The period between WW1 & WW2 is endlessly fascinating to me precisely because when learning about it you can understand it didn't have to play out the way it did and also,how it very easily happen yet again.
@@ThillerKillerX almost like history keeps running on the same hardware (humans) I think they’re trying to make it so history repeats itself perfectly every 100 years. Nobody’ll have to search for meaning if you know what year it is. It’s 67? better drop acid It’s 32? Better work in a factory It’s 07? Who cares, communism will save us
@VonJay a bit late to the party but the treay of Versailles, league of nations, stresa front etc were all very, weak in the least. They did almost nothing to emforce their demands and basically let things go the way they did. Germany was to lose territory and its colonies, pay war reperations, demilitarize the rhine etc. One of the biggest red flags was the the UK letting the germans increase the size of its nazy, which weakened the stresa front, an agreement made between the uk, France and italy to basically further guarantee the independence of Austria and resist any future german ambitions. After italy saw that the uk just caved to Germany they went with their invasion of abyssnia, Mussolini basically felt betrayed and that the treaties didnt matter at that point. There is of course much more, but thats a tid bit and in my opinion, what even pushed things in the direction they went.
One french officer, marshal Foch if I remember correctly, had this to say about the treaty of Versailles, which was signed in June 1919 "This is not eternal peace, it's only 20 years of armistice". He was off by 60 days.
Indeed he did.General Pershing also remarked "Unless this lot are pushed all the way back to Berlin and a full unconditional surrender is obtained we will have to do this all over again within 20 years".Very prophetic from both men.
The old lady who was watching Versailles go down shook her head and muttered, "I do believe this whole dance will last only 20 years." Fortunately it was close enough for a reporter to hear and write down her mutterings. Everyone in the world knew that Versailles was a shambles, except the people at Versailles.
Supreme Allied Commander Marshall Foch said at the time: “This is not peace. It is an armistice for 20 years”. From that day in 20 years and 65 days, the Second World War started.
I would say rather that this long conflict began in 1870 and didn’t resolve until 1945. And without the overarching Cold War of the second half of the twentieth century, the animosity may have continued. A lot of the impetus for WW1 was the desire for “revanche” in France. And WW2 was equally a result of German anger over a perceived “stab in the back.”
Timeline is what the History Channel should be. I love their documentaries and in depth looks. Some of my favorites are the war factories series. Great content!! Keep up the great work!
Many of these documentaries first appeared on British TV decades ago. I can't be sure about all of them but some I remember when they were first shown. Sometimes they miss out secret info that only trickled out as it was released after 50 years or so.
The history channel used to be like this. Now it just helps creates idiots. Fortunately the internet is available to answer any question a person might have. To be fair, reality tv was the only model that would save them from going out of business.
Thank you so much for this magnificent series! Between Timeline on RUclips and History Hit there is really no need to look for anything else to watch. These programs give my life new meaning - There is ALWAYS more history to learn!
This and the other "Timeline" documentaries are the best I have seen recently. They concentrate on a specific period of time and yet are comprehensive and show the relationships between events. The commentators are of the highest quality, make concise points, and you integrate them well into the thematic of the subject matter. The quotations are well chosen, and your putting them up to read is very helpful. I look forward to enjoying and learning much from viewing the next films in the series.
This was made for TV years ago. Just seeing Richard Overy is the giveaway. So sadly you won't see a follow-up. But at least these old documentaries are available online. :)
There is a perhaps apocryphal story of an individual in Germany who had received their pay, carrying it in a basket to a store where they bought food, and forgot the basket and its contents when they left. When they returned, they found that someone had stolen the basket -- but left the money.
I do also even though the entire time frame was just so heartbreaking for so many people. War is profitable for businesses in government, because the money goes in a big circle and it’s harmful for taxpayers and the poor & working class you end up fighting the wars. It’s a vicious cycle! It’s our government who starred in the flights were the ones that I actually got into a fight in the war that would be fewer of them.
Marshall Foch did say in 1919 "This is not the end but an Armistice for 20 years". General Pershing also said that unless the Allies pushed Germany all the way back to Berlin and received a full unconditional surrender then all the horrific slaughter would have to be repeated again within 20 years because Quote "This lot will never accept they have been beaten".Very prophetic from both men.
In 1919, Lenin stated...the first world war gave us Russia, the second world war will give us Europe. It was already planned. Reasearch the infamous letter Albert Pike wrote to Mazzini on August,15,1871, outlining the plans for 3 world wars that have happened or are happening the exact way they were planned.
That’s because these men knew that the cruelty of the Versailles Treaty was such that eventually it would be answered. They tried to turn an armistice into a surrender and push it down the Germans throats. The brutal conditions created by the VT paved the way and set the stage for the rise of Hilter and his party.
@@mamavswild Since Germany didn't accept it had lost, there only option they gave was to force others to make them accept. The Germans started a second war because they didn't accept defeat in the first, having become nazis, unfortunately they killed millions
Not to mention the partition of the Ottoman Empire and its allocation to Britain, France, and Russia, done by drawing lines on a map, with no consideration to the composition of the people living there, which created many of the problems we see in the Middle East today, with Sunni and Shi'a groups jammed together into single countries, or single political ethnicities split across countries -- the Kurds, for example.
@@Grommok That is true. And we were pulled into fights for the aristocrats (the 0.1%) to carve out the cake among themselves. We fight each other, fooled and divided by nationalism, royalism, and religious propagandas controlled by these aristocrats and institution heads. We common people are simply pawns -- we get nothing from these fights except death and inflation.
@@est9949We are pawns and cannon fodder for this top minority. You are correct what fools we all are dragged into wars by one another. Thank you for your comment.
2:18 "History is interesting only because *nothing is inevitable* ". But from the description: "Explore how the far reaching consequences of this move set in motion *the inexorable march* to another World War."
The implication is it didn’t have to go this way, if things had been done differently at Versailles. This was only further compounded by the Great Depression.
I wish one day the whole world has no more lines. And that we all elect the same common government. Lines were used by groups of aristocrats (the 0.1%) to divide cake among themselves. We fight each other, fooled and divided by nationalism, royalism, and religious propagandas controlled by these aristocrats and institution heads. We common people are simply pawns -- we get nothing from these fights except death and inflation.
@@MacJaxonManOfAction the BE wasn't the only empire redrawing the maps of Europe. The French empire, and the American empire contributed also. Of course, this isn't anything new. It's been happening for 3 thousand years of recorded European history. No doubt it happened long before that, it happens now and will for a long time to come.
The evil was hidden, or excused back then, and those in power don't like talking about it today. The Nazis actually thought the democrats were too racist. That's how bad the hate was in some places. The US Supreme Court back then even ruled it was okay for the government to impose sterilization on the citizens. We just don't hear about that sort of thing today. Had the Germans not walked down this path first, other countries would have done so instead. Hate was everywhere.
@@maxpowers9129 I don’t know there is a lot of hate today im just saying that the people of that time did not have misery written all over there faces as they do now.
@@rebeccaherschman1635 It's about the priority of the filmmakers. If they want to show happy people then that's what you'll see and conversely for sad people.
6:13 There were absolutely no warnings which were given to the crowd to disperse. Moreover, the day this genocide took place was a day of festival (Baisakhi) and the garden (Jallianwala Bagh) where the genocide took place was very close to the temple so people naturally came there after performing the rituals etc in the temple. It was the biased, bigoted and racist attitude of the British Governor in Punjab and his puppet Dyer which led to this genocide of innocent people, where children as young as 9 were also murdered. But I must give credit to this documentary for looking into this aspect of British history.
@@Crazytechnition What do you call the Bengal famine that killed millions of Indian people? It wasn't due to natural causes, it was because of Great Britain's colonialism. Exactly what is the minimum number of deaths before we are allowed to use the word genocide?
what is unique & amazing about WWI..how all parties including the (victorious ones) were so exhausted. that is why the French & somehow the British crumbled quickly the recovery of Russia & Germany was breathtaking. honestly, I am not able to comprehend that yet. Both lost big..but managed to recover in less than 2 decades
Another excellent installment from Timeline. Thank you for keeping the energy to study and know about this crucial period of modern history alive; how relevant it is to understanding our world today. So much to cover, looking forward to everything you produce.
Insane. In Italy, it was a VERY rough adjustment. In early 1919, the King sat down for espresso with PM Orlando and asked him if he'd debate anything in Sykes-Picot (Vittorio Emanuele III was a BIG reader). Orlando shook his head and replied, "There's a reason why the Old Romans left, Majesty- too many problems there". Instead, Italy started working on improving conditions in all 4 colonies- Libya, Eritrea, Somalia & Tientsin.
