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(narrator) September 1, 1939.
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Germany attacks Poland.
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Adolf Hitler ignores Britain and France
which had promised to fight for Poland.
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Sunday September 3. The British prime
minister Neville Chamberlain broadcasts.
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(Chamberlain) This morning
the British ambassador in Berlin
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handed the German government
a final note
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stating that unless
we heard from them by 11 o'clock
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that they were prepared at once
to withdraw their troops from Poland,
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a state of war would exist between us.
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I have to tell you now that
no such undertaking has been received
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and that consequently
this country is at war with Germany.
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(chanting / cheering)
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(narrator) Danzig, taken
from Germany after the First World War,
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welcomed its liberators.
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To many good Germans the city's capture
symbolised the end
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of the humiliating Treaty of Versailles.
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Hitler swept forward
to congratulate his victorious troops.
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He said they'd rescued his people
from Polish barbarism.
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The Germans thrust into Poland
from the west and north.
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In two weeks the Polish army
had virtually ceased to exist.
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Warsaw was one of the few places
to hold out.
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The Russians,
by agreement with Germany,
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seized parts of Poland
they claimed as theirs by right.
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The two conquerors met at Brest-Litovsk.
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It was the scene of the Russian
surrender to Germany in 1918.
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The official German greeting in Russian
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said German soldiers had always
respected Russian soldiers.
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The clash of Nazi and Communist was,
for the moment, conveniently forgotten.
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The final bombardment of Warsaw
began on September 23.
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(♪ Polish national anthem)
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For nearly three weeks Warsaw Radio
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had defiantly played
the Polish national anthem.
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On September 27 the anthem stopped.
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—(announcement in Polish)
—(air-raid siren)
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Warsaw was reduced to rubble.
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The capital's commander surrendered.
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Poland, swallowed by Germany
and Russia,
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disappeared into a new dark age.
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Arrests, deportations, executions began.
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(siren)
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Britain's war started
with a false alarm.
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September 3.
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(man) I remember
when the outbreak of war came.
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We were in the cabinet room
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at the moment
that the ultimatum expired.
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(narrator) Lord Butler
was a junior minister.
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(Butler) And we were just beginning
to congratulate the prime minister
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on his broadcast
when we heard a terrible wailing,
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which of course
was the first air-raid siren.
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Chamberlain took it very seriously
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and his wife appeared with an enormous
basket full of things for the night
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and Thermos flasks
and things to read and so on.
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And so we all went and sheltered.
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I went and sheltered after some delay
in the Foreign Office.
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The whole of the Horse Guards Parade
was empty of people
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and there was nobody in sight anywhere.
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When I got there, there was no furniture
so I had to sit on the floor.
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And an air-raid warden
said that there would be no gas.
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But of course there wasn't really
any war for some time,
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quite apart from being no gas.
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(air-raid siren)
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(narrator) So, no war that day,
or for many months.
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People settled down
to enjoy the unexpected reprieve.
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It was perfect weather
for a late holiday—or invading Poland.
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(♪ military band)
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People had braced themselves
for a grimmer war.
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Hospitals were cleared
to take air-raid casualties.
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The experts predicted
over a million injured in two months.
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Children and their mothers evacuated
from the cities—1.5 million of them.
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For some, a nightmare.
For others, an adventure.
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(man) We assembled
in a playground rather like this.
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The kids were there and the parents.
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Children had the gas mask over
their shoulder and labels tied to them.
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(woman) The women had to decide
whether to keep their children with them
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or whether to allow them to go out.
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Now, one would think
that this was an easy decision.
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Why not keep your children with you—
the natural thing to do?
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But against this
was the terrible thought
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that there was going to be gas,
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that there was going to be
terrible bombing and death
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and that children would be maimed.
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(man) Everyone was crying—
the parents and children—
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and as we moved off especially,
people burst into tears.
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My mother was more unhappy
about the wrench of us going
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rather than the war itself.
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My sister was crying.
I personally wasn't.
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I was rather excited at the prospect
of leaving this part of London.
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We thought we'd travelled
to the other side of the world,
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but in fact, we came to Denham, here,
only 20 miles from London.
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I promised my mother
I wouldn't be separated from my sister,
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so we went to the village hall
with all the other kids,
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and because we wouldn't be separated,
we were the last ones to find a billet.
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It was like being auctioned off
at the time.
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But when we finally got a house
to take us in, it was fantastic.
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It was a new world
that opened out to us.
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I mean, we had toothbrushes
and sheets on the bed and hot water.
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Imagine hot water!
We just couldn't get over it.
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And we didn't know
what eiderdowns were for.
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In the morning
we went blackberry picking.
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Then we heard the sirens,
so we rushed back to our billet.
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The woman there reassured us and said
not to worry, and we sat down to lunch.
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It was the first fully laid-out table
I'd ever seen in my life.
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And war was declared,
I think, that same lunchtime.
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She said not to worry
and passed us the horseradish sauce.
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But I think a number of children
suffered really deeply
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being away from their families.
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They suffered a sense of rejection.
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They exhibited their senses of rejection
and sorrow and suffering
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very often by
strange behaviour problems,
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by bedwetting, perhaps not eating.
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31 arrived, with two junior nurses,
I think.
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They were pretty dirty
and two of them got impetigo.
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I had young children at the time.
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And I put them into a large room.
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You've no idea… I had no idea
that such things existed in England.
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They relieved themselves
all over the carpet
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and the place was a shambles.
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(man shouts orders)
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(narrator) There was no heroic rush
to volunteer for the forces.
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You waited your turn to be called up
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for processing
in the military sausage machine.
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All rather leisurely.
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(church bells)
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But a rush to get married.
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In August and September, the highest
number of weddings ever recorded.
