]BBC - Secrets of World War II Set 2 (1998) Part 12 Cruises of the Secret Raiders

You probably know the History, now discover the incredible SECRETS OF WORLD WAR II. Rarely has a war produced such clear cut reasons to fight as World War II. On the one hand were the totalitarian Dictators - Tojo, Hitler and Mussolini. On the other were the great democracies of the Western World which were gradually regaining their feet after the Great War of 1914-18 and the Wall Street Crash. Suddenly, ordinary men and women from all walks of life found themselves thrown into fearsome, nerve-tingling situations worthy of any Hollywood movie. The only difference in this series is that every story is true. Real people emerge as the Heroes of Telemark. Ordinary GIs and US Airforce and Navy personnel suddenly find themselves flying against the Japanese in China, jungle fighting in Burma and being dropped by submarine on enemy coasts at midnight. These untold stories can now be examined in great detail with the benefit of hindsight, newly-discovered archive film, maps and computer graphics which can complete the picture for today's viewer. Each fifty-two minute story gives the viewer a clear view of the historical context, the strategic objective, and the tactical effort made by flyers, sailors and foot-soldiers - often in the most oppressive and life threatening situations - to win victory from the enemy. Through this exciting series, you have top-level clearance to previously unseen military footage-both in black and white and color with newly declassified information, vivid re-creations and revealing firsthand accounts. Uncover the daring deeds, ingenious plots and amazing escapes that helped shape the outcome of the 20th-Century's greatest conflict.

Part 12 Cruises of the Secret Raiders

The fascinating story of the secret heavily armed cargo ships deployed by the Germans which were in reality designed to sink allied merchant ships as well as refuelling German U-Boats and warships. In December 1940, a British merchant ship cruising toward Singapore was suddenly attacked and blown nearly to pieces - by what appeared to be a harmless, unarmed freighter. The innocent looking vessel was actually a top secret, heavily armed Nazi ocean raider, one of 10 assigned to prey on Allied shipping from the South Atlantic to the Indian Ocean to the waters of Antarctica. Discover the amazing exploits of these uncoventional camouflaged war ships in “Cruise of the Secret Raiders.” See how Germany's deadly pocket battleships, U-boats and ocean raiders terrorized the British merchant fleet early in the war. Join the crew of the “Penguin” on a destructive voyage to the bottom of the world, and witness the raider's fierce final battle off the Horn of Africa. Then relive the dramatic attack on a British merchant ship by the ocean raider “Atlantis.” And find out what the German boarding party discovered below deck – and how it led to the bombing of Pearl Harbor just one year later.

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