Absolutely mesmerizing. Endlessly fascinating, I can watch these repeatedly and never tire. One of my favorite aspects is the uncredited narration of Jeremy Irons, continuing in the long tradition of British war documentaries narrated by luminaries such as Laurence Olivier - great script, leavened with humor, he’s fully engaged and really elevates the material. Took me awhile to put the two and two together, but he starred in Brideshead Revisited in the 80s - which covers the same time period. I’m sure he immersed himself in the period history for that role, and he truly brings it alive in this narration. Brilliant production all around, the echoes ripple to our current era to haunting affect.
The term “the real McCoy” does not originate from the bootlegger as this documentary says. Instead, the phrase "The real McCoy" is likely a corruption of the Scots "The real MacKay", first recorded in 1856 as: "A drappie o' the real MacKay", ("a drop of the real MacKay"). A letter written by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson in 1883 contains the phrase, “He’s the real Mackay,” decades before U.S. Prohibition.
That's interesting, though one would submit that often popular culture is often adapted from earlier customs. For instance, religion has oft borrowed from earlier beliefs. So McCoy, likely being Scottish drummed up that old saying but with his name instead, and people of the US wouldn't know any different.
"The Real McCoy" may refer to the "real McCoy railroad oil drip" of the mid 1800s -- it was their (his) marketing slogan, and I believe was an intentional corruption of "The Real MacKay." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elijah_McCoy
I enjoy these documentaries here on You Tube, thank you for the effort, these are good enough quality to be on The History Channel, oh wait, that is no longer viable as "The History Channel" now shows us Hillbillies, Duck Calling people, Truck drivers and lumberjacks....
32:07. I've heard Bagdad described as quite a few things in the past few decades, however romantic was never one of those descriptions. My how times have changed, lol.
@@dixonpinfold2582 I agree, there are other programmes in this series which I have seen before on The History Channel but I won't bother to follow them up on YT because of the affectations of the narrator.
Wilson was out of his depth. A naive, conceited and delusional man at this point. He didn't even include major Republican leaders in his decisions or on the journey to France. Truman didn't make the same mistakes with the United Nations and other key post war issues. He carefully worked to get their support.
I think that he had the right idea, but went about it the wrong way. Congress was sceptical about the benefits of being in an all nations group for collective security, seeing it as surrendering their ability to declare war. Wilson, rather than flattering Congress, persuading them of the benefits the League of Nations would provide, he kept going to Paris, laying out the framework for the League and overstretched himself physically by going on a whistle-stop tour of the nation to sell the League to the American people, leaving himself with the worst Stroke of his life, leaving him unable to govern properly for most of the rest of his term. When his push to have the Nation join the League met its final defeat in the Senate, he said: "they have shamed up in the eyes of the world,"
Can you lower the music so that we can hear what the narrator is saying or ensure the closed captions are correct so we can at least read what the narrator is saying?
Ensure the closed captions are correct so we can at least read it which would help for those narrators with accents. So many times it has us guessing ... I do know Thebes...it is not "these" or "bees"or "trees" /Different video-Goliath.// Punctuation would be helpful too. I pity the DEAF for having to read the gibberish that CC displays. You might as well have a Swedish narrator.
Study history for decades, and you'll come to understand that you will never "know" history. You will only learn someone's version of history. I have learned several lessons ABOUT history; It is cyclical, and themes repeat themselves. We have always lived in an imperfect world, and the world will never be perfected by the hand of mankind. Run from any "leader" who promises visions of Utopia. If you want a better understanding of history, always follow the rabbit trails. They lead to the most interesting places.
@M smith Two good questions. Civil war in the US? Based on publicly available information, probably not for the foreseeable future. My interpretation is that we are witnessing political tantrums from a noisy minority. Unrest to be sure, but minimal bloodshed. The battle will be fought at the ballet box for the time being. We survived the 1960's and 1970's. They were a much more perilous time in our nation's history. Read about them yourself, and do a comparison to contemporary times. I think you'll understand my point. Regarding a hot war with China, again, unlikely, although some very limited military skirmishes seem possible. I have a very limited understanding of Chinese history, but my impression is that historically, they tend to be "introvertive". They have festering political problems internally, they appear to have a massively leveraged economy, they are highly dependent on exports to drive their economy, they lack key natural resources (energy), they are not food independent, almost 9% of their population is undernourished, they have a small deep water navy, they have never faced a modern military force in battle, and the list just goes on and on. My opinion is that China is playing a game of their own making, and we probably don't fully understand it. If they ever decide to get openly hostile, I think we might all be surprised at their strategy. As always, time will tell! :)
@@mtlicq Touchy subject. I don't believe vaccinations should be mandatory, but I fully support their development and use by anyone who wants them. Also, it's easy to understand why governments would impose travel restrictions on unvaccinated individuals. Read the Wiki entry entitled: "History of Polio". You will note that COVID-19 is already more deadly than the worst outbreaks of the 1940's and 1950's. Then read the entries for smallpox and rubella. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life, playing a game of Russian Roulette with a virus? I understand the concerns about the risks of vaccines, but they should be balanced against the realities of contracting a disease that can kill, disable, and disrupt the lives of millions.
Would love to see this series continue. Very interesting. In future videos, if at all possible, the background music should be a bit lower, it's difficult to hear the narration at times.
Brem. There is a reason it was known as "the war to end all wars". The most famous contemporary history was written by Churchill. But he's just one name we would call "famous" today. Of course there were tough economic times. Not just in Germany and Austria/Hungry. Both the BE and the French were in deep debt, mainly to America. But the idea of 'austerity' or was a minor annoyance to the public, when compared with over 4 years of deprivation and huge loss of life. The mood was positive (I read a lot of the papers from 1920 for university and in them you'd think sometimes that Christ had returned and proclaimed peace on earth).
@@bremCZ that's how it was viewed. Of course they didn't expect an end to all war. Just between "civilised" nations. The people of the time had a very different outlook on the world compared to us today. None more so than politicians and historians (whom were often the same thing. Infact many statesman/politicians wrote their "history of the great war" as quickly as they could. Book sales and what not lol") Which is another good point. Many "history books" written just after the end of the war, were effectively memoirs in wider context. They were popular given the war took over everyone's lives for 4 years and of course censorship meant the public were kept in the dark as to the wider situation. Let alone specific events.
I was checking world population in the early 1900's for another question earlier. In 1907, there were 1.75 Billion people in the world. 378 MILLION were considered living in the British Empire! About 23% of the world! Today the UK has about 60 Million! 15% of 1920 UK Money >>>>>>(much, much...greater) than 15% of 2020 UK money
I appreciate the opportunity to learn .. regardless the degree of accurate history. At least I’m introduced to the subject or event . I can research on my own continuously afterwards… my opinion regarding both wars is that they were planned to produce the required leadership to match the new industry and products it produced! 😊
I have that in a pdf War is a racket. Also a book called Krieg dem kriege , or war against war, by Ernst Friedrich 1924. Both are brilliant especially the latter and once read cant be unread but you have to read them to truly understand just what a racket war became.
@@yvonneblocker5618 - Considering the hot nonsense that seemed to follow General Butler in his retirement, I'd say no one. He's one of very few historical figures that were set up to become puppet kings and yet managed to see through the plot and stay true to his morals.
@@salus1231 “just what a racket war became” and still is. Trumps dismissal of General Mattis and now Trumps removal which then lead Mattis to state “we cannot have anymore of this America first”. Just watch in the next twelve months how the new administration will bring about a war to stoke the war machine in Washington.
Interestingly, the documentary does not mention the Spanish Flu, despite its enormous casualties. So completely did it disappear from collective memory until just a few weaker ago.
Weaker ago? It's a standard part of any history book that covers that time. Had it not been for the war, it probably would have been the most important event of the early 20th century.
Weaker than your comment. My father was called Child of the Spaniard, born in mid pandemic. It got me studying the pandemic, and I was prepared when the current one came. Some families DID talk about it. The ones like mine, the strong or lucky who lost no one - not even a baby born in the killer second wave.
Germany went from an authoritarian monarchy to a parliamentary republic in only 9 days however rather than rewarding the German people the victors sought to economically destroy them. This caused the eventual collapse of the democratic experiment in Germany. If people aren't rewarded for doing the right thing eventually they will try the wrong thing as their only option.
You have to remember, the victors had little interest in what government represented the central powers nations. It just wasn't a factor. If a serial killer spends more than 4 years killing your family and friends. You don't care much that he or she 'found god' the day after being caught. It's human nature to blame and want revenge.
The Versailles Treaty, was not a peace treaty. But a Demand of the Victorous Allied powers outside pretty much the US. There was nothing in the Treaty for the defeated powers to want to keep the peace. In particular Germany, who was not utterly defeated. It just kicked the War down the road for twenty years.
No one changes their mind in 9 days. The militarism was rooted.They acted in a way that made them look respectable, while still ruminating the stab in the back. Their leaders were also seen as traitors by many. You may remember the quantity of assasinations of political leaders in this era. If they were rewarded for doing 'the right thing', we would have either a divided Germany years before it actually happened, or a full-blown, bloody civil war with coups on top.
