World War II: A Military and Social History

Explore the defining conflict of the 20th century through 30 comprehensive lectures covering military campaigns, political decisions, and civilian experiences.

Course Overview (No. 810)

This 30-lecture series examines WWII’s global impact – from battlefield strategies to home front transformations – analyzing key turning points and enduring questions about history’s deadliest conflict.

Video Lectures

1. The Origins of the Second World War (33 min)
   Versailles Treaty’s role in creating conditions for global conflict.
2. Hitler’s Challenge to the International System, 1933-1936 (30 min)
   Nazi Germany’s early foreign policy and dismantling of Versailles.
3. The Failure of the International System (32 min)
   Why European powers failed to counter German aggression.
4. The Coming of War (32 min)
   Munich Conference fallout and the Nazi-Soviet Pact.
5. Blitzkrieg (31 min)
   Germany’s revolutionary military-economic strategy unveiled in Poland.
6. The German Offensive in the West (33 min)
   Fall of France and the “miracle of Dunkirk.”
7. “Their Finest Hour” – Britain Alone (30 min)
   Churchill’s leadership during invasion threats.
8. The Battle of Britain (30 min)
   RAF’s decisive victory in the skies over England.
9. Hitler Moves East (30 min)
   Ideological motivations behind Operation Barbarossa.
10. The Germans Before Moscow (30 min)
    Winter halts the Nazi advance into Russia.
11. The War in Asia (31 min)
    Japan’s imperial ambitions and invasion of China.
12. The Japanese Gamble (31 min)
    Strategic calculations behind Pearl Harbor.
13. The Height of Japanese Power (31 min)
    Japan’s rapid conquest of Southeast Asia.
14. Turning the Tide in the Pacific (30 min)
    Midway and Guadalcanal as pivotal victories.
15. The War in North Africa (32 min)
    Allied and Axis strategies in the Mediterranean.
16. War in the Mediterranean (30 min)
    Sicily/Italy invasions and Anzio landings.
17. Stalingrad (29 min)
    The Eastern Front’s decisive turning point.
18. Eisenhower and Operation Overlord (29 min)
    Planning the D-Day invasion.
19. D-Day to Paris (29 min)
    Normandy campaign and liberation of France.
20. Operation Market Garden and Battle of the Bulge (28 min)
    Failed Rhine crossing and Hitler’s last western offensive.
21. Advance Across the Pacific (27 min)
    MacArthur and Nimitz’s island-hopping strategy.
22. Leyte Gulf and the Philippines (26 min)
    Decisive naval battle and kamikaze warfare.
23. Final Drive for Japan (32 min)
    Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and Tokyo firebombing.
24. War in the Air (34 min)
    Strategic bombing’s moral and military impact.
25. Hitler’s New Order in Europe (36 min)
    Evolution from anti-Semitism to Holocaust.
26. “The Man’s Army” (30 min)
    Building America’s massive military force.
27. Daily Life in Wartime (32 min)
    Home front transformations and challenges.
28. The Race for Berlin (31 min)
    Final European campaigns and Hitler’s fall.
29. Truman and the Atomic Bomb (28 min)
    Decision to use nuclear weapons against Japan.
30. The Costs of War (25 min)
    Global aftermath and human toll assessed.