of all armies are individuals at the end of the day,as a whole the Italian army in my opinion has no ranking in with other armies from the conflict but this is not a reflection on the soldiers themselves as cowards
This series first came out in the early 1970s. It played on national television in the U.S.A. every Sunday night on NBC, I think. Something of this quality will never be seen again on TV.
my grandfather sir tony holland was a decorated war hero as you can probably tell knighted by the queen and took down two nazi unmanned bombs ( i dont know their names) his brother was in a flying fortress when it was shot down........ he escaped on a piece of re cage on the sea and starved to death
Britain also lost a whole generation of young men but 20 years before WW2. The last thing they wanted in 1939 was to go to war with Germany. They were between a rock and a hard place and were forced into it.
@rocksoliddude1 The Battle of Britain was not nearly as close as it seemed at the time. The Germans could never have got past the Royal Navy in the sort of numbers necessary to effect a successful invasion. The Battle of Britain, fought because you cannot mount an invasion without air superiority, made it academic anyway.
Apart from the fact that were allied to Nazi-Germany, I always found Italy the 'çuddly bear' of the war. Not that I have great sympathy for their cause, but everything they did completely backfired. Even conquering Albania and Ethiopia seemed difficult.
If it wasent for those stupid wops Hitler might have one the war. With a invasion of russia coming up the last thing he needed was the wops, needing his help.
@crazymrlee Asshole maybe you better look at how many Italian Soldiers are fighting in Iraq/Afaganistan bravely, not to mention how many have died there!
Their heart wasn't in the war; just as well - Italy was only the Axis power to survive mostly intact. That said, their equipment was not all that bad next to the early British forces in Africa. Their main problem was terrible leadership!
Some people are tough and WAR is their nature, I assure u the officer would have not said the same about Afghans, and tribes in pakistani border, cause WAR Fighting, relentlessly, and fighting it unconventionally has been their nature as far as i can read their history ... Italians were tough and war natured nations, but not now ... their sychology changed with time ...
A German friend of mine said that Italian tanks were all built with 4 reverse gears and one forward gear - just in case the enemy attacked from behind.
I still love the Italians, regardless of their war record. BTW, I'm selling an Italian Combat Rifle. It's in excellent condition; it's never been fired and it was only dropped once...
umm the uk is the wrong crowd there buddy they are the ones that left europe under the iron curtain and killed many canadians and amercians by forcing war on the wrold when england itself wasn't even ready to go to waqr so shutup you fucking idiot the british did nothing but proove they were no longer a power in ww2
left europe under the iron curtain? what the fuck have you been drinking? Roosevelt and Truman both offered the whole east and west thing. you can't even spell let alone offer a valid argument
yeah under the iron curtain shithead i fucking hate Truman and Jewsevelt they were both war hungry and played the game of supplying the war and once there interest were affected they finally went over. They were willing to supply germany and the uk with weapons which i guess you didnt know ignorant american
what they certainly did many peace offers were sent out by hitler and churchill the war monger refused to accept them because for some reason the uk has to be in charge of a continent it is not even attached too
Woolvet22 stop being a complete and utter know nothing mug. The UK fought in both World Wars to protect Democracy. It entered WW1 because it garunteed the independance of Belgium. It entered WW2 because it garunteed the Independance of Poland. Hardly war mongering. You blame the UK for the deaths of Canadian and American soldiers. Well, Im sorry but the blame lies firmly at the door of Nazi Germany and Japan for that. Not Britain. You really need some schooling soft lad.
We hadn't had complete influence in europe since before the start of the 20th century, and the British empire was the one that had war declared upon in due to the Nazi's constant effort to enact Lebensraum. and we're more attached to europe than parts of America are attached to the USA. The Nazis were despicable, the Germans were not. and that is a distinction that must be made.
Absolutely, Hitler offered Britain peace. Just give him a free hand in Europe and he woud offered to protect Britain and help to preserve the British Empire. Churchill never even answered these kind offers of German protection. Not only that, but the more Hitler conquered and the more triumphant he was , the more determined the British were to destroy him utterly and completely. Hitler was saddened. :--)
hey wooly vet, hope you get a lot of pleasure from acting like this. It should be obvious to you and everyone else that you're a total dickhead. People like you cause wars like this, you're clearly insane. you know, you would get a lot more satisfaction out of making the world a better place instead of just trying to offend strangers on the internet. Grow some balls. I wont be reading your response, but feel free to waste some more of your pathetic life. Its not too late, you can still improve..