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White the only wear.
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White for the blackout too, to make sure
car drivers can see you in the dark.
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At first the blackout
was a bit of a joke.
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Then road casualties shot up
and the blackout wasn't funny any more.
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There were no air raids,
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but thousands of people were killed
or injured in accidents in the blackout.
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Depressing, too. Without it, you could
almost forget there was a war on.
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Every night, every home
had to be blacked out.
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The air-raid warden
looking for chinks of light
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became more hated than Hitler.
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The government closed cinemas
and entertainments
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at the beginning of the war.
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A fortnight later
they were allowed to open again.
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(♪ band plays “We're Going to Hang Out
the Washing on the Siegfried Line”)
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In spite of total war, there were nearly
a million and a half unemployed.
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Sir John Simon,
the chancellor of the exchequer,
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introduced an emergency budget.
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In three hours' time
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all budget secrets will be revealed.
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I am confident
that, whatever may be the burdens
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which have to be carried
by the British taxpayer,
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my fellow countrymen will bear them
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with the same resolution and courage
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as our fighting men will show
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when they discharge their grimmer task
on the field of battle.
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(cheering)
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The blackout budget.
Income tax up to 7s 6d.
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A 60% tax on excess profit.
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In retrospect, mild enough,
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but a Conservative MP, Chips Channon,
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thought it demolished
the edifice of capitalism.
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Another Tory, Leo Amery, wanted
a tougher war. Why not bomb Germany?
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The air minister Kingsley Wood said no.
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German munition works
were private property
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and the Germans would retaliate.
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The opening phase of the war
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was one of the most extraordinary
periods through which I've lived,
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because it was a period of euphoria
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on the part of the people
of this country.
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For a long time
there were quite a lot of unemployed,
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while the Germans
were manufacturing arms at full stretch,
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particularly in the Skoda works
in Czechoslovakia,
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which they had by that time occupied.
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Now, all this time the Germans
were a beehive of activity.
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We were doing absolutely nothing.
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We'd gone to war
for the defence of Poland.
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In the event, we did nothing
to help Poland at all.
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We never lifted a finger.
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For the first three months of the war,
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the greatest number of casualties
were in the blackout.
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We confined our war effort to dropping
leaflets on the German people
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telling them that it was a bad idea
to go to war
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and that it was a pity
that they'd done it
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and perhaps we might make peace.
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(narrator) The Phoney War.
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When a German plane
crashed in Scotland in November,
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people came from miles around to see it.
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And the Luftwaffe's dead were buried
with full military honours.
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Three British divisions went off
to France at the beginning of the war.
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More followed. “Nearly 200,000 men,”
said the war minister proudly.
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The French had mobilised
six million men.
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They grumbled that the British
weren't taking the war seriously.
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(Gracie Fields)
♪ Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye
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(men join in)
♪ Cheerio, here I go on my way
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♪ Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye
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♪ With a cheer, not a tear, make it gay
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♪ Give me a smile
I can keep all the while
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♪ In my heart while I'm away
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♪ Till we meet once again, you and I
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♪ Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye
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(narrator) In France,
training for a war that ended in 1918.
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The newsreel reporter tried hard
to make it sound impressive.
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(reporter) The force, instead of
being thrown into the line,
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is able to perfect its training
in conditions similar to those at home.
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This bayonet drill in gas masks is our
reply to transparent Nazi propaganda
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which seems to indicate that Germany
is preparing to employ poison gas.
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00:19:22,760 --> 00:19:25,800
Infantry battalions exercise
with their weapons,
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awaiting the moment
for their use in actual warfare.
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The mortar platoon goes into action
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with a rapidity acquired
by constant practice.
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Steel helmets assume a fashionable
appearance with camouflage.
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(narrator)
French and British generals too
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prepared for their part
in the battle to come.
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The British dug in
on the Belgian frontier.
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In December it was decided
that when fighting began
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they'd leave their defences
and advance into Belgium.
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Anything helped
to keep their minds off the war.
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(♪ “Maginot Line” by George Formby)
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♪ Now, imagine me in the Maginot line
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♪ Sitting on a mine in the Maginot line
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♪ Now it's turned out nice again
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♪ The army life is fine
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♪ French girls make a fuss of me
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♪ I'm not French as you can see
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♪ But I know what they mean
when they say oui, oui
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♪ Down on the Maginot line
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♪ Now, imagine me in the Maginot line
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♪ Sitting on a mine in the Maginot line
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♪ Now it's turned out nice again
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♪ The army life is fine
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♪ At night myself to sleep I sing
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♪ To my old tin hat I cling
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♪ I have to use it now for everything
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♪ Down on the Maginot line
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(cheering)
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(narrator) “Winston's back,”
the navy was told on September 3.
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Chamberlain was reluctant to recall
his most bitter political opponent
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with a reputation
for military adventure.
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00:21:13,520 --> 00:21:16,040
But Churchill was popular
with the public.
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00:21:16,120 --> 00:21:18,680
He had warned them war was coming.
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Now, with surprising energy
for a 64-year-old,
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he proved a willing leader.
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The RAF dropped leaflets,
the army dug trenches,
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00:21:39,440 --> 00:21:42,680
but Churchill's navy
was Britain's strongest arm.
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And the first lord of the admiralty
was often in the news.
241
00:21:48,720 --> 00:21:51,520
We are in a very different position
242
00:21:51,600 --> 00:21:56,360
from that we were in ten weeks ago.
243
00:21:56,440 --> 00:22:00,120
We are far stronger
than we were ten weeks ago.
244
00:22:00,200 --> 00:22:02,880
We are far better prepared
245
00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:07,600
to endure the worst malice
of Hitler and his Huns
246
00:22:07,680 --> 00:22:10,480
than we were at the beginning
of September.
