Discovery Channel - Europes Secret Armies Resisting Hitler (2004) Part 2 Germany Resisting from Within

The armies of the countries of mainland Europe were powerless to stop Hitler's war machine as it crushed all in its path during the early months of World War 2. The terrifying tactic of 'Blitzkrieg' saw city after city fall beneath the Nazi jackboot. The people of previously free counties began to look for a way to fight back. There were ways to defeat an army other than on the battlefield. Europe's Secret Armies is a thrilling exploration of the stories behind the resistance and partisan groups that formed to fight a hated oppressor. These were civilian armies; made up of ordinary men and women left with no other option but to go underground to strike back. The series hears from those who were not content to bend the knee or were not prepared to be part of Adof Hitler's ever-growing Third Reich. Freedom fighters risked torture, imprisonment and death throughout Europe France's Maquis, the mountaineers of Crete, heroes and heroines from the Low Countries, Norway, Poland rose up, not least inside the tyrant's own land, Germany. Includes archival footage, re-creations, and interviews with actual resistance fighters.

Part 2 Germany Resisting from Within

The level of resistance to Hitler in his native country is a largely untold story. In this episode we tell the story both of the growth of small pockets of resistance throughout Germany and the plot at the centre of power that led to the failed attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler on the 20th of July 1944. Far from being willing participants in the Wehrmacht's march across the world, many Germans openly or covertly opposed the Nazi regime. Religious leaders, students and even his own generals conspired against Hitler through anti-Nazi material, sabotage and several unsuccessful assassination attempts culminating in the July 20th 1944 bombing. Despite the Enabling Act of 1933 these groups, which were often born of fear and resentment, were numerous before the war and many survived through it. Organisations such as the Solf Circle, the Kreisau Circle, the Eilbeck Comrades and the Neu Beginnen played a major role in the gradual erosion of Hitler's power on the home front. Features rare archive footage as well as dramatised reconstructions and profiles of Hitler and his generals.

Full Version Available Upon Request