Pedro, Britian DID "start the war": they declared war on Germany. Hitler thought, because he had an alliance with Stalin and because there was nothing Britain could do to save Poland, and because another World War would bankrupt Britain and ruin it's Empire, that Britain wouldn't dare to go to war against Germany. Britain would just stand by while he took over Europe, but Chamberlain declared war on him and Churchill fought that war to win. So we did start the war and thank God we did!
mc0558, you are totally missing the point. Britain may have technically declared war on Germany but it only did so by default because it garunteed the independance of Poland. By attacking Poland in the first place means Germany "started the war". What was Britain supposed to do? not make good on their promise to Poland? course they couldnt that would have been a bastards trick, they had to declare war on Germany. How anyone can call Britain for 'war mongering' in WW2 is beyond me.
Britain forced the war? You don't think the invasion of the rhineland, the czech republic, poland, Abysinnia and disregard for the League of nations had something to do with it? Plus it was the Japanese that forced the Americans hand, and if you knew anything about British history you would know that Canada agreed to fight against the Germans, they were within their rights under the london conference to decline, but they did not, same for Africa and India
bottom line is, we weren't heavily indoctrinated like the Germans and most of us (Italians) didn't believe in the war. That's the real reason for the outcome.
the Italians were primed for a fight..because they were sure they could win..but as soon as they met even mild resistance..they tucked their tails between their legs and ran home to Mama Catelli..just like in the 1st world war..what a conquest..Ethiopia..ooooo..thats equivalent to China vs. Luxembourg..THERE the Italians were!..3 against a THOUSAND!..toughest 3 they EVER fought!!..
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
Leading seat?? Italian politics are a joke...I mean come on, Berlusconi freely elected fucking TWICE???
He pointlessly posted troops in major cities,surrounded himself with former fascist youth leaders and ex-supermodels as his political staff....plus he released some bullshit music CD.
Also the country is crippled by the mafia...look at Naples for heaven's sake...There is no mafia in England,Germany,Spain,France....Italy will not be truly great until it cleanses itself of mafia and fascists.
Yes. It is. No catalogue of its imperfections will take that away. As for the mafia in other countries, there is no tradition that's why it isn't there. Italy has a different history - powerful city states, repeated foreign intervention and a feudal system (especially in the south) - which have coloured its politics and political life to this day.
The Italians fought very well under direct German command, but those instances were few and far between. In addition, the Germans did not share or provide weapons to their allies. Hence, the Italians, Hungarians, Bulgarians, and Romanians used their own inferior weapons.
When the Russians attacked the Germans they always hit the area where these allies were.
Germans are great in war, but do some stupid things which help them lose.
O'Connor was one of the most brilliant tacticians in the British Army. It was rather unfortunate for the Allies that he was captured at such an early stage in the war.
fukin mussolini, nuthin worse than a sly ,pro nazi italian.
14kip 1 year ago
anybody familiar with the song beginning at 2:07???
what an epic documentary series.
krillzone 1 year ago
I worked with a "Tommy" of the 8th Army, just a rifleman with a .303 Enfield who happened to be in the front lines from 1940 onwards. He never said anything insulting about the Italians and certainly never called them cowards. Italian special forces sunk two British battleships in one day at Alexandria, something only the IJN could match. A vastly outgunned Italian gunboat saved a German troop convoy from British destroyers at Crete. These were acts of courage.
yamsid 1 year ago
what did the pope think about Mussolini?
AmanitaPersicina 1 year ago
@AmanitaPersicina That's an extremely poignant question and one I'm certainly not qualified to answer ... but maybe you're being ironic and have already written your thesis on Pius XI and ambushing dunderheads like me. Either way it's worth researching from the Lateran Treaty to old Benito at one point asking his holiness to excommunicate Hitler. Throw in that malignant dwarf King Victor Emmanuel and it gets really confusing. But worth knowing. P.S. love your name.
yamsid 1 year ago
@yamsid I was being serious, I am curious what the popes thoughts on things at that time were.
Yes my user-name is about me, part of what I do is work with fungi. I am studying several genera of fungi, the genus Amanita is the one I am focusing on at the moment. The correct name is Amanita muscaria var. persicina, recent DNA analysis shows that this species of Amanita is its own distinct species, it will be getting its own species status soon and will be called Amanita persicina.
