The most successful public-television miniseries in American history, the 11-hour Civil War didn't just captivate a nation, reteaching to us our history in narrative terms; it actually also invented a new film language taken from its creator. When people describe documentaries using the "Ken Burns approach," its style is understood: voice-over narrators reading letters and documents dramatically and stating the writer's name at their conclusion, fresh live footage of places juxtaposed with still images (photographs, paintings, maps, prints), anecdotal interviews, and romantic musical scores taken from the era he depicts. The Civil War uses all of these devices to evoke atmosphere and resurrect an event that many knew only from stale history books. While Burns is a historian, a researcher, and a documentarian, he's above all a gifted storyteller, and it's his narrative powers that give this chronicle its beauty, overwhelming emotion, and devastating horror. Using the words of old letters, eloquently read by a variety of celebrities, the stories of historians like Shelby Foote and rare, stained photos, Burns allows us not only to relearn and finally understand our history, but also to feel and experience it. -Dave McCoy Hailed as a documentary masterpiece without parallel, Ken Burns' filmed chronicle of America's most terrible and destructive conflict will hold you in thrall as it portrays the strategies and action of the war's famous battles, and tells the stories of illustrious generals and ordinary field soldiers, politicians and rogues, heroes and a beleaguered President. Winner of two Emmy Awards, the series begins by looking at the fateful causes of the war that led to the firing on Fort Sumter, to the devastating battles of Shiloh, Antietam and Gettysburg, climaxing with Lee's surrender and the assassination of President Lincoln. Vivid photographic imagery and narration by many of today's most acclaimed performers highlight this epic program. Titles are: "The Cause of 1862," "A Very Bloody Affair 1862," "Forever Free 1862," "Simply Murder 1863," "The Universe of Battle 1863," "Valley of the Shadow of Death 1864," "Most Hallowed Ground 1864," "War Is All Hell 1865," and "The Better Angles of Our Nature 1865. ".

Sir Jeremy Isaacs is highly deserving of the numerous awards for documentaries he has received: the Royal Television Society's Desmond Davis Award, l'Ordre National du Mérit, an Emmy, and a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II. His epic, 26-volume The World at War remains unsurpassed as the definitive visual history of World War II. So well known is this series that almost all baby boomers, and even most Gen-Xers, recognize the opening credits set over burning text and the somber black-and-white images of this war's particular horror. World War II was unique in thousands of ways, one of which was the unparalleled scope of the Axis and Allies' visual documentation of their activities. As a result, this war is understood as much through written histories as it is through its powerful images. The Nazis were remarkably thorough in recording even their most abhorrent atrocities-in an impressive amount of color footage. The World at War was one of the first television documentaries to exploit these resources so completely, giving viewers an unbelievable visual guide to the greatest event in the 20th century. This is to say nothing of the excellent, comprehensible narrative. Some highlights include early German and Nazi documentation of Hitler's rise to power through the impending attack on Poland in volume 1; the early British losses in the blitz in the skies over Britain and in North Africa in volume 12; the turning point of the war and Germany's first defeat in volume 13; one of the most fascinating documentaries of life inside Nazi Germany, from Lebensborn to the Hitler Youth, in volume 16; an unromanticized view of the Normandy invasion (unprecedented until Saving Private Ryan) in volume 17; one of the most widely shown introductions to the Holocaust in volume 18; an important look into wartime Japan and its expansion (although early 20th-century history that lead to Japan's role in World War II is superficial) volume 22; and another widely seen documentary of the Manhattan Project, the Enola Gay, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki in volume 24. The World at War will remain the definitive visual history of World War II, analogous to Edward Gibbon's The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. [+]

Rome was just another city until it discovered the secrets of warfare. Once they perfected the art of combat, the Romans exerted their influence from Asia to the Atlantic, from Africa to England. Actor Joe Campanella narrates this fascinating, authoritative look at the Roman Legions, their battles, commanders, tactics and legacy. From its establishment in 300 BC to the crushing defeat at the hands of the German chief Akininis in 9 AD, THE ROMAN WAR MACHINE examines every aspect of this legendary fighting force. See how Caesar used his soldiers for political gain as well as in the field of battle, follow Hadrian?s troops as they build instead of destroy, and learn what life was like for the common soldier with the help of ancient documents and historical re-enactments. Like no other program ever made, THE ROMAN WAR MACHINE is an all-encompassing look at the fighting force that dominated the Ancient World, and extended the influence of a single city across three continents.