Rarely is it pointed out that Germany in WW 1 had achieved an important war goal: the destruction of the "Triple Entente". Russia was absent as a power factor for a long time. France was permanently weakened. Great Britain no longer ruled the oceans alone. Its maritime power was threatend by Japan and the USA. Eastern Europe was no longer controlled by Russia and Austria. It consisted of weak states that were soon dominated by German economy. In contrast to France and Russia German industry survived the war intact. USA, the only 100% Winner of the Great War, withdrew in isolation. Germany no longer had to fear an encirclement so quickly.
Yes I'm sure being in the victorious Allies camp at the end of WW1 they would think there's no need for a future war but the losing nations and others like Italy and Japan which had been snubbed at the Versailles table and Russia which was ignored and obviously Germany would see things rather different.
Very entertaining and well done, and very educational, a must watch these episodes are very important and meaningful, thank you for making these available.
The irony of the Treaty of Versaille The Alleis, England and France, committing massacres on their colonial subjects while evicerating Germany for the same
Hypocrites and evil people have a huge advantage over men of honor, because bad people can use any tactic good people can, in addition to unethical tactics, so scum tend to be the ones to get into power.
This time is best written about in the masterpiece by Heinrich August Winkler in his phenomenal book "The Age of Catastrophe: A History of the West, 1914-1945". I highly recommend it, for those interested...a hidden, underrated gem of historical writing...
This was a very interesting documentary. I enjoyed it. You can boil it down to the fact that after the first World War. That Germany was sanctioned so badly. And crippled so horribly. That there was absolutely no relief for the people. The depression only put the final nail in the coffin for Germany. So all the European countries, plus the United States. Has and played a role into bringing on the Second World War.
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was hardly benign either. Russia lost 34% of its population, 54% of its industrial land, 89% of its coalfields, and 26% of its railways. Russia was also fined 300 million gold marks. According to historian Spencer Tucker “The German General Staff had formulated extraordinarily harsh terms that shocked even the German negotiator."
France’s harshness to Germany at the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 was one of the contributing factors that caused the outbreak of WW2. PM David Lloyd George and President Woodrow Wilson desired leniency and only wanted Germany to disarm significantly for a period of time and reparations that did not cripple the German economy. Lloyd George opposed revenge and attempted to compromise between Clemenceau's demands and the Fourteen Points, because Europe would eventually have to reconcile with Germany.Lloyd George wanted terms of reparation that would not cripple the German economy, so that Germany would remain a viable economic power and trading partner.. But President Clemanceau wanted reparations of the sum of £280 billion from a defeated and bankrupted country. He used emotional blackmail to persuade other allies to adhere by it. Basically stating most of the fighting took place on French soil, and French soldiers had the significant higher causalities. He stated Clemenceau told Wilson: "America is far away, protected by the ocean. Not even Napoleon himself could touch England. You are both sheltered; we are not". Clemenceau intended to ensure the security of France, by weakening Germany economically, militarily, territorially and by supplanting Germany as the leading producer of steel in Europe.British economist and Versailles negotiator John Maynard Keynes summarized this position as attempting to "set the clock back and undo what, since 1870, the progress of Germany had accomplished." He also started it was a “Carthaginian Peace”. Clemenceau was so blinded by revenge, that he completely ignored French history. At the Congress of Vienna 1814, the allies did not impose reparations or on France for the damaged caused to Europe by Napoleon Bonaparte, France got off lightly. Even in the wars of the 18th century, treaties agreed upon by France with the victors, were fair, with the exchange of colonies and vice versa.
Yeah that's what happens when you try to wreak havoc over multiple continents in some mission of global conquest. That's on Germany not the ones that had to shut them down lmao. Germany gotta tighten up
Idk, this doc gives Wilson waaayyy too much credit for my tastes, and they already pointed out how badly he was played lol. But in all seriousness, this was great.
The MUSIC in the background!! The documentary speaks for itself, there’s really no need for that background! Please, consider taking it off. Wonderful content! Thank you
Thank you for an interesting synopsis of WWI. There are many comments regarding the music being too loud and the narrator speaking in "gibberish". I didn't have any such problems with this video. Just passing my opinion along for those who read comments before watching a video.
It's probably down to this being converted from a made for TV documentary. And given how old it is, the production style then was very different. The comments on the issues don't seem to take that into consideration
That's what the Brits didn't quite understand about the first war - it was against ALL colonialial powers - just because George was not assasinated didn't mean Britain's choke hold on other areas it controlled. Finally, at 21:00, I hear a Brit (Prof. Overy) putting the problem forth that the reason for the loss of the British Empire (after and during WWII) was it's forethought of defending the said empire...even Churchill didn't get that when asking for US aid during 1940! Civil wars are always a mess, as everyone tries to ensure a win! The reverse to prohibition occurred when medicinal marijuana became legal - Oregon's need for the latter rose by 300%, really...this was in the news sometime back.
I guess France's slice of the Ottoman Empire's realm in the Near East was as small as it was and more specifically devoid of any significant oil reserves was due to her limited footprint in the region during the war. I wonder if France's own "chaps with maps" delegation at Versailles they didn't quite grasp the growing importance of access to reliable sources of crude oil? Their consolation prize of Syria certainly didn't yield the country any of the region's vast oil reserves that's for sure.
The Treaty of Versailles guaranteed WW2. Even Ferdinand Foch understood this. He said the only thing the treaty did was buy 20 years of ceasefire, and he was off by less than a year.
@ 3:56 ... " At the beginning of the First World War, the United States owed Europe Four BILLION Dollars - and by the War's End, Europe owed the US TEN Billion ... America found out early how good a Business Opportunity war could be, and they've NEVER looked back ... an American Economist, Thomas Schelling is the first known user of the cold-blooded term - " Collateral Damage " en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Schelling and the United States has - by far, the biggest Arms Industry on the Planet - in History. America doesn't HATE peace ... it just seems to feel better when Peace is not around.
Its pretty annoying how so many people think history is as simple as the one or two things they heard a professor or youtube video say. Its dangerous cause dumb like to apply todays standards to those times and take it out on innocent people today.
@Gayle Elizabeth I've already made my point. No need to repeat myself, other than to say that no major Western power has embraced war so fully as the US - America is virtually ALWAYS at war somewhere in the world ... gotta support the Troops AND the Arms Industry, Huh ?
A very interesting and worthwhile documentary. I do tire a bit of the narrator’s cynical tone, though I suppose it may be used to convey some of the era’s zeitgeist. The First World War destroyed and eroded a lot of ideals.
Wars in the 20th century really benefited one country - America. The least casualties but accumulated massive wealth, mainly at the expense of Britain.
The 'real McCoy' refers to a patented oiler for locomotives. It can be only by chance that some bootlegger came along with a palatable non-toxic offering who happened to be named McCoy. "Real McCoy" has nothing to do with bootlegging.!
Well the Dust bowl was also largely man made caused. One of the causes was the destruction of large amount of trees, and also terrible land Management.
@10:30 the narrator says the freicorp "murdered" Rosa LuxomBERG. False. She was a Bolshevik communist revolutionary who was trying to install communism in Germany like Lenin and Trotsky had done in Russia. Communists aren't human, so killing them shouldn't be considered murder, it should be considered pest control.
I remember a David Low cartoon where "Professor Blimp" asks, "Is man evolving backwards?" And his exhibits include "failure to make generous peace 1918", "failure to treat liberal Germany decently period 1920-1930", "failure to stand up to gangsterism 1930-1940", and finally "present day ghastly prospect".
Very good documentary I think ? But could you possibly make the background music louder please ? As I'm pretty sure that there were a couple of times when I could hear what the narrator was saying without having to stick my ear in my laptop speaker .............................................
Interesting comment.My mums half brother fought in the trenches in WW 1. My Dad flew against the Germans in WW2 in North Africa.Britain went from a World power to almost bankrupt...
And even that statistic is made up. In 1920, according to the census, 67.5% were Czechoslovak (since Slovaks and Czechs were counted as the same ethnic group). 30.6% were German.