247
00:22:10,560 --> 00:22:12,800
(narrator) The news
that a German battleship
248
00:22:12,880 --> 00:22:16,400
was sinking British merchantmen
gave the chance to take the offensive.
249
00:22:21,640 --> 00:22:25,960
Churchill concentrated much of
the navy's strength on finding her.
250
00:22:26,040 --> 00:22:29,640
One hunting group patrolled off
the River Plate in South America.
251
00:22:29,720 --> 00:22:33,200
Three cruisers—
Exeter, Ajax and Achilles.
252
00:22:33,280 --> 00:22:36,760
At dawn on December 13
they sighted a heavier German ship.
253
00:22:36,840 --> 00:22:40,240
It was the pocket battleship
Admiral Graf Spee.
254
00:22:40,320 --> 00:22:43,080
Although outgunned,
the cruisers engaged her.
255
00:22:43,160 --> 00:22:46,160
The Battle of the River Plate began.
256
00:22:49,640 --> 00:22:53,240
(man) Within about five minutes
of the alarm being sounded,
257
00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:56,960
Graf Spee and Exeter
were shooting at each other
258
00:22:57,040 --> 00:23:02,720
and the Ajax and Achilles
were both shooting at the Graf Spee,
259
00:23:02,800 --> 00:23:05,600
concentrating their gunfire.
260
00:23:06,160 --> 00:23:08,760
The Exeter was quite soon hit
261
00:23:08,840 --> 00:23:11,600
and received early damage.
262
00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:15,000
Her foremost guns
only fired a few rounds each
263
00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:17,040
before they were out of action.
264
00:23:17,120 --> 00:23:21,320
She continued as long as she
possibly could with her after turret,
265
00:23:21,400 --> 00:23:26,520
but the ship herself was badly damaged.
Her speed was reduced.
266
00:23:29,600 --> 00:23:35,440
The six-inch-gun cruisers before long
turned directly towards the Graf Spee
267
00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:37,720
so as to close the range still faster
268
00:23:37,800 --> 00:23:41,040
and the captain of the Graf Spee
269
00:23:41,120 --> 00:23:46,320
did not follow up the Exeter entirely,
270
00:23:46,400 --> 00:23:51,320
but indeed before very long
started heading towards Montevideo.
271
00:23:52,200 --> 00:23:57,560
But we could not see
any spectacular damage inflicted on him,
272
00:23:57,640 --> 00:24:01,200
and indeed his speed
seemed to be unimpaired
273
00:24:01,280 --> 00:24:07,280
and his heavy guns were still firing
regularly and with very good accuracy.
274
00:24:10,760 --> 00:24:13,120
(narrator) The Graf Spee took on fuel
275
00:24:13,200 --> 00:24:16,800
and put ashore the crews
of the merchant ships she'd sunk.
276
00:24:23,040 --> 00:24:27,640
Captain Langsdorff asked the Uruguayans
for permission to stay
277
00:24:27,720 --> 00:24:31,120
but was told he must clear the port
in 72 hours.
278
00:24:35,640 --> 00:24:37,880
So he buried his dead.
279
00:24:37,960 --> 00:24:41,200
Believing that heavier British ships
were waiting for him,
280
00:24:41,280 --> 00:24:45,080
he prepared to carry out
his final orders from Berlin.
281
00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:52,280
(Woodhouse) As soon as he started
pulling his anchor up
282
00:24:52,360 --> 00:24:56,080
we got news of it from our people ashore
283
00:24:56,160 --> 00:25:00,320
and we sent off our aircraft.
284
00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:04,600
In due course we got the signal
from the aircraft,
285
00:25:04,680 --> 00:25:06,480
which was a very welcome one:
286
00:25:06,560 --> 00:25:08,800
“Graf Spee has blown herself up.”
287
00:25:14,560 --> 00:25:18,800
(narrator) Two days later,
Langsdorff shot himself.
288
00:25:23,040 --> 00:25:27,320
Churchill made the most of a victory
won by bluff rather than gun power.
289
00:25:27,400 --> 00:25:30,040
Two of the cruisers were brought home.
290
00:25:30,120 --> 00:25:33,720
(♪ “A Life on the Ocean Wave”
by Henry Russell)
291
00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:38,160
Their crews marched
through the City of London to Guildhall
292
00:25:38,240 --> 00:25:41,680
and the first lord of the admiralty
basked in their glory.
293
00:25:41,760 --> 00:25:44,800
(Churchill) The brilliant sea fight
294
00:25:44,880 --> 00:25:48,720
which you executed,
295
00:25:48,800 --> 00:25:52,000
those who are here executed,
296
00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:57,680
takes its place in our naval annals
297
00:25:57,760 --> 00:26:03,520
and I may add
that in a dark, cold winter,
298
00:26:03,600 --> 00:26:07,480
it warmed the cockles
of the British heart.
299
00:26:07,560 --> 00:26:09,280
(cheering)
300
00:26:14,760 --> 00:26:17,000
(air-raid siren)
301
00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:29,120
(narrator) Helsinki, November 30, 1939.
302
00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:32,120
Finland has refused
to hand over bases and territory
303
00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:34,080
demanded by her neighbour Russia.
304
00:26:34,160 --> 00:26:36,880
The Russians attack.
305
00:27:02,160 --> 00:27:04,600
The massive Russian army
crossed the frontier,
306
00:27:04,680 --> 00:27:06,920
apparently set
for the kind of easy victory
307
00:27:07,000 --> 00:27:08,560
the Germans had had in Poland.
308
00:27:14,600 --> 00:27:18,080
But the Finns, few in number,
fought back.