AmanitaPersicina 1 year ago
@AmanitaPersicina That's astounding. Research, I believe, is the key to progress in any field and you should be proud. Have you discovered what you wanted to know about Pius XI and Mussolini?
deriter64 1 year ago
I saw this TV series when I was in my lower teens. It was the best docu on WWII that I have ever watched.
archie1961 1 year ago
@archie1961 Me too-was around the same age-used to watch on ch. 13 near NYC
Devsfan202 1 year ago
Oliviers narration makes this more epic...
Bkgrill81 1 year ago
Gotta love the Italians. They weren't cowards just didn't have the heart for a fight, and who can blame them? Sent there poorly equipped by a nutjob dictator, they did the right thing by surrendering and saved many more lives - both Italian and British. No comparison with the Russians at Barbarossa - their country was being invaded and they were fighting for their very existence, whereas the Italians were fighting in an alien country for something they didn't care about. Good on 'em I say!
Jenjenilou 1 year ago 2
This shit is fucking awesome i never thought history could be so sick! i wish i could of lived every culture's life atleast once in ww2 to see what it was like from there position. But there are still questions i want to know like what africa was doing? what about iraq/ iran?
zzzhuh 1 year ago
best war doc ever made. world at war is all you need to know about about the 2nd ww. And im not talking about numbers i.e the mk 2.309 tank or the 20mm .419 gun Im talking about the hard facts from start to finish including political and eveyrhing else. thanks for posting.
patsyd80 1 year ago
@patsyd80 I completely agree. A thousand thumbs up for dammosebelly.
TheStratGuy1 1 year ago
lol, nice humor mate
Rico8458 1 year ago
actually, dagos were the smart ones, they lived and not died. why fight? that is for fools, they lived to eat pasta and drink wine.
Rico8458 1 year ago
@Rico8458 there is no glory in pasta.
Spacepope3k 1 year ago
The opening Music gives me Goosebumps!
Flaytt744 1 year ago 2
Comment removed
Rico8458 1 year ago
@Rico8458 ... but big penis
carrotsRgood4you 1 year ago
damn...must of been hell for infantry...Barely any cover
spudnick3490 1 year ago
anyone can tell were to find this documentary's soundtrack ?? (all of it)
klebehss 1 year ago
WW2 would have been completely different if O'Connor had taken tripoli
bangerrify 1 year ago
i remember watching this as a kid in the late 70's. it came on at night on the weekends here in memphis, tn back then when kids really played and there was no cable tv. after playing and i had to come in 4 the night , i would watch this and i liked it. thanks to whoever posted these.
elwin38 1 year ago
how about asking the questions what happend before mussulini declared war like supporting poland to bully germany into declaring war. ^^
or what were the english going in egypt in the first place anyway? maybe defending an empire they force on the people there with force and war 100 years earlier?
nice how the brits always portrait themself as heroes of freedom and democracy lol
happosai27 1 year ago
@happosai27 All the major powers had empires in those days (including America.) If the Germans and Italians hadn't been invading North Africa we wouldn't have been fighting them there. What a freak you are: Poland "bullied" Germany into invading? "Nice" how retarded Germans like you always whine that if you'd just been allowed to pulverise all your neighbours and carry out the perverted slaughter of millions of inoccents, there need not have been a war.
TheBelovedButterfly 1 year ago
@happosai27 "Brits always portray themselves as heroes of freedom and democracy"??
You must have got us mixed up with the U.S son! lol
And you can shut the fuck up anyway! The Third Reich was responsible for ethic cleansing on a scale never even dreamed of before!! and in only a few years.
Hitler wanted to own Europe, and he would torture to death anyone who didn't fit his dream.
Don't talk to about Forcing Empires dick head lol
Burgess321 1 year ago
03:00 i think he was thinking of cesar in that moment... i love these series, they re very good. sometimes i think that we re pretty lucky about not having a nazi regime on this world today...
1993heavenshallburn 1 year ago
Best.......Documentary............ever.
andyllamanipl 1 year ago 2
This series blow my fucking mind.
JAGDPANTHER20 1 year ago 17
@JAGDPANTHER20 Yes I have seen some of the newer WWII series and they are not nearly as good as this old one. The footage is amazing, and how everything ties together is amazing such as the editing, dubbing, narration.
AmanitaPersicina 1 year ago
What a gent O'Connor was, admitting his mistake. When do we hear that these days
greektoon 1 year ago 21
Yeah, a great insight. But to do what he says he should have done would have been to disobey Churchill. It was the right thing to do and there probably would have been no more North Africa campaign had he done it.
