Epic History TV

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EPIC HISTORY TV brings you history's most dramatic and awesome events, from giant conflicts like World War One to the epic history of nations such as Russia, to the true story behind legends like Blackbeard the pirate. I use animated maps, images and carefully researched scripts to pack in as many facts as I can, so you can get to grips with these awe-inspiring events from our past. I aim to release a new video once per month, on average, but if you want more, please support me at Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/EpicHistoryTV?ty=h

Epic History: World War One - 1918

This is the story of 1918, the last year of World War One, when Germany launched a final do-or-die offensive, as American troops began to arrive in Europe in force. Aviation artwork thanks to Russell Smith Studios russellsmithart.com 1918 is the year that Woodrow Wilson unveils his 'Fourteen Points' as the basis for future world peace. Meanwhile Bolshevik Russia quits the war by signing the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, freeing up half a million German troops for General Ludendorff's last ditch attempt to win all-out victory on the Western Front. His Spring Offensive, also known as the Kaiserschlacht, or 'Kaiser's Battle', comes tantalising close to success, but is finally halted by British and Australian troops at Amiens in April. In the skies over the Western Front, the air war intensifies, but the Allies are now dominant. On 21st April Germany's most famous ace, Manfred von Richthofen, the 'Red Baron', is shot down and killed. That spring US troops arrive in Europe in force. The US 1st Infantry Division goes into action at Cantigny, while US Marines and the US 2nd Infantry Division win a victory at Belleau Wood. US troops help to turn the tide as the Allies launch their Hundred Days Offensive, surging past the Hindenburg Line, and pursuing a defeated German army. In the Balkans, Allied victory at Dobro Pole leads to the collapse of the Bulgarian army and an armistice. British-led forces win victory in the Middle East at Megiddo, and go on to occupy Damascus and Aleppo. With the writing on the wall, the Ottoman Empire signs an armistice with the Allies at Mudros. Austria-Hungary soon follows suit, after defeat by Italy at the Battle of Vittorio Veneto. Shortages, military defeat and discontent lead to revolution in Germany. Sailors at the naval base at Kiel mutiny. The Kaiser is forced to abdicate, a republic is proclaimed, and an armistice signed with the Allies at Compiègne on 11th November 1918. In 1919 delegates meet at Versailles, outside Paris, to conclude a peace treaty. The Treaty of Versailles imposes a 'war guilt clause' on Germany, huge war reparations, and limits the size of its armed forces. It gives territory to its neighbours, and creates lasting resentment within Germany, later exploited by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party to foster a new German nationalism. #EpicHistoryTV #WorldWarOne #WW1 Help me make more history videos by pledging $1 per video: https://www.patreon.com/EpicHistoryTV?ty=h Music listing: 0.00 - 1.05 Dramatic Movie Opening, Audio Blocks 1.05 - 3.14 Five Armies, Incompetech.com 3.14 - 6.07 Epic Apocalypse Music Theme, Audio Blocks 6.07 - 10.26 Dramatic Action Score, Audio Blocks 10.26 - 13.43 The Descent, Incompetech.com Recommended books on WW1 (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases): Hew Strachan, The First World War: A New History http://geni.us/ioYIFO Gary Sheffield, A Short History of the First World War http://geni.us/bSrkHi Lyn MacDonald, To the Last Man: Spring 1918 http://geni.us/F0rl Peter Hart, The Great War: 1914-1918 http://geni.us/diz8nhI A J P Taylor, The First World War: An Illustrated History http://geni.us/el71iC

13:43 | May 28, 2020

Epic History: World War One - 1917

Epic History TV's year-by-year account of World War One continues into 1917. It is the year Germany makes a desperate gamble by reintroducing unrestricted submarine warfare. They hope to knock Britain out of the war in 6 months by cutting off her food supplies, but the new policy soon leads to an American declaration of war. Russia is engulfed in revolution, leading to the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II. A Provisional Government takes charge in Russia, vowing to continue the war. But a second Bolshevik Revolution will lead to an armistice before the end of the year. On the Western Front, it is the year of the Battle of Arras (ending with the Canadian capture of Vimy Ridge), the much-heralded Nivelle Offensive, the Battle of Messines, and Third Ypres (Passchendaele). In November the British also launch the world's first mass tank attack at the Battle of Cambrai. On the Italian Front, German reinforcements from the east lead to a breakthrough at the Battle of Caporetto, with Italian troops in full retreat. In the Middle East, the British win victory at Kut and occupy Baghdad, while victory at the Third Battle of Gaza allows General Allenby to lead British forces into Jerusalem before the end of the year. In the Hejaz, the Arab revolt continues, leading to the capture of Aqaba, an operation advised by the legendary TE Lawrence, 'Lawrence of Arabia'. But the Balfour Declaration, promising British support for the creation of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, seems to contradict early British promises to the Arabs regarding an independent Arab state. #EpicHistoryTV #WorldWarOne #WW1 Website: http://www.epichistory.tv Twitter: https://twitter.com/EpicHistoryTV Music listing: 0.00 - 2.07 'No Way Out' - Audio Blocks 2.07 - 4.27 'Dramatic Action Score' - Audio Blocks 4.27 - 8.51 'A Call to Battle' - Audio Blocks 8.51 - 10.32 'The Conspirators' - Premium Beats 10.32 - 14.06 'Epic Apocalypse Theme' - Audio Blocks Recommended books on WW1 (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases): Hew Strachan, The First World War: A New History http://geni.us/ioYIFO Gary Sheffield, A Short History of the First World War http://geni.us/bSrkHi Lyn MacDonald, Passchendaele: The Story of the Third Battle of Ypres 1917 http://geni.us/mZBSh0 Peter Hart, The Great War: 1914-1918 http://geni.us/diz8nhI A J P Taylor, The First World War: An Illustrated History http://geni.us/el71iC