I've been out of a secondary school for ages (almost 2 decades soon) and I remember as a teenager wondering how Germany's economy had spiraled out of control like it did during the interwar. So got a few courses on macro-economics during uni and as far as I understood from self study the German Marks was just unwanted by the winning side. As such, basic offer and demand rules: No one wants it therefore it becomes worthless. I never considered that the German government at the time would be so literal in the understanding of the terms until this documentary showed up in my feed... so they were told 226 000 000 000 marks of war reparations and they were like "well we can print that out, they didn't stipulate that the value of the mark had to remain the same". Like... that's genius problem solving, provided the value of your currency isn't reliant on offer and demand 😅
Exactly correct and America gave Germany a loan. That was how Germany was to pay reparations to Great Britain and a couple of the other European countries.. then Germany defaulted on the loan we gave them. It was all really crazy.! The great depression has been blamed on the stock market crash in America in 1929, but they’re three years apart.. they might have a little to do with one another but I believe that overall the great depression was a result of something else and I know Herbert Hoover did something later in his administration that was his wrongdoing, unlike the stock market crash, because he had nothing to do with that. Whatever he did wrong what is it pave the way for a possible stock market crash but no one person is to blame.. the stock market crash around Mary April 1929, but Rich bankers cat pumping money into stocks to make the market look and appear stable so people would continue to invest and they did to some degree, but inevitably the bottom fell out and they couldn’t hide it anymore. It was simply a result of absolutely no banking regulations. Over the past 125 years or so we’ve had 438 administrative agencies created, and we can live without 75% of them. Why do we need the NIH when we also have the CDC and FDA? It makes absolutely no sense and sound political party strangle. The heck out of business is with regulation to the point that they can’t even work and get anything done.. so I think it’ll he was the only country in Europe that wasn’t affected at all about the stock market crash and Great Depression in America for whatever reason
Versallies Treaty aftermath was a biggest warning to how to NOT formulate of the Peace treaties... and it could be a possible influence to how MacArthur handled post war Japan transition from Imperial Absolutism in to equivalent of the British style Constitutional Monarchy with Japanese army still more or less intact (contrary to what Versallies Treaty done with Germany ones) which practically "disarmed" a risk of reemerging of similar to post WWI Germany resentments... Of course pro Imperial sentiments are still there... but they are less dangerous for the world... than recent rise of the Red Star Dragon... which threatening practically entire West Pacific zone...
Interesting hoe we handled Japan. The armed farces were “abolished,” but not. We assumed their defense until after the peace treaty, after which, Japan adroitly began to assume full sovereignty with our permission. Today China confronts an emerging Japanese navy that is more efficient than its own as well as the US Navy.
I disagree with the 4:10 statement that we loomed over Europe as a manufacturing superpower. Your governments clung to the influence they held on you when the other world powers broke free. You didn't help us do that & we helped you get afloat while cleaning up the mess. Not saying we were perfect or friendly about it but this is not a free ride & someone else's efforts is not a burden to you
Missing the point ! Point is that the old powers felt economically dominated by the US, a very real thing. After the 2nd. world war, this domination extended into every part of the western world.
@@realitymatters8720 i really mean the perspective of that statement. We were not looming over like hostile oppresors we were producing new technology and leaping out of a depression. If you describe it that way its I skewed look at what really caused the unrest
@@joemomma5814 I dont think anybody says that the policy of the US directly caused the 2nd. world war, but the debt that was accumulated during the 1st. world war, was a huge dark cloud hanging over the economies of europe for a long time after. And you better belive that it must have felt like a "hostile opressor" looming over them. The unrest had many mothers economy loss of trust in authority etc. etc. Not writing off the debt incurred during the 1st.ww, was a realy stupid thing to do, not to mention amoral. And I do mean amoral, saying that a war is just, joining it and letting ones allies, the ones who have lost the most in every way, pay for it... Stupid and amoral, no doubt about it !
The period between WW1 & WW2 is endlessly fascinating to me precisely because when learning about it you can understand it didn't have to play out the way it did and also,how it very easily happen yet again.
History is going to repeat itself very soon. Just a few years now.
@@ThillerKillerX almost like history keeps running on the same hardware (humans)
I think they’re trying to make it so history repeats itself perfectly every 100 years.
Nobody’ll have to search for meaning if you know what year it is.
It’s 67? better drop acid
It’s 32? Better work in a factory
It’s 07? Who cares, communism will save us
No, because the Treaty of Versailles was so lenient, compared to The vast majority of reckonings, on previously losing powers, before it
@@Rowlph8888that’s interesting. Care to go further. I know absolutely nothing about this period.
@VonJay a bit late to the party but the treay of Versailles, league of nations, stresa front etc were all very, weak in the least. They did almost nothing to emforce their demands and basically let things go the way they did. Germany was to lose territory and its colonies, pay war reperations, demilitarize the rhine etc. One of the biggest red flags was the the UK letting the germans increase the size of its nazy, which weakened the stresa front, an agreement made between the uk, France and italy to basically further guarantee the independence of Austria and resist any future german ambitions. After italy saw that the uk just caved to Germany they went with their invasion of abyssnia, Mussolini basically felt betrayed and that the treaties didnt matter at that point. There is of course much more, but thats a tid bit and in my opinion, what even pushed things in the direction they went.
One french officer, marshal Foch if I remember correctly, had this to say about the treaty of Versailles, which was signed in June 1919
"This is not eternal peace, it's only 20 years of armistice".
He was off by 60 days.
Because he thought the treaty too lenient on Germany.
Interesting that the Cordon Sanitaire was occupied by the Bolsheviks after World War II.plus most of Prussia.
Foch also said, of the Danzig corridor, "There lies the cause of the second world war."
Indeed he did.General Pershing also remarked "Unless this lot are pushed all the way back to Berlin and a full unconditional surrender is obtained we will have to do this all over again within 20 years".Very prophetic from both men.
The old lady who was watching Versailles go down shook her head and muttered, "I do believe this whole dance will last only 20 years." Fortunately it was close enough for a reporter to hear and write down her mutterings. Everyone in the world knew that Versailles was a shambles, except the people at Versailles.
It's almost like 1914-1945 was one big war with a brief pause in the middle.
That about sums things up succinctly.
Supreme Allied Commander Marshall Foch said at the time: “This is not peace. It is an armistice for 20 years”. From that day in 20 years and 65 days, the Second World War started.
I would say rather that this long conflict began in 1870 and didn’t resolve until 1945. And without the overarching Cold War of the second half of the twentieth century, the animosity may have continued. A lot of the impetus for WW1 was the desire for “revanche” in France. And WW2 was equally a result of German anger over a perceived “stab in the back.”
@@christopherqueen3194 It's been a merry go round of European countries pissing each other off, since forever.
All of history is one big war with respites in between. War existed before humans and it will out live us.
Timeline is what the History Channel should be. I love their documentaries and in depth looks. Some of my favorites are the war factories series. Great content!! Keep up the great work!
Heck yeah! War Factories, and then the (WWI, WWII) "In Numbers" series are my two favorites.
Imagine, 10 years from now, if this channel becomes what the History Channel is now
@@aidanokeeffe7928 Everything eventually finds its way to corruption. The human curse.
Many of these documentaries first appeared on British TV decades ago. I can't be sure about all of them but some I remember when they were first shown.
Sometimes they miss out secret info that only trickled out as it was released after 50 years or so.
The history channel used to be like this. Now it just helps creates idiots. Fortunately the internet is available to answer any question a person might have. To be fair, reality tv was the only model that would save them from going out of business.
Thank you so much for this magnificent series! Between Timeline on RUclips and History Hit there is really no need to look for anything else to watch. These programs give my life new meaning - There is ALWAYS more history to learn!
Snow equals nepotism. Sorry. love/
I’m glad this is public. Everybody can watch
This and the other "Timeline" documentaries are the best I have seen recently. They concentrate on a specific period of time and yet are comprehensive and show the relationships between events. The commentators are of the highest quality, make concise points, and you integrate them well into the thematic of the subject matter. The quotations are well chosen, and your putting them up to read is very helpful. I look forward to enjoying and learning much from viewing the next films in the series.
This was made for TV years ago. Just seeing Richard Overy is the giveaway.
So sadly you won't see a follow-up. But at least these old documentaries are available online. :)
There is a perhaps apocryphal story of an individual in Germany who had received their pay, carrying it in a basket to a store where they bought food, and forgot the basket and its contents when they left. When they returned, they found that someone had stolen the basket -- but left the money.
I was born 17 years after WW2, served in the 'cold war', am still scratching my head on the 20th century...
No one served in the cold war.
I love the timeline of Germany from the end of WW1 to the start of WW2. So fascinating
I do also even though the entire time frame was just so heartbreaking for so many people. War is profitable for businesses in government, because the money goes in a big circle and it’s harmful for taxpayers and the poor & working class you end up fighting the wars. It’s a vicious cycle! It’s our government who starred in the flights were the ones that I actually got into a fight in the war that would be fewer of them.
Marshall Foch did say in 1919 "This is not the end but an Armistice for 20 years". General Pershing also said that unless the Allies pushed Germany all the way back to Berlin and received a full unconditional surrender then all the horrific slaughter would have to be repeated again within 20 years because Quote "This lot will never accept they have been beaten".Very prophetic from both men.
In 1919, Lenin stated...the first world war gave us Russia, the second world war will give us Europe. It was already planned. Reasearch the infamous letter Albert Pike wrote to Mazzini on August,15,1871, outlining the plans for 3 world wars that have happened or are happening the exact way they were planned.