But disobey Churchill? That's a tough decision, even when you're right and you know it.
Great general, Richard O'Connor.
Camerameister 1 year ago 3
There was of course no question of O'Connor disobeying high command.
The British were stretched and felt obliged i think to stand by the Greeks. The net result was an unsatisfactory compromise in both theatres of war.
O'Connor was later taken prisoner of war.
greektoon 1 year ago
@greektoon Yep. Agree on all points, especially the one about the unsatisfactory compromise. Good way to put it.
Camerameister 1 year ago
@greektoon Field Marshal William Slim does the same thing in his book 'Defeat into Victory'. Both men are class acts.
rangerbobcat 1 year ago
@greektoon when do we fight world wars with thousands upon thousands of troops these days?
Spacepope3k 1 year ago
i think that italy was not ready for war unlike japan and germany
stakisolo 1 year ago 2
@stakisolo You are correct.
Camerameister 1 year ago
The Italian flag should have been pure white.
Cowards.
Spaceweed10 1 year ago
@Spaceweed10 You need to read more about Operation Compass. The Italian artillery frequently fought to the death. Hardly the mark of cowardice. The rest were just poorly equipped and badly led and the British always had the upper hand.
Camerameister 1 year ago
Yes, and the reason over 200k Italians surrendered to 30k British troops.
Shut up you fuckwit.
Spaceweed10 1 year ago
@Spaceweed10 LOL!! Is that all the factual information you've got? Jesus mate you'll have to do better than that. Obviously you know nothing at all of the campaign. The Italians never had command of the air or sea and in a campaign along the coast you need both. Clearly you do not understand the importance of control of the air. Nobody doubts that it was remarkable victory but I have interviewed and written about people who fought in this campaign so prove me wrong or shut up little bully boy.
Camerameister 1 year ago
'Is that all the factual information you have got?'
Seriously, do I need anymore?
Lol @ you.
Spaceweed10 1 year ago
Spacecadet10: If you are going to interpret this as cowardice you need to prove it. The Italians were;
Badly led
Poorly equipped
Poorly trained (conscripts)
Disorganised
They were not cowards and until you can prove on the basis of credible references that they were you will be guilty of nothing more than trolling.
Camerameister 1 year ago
You should also note that the Italians had no counter to the Matilda tank. They had no gun which could penetrate its armour. I don't know what mind altering substances you're on but it can't make up for total ignorance no matter how you spin it.
Prove me wrong or shut up.
Come on boy, the world awaits.
Camerameister 1 year ago
So having 'no counter to the Matilda tank..' means the Italians weren't cowards? You truely are a fruit cake - don't forget your meds, fool.
Regardless of their 'equipment', 200k downed tools and surrendered to a force of 30k. Did you see the Russians do this during 'Barbarossa', when they were equally ill-armed and trained compared to the Nazi's? No you didn't, because they had some balls, and looked for another way to win = Stalingrad.
Now fuck off, Camerasheister.
Spaceweed10 1 year ago
Wow. So little information you're forced to use ad hominems. You have not proven cowardice and you have no references. The British Army was a much better balanced and more competent force. Air power wins wars and your evidence is irrelevant. You show me one competent historian who agrees with you. In fact, show me one historian - competent or not!
You have no idea what you're talking about so show me some credible sources or shut up sonny.
Camerameister 1 year ago
Comment removed
Camerameister 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
"You truely are a fruit cake - don't forget your meds, fool."
Abuse. The last resort of an ignoramus. This is an example of what is known as "the arrogance of ignorance". Since you're the one indulging in these pathetic, psychotic attacks, I'd suggest it's probably you who is in greater need of medication.
Camerameister 1 year ago
italians are such bitches...they like to puff their chests and act tough but in the end they just lay down ...bitches!!...whatever happened to the good ol' roman empire state of mind? the phalanx? ceasar? italians are so stupid and weak
maciverandy 1 year ago
Romans defeated the phalanx with the more flexible legion formations.
kaneweb 1 year ago
@maciverandy This is not true. I have interviewed and written about the men of 6th Australian Division who fought them at Bardia and they found it tough going. The Italians did not control the air or the sea so they were almost always under intense bombardment and the Allies always had good reconnaissance photos.
The Italian artillery were first class troops. The rest were not of such quality because they were very poorly led. Their commanders got their rank because of their social position.
Camerameister 1 year ago
@maciverandy I'll puff my chest and then smack you like the bitch you are and put you on your ass.