309
00:27:25,800 --> 00:27:29,680
Camouflaged Finnish ski troops
knew how to use their own conditions,
310
00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:34,200
moving round the Russian flanks,
cutting their supply lines.
311
00:27:37,520 --> 00:27:39,600
The Russian advance ground to a halt,
312
00:27:39,680 --> 00:27:42,520
confirming the German belief
that the Russian army,
313
00:27:42,600 --> 00:27:46,880
purged by Stalin of many
of its regular officers, couldn't fight.
314
00:27:58,800 --> 00:28:01,120
Whole Russian divisions were destroyed.
315
00:28:01,200 --> 00:28:04,760
Those who weren't taken prisoner
died in the snow—
316
00:28:04,840 --> 00:28:08,920
for the Russians,
a humiliating, if temporary, failure.
317
00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:47,520
In Britain it was snowing, too.
318
00:28:47,600 --> 00:28:51,560
The censorship tried to hush it up
but people couldn't help noticing it.
319
00:28:51,640 --> 00:28:55,320
To the trials of the blackout were added
the worst winter for 45 years,
320
00:28:55,400 --> 00:28:59,680
a coal shortage, burst pipes
and food rationing.
321
00:29:01,080 --> 00:29:03,600
The RAF was grounded.
322
00:29:07,720 --> 00:29:10,880
Troops were called in
to keep the trains running.
323
00:29:18,240 --> 00:29:20,160
For the navy, another victory.
324
00:29:20,240 --> 00:29:22,840
Taking refuge in a Norwegian fjord,
325
00:29:22,920 --> 00:29:27,360
the Graf Spee's supply ship Altmark
was cornered by British destroyers.
326
00:29:27,440 --> 00:29:30,600
Ignoring Norwegian neutrality,
they boarded her
327
00:29:30,680 --> 00:29:34,520
and after a fight
released 300 British prisoners.
328
00:29:36,560 --> 00:29:39,880
For Hitler the seizure of the Altmark
was a setback.
329
00:29:39,960 --> 00:29:43,240
He hastened his plans to invade Norway.
330
00:29:50,120 --> 00:29:52,800
(cheering)
331
00:29:53,480 --> 00:29:56,600
For Churchill, another popular triumph.
332
00:29:56,680 --> 00:29:59,280
He too had his eyes on Norway.
333
00:30:08,920 --> 00:30:11,720
Churchill's colleagues
had discussed for months
334
00:30:11,800 --> 00:30:14,240
his plan for British action in Norway,
335
00:30:14,320 --> 00:30:17,040
but some, like the foreign secretary
Lord Halifax,
336
00:30:17,120 --> 00:30:18,960
were difficult to persuade.
337
00:30:23,160 --> 00:30:26,120
Churchill now added a plan
to help Finland
338
00:30:26,200 --> 00:30:28,800
as part of the Norwegian operation.
339
00:30:28,880 --> 00:30:32,640
He proposed to stop
Germany's important supply of iron ore,
340
00:30:32,720 --> 00:30:36,080
which came from Sweden
to the Norwegian port of Narvik.
341
00:30:36,160 --> 00:30:40,880
Then it was shipped to Germany
through neutral Norwegian waters.
342
00:30:43,640 --> 00:30:45,640
Churchill wanted to mine the waters
343
00:30:45,720 --> 00:30:48,760
and he added enticingly
that if Narvik were captured
344
00:30:48,840 --> 00:30:53,640
it could be used as a base for helping
Finland against Communist Russia.
345
00:30:56,200 --> 00:31:00,040
Churchill knew that his plan might mean
retaliation by Hitler in Norway,
346
00:31:00,120 --> 00:31:04,120
and helping Finland
could mean war with Russia.
347
00:31:06,520 --> 00:31:09,840
Chamberlain was concerned
about innocent Norwegian lives
348
00:31:09,920 --> 00:31:11,840
and the effect on American opinion.
349
00:31:11,920 --> 00:31:14,240
Eventually, he was persuaded.
350
00:31:14,320 --> 00:31:17,000
(man) I think that deep down
he still hoped
351
00:31:17,080 --> 00:31:20,920
that perhaps the major clash of armies
could be avoided.
352
00:31:21,000 --> 00:31:23,360
He thought that Germany
353
00:31:23,440 --> 00:31:25,760
was on the verge of starvation,
354
00:31:25,840 --> 00:31:27,880
or if not on the verge of starvation,
355
00:31:27,960 --> 00:31:31,960
it anyhow would be brought to the verge
of starvation by economic warfare.
356
00:31:32,040 --> 00:31:33,840
He thought also that deep down
357
00:31:33,920 --> 00:31:36,960
the German people didn't support Hitler,
358
00:31:37,040 --> 00:31:40,720
that this was a clique and that
if we did our propaganda properly
359
00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:44,000
there would perhaps be
a revolt of the generals
360
00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:46,160
or somebody else against Hitler
361
00:31:46,240 --> 00:31:51,760
and that therefore dropping propaganda
leaflets by bomber command of the RAF
362
00:31:51,840 --> 00:31:55,560
rather than bombs
was a good way of conducting the war.
363
00:31:55,640 --> 00:31:59,600
Anything to stop
the real major outbreak.
364
00:31:59,680 --> 00:32:05,280
And that is why I think to some extent
the campaigns in Norway
365
00:32:05,360 --> 00:32:08,640
were something acceptable
to Chamberlain,
366
00:32:08,720 --> 00:32:10,800
because it kept the war distant.
367
00:32:10,880 --> 00:32:15,960
It kept the idea of a real big clash,
368
00:32:16,040 --> 00:32:20,360
a repetition of Passchendaele
or the Somme, far away.