That’s because these men knew that the cruelty of the Versailles Treaty was such that eventually it would be answered.
They tried to turn an armistice into a surrender and push it down the Germans throats.
The brutal conditions created by the VT paved the way and set the stage for the rise of Hilter and his party.
@@mamavswild Since Germany didn't accept it had lost, there only option they gave was to force others to make them accept. The Germans started a second war because they didn't accept defeat in the first, having become nazis, unfortunately they killed millions
That is why Roosevelt and Churchill insisted on unconditional surrender from both Germany and Japan in WW2.
Not to mention the partition of the Ottoman Empire and its allocation to Britain, France, and Russia, done by drawing lines on a map, with no consideration to the composition of the people living there, which created many of the problems we see in the Middle East today, with Sunni and Shi'a groups jammed together into single countries, or single political ethnicities split across countries -- the Kurds, for example.
One thing I've learned in 50 years, is humans don't seem to like each other very much!
No, they like power very much.
@@Grommok That is true. And we were pulled into fights for the aristocrats (the 0.1%) to carve out the cake among themselves. We fight each other, fooled and divided by nationalism, royalism, and religious propagandas controlled by these aristocrats and institution heads. We common people are simply pawns -- we get nothing from these fights except death and inflation.
No, they're just so greedy, they'll do anything
@@est9949We are pawns and cannon fodder for this top minority. You are correct what fools we all are dragged into wars by one another. Thank you for your comment.
2:18 "History is interesting only because *nothing is inevitable* ". But from the description: "Explore how the far reaching consequences of this move set in motion *the inexorable march* to another World War."
The implication is it didn’t have to go this way, if things had been done differently at Versailles. This was only further compounded by the Great Depression.
This is a great program. The roaring 20’s and Great Depression sandwiched between two colossal world wars! Amazing 40 year period.
Long and short, like many modern territorial problems, it was caused by empires drawing lines on a map with zero regard for the people living there.
I wish one day the whole world has no more lines. And that we all elect the same common government. Lines were used by groups of aristocrats (the 0.1%) to divide cake among themselves. We fight each other, fooled and divided by nationalism, royalism, and religious propagandas controlled by these aristocrats and institution heads. We common people are simply pawns -- we get nothing from these fights except death and inflation.
We still live in a post WW1 world. Which is really just Act1 of a 30 Years War.
Cough *British* cough
@@MacJaxonManOfAction the BE wasn't the only empire redrawing the maps of Europe. The French empire, and the American empire contributed also.
Of course, this isn't anything new. It's been happening for 3 thousand years of recorded European history. No doubt it happened long before that, it happens now and will for a long time to come.
I mean, tbf, it has been that way for all of human history.
I always notice how carefree and happy everyone was in old film pre WW1. After the sad it's like a little bit more of evil came out every year.
PLEASE PLAY FORTNITE WITH ME
The evil was always there, thats the even more messed up part.
The evil was hidden, or excused back then, and those in power don't like talking about it today. The Nazis actually thought the democrats were too racist. That's how bad the hate was in some places. The US Supreme Court back then even ruled it was okay for the government to impose sterilization on the citizens. We just don't hear about that sort of thing today.
Had the Germans not walked down this path first, other countries would have done so instead. Hate was everywhere.
@@maxpowers9129 I don’t know there is a lot of hate today im just saying that the people of that time did not have misery written all over there faces as they do now.
@@rebeccaherschman1635 It's about the priority of the filmmakers. If they want to show happy people then that's what you'll see and conversely for sad people.
Look up “impossible peace” for all the episodes in proper order. The series comes as a playlist and covers the interwar period (1919-1939)
6:13 There were absolutely no warnings which were given to the crowd to disperse. Moreover, the day this genocide took place was a day of festival (Baisakhi) and the garden (Jallianwala Bagh) where the genocide took place was very close to the temple so people naturally came there after performing the rituals etc in the temple. It was the biased, bigoted and racist attitude of the British Governor in Punjab and his puppet Dyer which led to this genocide of innocent people, where children as young as 9 were also murdered. But I must give credit to this documentary for looking into this aspect of British history.
Massacre, not genocide. You’re devaluing what genocide actually is.
Lol Those people were trying to harm British people what choice general dyer had ??? He was protecting his people.
@Shane Gallagher Yes you should keep the chip on your shoulder and make sure it weighs down the next generation.🤦♂️
@@Crazytechnition What do you call the Bengal famine that killed millions of Indian people? It wasn't due to natural causes, it was because of Great Britain's colonialism. Exactly what is the minimum number of deaths before we are allowed to use the word genocide?
@@SofiaParker777 run away bruh leave the country
what is unique & amazing about WWI..how all parties including the (victorious ones) were so exhausted. that is why the French & somehow the British crumbled quickly
the recovery of Russia & Germany was breathtaking. honestly, I am not able to comprehend that yet. Both lost big..but managed to recover in less than 2 decades
The clip with people dancing is iconic
Mussolini didn't write The Doctrine Of Fascism; Giovanni Gentile did.
I didnt say he wrote it said he launched it
Did he fail to mention that Mussolini was a leading Socialist?
@Barbara Mulvaney he probably meant to say 'it'
Giovanni Gentile? That wasn't gentle from him
@@JRobbySh So he was a opportunist..
Another excellent installment from Timeline. Thank you for keeping the energy to study and know about this crucial period of modern history alive; how relevant it is to understanding our world today. So much to cover, looking forward to everything you produce.
Have they started producing their own documentaries?
This one was pretty good for when it was made
@@AdamMGTF when was it made??
They do produce their own stuff but this isn't one they made. I can highly recommend their podcasts though; History Hit, The Ancients, Warfare.
@@AdamMGTF their updated one is actually even better check it out if you can
Insane. In Italy, it was a VERY rough adjustment. In early 1919, the King sat down for espresso with PM Orlando and asked him if he'd debate anything in Sykes-Picot (Vittorio Emanuele III was a BIG reader). Orlando shook his head and replied, "There's a reason why the Old Romans left, Majesty- too many problems there". Instead, Italy started working on improving conditions in all 4 colonies- Libya, Eritrea, Somalia & Tientsin.
Would love to see this series continue.
M
9
Maybe
ruclips.net/video/V8bH2XNSMlg/видео.html
I enjoy watching Timeline world history documentaries. I love history
To think, this is what you'd get to watch on normal TV back when this documentary was made. Before the history channel was obsessed with alians.
Absolutely mesmerizing. Endlessly fascinating, I can watch these repeatedly and never tire. One of my favorite aspects is the uncredited narration of Jeremy Irons, continuing in the long tradition of British war documentaries narrated by luminaries such as Laurence Olivier - great script, leavened with humor, he’s fully engaged and really elevates the material. Took me awhile to put the two and two together, but he starred in Brideshead Revisited in the 80s - which covers the same time period. I’m sure he immersed himself in the period history for that role, and he truly brings it alive in this narration. Brilliant production all around, the echoes ripple to our current era to haunting affect.
⁰⁰
Wow- narrator sounded familiar but i could not place it :) Thank you!!
Are you sure it was Irons? To me it sounded like Alexander Scourby did the narration
Indeed! Like "The World at War" series. Awesome.
sounds like john hurt to me
“Nothing can be loved or hated unless it first understood.” ― Leonardo da Vinci.
wow
The term “the real McCoy” does not originate from the bootlegger as this documentary says. Instead, the phrase "The real McCoy" is likely a corruption of the Scots "The real MacKay", first recorded in 1856 as: "A drappie o' the real MacKay", ("a drop of the real MacKay"). A letter written by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson in 1883 contains the phrase, “He’s the real Mackay,” decades before U.S. Prohibition.
That's interesting, though one would submit that often popular culture is often adapted from earlier customs. For instance, religion has oft borrowed from earlier beliefs. So McCoy, likely being Scottish drummed up that old saying but with his name instead, and people of the US wouldn't know any different.
@@brandensilverstar Can you reference a source? That's pretty far back :)
nope you are wrong
Say Uncle!
"The Real McCoy" may refer to the "real McCoy railroad oil drip" of the mid 1800s -- it was their (his) marketing slogan, and I believe was an intentional corruption of "The Real MacKay."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elijah_McCoy
I enjoy these documentaries here on You Tube, thank you for the effort, these are good enough quality to be on The History Channel, oh wait, that is no longer viable as "The History Channel" now shows us Hillbillies, Duck Calling people, Truck drivers and lumberjacks....
That duck calling people tv show was quite fun actually.
Lido Shuffle that’s terrible!
and aliens
Yes more reality mumbo jumbo
Don't forget about Aliens visiting the first tThanksgiving!
This should've been three times longer - too many important things not covered.
This documentary was all over place. Like watching the guest host of Drunk History ramble on.