GShepardP 1 year ago
Italian men are tough and strong, but they are too much individualists to make good soldiers. An Army is a team where one man lies down his life for his buddy. Italian men are brave and strong, but not too big on self sacrifice. The poor Italians suffered low morale being stuck in that lousy desert so far from their families. I don't think the average Italian soldier's heart was "in the fight", but they were NOT cowardly!
randy95023 2 years ago 2
@randy95023,there is no shame in cowardness and I think it is the wrong word to use as I would say that wanting to live has nothing to do with being a coward,but I wouldnt say that the majority of Italian soldiers were brave and strong,I think that this is not a true portrayal and it is an overstatement as would be calling them cowards,but this is just my opinion as you have your own which is what my nation fought to ensure for their country and the world
fusilier45 2 years ago
fusilier- Maybe you misread my comment or I didn't explain myself well enough. The Italian Soldier was NOT a coward. He just had a stronger will to survive than to lie down his life for Mussolini. They were fairly quick to surrender in order to survive but NOT because they were cowardly. Strong individualists don't make for good soldiers. Italian men, regardless of how brave are strong individualists and reluctant to die for their cause.
randy95023 2 years ago
@randy95023,I read your comment fine and I stated that what they did was not cowardly as there is nothing cowardly about the wish to survive,I dont get the point your trying to make about being individualists because soldiers of all armies are individuals at the end of the day,as a whole the Italian army in my opinion has no ranking in with other armies from the conflict but this is not a reflection on the soldiers themselves as cowards
fusilier45 2 years ago
when this movie made ? i live in egypt and would like to visit all of these places of actual battle areas :)
creambeach 2 years ago
This series first came out in the early 1970s. It played on national television in the U.S.A. every Sunday night on NBC, I think. Something of this quality will never be seen again on TV.
Shipskeel 2 years ago
my grandfather sir tony holland was a decorated war hero as you can probably tell knighted by the queen and took down two nazi unmanned bombs ( i dont know their names) his brother was in a flying fortress when it was shot down........ he escaped on a piece of re cage on the sea and starved to death
VCVvideo 2 years ago
My Grandfather was a Major in the Desert Rats. He died a week after I was born in 1973...shame I never got to hear the war stories.
xpat73 2 years ago 2
The intro is very good, familiar words to someone who's fought in the desert.
USMCM249gunner 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
The French surrendered as usual....they surrender to anybody
gopconservative78 2 years ago
thanks 4 the upload. best ww2 doc ever
MrJoedanger 2 years ago
Can anybody tell me what is the song that plays when Mussolini is on screen? Thank you.
P.S. A great series! Thank you for uploading them, especially this episode.
stalkerfan86 2 years ago
It's called "We're the worst soldiers in the world!"
faeembrugh 2 years ago 6
I thought it was that famous and sensible romantic tune from Lombardy ...
"Si prega di Kick Nostri Asini Siamo Stupidi Naturale Nato" ...
Beautiful melody and heart rending lyrics ....
fredhubner 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
HEIL HITLER
woolvett22 2 years ago
troll
clachan001 2 years ago
whats the name of the song where they show the afrika korps shipping to africa?
BlackHawk9087 2 years ago
"How the hell are we gonna get out of here !!!" ...
A very strong military march depicting the values of being stupid to the bone ....
fredhubner 2 years ago
Britain also lost a whole generation of young men but 20 years before WW2. The last thing they wanted in 1939 was to go to war with Germany. They were between a rock and a hard place and were forced into it.
bartez111 2 years ago
but we won the battle of britain
rocksoliddude1 2 years ago
@rocksoliddude1 The Battle of Britain was not nearly as close as it seemed at the time. The Germans could never have got past the Royal Navy in the sort of numbers necessary to effect a successful invasion. The Battle of Britain, fought because you cannot mount an invasion without air superiority, made it academic anyway.
Camerameister 1 year ago
obviously italians didn't want to fight or they would have easily won the battle!
ATTACKDOG39 2 years ago
@ATTACKDOG39 It was hardly that simple.
Camerameister 1 year ago
Funny how Mussolini helped the Allies and the Soviets in the end only by a feeling of greed.
The advice from his staff was not to go into war untill 1942 (at least).
Mussolini ignored any advice of war right from the start, wich is even worse then Hitler who still took advices for some time.
Without Italy Germany would had allot more time, men and supplies against Russia.