369
00:32:20,440 --> 00:32:25,200
It meant that war would be localised
and perhaps some miracle would happen.
370
00:32:25,280 --> 00:32:27,640
Perhaps Hitler would die
or be assassinated
371
00:32:27,720 --> 00:32:30,840
and the whole thing would end
with the minimum of bloodshed.
372
00:32:32,040 --> 00:32:34,040
Finland today
373
00:32:35,800 --> 00:32:40,600
amidst her snows and her frozen lakes
374
00:32:42,720 --> 00:32:48,560
is fighting against the forces
of unscrupulous violence
375
00:32:48,640 --> 00:32:51,120
just as we are ourselves.
376
00:32:51,200 --> 00:32:53,720
(applause)
377
00:32:54,600 --> 00:33:00,120
And her need calls
for our sympathy and our aid.
378
00:33:03,520 --> 00:33:05,520
(no sound)
379
00:33:08,080 --> 00:33:10,720
(narrator) British aid
did go to Finland, but late.
380
00:33:10,800 --> 00:33:13,680
The Russians
brought all their weight to bear
381
00:33:13,760 --> 00:33:15,880
and overwhelmed the Finnish defences.
382
00:33:21,640 --> 00:33:25,240
The day the British steeled themselves
to force a landing in Norway,
383
00:33:25,320 --> 00:33:27,280
Finland surrendered.
384
00:33:27,360 --> 00:33:32,640
So Britain was saved from war against
Russia and Germany at the same time.
385
00:33:34,000 --> 00:33:37,680
The armistice terms gave Russia
most of what she wanted.
386
00:33:42,360 --> 00:33:45,840
Hundreds of thousands of Finns
had to evacuate their homes.
387
00:33:54,760 --> 00:33:56,720
The French prime minister Daladier
388
00:33:56,800 --> 00:33:59,680
had staked everything
on helping Finland.
389
00:33:59,760 --> 00:34:02,280
He was replaced by Paul Reynaud.
390
00:34:03,440 --> 00:34:06,200
Reynaud went on pressing
for Churchill's operation
391
00:34:06,280 --> 00:34:08,400
to cut off the German iron ore.
392
00:34:08,480 --> 00:34:12,840
An Allied meeting in London
decided to mine Norwegian waters.
393
00:34:12,920 --> 00:34:14,800
Churchill had got his way.
394
00:34:18,920 --> 00:34:22,520
British and French troops
stood ready to invade Norway.
395
00:34:25,200 --> 00:34:28,520
The mines were laid on April 8.
396
00:34:39,160 --> 00:34:41,920
A few days earlier,
no thought of Norway in his mind,
397
00:34:42,000 --> 00:34:46,280
Chamberlain had proclaimed
that Hitler had missed the bus.
398
00:34:46,360 --> 00:34:51,320
And General Ironside
dared the Germans to do their worst.
399
00:34:55,560 --> 00:34:59,400
Hitler's invasion force
sailed on April 6.
400
00:35:36,600 --> 00:35:39,640
The Luftwaffe took over
most of the Norwegian airfields.
401
00:35:39,720 --> 00:35:41,720
(♪ marching band)
402
00:35:49,080 --> 00:35:52,680
The German march into Oslo
was led by a band.
403
00:36:00,600 --> 00:36:04,640
Norway had no standing army,
only half-trained militia.
404
00:36:04,720 --> 00:36:08,000
The Norwegians
were antimilitarist by tradition
405
00:36:08,080 --> 00:36:12,400
and they had seen German newsreels
of the blitzkrieg on Poland.
406
00:36:12,480 --> 00:36:15,600
No one wanted Oslo
to go the way of Warsaw.
407
00:36:15,680 --> 00:36:17,440
There was little resistance.
408
00:36:32,160 --> 00:36:35,480
The Allied operation in Norway
was a muddle from the start.
409
00:36:35,560 --> 00:36:41,560
Troops were embarked, disembarked,
embarked again, without vital equipment.
410
00:36:44,520 --> 00:36:49,080
A contingent of French troops sailed
with the British, plentifully equipped.
411
00:36:59,880 --> 00:37:03,400
Unlike the British,
they were trained for winter conditions,
412
00:37:03,480 --> 00:37:06,520
but they hadn't got straps
for their skis.
413
00:37:14,920 --> 00:37:17,800
Even the expedition's objectives
were confused.
414
00:37:17,880 --> 00:37:21,440
Trondheim in central Norway
was to be captured by a pincer attack
415
00:37:21,520 --> 00:37:23,680
from Andalsnes and Namsos.
416
00:37:23,760 --> 00:37:26,040
So some troops were diverted south.
417
00:37:26,120 --> 00:37:29,320
But Churchill's mind
was still fixed on Narvik,
418
00:37:29,400 --> 00:37:31,920
and it was there
the first battle took place.
419
00:38:00,800 --> 00:38:02,440
The navy bombarded Narvik
420
00:38:02,520 --> 00:38:05,520
and German destroyers already there
took a battering.
421
00:38:05,600 --> 00:38:07,320
But the advantage was lost.
422
00:38:07,400 --> 00:38:11,320
The British army commander didn't make
a direct assault on the town.
423
00:38:16,560 --> 00:38:20,880
British Territorials did land
at Namsos and Andalsnes.
424
00:38:20,960 --> 00:38:24,440
They had no skis,
no proper maps of Norway,
425
00:38:24,520 --> 00:38:27,360
and no heavy guns.
426
00:38:29,520 --> 00:38:34,760
There was little they could do when
they ran into the well-equipped Germans.
427
00:38:39,400 --> 00:38:42,800
Captain Martin Lindsay
was with the British force at Namsos.
