America protects its homeland with the most technologically advanced military force ever conceived. Although they fight 21st-century battles worldwide, the technology unleashed is directly descended from a war fought more than 140 years ago. This episode explores how the War between North and South was the first modern war, and the technology used in it was a quantum leap beyond any previous conflict. The machine gun, aerial reconnaissance, advanced battlefield medicine, instantaneous communication, ironclad ships, even the first aircraft carrier were all innovations developed during the Civil War. We'll investigate improvements in weapons, sea power, transportation, troop conveyance, food processing, medical care, and telecommunications. At a time when the nation was divided, Civil War technology revolutionized the way war was waged. Today, those technological milestones have evolved to ensure that our modern military has no equal in the world.

The first bombing airplanes and widespread use of chemical weapons...earliest tanks...submarines. When Industrial-Age technology and war first mixed on a large scale, the end result was ruthlessly efficient destruction. World War One epitomized the dark underbelly of the Industrial Revolution. We see how technological achievements that streamlined 19th-century production, improved transportation, and expanded science were used to efficiently decimate a generation of soldiers in the early 20th century.

The Maginot Line, a defensive string of forts with enfilading firepower, was built by France between WWI and WWII.

Join us for an exploration of the Nazi construction called the Atlantic Wall - 3,000 miles of shore fortifications along occupied European coastline. We'll highlight the logistics of construction, types of fortifications, weapons and obstacles in the wall used by the Germans. We also detail the Allied D-Day invasion.

On July 16, 1945, scientists and dignitaries awaited the detonation of the first atomic bomb in a desolate area of the New Mexico desert aptly known as Jornada del Muerto--Journey of Death. Dubbed the Manhattan Project, the top-secret undertaking was tackled with unprecedented speed and expense. Los Alamos scientists and engineers relate their trials, triumphs, and dark doubts about building the ultimate weapon of war in the interest of peace.

Here is the heroic story of a daring band of infantry soldiers, the "Tunnel Rats," charged with a daring mission--to search for, find, and destroy a secret subterranean network of enemy tunnels in Vietnam. Armed with only a flashlight, valor, and a .45, they faced a determined foe and overcame lethal odds, uncovering secret enemy arms and intelligence caches. Tragically, many of these volunteers died and others were seriously wounded on this terrifying suicide mission.

Perhaps the most important and yet least recognized aspect of warfare is battlefield engineering. Battlefield engineers lay the groundwork, quite literally, for the battle to come. They build roads, railroads, bridges, airfields, hospitals and support facilities.

The Pentagon--the name alone conjures up an imposing image of American power. Completed in 1943, this five-sided nerve center for the nation's armed services is the largest office building in the world.

America protects its homeland with the most technologically advanced military force ever conceived. Although they fight 21st-century battles worldwide, the technology unleashed is directly descended from a war fought more than 140 years ago. This episode explores how the War between North and South was the first modern war, and the technology used in it was a quantum leap beyond any previous conflict. The machine gun, aerial reconnaissance, advanced battlefield medicine, instantaneous communication, ironclad ships, even the first aircraft carrier were all innovations developed during the Civil War. We'll investigate improvements in weapons, sea power, transportation, troop conveyance, food processing, medical care, and telecommunications. At a time when the nation was divided, Civil War technology revolutionized the way war was waged. Today, those technological milestones have evolved to ensure that our modern military has no equal in the world.

The first bombing airplanes and widespread use of chemical weapons...earliest tanks...submarines. When Industrial-Age technology and war first mixed on a large scale, the end result was ruthlessly efficient destruction. World War One epitomized the dark underbelly of the Industrial Revolution. We see how technological achievements that streamlined 19th-century production, improved transportation, and expanded science were used to efficiently decimate a generation of soldiers in the early 20th century.

The Maginot Line, a defensive string of forts with enfilading firepower, was built by France between WWI and WWII.