14:06 | May 28, 2020

Epic History: World War One - 1916

Epic History TV brings you the third year of World War One with animated maps and a blow-by-blow account of the action, helping you to make sense of the big picture. 'World War One: 1916' covers the great battles of Verdun and the Somme on the Western Front, as well as Russia's Brusilov Offensive on the Eastern Front. In the Middle East, British forces surrender at Kut, while the Arab Revolt begins in the Hejaz. But unbeknownst to Arab leaders, the British and French have secretly agreed to carve up the Middle East after the war in the secret Sykes-Picot Agreement. The war's only great naval battle is fought at Jutland, while the Italians face crisis after the surprise Austro-Hungarian attack at Asiago. In the Balkans, Romania joins the war on the Allied side, but is soon overrun by the Central Powers. CORRECTION: 13.10 - Karl was the great-nephew, not the son, of Emperor Franz Josef I, as stated in the video. Help Epic History TV to keep making videos by pledging as little as one dollar per video at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/EpicHistoryTV?ty=h #EpicHistoryTV #WorldWarOne #WW1 Recommended books on WW1 (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases): Hew Strachan, The First World War: A New History http://geni.us/ioYIFO Gary Sheffield, A Short History of the First World War http://geni.us/bSrkHi Lyn MacDonald, Somme: http://geni.us/sBDr Peter Hart, The Great War: 1914-1918 http://geni.us/diz8nhI A J P Taylor, The First World War: An Illustrated History http://geni.us/el71iC Ian Ousby, The Road to Verdun: France, Nationalism and the First World War http://geni.us/ZB9QeAR

14:17 | May 28, 2020

Epic History: World War One - 1915

The second year of World War One in 13 minutes, with maps and a blow-by-blow account so you can follow events in detail, and make sense of the big picture. Help Epic History TV to keep making videos by pledging as little as one dollar per video at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/EpicHistoryTV?ty=h Fokker Eindecker images courtesy of Jerry Boucher. Check out his excellent collection of military aviation art at The Virtual Aircraft Website http://www.the-vaw.com/ 'World War One - 1915' is the second of our five-part series covering the Great War. This episode covers one of the first strategic bombing raids in history, when two German Zeppelin airships bombed the British ports of King's Lynn and Great Yarmouth. At sea, the British Royal Navy won the Battle of Dogger Bank. Germany then announced an Exclusion Zone around the British Isles, where its U-boats waged 'unrestricted submarine warfare' against British ships. On the Eastern Front, 1915 began with further success for German Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, defeating the Russians at the Second Battle of Masurian Lakes. But the Russians had their own success at Przemyśl, taking 100,000 Austro-Hungarian prisoners. British and French battleships arrived at the Dardanelles, intending to force the Ottoman Empire to surrender by threatening its capital, Constantinople. But Turkish shore-forts and sea mines caused heavy losses amongst Allied ships. Troops landed at Gallipoli, including the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs), became pinned down by fierce Turkish resistance. On the Western Front, the British attacked at Neuve Chapelle. Indian Army units played a major role, but the offensive ended in failure. A German attack at Ypres opened with the first use of chemical weapons on the Western Front. In April, the Ottoman Empire began the arrest, deportation and execution of ethnic Armenians, whom they suspected of sympathising with Turkey's enemies. The events remain controversial, with the Turkish government arguing that the number of deaths has been exaggerated and cannot be described as 'genocide'. Most historians and many other national governments disagree, describing these events as the Armenian Genocide and placing the death-toll between 1 and 1.5 million. At sea, British passenger ship RMS Lusitania was sunk by a U-boat, leading to 1,198 civilian deaths, including 128 Americans. President Woodrow Wilson and the American public were outraged. In response to American warnings, Germany agreed to suspend attacks on passenger ships. A new Allied attempt to break the Western Front stalemate at the Second Battle of Artois ended with heavy losses, after failed attacks at Vimy Ridge, Aubers Ridge and Festubert. In the air, Germany gained air superiority thanks to the Fokker Eindecker, a monoplane armed with a forward-firing machine-gun. In June 1915 Italy joined the war, attacking Austria-Hungary in the first of many battles of the Isonzo River. At Gallipoli, the Allies failed to break the stalemate with new landings at Suvla Bay and a series of attacks known as the Battle of Sari Bair (including ANZAC assaults at Lone Pine and the Nek.) France and Britain launched their Great Autumn Offensive to relieve pressure on their Russian ally. But French attacks at the Third Battle of Artois and Second Battle of Champagne, as well as a British attack at the Battle of Loos, led to massive losses with few significant gains. In the Balkans, the Allies landed troops at Salonika in Greece, hoping to bring aid to Serbia. But when Bulgaria entered the war on the side of the Central Powers, Serbian forces were outflanked and outnumbered. Belgrade fell, and Serbia was overrun. The Serbian army fled through the Albanian mountains, but suffered catastrophic losses from hunger and cold. CORRECTION: the map shows Cyprus as part of the Ottoman Empire. Cyprus was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1570 to 1914, but when the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers in November