428
00:38:42,880 --> 00:38:46,240
(Lindsay) There was no hope at all
for this operation
429
00:38:46,320 --> 00:38:51,200
because it was entirely improvised
at short notice and in a great hurry
430
00:38:51,280 --> 00:38:56,200
and the force had no aircraft
supporting it and no artillery.
431
00:38:56,280 --> 00:39:00,160
But even more important,
all the ground was covered with snow
432
00:39:00,240 --> 00:39:03,320
and the only way to operate
was with ski troops,
433
00:39:03,400 --> 00:39:05,680
and we hadn't got ski troops.
434
00:39:05,760 --> 00:39:08,680
Therefore the troops
were confined to the road.
435
00:39:08,760 --> 00:39:14,080
Whenever the Germans got onto the hills
on the flank they had to retire.
436
00:39:18,320 --> 00:39:22,200
(narrator) The British
couldn't stop the Luftwaffe
437
00:39:22,280 --> 00:39:25,400
from blitzing
the little Norwegian towns.
438
00:39:25,480 --> 00:39:29,640
German control of the Norwegian
airfields was the key to the battle.
439
00:39:45,760 --> 00:39:49,920
The Germans advanced,
capturing hundreds of British prisoners.
440
00:39:53,600 --> 00:39:57,480
Some of these were flown to Berlin
and paraded before Hitler.
441
00:40:00,600 --> 00:40:03,400
Others were put in front
of German newsreel cameras.
442
00:40:03,480 --> 00:40:09,120
You seem to be in a good mood. You don't
find Germans as bad as you expected?
443
00:40:09,200 --> 00:40:11,200
—Oh, no, certainly not.
—Oh, no.
444
00:40:11,280 --> 00:40:14,000
I was captured at Fåberg by the Germans.
445
00:40:14,080 --> 00:40:16,920
From there I came to Lillehammer
446
00:40:17,000 --> 00:40:19,680
and we had a supper.
447
00:40:19,760 --> 00:40:24,120
It consisted of brown bread, Gorgonzola,
448
00:40:24,200 --> 00:40:27,800
wine which the Germans gave to us,
cigarettes.
449
00:40:27,880 --> 00:40:31,840
And a hot meal each day.
450
00:40:31,920 --> 00:40:34,560
And I'm getting on fairly decent.
451
00:40:34,640 --> 00:40:37,800
I hope the war will soon be over
and we'll all go back home.
452
00:40:40,320 --> 00:40:42,680
(narrator)
Most did go home ingloriously,
453
00:40:42,760 --> 00:40:46,560
abandoning Andalsnes and Namsos
still burning.
454
00:40:57,400 --> 00:41:01,840
Chased by the Luftwaffe—the Norwegian
campaign rammed home the lesson
455
00:41:01,920 --> 00:41:06,880
that sea power without air power
could no longer win battles.
456
00:41:33,120 --> 00:41:36,880
Their only honour the part they played
in bringing down a government,
457
00:41:36,960 --> 00:41:40,560
for now the machinery of democracy
began to work.
458
00:41:43,560 --> 00:41:45,520
As the troops disembarked,
459
00:41:45,600 --> 00:41:49,520
an angry parliament was assembling
to debate the disaster.
460
00:41:49,600 --> 00:41:52,200
Feeling cut across party lines.
461
00:41:52,280 --> 00:41:56,040
Captain Lindsay, a Tory, went to
the leader of the Labour opposition.
462
00:41:56,120 --> 00:42:01,520
(Lindsay) Well, I was the first person
from this force to reach London.
463
00:42:01,600 --> 00:42:05,440
I went to see Mr Attlee on the morning
of the first day of the debate
464
00:42:05,520 --> 00:42:07,520
and I gave him a memorandum
465
00:42:07,600 --> 00:42:11,560
about the appalling improvisation
and deficiencies in Norway,
466
00:42:11,640 --> 00:42:16,000
because I was convinced that we should
lose the war if we went on like that,
467
00:42:16,080 --> 00:42:18,800
which he gave to Herbert Morrison
468
00:42:18,880 --> 00:42:21,680
to help him open for the opposition
that afternoon.
469
00:42:21,760 --> 00:42:26,120
The Norway debate was the only
decisive debate I ever attended
470
00:42:26,200 --> 00:42:29,920
during my 34 years as a member
of the House of Commons
471
00:42:30,000 --> 00:42:32,080
because it was the only division
472
00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:35,240
which definitely brought about
the fall of a government.
473
00:42:35,320 --> 00:42:37,360
For nearly a year before that debate
474
00:42:37,440 --> 00:42:40,800
there had been a piling-up
of bitterness and anguish
475
00:42:40,880 --> 00:42:42,560
in the breasts of people
476
00:42:42,640 --> 00:42:47,040
who wanted Britain to go all out
and win the war against Hitler.
477
00:42:47,120 --> 00:42:51,800
And so you can imagine
that the debate was a very fierce one—
478
00:42:51,880 --> 00:42:57,480
not only the Labour opposition
but also Conservatives.
479
00:42:57,560 --> 00:43:02,600
They felt that the whole conduct
of the war could not be carried on
480
00:43:02,680 --> 00:43:08,000
under a man whom they had already
assailed at the time of Munich
481
00:43:08,080 --> 00:43:11,880
and whom they realised
was not really by nature a war leader.
482
00:43:11,960 --> 00:43:14,720
Gradually, the temperature
began to rise,
483
00:43:14,800 --> 00:43:17,480
and when Herbert Morrison
for the Labour Party
484
00:43:17,560 --> 00:43:21,240
announced that they were going to divide
at the end of the debate
485
00:43:21,320 --> 00:43:23,560
against the government…
486
00:43:23,640 --> 00:43:25,960
There was an action group
487
00:43:26,040 --> 00:43:31,480
of which Clement Davies was chairman,
the Liberal leader, and I was secretary.