Clausewitzz 2 years ago
@Clausewitzz Mussolini never helped. It was the Italians, that overthrew him
Lachausis 1 year ago
italy was such a goofy country, conquered the mighty country of...ETHIOPIA hahaha, and ppl say germans were crazy
calibre9mm 2 years ago
no they did help they did organize bombings on germany and did alot to help in africa and eastern front
yoyoman347 2 years ago
As i am told there gear was not bad there tanks were to light. planes not up to much light wepons etc. very good breata etc.
Hung gutted upside down nice touch. Bunch of fuck wits good food though.
tinternet66 2 years ago
Comment removed
mjeshaw 2 years ago
Apart from the fact that were allied to Nazi-Germany, I always found Italy the 'çuddly bear' of the war. Not that I have great sympathy for their cause, but everything they did completely backfired. Even conquering Albania and Ethiopia seemed difficult.
DutchDanimal 2 years ago
They raped and killed and used mustard gas against civilians. Id say they were more like retards torturing small kittens.
7aliaivo 2 years ago
Comment removed
sidensvans54 2 years ago
It only has one forward gear incase they attack from behind though!
Birdiche 2 years ago
If it wasent for those stupid wops Hitler might have one the war. With a invasion of russia coming up the last thing he needed was the wops, needing his help.
rodthegreat08 2 years ago
whats the instrumental at 0.40 called?
thanks
Alk1992alk92 2 years ago
Alk1992alk92: It's the original theme score Carl Davis wrote for this Thames TV series and is available on the CD soundtrack.
mjeshaw 2 years ago
why do italian soldiers carry their backpack in front? - so when they run away, as they always do, the enemy might think they are attacking
crazymrlee 2 years ago 3
LOL!
Danny77uk 2 years ago
@crazymrlee Asshole maybe you better look at how many Italian Soldiers are fighting in Iraq/Afaganistan bravely, not to mention how many have died there!
Assholes thet're everywhere!!
ranger2692 1 year ago
italian army during ww2 is so weak only good for picking on 3rd world country like africa
pokermaniac0978 2 years ago 2
Italy was unprepared for war, and they had a really shitty economy
paydafee 2 years ago
Italy had always a crappy economy!
Tr1ple 2 years ago
Their heart wasn't in the war; just as well - Italy was only the Axis power to survive mostly intact. That said, their equipment was not all that bad next to the early British forces in Africa. Their main problem was terrible leadership!
Danny77uk 2 years ago 3
For those that want to know about Italy Mafia, you can watch the crime film, Gomorra
witherwind33 2 years ago
A german p.o.w joked to a british officer next time you can have the italians on your side.
01252546952 2 years ago 10
@01252546952
Some people are tough and WAR is their nature, I assure u the officer would have not said the same about Afghans, and tribes in pakistani border, cause WAR Fighting, relentlessly, and fighting it unconventionally has been their nature as far as i can read their history ... Italians were tough and war natured nations, but not now ... their sychology changed with time ...
TheSirSneaky 1 year ago
@TheSirSneaky
italy like france....something changed with them after the napoleonic era.
and with italy, after the horrible losses on the Isonzo front during WW1.
no one cared, to this day no one knows that 1 million men died in the Italian and Austrian Alps
SS13E3 1 year ago
@TheSirSneaky Yeah, like Germany and Japan. Both have very strict societies and are very industrial.
th3gtr 1 year ago
If it weren't for the Italians Hitler might have won the war. Those Italians were shit.
HBOMB99 2 years ago
lol, you sound like you are upset about that.
ProjectCC 2 years ago
No. I just think Italians are useless. Some of their cars are nice but other than that they're greasy genos.
HBOMB99 2 years ago
A German friend of mine said that Italian tanks were all built with 4 reverse gears and one forward gear - just in case the enemy attacked from behind.
Barciad 2 years ago 4
lol
denii2 2 years ago
Haha aww poor Italians. They're good chaps really! Just fell in with the wrong crowd.