@B M-Y 49 minutes X 3 - 147 minutes. An hour = 60 minutes. So, 2 hours and 20 minutes.
Hey, they managed to get Fatty Arbuckle in. Not sure that had anything to do with anything.
Any length of film is going to be too short, because there is just so much information to cover.
You want the Time Ghost channel's "Between 2 Wars" playlist.
ruclips.net/p/PLrG5J-K5AYAU1R-HeWSfY2D1jy_sEssNG
I'm 6 minutes in and already I think this is one of the best documentaries about the subject, covering alot more than expected. Thanks!
32:07. I've heard Bagdad described as quite a few things in the past few decades, however romantic was never one of those descriptions. My how times have changed, lol.
It actually isn't a LOL matter.
@@robertdore9592 The raiders are an LOL matter
I thought the same thing about this
Wonderfully done. The narrator had a sense of bemusement, even humor at times.
I thought he laid on the sanctimony and sentimentalism with a trowel far too many times. Like the music, overdone.
@@dixonpinfold2582 I agree, there are other programmes in this series which I have seen before on The History Channel but I won't bother to follow them up on YT because of the affectations of the narrator.
Wilson was out of his depth. A naive, conceited and delusional man at this point. He didn't even include major Republican leaders in his decisions or on the journey to France. Truman didn't make the same mistakes with the United Nations and other key post war issues. He carefully worked to get their support.
Agreed
Lol what a dahm fool they started this war to create the league of nations and the United Nations that was the point a new world order
@@williamfolts2464 you know the us had nothing to do with the start, right?
Didn't say that they did I said they started the league if nations
I think that he had the right idea, but went about it the wrong way. Congress was sceptical about the benefits of being in an all nations group for collective security, seeing it as surrendering their ability to declare war. Wilson, rather than flattering Congress, persuading them of the benefits the League of Nations would provide, he kept going to Paris, laying out the framework for the League and overstretched himself physically by going on a whistle-stop tour of the nation to sell the League to the American people, leaving himself with the worst Stroke of his life, leaving him unable to govern properly for most of the rest of his term. When his push to have the Nation join the League met its final defeat in the Senate, he said:
"they have shamed up in the eyes of the world,"
This is the best series you've ever done! Thanks!
Brilliant documentary, you need an hour though for each country, due to the massive impact on ppl's lives.
Can you lower the music so that we can hear what the narrator is saying or ensure the closed captions are correct so we can at least read what the narrator is saying?
It could be lowered during speaking, but I personally don't find it so loud that I can't hear the narrator's words.
Better more improve the narrator’s script. It’s utmost gibberish with no coherence whatsoever. As if listening to a demented grandfather.
Ensure the closed captions are correct so we can at least read it which would help for those narrators with accents. So many times it has us guessing ... I do know Thebes...it is not "these" or "bees"or "trees" /Different video-Goliath.// Punctuation would be helpful too. I pity the DEAF for having to read the gibberish that CC displays. You might as well have a Swedish narrator.
@@902d but im thinkin the music dont help matters, cheers
What, I can't you the music is too loud. They need to raise the voice volume level.
Study history for decades, and you'll come to understand that you will never "know" history. You will only learn someone's version of history. I have learned several lessons ABOUT history; It is cyclical, and themes repeat themselves. We have always lived in an imperfect world, and the world will never be perfected by the hand of mankind. Run from any "leader" who promises visions of Utopia. If you want a better understanding of history, always follow the rabbit trails. They lead to the most interesting places.
@M smith Two good questions. Civil war in the US? Based on publicly available information, probably not for the foreseeable future. My interpretation is that we are witnessing political tantrums from a noisy minority. Unrest to be sure, but minimal bloodshed. The battle will be fought at the ballet box for the time being. We survived the 1960's and 1970's. They were a much more perilous time in our nation's history. Read about them yourself, and do a comparison to contemporary times. I think you'll understand my point. Regarding a hot war with China, again, unlikely, although some very limited military skirmishes seem possible. I have a very limited understanding of Chinese history, but my impression is that historically, they tend to be "introvertive". They have festering political problems internally, they appear to have a massively leveraged economy, they are highly dependent on exports to drive their economy, they lack key natural resources (energy), they are not food independent, almost 9% of their population is undernourished, they have a small deep water navy, they have never faced a modern military force in battle, and the list just goes on and on. My opinion is that China is playing a game of their own making, and we probably don't fully understand it. If they ever decide to get openly hostile, I think we might all be surprised at their strategy. As always, time will tell! :)
...and run from the "vaccine" and certificate/immunity passport system that "promises visions of Utopia"
@@mtlicq Touchy subject. I don't believe vaccinations should be mandatory, but I fully support their development and use by anyone who wants them. Also, it's easy to understand why governments would impose travel restrictions on unvaccinated individuals. Read the Wiki entry entitled: "History of Polio". You will note that COVID-19 is already more deadly than the worst outbreaks of the 1940's and 1950's. Then read the entries for smallpox and rubella. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life, playing a game of Russian Roulette with a virus? I understand the concerns about the risks of vaccines, but they should be balanced against the realities of contracting a disease that can kill, disable, and disrupt the lives of millions.
Excellent video. Only problem is the background music, which is way too loud
The number one thing that ruins documentaries is background music
@@josephus3364 totally agree. It’s just so unnecessary
fortiet? later okay
Agreed just a bit too loud.
A good balance between the music and the narrative.
Would love to see this series continue. Very interesting. In future videos, if at all possible, the background music should be a bit lower, it's difficult to hear the narration at times.
and lose the dude at the beginning and ya sot somethin
@@johnhenninger1980 He's the 'expert' who pushes his theory that the terracotta worriers of China were designed and made by the Greeks 😀
I think there's another newer video from this channel about the same topic
@@scottgeorge4268 Best description of Dan Snow I have ever heard... he is also David Lloyd George's Great Grandson!!! :D
@@sh00000sh007 Yes, and I should know😀.
Thanks!
The background music is too loud, for us non native english speakers it makes it harder to understand whats being said.
Don't be so belligerent, bloody foreigner
Bob Terryson lol
the sound is such poor quality a lot of native english speakers can't hear it either
try switching on your subtitles
It is a little loud for native English speakers too
2:02 I have never heard of any historian who has said such a thing. They all talk about the hardships that continued for the following years.
Our now is just as important as their then, austerity anyone?
That should be a hint.... (I agree with what you said.)
Brem. There is a reason it was known as "the war to end all wars".
The most famous contemporary history was written by Churchill. But he's just one name we would call "famous" today.
Of course there were tough economic times. Not just in Germany and Austria/Hungry. Both the BE and the French were in deep debt, mainly to America. But the idea of 'austerity' or was a minor annoyance to the public, when compared with over 4 years of deprivation and huge loss of life.
The mood was positive (I read a lot of the papers from 1920 for university and in them you'd think sometimes that Christ had returned and proclaimed peace on earth).
@@AdamMGTF It was known as such, but that has nothing to do with historians seeing the end of the war a switch from war to wonder.
@@bremCZ that's how it was viewed.
Of course they didn't expect an end to all war. Just between "civilised" nations.
The people of the time had a very different outlook on the world compared to us today. None more so than politicians and historians (whom were often the same thing. Infact many statesman/politicians wrote their "history of the great war" as quickly as they could. Book sales and what not lol")
Which is another good point. Many "history books" written just after the end of the war, were effectively memoirs in wider context. They were popular given the war took over everyone's lives for 4 years and of course censorship meant the public were kept in the dark as to the wider situation. Let alone specific events.
1:39 Britain lost only 15% of their wealth? That’s not so bad.. would have thought it was much worse.
Goes to show how much they had. 2 centuries of pillaging India and Africa in the 19th century helped!
I was checking world population in the early 1900's for another question earlier.
In 1907, there were 1.75 Billion people in the world.
378 MILLION were considered living in the British Empire!
About 23% of the world!
Today the UK has about 60 Million!
15% of 1920 UK Money >>>>>>(much, much...greater) than 15% of 2020 UK money
15% is a Great Depression. So it sounds low but it's very bad.
They lost 15% of their wealth, but gained 85% of their incredibility.
And Turkey lost most of its territory and continues to pay the price to this day all because of Britain. Seems like Britain got off lightly.
I appreciate the opportunity to learn .. regardless the degree of accurate history. At least I’m introduced to the subject or event . I can research on my own continuously afterwards… my opinion regarding both wars is that they were planned to produce the required leadership to match the new industry and products it produced! 😊
Gut erkannt, die Frage muss immer lauten, wem nützt es und wer verdient daran?!
Major General Smedley Darlington Butler had some interesting insights into it. He wrote a book about it when he saw the second world war coming.
I have that in a pdf War is a racket. Also a book called Krieg dem kriege , or war against war, by Ernst Friedrich 1924.
Both are brilliant especially the latter and once read cant be unread but you have to read them to truly understand
just what a racket war became.