488
00:43:31,560 --> 00:43:34,840
It was an all-party committee,
489
00:43:34,920 --> 00:43:39,120
committed to pressing for
more decisive action during the war
490
00:43:39,200 --> 00:43:41,400
and a more vigorous posture
491
00:43:41,480 --> 00:43:43,800
and more vigorous prosecution
of the war.
492
00:43:43,880 --> 00:43:47,760
And we decided to hold a meeting
after Morrison's announcement
493
00:43:47,840 --> 00:43:50,800
and we asked Leo Amery
to preside over it.
494
00:43:50,880 --> 00:43:53,240
It was an enormously attended meeting.
495
00:43:53,320 --> 00:43:56,120
Many Conservative
members of parliament were there
496
00:43:56,200 --> 00:43:58,600
and I felt something was happening.
497
00:43:58,680 --> 00:44:01,160
There were a great many
members of parliament
498
00:44:01,240 --> 00:44:04,760
who had never been hitherto
members of our action group
499
00:44:04,840 --> 00:44:06,560
who fetched up at the meeting.
500
00:44:06,640 --> 00:44:08,880
The feeling at the meeting
was passionate.
501
00:44:08,960 --> 00:44:13,360
And I felt, at that time,
that a great many Conservative members
502
00:44:13,440 --> 00:44:16,160
were not only prepared
to abstain in the division
503
00:44:16,240 --> 00:44:18,400
but even to vote against the government.
504
00:44:18,480 --> 00:44:23,240
And I came down from that meeting
with feelings of great tension.
505
00:44:23,320 --> 00:44:30,040
Meanwhile, Churchill had been putting up
a great defence of the government,
506
00:44:30,120 --> 00:44:35,000
and it was ironical again there
because the debate was about Norway
507
00:44:35,080 --> 00:44:38,080
and Norway had been
a series of disasters for which,
508
00:44:38,160 --> 00:44:43,200
although he might not be blamed
because they may have been unavoidable,
509
00:44:43,280 --> 00:44:46,680
he was directly responsible
as first lord of the admiralty.
510
00:44:46,760 --> 00:44:50,920
And Amery made
a most formidable speech
511
00:44:51,000 --> 00:44:53,520
in which he quoted Cromwell's words:
512
00:44:53,600 --> 00:44:56,800
“You have been here long enough
for any good you have done.”
513
00:44:56,880 --> 00:44:59,120
“In the name of God, go.”
514
00:44:59,200 --> 00:45:01,200
And then Lloyd George came down
515
00:45:01,280 --> 00:45:04,840
and made the most devastating speech
I've ever heard even him make
516
00:45:04,920 --> 00:45:07,600
in which he concluded
by saying to Chamberlain:
517
00:45:07,680 --> 00:45:09,920
“You have asked the nation
for sacrifices
518
00:45:10,000 --> 00:45:13,440
but there is one sacrifice
that is more necessary than any other,
519
00:45:13,520 --> 00:45:15,960
and that is
the sacrifice of your own office.”
520
00:45:16,040 --> 00:45:18,400
When the result was announced
521
00:45:18,480 --> 00:45:22,360
and the Conservative majority
fell to about 80,
522
00:45:22,440 --> 00:45:25,720
and that meant the fall
of the government in the circumstances,
523
00:45:25,800 --> 00:45:29,520
I could see Chamberlain,
I can see him now, blanch.
524
00:45:29,600 --> 00:45:34,720
He had asked for friendship
525
00:45:34,800 --> 00:45:36,880
from those who were his friends
526
00:45:36,960 --> 00:45:41,520
and he hadn't got it, and he walked
out of the chamber a solitary figure.
527
00:45:41,600 --> 00:45:44,080
And I felt very sorry for him
at that moment
528
00:45:44,160 --> 00:45:46,520
because I knew that he knew
that he was done.
529
00:45:46,600 --> 00:45:49,800
And I remember Chamberlain
going to his room afterwards
530
00:45:49,880 --> 00:45:52,680
and saying he wondered
whether this could go on.
531
00:45:52,760 --> 00:45:58,200
But it wasn't till the next day that he
really realised that his number was up.
532
00:45:58,280 --> 00:46:01,760
On that particular day the whips,
I think, tried to explain to him
533
00:46:01,840 --> 00:46:04,640
that it might have been worse
and that sort of thing,
534
00:46:04,720 --> 00:46:06,440
but those of us who were with him
535
00:46:06,520 --> 00:46:09,040
could see the writing on the wall
by that time.
536
00:46:09,120 --> 00:46:12,720
During those two days, 9 and 10 May,
537
00:46:12,800 --> 00:46:16,720
there was great doubt
as to who would succeed Chamberlain.
538
00:46:16,800 --> 00:46:20,760
The Labour Party made it clear that if
there was to be a coalition government,
539
00:46:20,840 --> 00:46:23,400
which by now
everybody thought necessary,
540
00:46:23,480 --> 00:46:25,560
they would not serve under Chamberlain.
541
00:46:25,640 --> 00:46:29,640
The choice, therefore,
was between Churchill and Halifax.
542
00:46:30,520 --> 00:46:33,200
(narrator) Lord Halifax
was the obvious successor,
543
00:46:33,280 --> 00:46:36,200
Chamberlain's trusted colleague.
544
00:46:36,280 --> 00:46:42,280
But no peer had been prime minister
for nearly 40 years. As for his rival…
545
00:46:42,360 --> 00:46:45,400
(Colville) Churchill was viewed
with grave misgiving
546
00:46:45,480 --> 00:46:48,960
by the establishment,
as it would now be called.