Danny77uk 2 years ago 4
I still love the Italians, regardless of their war record. BTW, I'm selling an Italian Combat Rifle. It's in excellent condition; it's never been fired and it was only dropped once...
rwnministries 2 years ago 2
umm the uk is the wrong crowd there buddy they are the ones that left europe under the iron curtain and killed many canadians and amercians by forcing war on the wrold when england itself wasn't even ready to go to waqr so shutup you fucking idiot the british did nothing but proove they were no longer a power in ww2
woolvett22 2 years ago
left europe under the iron curtain? what the fuck have you been drinking? Roosevelt and Truman both offered the whole east and west thing. you can't even spell let alone offer a valid argument
mb6578 2 years ago 2
yeah under the iron curtain shithead i fucking hate Truman and Jewsevelt they were both war hungry and played the game of supplying the war and once there interest were affected they finally went over. They were willing to supply germany and the uk with weapons which i guess you didnt know ignorant american
woolvett22 2 years ago
Im not an ignorant american but you're an ignorant something
mb6578 2 years ago
lol. How ignorant can one human being be?? You do realise that the UK didnt start WW2 dont you?
pedro111nufc 2 years ago
what they certainly did many peace offers were sent out by hitler and churchill the war monger refused to accept them because for some reason the uk has to be in charge of a continent it is not even attached too
woolvett22 2 years ago
Woolvet22 stop being a complete and utter know nothing mug. The UK fought in both World Wars to protect Democracy. It entered WW1 because it garunteed the independance of Belgium. It entered WW2 because it garunteed the Independance of Poland. Hardly war mongering. You blame the UK for the deaths of Canadian and American soldiers. Well, Im sorry but the blame lies firmly at the door of Nazi Germany and Japan for that. Not Britain. You really need some schooling soft lad.
pedro111nufc 2 years ago
We hadn't had complete influence in europe since before the start of the 20th century, and the British empire was the one that had war declared upon in due to the Nazi's constant effort to enact Lebensraum. and we're more attached to europe than parts of America are attached to the USA. The Nazis were despicable, the Germans were not. and that is a distinction that must be made.
Mizzuru 2 years ago
Absolutely, Hitler offered Britain peace. Just give him a free hand in Europe and he woud offered to protect Britain and help to preserve the British Empire. Churchill never even answered these kind offers of German protection. Not only that, but the more Hitler conquered and the more triumphant he was , the more determined the British were to destroy him utterly and completely. Hitler was saddened. :--)
mc0558 2 years ago
Drunk, or just stupid...?
YiddoBobbins 2 years ago
hahahah fuck you stupid sorry i see history for what it is instead of taking in biased information such as you do
woolvett22 2 years ago
hey wooly vet, hope you get a lot of pleasure from acting like this. It should be obvious to you and everyone else that you're a total dickhead. People like you cause wars like this, you're clearly insane. you know, you would get a lot more satisfaction out of making the world a better place instead of just trying to offend strangers on the internet. Grow some balls. I wont be reading your response, but feel free to waste some more of your pathetic life. Its not too late, you can still improve..
thomasrix 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
yiddio a kike i would assume hope you had family burn jew scum
woolvett22 2 years ago
Hilarious, I'm a Tottenham fan you idiotic moron.
YiddoBobbins 2 years ago
wow good for you you the least entertaining sports out there limey fag
woolvett22 2 years ago
troll
clachan001 2 years ago
Pedro, Britian DID "start the war": they declared war on Germany. Hitler thought, because he had an alliance with Stalin and because there was nothing Britain could do to save Poland, and because another World War would bankrupt Britain and ruin it's Empire, that Britain wouldn't dare to go to war against Germany. Britain would just stand by while he took over Europe, but Chamberlain declared war on him and Churchill fought that war to win. So we did start the war and thank God we did!
mc0558 2 years ago
mc0558, you are totally missing the point. Britain may have technically declared war on Germany but it only did so by default because it garunteed the independance of Poland. By attacking Poland in the first place means Germany "started the war". What was Britain supposed to do? not make good on their promise to Poland? course they couldnt that would have been a bastards trick, they had to declare war on Germany. How anyone can call Britain for 'war mongering' in WW2 is beyond me.
bartez111 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
actually yeah they did when they went to war with germany over poland it wasn't just them but them germany and france SO FUCK YOU YOU SPIC FAGGOT!!!!
woolvett22 2 years ago
Woolvet, go and fuck a moose while letting an American fuck you up the ass with a hockey stick you Canuck fag.
bartez111 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
buddy i cant even respect someone from a country with a fucking african nigger for a president fuck you
woolvett22 2 years ago
Nice comment. Don't paint us all with the same brush as you will this asshat. No country in the world has the market cornered on assholes.
clachan001 2 years ago 3
troll
clachan001 2 years ago
no your a troll
woolvett22 2 years ago
Britain forced the war? You don't think the invasion of the rhineland, the czech republic, poland, Abysinnia and disregard for the League of nations had something to do with it? Plus it was the Japanese that forced the Americans hand, and if you knew anything about British history you would know that Canada agreed to fight against the Germans, they were within their rights under the london conference to decline, but they did not, same for Africa and India
Mizzuru 2 years ago
bottom line is, we weren't heavily indoctrinated like the Germans and most of us (Italians) didn't believe in the war. That's the real reason for the outcome.