Join us for an exploration of the Nazi construction called the Atlantic Wall - 3,000 miles of shore fortifications along occupied European coastline. We'll highlight the logistics of construction, types of fortifications, weapons and obstacles in the wall used by the Germans. We also detail the Allied D-Day invasion.

On July 16, 1945, scientists and dignitaries awaited the detonation of the first atomic bomb in a desolate area of the New Mexico desert aptly known as Jornada del Muerto--Journey of Death. Dubbed the Manhattan Project, the top-secret undertaking was tackled with unprecedented speed and expense. Los Alamos scientists and engineers relate their trials, triumphs, and dark doubts about building the ultimate weapon of war in the interest of peace.

Here is the heroic story of a daring band of infantry soldiers, the "Tunnel Rats," charged with a daring mission--to search for, find, and destroy a secret subterranean network of enemy tunnels in Vietnam. Armed with only a flashlight, valor, and a .45, they faced a determined foe and overcame lethal odds, uncovering secret enemy arms and intelligence caches. Tragically, many of these volunteers died and others were seriously wounded on this terrifying suicide mission.

Perhaps the most important and yet least recognized aspect of warfare is battlefield engineering. Battlefield engineers lay the groundwork, quite literally, for the battle to come. They build roads, railroads, bridges, airfields, hospitals and support facilities.

The Pentagon--the name alone conjures up an imposing image of American power. Completed in 1943, this five-sided nerve center for the nation's armed services is the largest office building in the world.

America protects its homeland with the most technologically advanced military force ever conceived. Although they fight 21st-century battles worldwide, the technology unleashed is directly descended from a war fought more than 140 years ago. This episode explores how the War between North and South was the first modern war, and the technology used in it was a quantum leap beyond any previous conflict. The machine gun, aerial reconnaissance, advanced battlefield medicine, instantaneous communication, ironclad ships, even the first aircraft carrier were all innovations developed during the Civil War. We'll investigate improvements in weapons, sea power, transportation, troop conveyance, food processing, medical care, and telecommunications. At a time when the nation was divided, Civil War technology revolutionized the way war was waged. Today, those technological milestones have evolved to ensure that our modern military has no equal in the world.

The first bombing airplanes and widespread use of chemical weapons...earliest tanks...submarines. When Industrial-Age technology and war first mixed on a large scale, the end result was ruthlessly efficient destruction. World War One epitomized the dark underbelly of the Industrial Revolution. We see how technological achievements that streamlined 19th-century production, improved transportation, and expanded science were used to efficiently decimate a generation of soldiers in the early 20th century.

The Maginot Line, a defensive string of forts with enfilading firepower, was built by France between WWI and WWII.

Join us for an exploration of the Nazi construction called the Atlantic Wall - 3,000 miles of shore fortifications along occupied European coastline. We'll highlight the logistics of construction, types of fortifications, weapons and obstacles in the wall used by the Germans. We also detail the Allied D-Day invasion.

On July 16, 1945, scientists and dignitaries awaited the detonation of the first atomic bomb in a desolate area of the New Mexico desert aptly known as Jornada del Muerto--Journey of Death. Dubbed the Manhattan Project, the top-secret undertaking was tackled with unprecedented speed and expense. Los Alamos scientists and engineers relate their trials, triumphs, and dark doubts about building the ultimate weapon of war in the interest of peace.

Here is the heroic story of a daring band of infantry soldiers, the "Tunnel Rats," charged with a daring mission--to search for, find, and destroy a secret subterranean network of enemy tunnels in Vietnam. Armed with only a flashlight, valor, and a .45, they faced a determined foe and overcame lethal odds, uncovering secret enemy arms and intelligence caches. Tragically, many of these volunteers died and others were seriously wounded on this terrifying suicide mission.

Perhaps the most important and yet least recognized aspect of warfare is battlefield engineering. Battlefield engineers lay the groundwork, quite literally, for the battle to come. They build roads, railroads, bridges, airfields, hospitals and support facilities.

The Pentagon--the name alone conjures up an imposing image of American power. Completed in 1943, this five-sided nerve center for the nation's armed services is the largest office building in the world.