13:19 | May 28, 2020

Epic History: World War One - 1914

Everything you need to know about the first year of World War One in a 12 minute video. 'World War One - 1914' is the first in a five-part series covering the Great War. This episode covers the rival alliances that dominated Europe in the build-up to war, the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente, and the fatal gunshots by Gavrilo Princip at Sarajevo that resulted in the death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Imperial rivalries, the system of alliances and deep-seated animosities helped propel Europe into a general war. However Woodrow Wilson, the US President, ensured America stood apart from Europe's conflict. In August 1914, Germany invaded France and Belgium as part of the Schlieffen Plan. The tiny British Expeditionary Force could only hold up the German army for a few hours at the Battle of Mons, but later joined the French in saving Paris at the Battle of the Marne. The 'Race to the Sea' followed, leading to the First Battle of Ypres, as both sides tried to outflank each other to the north. Their failure led to a stalemate, in which the devastating power of machineguns and artillery forced infantry of both sides to take cover in deep trenches. At sea, Britain's Royal Navy won the war's first naval battle at Heligoland Bight, and imposed a naval blockade on Germany, preventing war supplies (including, controversially, food) from reaching the country by sea. HMS Pathfinder was soon sunk by a German U-boat, revealing the potential of Germany's submarines to overturn Britain's long-held naval dominance. On the Eastern Front, a Russian invasion of East Prussia ended in disaster at the Battle of Tannenberg, masterminded by German generals Paul von Hindenburg and Erich Ludendorff. A second victory at the Battle of Masurian Lakes sent the Russian army into retreat. Austria-Hungary's invasion of Serbia began badly, with defeat at the Battle of Cer. Things went even worse on the Russian front, as Austria's offensive against the Russians leads to heavy losses, and forced Germany to come to the rescue, by launching the Battle of Łódź. In Africa, British, French and German colonial forces clashed in British East Africa (Kenya), Togoland (Togo), German South-West Africa (Namibia), and German Kamerun (Cameroon). German Colonel Paul von Lettow-Vorbek had notable success repelling the British at the Battle of Tanga. In the Pacific, Japan honoured its alliance with Britain and seized the German naval base at Tsingtao in China. Task forces from Australia and New Zealand secured the German colonies of Samoa and New Guinea. German Admiral von Spee's East Asia Squadron won victory at the Battle of Coronel, off Chile, before sailing into catastrophe at the Battle of the Falkland Islands. In the Middle East, British troops occupied Basra, securing access to Persian oil for their fleet. Winter 1914 saw the French launch their first major offensive to break the trench stalemate of the Western Front. But the First Battle of Champagne led to heavy losses for no real gains. Ottoman operations in the Caucasus Mountains also ended in disaster at the Battle of Sarikamish. The war's first Christmas was marked by games of football in No Man's Land on the Western Front, but early hopes of a short war had now been entirely quashed. CORRECTION: 7.55 - the map shows Cyprus as part of the Ottoman Empire. Cyprus was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1570 to 1914, but when the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers in November 1914, Cyprus was annexed by Britain. Recommended books on 1914 & WW1 (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases): Margaret MacMillan, The War that Ended Peace http://geni.us/iF1yIX Max Hastings, Catastrophe: Europe Goes to War 1914 http://geni.us/j7hVB5 Christopher Clark, The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914 http://geni.us/VGWdu Lyn MacDonald, 1914 : The Days of Hope http://geni.us/W7NOo Peter Hart, The Great War: 1914-1918 http://geni.us/diz8nhI A J P

12:09 | May 28, 2020