StefanD99 2 years ago
the Italians were primed for a fight..because they were sure they could win..but as soon as they met even mild resistance..they tucked their tails between their legs and ran home to Mama Catelli..just like in the 1st world war..what a conquest..Ethiopia..ooooo..thats equivalent to China vs. Luxembourg..THERE the Italians were!..3 against a THOUSAND!..toughest 3 they EVER fought!!..
the2ofme 2 years ago 4
italians are poofs
leamingto 3 years ago
To all those lunatics who think of the Italy as a 'shithole', I think you should know that it is one of the leading seats of Western Civilisation.
Lostojos 3 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Leading seat?? Italian politics are a joke...I mean come on, Berlusconi freely elected fucking TWICE???
He pointlessly posted troops in major cities,surrounded himself with former fascist youth leaders and ex-supermodels as his political staff....plus he released some bullshit music CD.
Also the country is crippled by the mafia...look at Naples for heaven's sake...There is no mafia in England,Germany,Spain,France....Italy will not be truly great until it cleanses itself of mafia and fascists.
Reegatron 2 years ago
Yes. It is. No catalogue of its imperfections will take that away. As for the mafia in other countries, there is no tradition that's why it isn't there. Italy has a different history - powerful city states, repeated foreign intervention and a feudal system (especially in the south) - which have coloured its politics and political life to this day.
Lostojos 2 years ago
I think what he meant was that the great civilization of Rome and the renasiance came from Italy, but other than that I agree with you.
Joker3797 2 years ago
Say what you want about Mussolini, but the man was a damn good speaker that little speech in the beginning made me want to hit somebody.
ProjectCC 3 years ago
yup he was a great speaker like Hitler
USCTrojansOwn 3 years ago
Here is where my Father became my hero.
sidensvans54 3 years ago
The Italians fought very well under direct German command, but those instances were few and far between. In addition, the Germans did not share or provide weapons to their allies. Hence, the Italians, Hungarians, Bulgarians, and Romanians used their own inferior weapons.
When the Russians attacked the Germans they always hit the area where these allies were.
Germans are great in war, but do some stupid things which help them lose.
Spatacus360 3 years ago
Comment removed
Lostojos 3 years ago
The opening shots reminded me of photos taken on Mars! What a great series!
Bullettube 3 years ago
Italy as part of the Axis didn't truly believe in what they were fighting for.
NYerintransit 3 years ago
Italians fight like little children or run away, they are short greasers from new jersey.
scotter420wigb 3 years ago
last time i checked italians are from italy, not new jersy.
SOLIDOUS917 3 years ago
Italy, what a boot in the ass of a corrupt mafia ridden shit hole country. they could move to Jersey and all watch the sopranos
scotter420wigb 3 years ago
@scotter420wigb Your mother is under greaser from NJ
ranger2692 1 year ago
200.000 soldiers taken just like that? what happen to the italians?
Ticonio 3 years ago
Excellent series, very well done. I cringe to think how it would be made today with playacting, sound effects, and the camera zooming everywhere.
flint55 3 years ago 4
the RENOWNED AFRIKA KORPS!!!
calibre9mm 3 years ago
I can not thank you enough for posting this no doubt the best war doco ever. ta
tinternet66 3 years ago
O'Connor was one of the most brilliant tacticians in the British Army. It was rather unfortunate for the Allies that he was captured at such an early stage in the war.
MalteseFalcon786 3 years ago
Comment removed
videoman10 3 years ago
Comment removed
videoman10 3 years ago
Why would a British band be playing "Unsere Rommel"?
MalteseFalcon786 3 years ago
Hi I realized my mistake just as soon as I wrote it. Too bad I can't delete it. Just another one of life's little screw ups.
videoman10 3 years ago
Does anyone know the name of the music that starts at 3:24 and ends at 3:53?
Thanks for posting this by the way.
AlphonseZukor 3 years ago
I agree woth all opinions down.
daltonagre 3 years ago
best ww2 documentary series ever
fuckoff187 3 years ago 2
yeah, priceless interviews with people who are almost all dead now
Quickfitfitter 3 years ago 2
Thanks for posting, i love the series of videos you are putting on here.
scotter420wigb 3 years ago