547
00:46:49,040 --> 00:46:53,200
Everybody at 10 Downing Street
and Whitehall generally,
548
00:46:53,280 --> 00:46:57,680
the cabinet offices, and in very large
sectors of the Conservative Party,
549
00:46:57,760 --> 00:46:59,680
were frightened of Churchill.
550
00:46:59,760 --> 00:47:03,280
They thought he was an adventurer.
They remembered Gallipoli.
551
00:47:03,360 --> 00:47:07,240
They thought that they did not want
to see the fortunes of this country
552
00:47:07,320 --> 00:47:10,600
at a most critical moment
in its whole history
553
00:47:10,680 --> 00:47:15,800
handed over to somebody who might do
the most extraordinary things
554
00:47:15,880 --> 00:47:18,720
and undertake
the most astonishing adventures.
555
00:47:18,800 --> 00:47:21,400
And they all, after all,
realised that Norway,
556
00:47:21,480 --> 00:47:24,840
this fiasco from which
we were just hoping to recover
557
00:47:24,920 --> 00:47:27,280
or had just been saved
in the nick of time,
558
00:47:27,360 --> 00:47:29,800
was largely the inspiration
of Churchill.
559
00:47:29,880 --> 00:47:34,280
It was a very fine idea
but it didn't work, just like Gallipoli.
560
00:47:34,360 --> 00:47:42,160
And therefore it was with
a certain amount of fear of Churchill
561
00:47:42,240 --> 00:47:44,640
that I think the minds of most people
562
00:47:44,720 --> 00:47:48,160
in the centre of government
and in the centre of Whitehall
563
00:47:48,240 --> 00:47:50,680
turned towards Halifax.
564
00:47:50,760 --> 00:47:55,160
Halifax was safe. He was clever.
He was a fellow of All Souls.
565
00:47:55,240 --> 00:48:01,560
He was a man of indisputable charm
and absolute integrity.
566
00:48:01,640 --> 00:48:06,040
And it was hoped that he would perhaps
be sent for by the king.
567
00:48:06,120 --> 00:48:08,440
The Labour Party approached me—
568
00:48:08,520 --> 00:48:11,880
Hugh Dalton and Herbert Morrison—
569
00:48:11,960 --> 00:48:15,680
and they both talked
in favour of Halifax
570
00:48:15,760 --> 00:48:19,280
and they thought
that Halifax ought to take over.
571
00:48:19,360 --> 00:48:22,560
I think their idea always was
572
00:48:22,640 --> 00:48:25,920
that Churchill would run the war
under Halifax,
573
00:48:26,000 --> 00:48:28,560
an idea which didn't appeal to Halifax.
574
00:48:28,640 --> 00:48:31,120
I remember Churchill telling me
575
00:48:31,200 --> 00:48:34,280
that the critical moment came
576
00:48:34,360 --> 00:48:40,640
when Chamberlain asked Halifax and him
to join him in the cabinet room.
577
00:48:40,720 --> 00:48:45,120
And the three of them were there.
578
00:48:45,200 --> 00:48:50,280
Halifax was sitting beside Chamberlain,
579
00:48:50,360 --> 00:48:52,800
who suddenly turned to Churchill
and said:
580
00:48:52,880 --> 00:48:57,560
“Tell me, Winston, do you see any reason
why in the 20th century
581
00:48:57,640 --> 00:49:01,440
a prime minister should not be
in the House of Lords?”
582
00:49:01,520 --> 00:49:06,880
And Churchill thought
that this was a trap.
583
00:49:06,960 --> 00:49:10,880
If he said,
“No, I see no reason at all,”
584
00:49:10,960 --> 00:49:13,440
he thought Chamberlain
would turn to Halifax
585
00:49:13,520 --> 00:49:16,880
and say, “In that case,
if the king were to ask my advice
586
00:49:16,960 --> 00:49:19,120
I could perhaps suggest you.”
587
00:49:19,200 --> 00:49:22,680
On the other hand, it would be difficult
for him to say, “Yes, I do,”
588
00:49:22,760 --> 00:49:25,920
because then there could be
no alternative but himself.
589
00:49:26,000 --> 00:49:29,760
So he turned round and stood staring
over the Horse Guards Parade
590
00:49:29,840 --> 00:49:31,720
and did not reply to the question.
591
00:49:31,800 --> 00:49:34,840
The decision, I think,
was largely taken by Halifax
592
00:49:34,920 --> 00:49:40,800
who told me he had a pain in his stomach
an hour or two before the meeting
593
00:49:40,880 --> 00:49:43,720
and did not really want
to be prime minister,
594
00:49:43,800 --> 00:49:46,400
whereas the man who did want
to be prime minister—
595
00:49:46,480 --> 00:49:48,800
he was quite determined—was Churchill.
596
00:49:49,960 --> 00:49:54,360
(narrator) At dawn the Germans swept
into Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg.
597
00:49:54,440 --> 00:49:58,840
The war was at last
coming very close home to Britain.
598
00:50:02,240 --> 00:50:06,200
As the Allied armies braced themselves
for battle, Chamberlain resigned
599
00:50:06,280 --> 00:50:10,520
and advised the king
to send for Churchill.
600
00:50:10,600 --> 00:50:12,680
(Colville) Churchill would be a gamble,
601
00:50:12,760 --> 00:50:17,680
and perhaps when you're
at a very serious moment of your lives,
602
00:50:17,760 --> 00:50:19,960
a gamble is not the thing to undertake,
603
00:50:20,040 --> 00:50:23,080
and so it was with great despair
604
00:50:23,160 --> 00:50:27,480
that we all heard
on the evening of 10 May
605
00:50:27,560 --> 00:50:30,640
that the king had sent for Churchill.