Scottish Battles 4 Box Set The four major battles that shaped the destiny of Scotland brought together in this unique box set. Stirling Bridge The great victory won by William Wallace over the mighty English forces led by Sir Hugh de Cressingham. Bannockburn The triumph against the odds won by Robert the Bruce which secured the welfare of his nation. Flodden The tragic defeat which saw the death of a generation. Culloden Moor The story of the last Highland charge on a desolate windswept moor which heralded the death of the clans.

Exciting new additions to the world's greatest military history series in a special collector's boxed set of three video cassettes which include Agincourt, The Wars of The Roses, and The Crusades. Features large scale medieval battle reconstructions, hundreds of contemporary images and paintings, informative graphics and maps, and weapons, strategies and tactics.

Exactly why was America in Vietnam? This remarkable and essential seven-volume series-six years in the making and originally broadcast on public television in 1983-tells the agonizing history of Vietnam's lengthy conflicts with some of the largest powers on Earth. While the primary focus is on the United States' miserable efforts to prop up a porous, anti-Communist government in South Vietnam as a bulwark against Chinese and Soviet expansionism, the series' makers expend no less energy detailing important antecedents to America's intervention. Of vital interest are the first two hours, which tell the compelling story of France's 80-year colonial rule in Southeast Asia and the rise of a European-educated generation of Vietnamese intellectuals turned warriors, chief among them the architect of Vietnam's prolonged revolt against the West, Ho Chi Minh. By the time a viewer comes to understand how and why America shrugged off Vietnamese independence after World War II, it is easier to grasp the tragic context for the disastrous military campaign of the 1960s and '70s. The rest of the series covers the various expansions of America's war in Vietnam through a succession of presidents from Eisenhower to Nixon, carefully explaining the sundry issues that drove each commander-in-chief to send more money, more troops, and more weapons into a seemingly unwinnable and dubious battle. The later volumes take the story into Laos and the horrible siege of Cambodia by a U. S. -supported Khmer Rouge, and examine the history of the antiwar movement in America. No stone is left unturned in this important project, which runs some 13 hours and should be considered one of the most important television series in history. -Tom Keogh An extraordinary, Emmy award-winning series about the people who masterminded this controversial war, and the Americans and Vietnamese who fought it. [+]

This four-tape set by the same British producers responsible for the classic World at War series chronicles the Nazi obsession with killing all of Europe's Jews. Making intelligent use of archival photographs, newsreel footage, and extensive footage shot by the Nazis themselves, the series begins by tracing the roots of Nazism back to Germany's humiliation at the end of World War I. The rise of Hitler and the SS, his elite guard that evolved into being the enforcers of racial doctrine, is cogently presented in the first episode. The successive tapes each focus on a particular time period, as the Nazi determination to eliminate Jews built momentum, proceeding from a program of persecution to resettlement to outright mass murder. Holocaust survivors speak on camera in interviews, as do German civilians and former members of the SS. The film footage shown is often quite grisly, and some will find it difficult viewing, but the producers deserve credit for seeking out material, especially films shot by the Nazis themselves, that accurately depicts the horrors that took place. Indeed, without the strong visual component of the production, some of the chilling stories told by the survivors on film may be thought too horrible to be true. This is a remarkably straightforward look at one of the absolute horrors of history. -Robert J. McNamara.