Exactly so. And who would know better than he, Butler?
@@yvonneblocker5618 - Considering the hot nonsense that seemed to follow General Butler in his retirement, I'd say no one. He's one of very few historical figures that were set up to become puppet kings and yet managed to see through the plot and stay true to his morals.
@@salus1231 “just what a racket war became” and still is. Trumps dismissal of General Mattis and now Trumps removal which then lead Mattis to state “we cannot have anymore of this America first”.
Just watch in the next twelve months how the new administration will bring about a war to stoke the war machine in Washington.
@@salus1231 maybe if we can replace crt with Gen. Butler's writing with some others. Drive the teachers union crazy.
Interestingly, the documentary does not mention the Spanish Flu, despite its enormous casualties. So completely did it disappear from collective memory until just a few weaker ago.
Weaker ago?
It's a standard part of any history book that covers that time. Had it not been for the war, it probably would have been the most important event of the early 20th century.
I thought that as well
Weaker than your comment.
My father was called Child of the Spaniard, born in mid pandemic. It got me studying the pandemic, and I was prepared when the current one came.
Some families DID talk about it. The ones like mine, the strong or lucky who lost no one - not even a baby born in the killer second wave.
Germany went from an authoritarian monarchy to a parliamentary republic in only 9 days however rather than rewarding the German people the victors sought to economically destroy them.
This caused the eventual collapse of the democratic experiment in Germany.
If people aren't rewarded for doing the right thing eventually they will try the wrong thing as their only option.
You have to remember, the victors had little interest in what government represented the central powers nations. It just wasn't a factor.
If a serial killer spends more than 4 years killing your family and friends. You don't care much that he or she 'found god' the day after being caught.
It's human nature to blame and want revenge.
The Versailles Treaty, was not a peace treaty. But a Demand of the Victorous Allied powers outside pretty much the US.
There was nothing in the Treaty for the defeated powers to want to keep the peace. In particular Germany, who was not utterly defeated. It just kicked the War down the road for twenty years.
No one changes their mind in 9 days.
The militarism was rooted.They acted in a way that made them look respectable, while still ruminating the stab in the back.
Their leaders were also seen as traitors by many. You may remember the quantity of assasinations of political leaders in this era.
If they were rewarded for doing 'the right thing', we would have either a divided Germany years before it actually happened, or a full-blown, bloody civil war with coups on top.
Rarely is it pointed out that Germany in WW 1 had achieved an important war goal: the destruction of the "Triple Entente". Russia was absent as a power factor for a long time. France was permanently weakened. Great Britain no longer ruled the oceans alone. Its maritime power was threatend by Japan and the USA. Eastern Europe was no longer controlled by Russia and Austria. It consisted of weak states that were soon dominated by German economy. In contrast to France and Russia German industry survived the war intact. USA, the only 100% Winner of the Great War, withdrew in isolation. Germany no longer had to fear an encirclement so quickly.
Yes I'm sure being in the victorious Allies camp at the end of WW1 they would think there's no need for a future war but the losing nations and others like Italy and Japan which had been snubbed at the Versailles table and Russia which was ignored and obviously Germany would see things rather different.
I like the detail and some oddities thrown in. It's what makes history so fascinating.
Ok that was pretty great. I’m interested in the events leading up to not the actual battles really, so for me this was super cool
Very entertaining and well done, and very educational, a must watch these episodes are very important and meaningful, thank you for making these available.
The irony of the Treaty of Versaille
The Alleis, England and France, committing massacres on their colonial subjects while evicerating Germany for the same
Hypocrites and evil people have a huge advantage over men of honor, because bad people can use any tactic good people can, in addition to unethical tactics, so scum tend to be the ones to get into power.
quality content. It answers many seemingly inconsequential queries.
This time is best written about in the masterpiece by Heinrich August Winkler in his phenomenal book "The Age of Catastrophe: A History of the West, 1914-1945".
I highly recommend it, for those interested...a hidden, underrated gem of historical writing...
What a way to open this piece, "Britain lost %15 per cent of her world wealth."
No, it was merely transferred.
28:00 - "1920 was a year the world needed a drink.. " much like 2020....
Thank you so much for uploading this video. It is helping me get through the pandemic!
This was a very interesting documentary. I enjoyed it. You can boil it down to the fact that after the first World War. That Germany was sanctioned so badly. And crippled so horribly. That there was absolutely no relief for the people. The depression only put the final nail in the coffin for Germany. So all the European countries, plus the United States. Has and played a role into bringing on the Second World War.
Absolutely 100%!
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was hardly benign either. Russia lost 34% of its population, 54% of its industrial land, 89% of its coalfields, and 26% of its railways. Russia was also fined 300 million gold marks. According to historian Spencer Tucker “The German General Staff had formulated extraordinarily harsh terms that shocked even the German negotiator."
France’s harshness to Germany at the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 was one of the contributing factors that caused the outbreak of WW2. PM David Lloyd George and President Woodrow Wilson desired leniency and only wanted Germany to disarm significantly for a period of time and reparations that did not cripple the German economy. Lloyd George opposed revenge and attempted to compromise between Clemenceau's demands and the Fourteen Points, because Europe would eventually have to reconcile with Germany.Lloyd George wanted terms of reparation that would not cripple the German economy, so that Germany would remain a viable economic power and trading partner..
But President Clemanceau wanted reparations of the sum of £280 billion from a defeated and bankrupted country. He used emotional blackmail to persuade other allies to adhere by it. Basically stating most of the fighting took place on French soil, and French soldiers had the significant higher causalities. He stated Clemenceau told Wilson: "America is far away, protected by the ocean. Not even Napoleon himself could touch England. You are both sheltered; we are not". Clemenceau intended to ensure the security of France, by weakening Germany economically, militarily, territorially and by supplanting Germany as the leading producer of steel in Europe.British economist and Versailles negotiator John Maynard Keynes summarized this position as attempting to "set the clock back and undo what, since 1870, the progress of Germany had accomplished." He also started it was a “Carthaginian Peace”.
Clemenceau was so blinded by revenge, that he completely ignored French history. At the Congress of Vienna 1814, the allies did not impose reparations or on France for the damaged caused to Europe by Napoleon Bonaparte, France got off lightly. Even in the wars of the 18th century, treaties agreed upon by France with the victors, were fair, with the exchange of colonies and vice versa.
Yes. Sanctions too heavy. Thereby ensuring another war
Yeah that's what happens when you try to wreak havoc over multiple continents in some mission of global conquest. That's on Germany not the ones that had to shut them down lmao. Germany gotta tighten up
Dyer's action in Amritsar still makes our punjabi's hearts pain. We visit that place every year on 13 April 😢
So much horror for people to endure
this is an excellent series, thank you
Idk, this doc gives Wilson waaayyy too much credit for my tastes, and they already pointed out how badly he was played lol. But in all seriousness, this was great.
The MUSIC in the background!! The documentary speaks for itself, there’s really no need for that background! Please, consider taking it off.
Wonderful content! Thank you
Thank you for an interesting synopsis of WWI. There are many comments regarding the music being too loud and the narrator speaking in "gibberish". I didn't have any such problems with this video. Just passing my opinion along for those who read comments before watching a video.
It's probably down to this being converted from a made for TV documentary. And given how old it is, the production style then was very different.
The comments on the issues don't seem to take that into consideration
That's what the Brits didn't quite understand about the first war - it was against ALL colonialial powers - just because George was not assasinated didn't mean Britain's choke hold on other areas it controlled. Finally, at 21:00, I hear a Brit (Prof. Overy) putting the problem forth that the reason for the loss of the British Empire (after and during WWII) was it's forethought of defending the said empire...even Churchill didn't get that when asking for US aid during 1940!
Civil wars are always a mess, as everyone tries to ensure a win!
The reverse to prohibition occurred when medicinal marijuana became legal - Oregon's need for the latter rose by 300%, really...this was in the news sometime back.
I guess France's slice of the Ottoman Empire's realm in the Near East was as small as it was and more specifically devoid of any significant oil reserves was due to her limited footprint in the region during the war. I wonder if France's own "chaps with maps" delegation at Versailles they didn't quite grasp the growing importance of access to reliable sources of crude oil? Their consolation prize of Syria certainly didn't yield the country any of the region's vast oil reserves that's for sure.
There are huge oil fields in Syria. They just hadn't been developed.
@@louisavondart9178 Oh really? I wasn't aware that Syria had anything of significance. How much crude are we talking here? Enough to join OPEC?
The Treaty of Versailles guaranteed WW2. Even Ferdinand Foch understood this. He said the only thing the treaty did was buy 20 years of ceasefire, and he was off by less than a year.
@ 3:56 ... " At the beginning of the First World War, the United States owed Europe Four BILLION Dollars - and by the War's End, Europe owed the US TEN Billion ... America found out early how good a Business Opportunity war could be, and they've NEVER looked back ... an American Economist, Thomas Schelling is the first known user of the cold-blooded term - " Collateral Damage " en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Schelling and the United States has - by far, the biggest Arms Industry on the Planet - in History. America doesn't HATE peace ... it just seems to feel better when Peace is not around.
When has “peace ever been around”?
Its pretty annoying how so many people think history is as simple as the one or two things they heard a professor or youtube video say. Its dangerous cause dumb like to apply todays standards to those times and take it out on innocent people today.
@Gayle Elizabeth I've already made my point. No need to repeat myself, other than to say that no major Western power has embraced war so fully as the US - America is virtually ALWAYS at war somewhere in the world ... gotta support the Troops AND the Arms Industry, Huh ?
@@JRobbySh Not often, true enough !
@Darius Kang Yes, America is the "go to" whipping boy.
I enjoy the history documentaries on RUclips. Thank you
I made it to 7:33 couldn't stand that background music
pleb filtered
You need to wear earbuds, because auto volume levelling equalizes dialogue and music volumes when played on speakers.
@Geddy Schacher it over powers the narration on my tv, how did you play the video?
So interesting how the world changes so much. In the 2120s, our world will see just as different.
A very interesting and worthwhile documentary. I do tire a bit of the narrator’s cynical tone, though I suppose it may be used to convey some of the era’s zeitgeist. The First World War destroyed and eroded a lot of ideals.
Britons are inherently tiresome.
Min Tin
I made it to 11:37. That's when the Pulsing! Music! became unbearable. It's too bad; it's an interesting topic and otherwise well done.
@Geddy Schacher Well, for whatever reason, I found it intolerable after 11:37, doctor.
@@christophermacintyre5890 I'm not a Millennial.
@@jbt369 Most of the ones complaining about it are.
So good! Well done. Thank you.
Hypocrisy reigned supreme in all Empires .
This was really well done and succinct
Take away the human capacity for hatred and violence, what do humans really have left?
Even more over-population? Something otherworldly? Death from boredom?
Love, compassion, courage, fear etc..
Permaculture
@@alainarchambault2331 Only boring people are boring.
@@jenniferwilcox9759 No, I related that because much of our history revolves around war.
Wars in the 20th century really benefited one country - America. The least casualties but accumulated massive wealth, mainly at the expense of Britain.
The 'real McCoy' refers to a patented oiler for locomotives. It can be only by chance that some bootlegger came along with a palatable non-toxic offering who happened to be named McCoy.
"Real McCoy" has nothing to do with bootlegging.!
Interesting factoid! The other McCoy was a fake McCoy, the original inventor of fake news.
Great documentary and awesome sound work
The Great Depression was made really bad because of the early 30s massive drought affecting the middle of the country in early, mid dirty 30s!
The Dust Bowl?
@@grandpied Yep!
Well the Dust bowl was also largely man made caused.
One of the causes was the destruction of large amount of trees, and also terrible land Management.
@10:30 the narrator says the freicorp "murdered" Rosa LuxomBERG.
False.
She was a Bolshevik communist revolutionary who was trying to install communism in Germany like Lenin and Trotsky had done in Russia.
Communists aren't human, so killing them shouldn't be considered murder, it should be considered pest control.
Wow. You’re a special one aintcha.
@@nicky611 is that your idea of a rebuttal?
Ireland only mention once the only European country to gain independence from the British empire and one of the longest democracies in the word
Ireland doesn't matter - at least during this time in history.
That brief pause was 20 years. And they were the best for my country of Romania.
Very insightful documentaries. I've always been interested in this part of history.
great video
one of the best post-ww1 docus out there
I remember a David Low cartoon where "Professor Blimp" asks, "Is man evolving backwards?" And his exhibits include "failure to make generous peace 1918", "failure to treat liberal Germany decently period 1920-1930", "failure to stand up to gangsterism 1930-1940", and finally "present day ghastly prospect".
Very good documentary I think ? But could you possibly make the background music louder please ? As I'm pretty sure that there were a couple of times when I could hear what the narrator was saying without having to stick my ear in my laptop speaker .............................................
I greatly enjoyed this video, but where is the rest of it!!!!!! This surely is not the end????
Interesting comment.My mums half brother fought in the trenches in WW 1. My Dad flew against the Germans in WW2 in North Africa.Britain went from a World power to almost bankrupt...
25:13..he did it with more power because his gloves were loaded.
Excellent video! Thanks!
15:26 - 51% of Czechoslovakians were Czech... waiting... ehm.. okay, but I guess it'd be nice to mention Slovaks as well😂
And even that statistic is made up. In 1920, according to the census, 67.5% were Czechoslovak (since Slovaks and Czechs were counted as the same ethnic group). 30.6% were German.
I've been out of a secondary school for ages (almost 2 decades soon) and I remember as a teenager wondering how Germany's economy had spiraled out of control like it did during the interwar. So got a few courses on macro-economics during uni and as far as I understood from self study the German Marks was just unwanted by the winning side. As such, basic offer and demand rules: No one wants it therefore it becomes worthless. I never considered that the German government at the time would be so literal in the understanding of the terms until this documentary showed up in my feed... so they were told 226 000 000 000 marks of war reparations and they were like "well we can print that out, they didn't stipulate that the value of the mark had to remain the same". Like... that's genius problem solving, provided the value of your currency isn't reliant on offer and demand 😅
Exactly correct and America gave Germany a loan. That was how Germany was to pay reparations to Great Britain and a couple of the other European countries.. then Germany defaulted on the loan we gave them. It was all really crazy.! The great depression has been blamed on the stock market crash in America in 1929, but they’re three years apart.. they might have a little to do with one another but I believe that overall the great depression was a result of something else and I know Herbert Hoover did something later in his administration that was his wrongdoing, unlike the stock market crash, because he had nothing to do with that. Whatever he did wrong what is it pave the way for a possible stock market crash but no one person is to blame.. the stock market crash around Mary April 1929, but Rich bankers cat pumping money into stocks to make the market look and appear stable so people would continue to invest and they did to some degree, but inevitably the bottom fell out and they couldn’t hide it anymore. It was simply a result of absolutely no banking regulations. Over the past 125 years or so we’ve had 438 administrative agencies created, and we can live without 75% of them. Why do we need the NIH when we also have the CDC and FDA? It makes absolutely no sense and sound political party strangle. The heck out of business is with regulation to the point that they can’t even work and get anything done.. so I think it’ll he was the only country in Europe that wasn’t affected at all about the stock market crash and Great Depression in America for whatever reason
Versallies Treaty aftermath was a biggest warning to how to NOT formulate of the Peace treaties... and it could be a possible influence to how MacArthur handled post war Japan transition from Imperial Absolutism in to equivalent of the British style Constitutional Monarchy with Japanese army still more or less intact (contrary to what Versallies Treaty done with Germany ones) which practically "disarmed" a risk of reemerging of similar to post WWI Germany resentments...
Of course pro Imperial sentiments are still there... but they are less dangerous for the world... than recent rise of the Red Star Dragon... which threatening practically entire West Pacific zone...
Interesting hoe we handled Japan. The armed farces were “abolished,” but not. We assumed their defense until after the peace treaty, after which, Japan adroitly began to assume full sovereignty with our permission. Today China confronts an emerging Japanese navy that is more efficient than its own as well as the US Navy.
after japan US took they place and did the same thing.still do.all about dominance
I disagree with the 4:10 statement that we loomed over Europe as a manufacturing superpower. Your governments clung to the influence they held on you when the other world powers broke free. You didn't help us do that & we helped you get afloat while cleaning up the mess. Not saying we were perfect or friendly about it but this is not a free ride & someone else's efforts is not a burden to you
Missing the point !
Point is that the old powers felt economically dominated by the US, a very real thing. After the 2nd. world war, this domination extended into every part of the western world.
@@realitymatters8720 i really mean the perspective of that statement. We were not looming over like hostile oppresors we were producing new technology and leaping out of a depression. If you describe it that way its I skewed look at what really caused the unrest
@@joemomma5814 I dont think anybody says that the policy of the US directly caused the 2nd. world war, but the debt that was accumulated during the 1st. world war, was a huge dark cloud hanging over the economies of europe for a long time after. And you better belive that it must have felt like a "hostile opressor" looming over them.
The unrest had many mothers economy loss of trust in authority etc. etc.
Not writing off the debt incurred during the 1st.ww, was a realy stupid thing to do, not to mention amoral. And I do mean amoral, saying that a war is just, joining it and letting ones allies, the ones who have lost the most in every way, pay for it...
Stupid and amoral, no doubt about it !
Recommend anyone to read Hellstorm and The High Cost Of Vengeance.
It’s so interesting how Americans were so appalled by racist actions in other countries, yet practiced racism in its own
Love these DOC'S but younger generations have uped the music