past, and the new series, reel america, featuring government and educational films from the 1930s through the '70s. c-span3, kraepted by the cable host: until the surrender of nazi germany in may of nine teen 45. the film utilize the work of 1400 combat men. the national archives motion picture preservation lab digitally restore the film using software and a more to use manual process to remove dirt,

dust and scratches from scans of each frame of the 81-minute l. -- 81-minute film. >> i have been asked to be this nooks men. it is the story of the nazi defeat on the western front. i mean the enlisted soldiers, sailors and airmen that foster every obstacle through victory. teamwork among nations

servicemen and men. on the way down the line. our enemy in this campaign was strong, resourceful and cunning. but he made a few mistakes. his greatest wonder was this. he not he could break up our partnership. but we were welded together by fighting for one great cause. in one great team, a team in which you were an indispensable and working member. that spirit of free people working, fighting and living together in one great cause has served as well on the western front. we pray that spirit of comradeship will persist for

ever among the free people among the united nations. ♪ ♪ >> do you who now living in love of hope who since the future in this rounding air, this testament, he may look among the violent fragments of our age and the little threads that made us the citizens of freedom. dark was europe and the face of man when this begins. the nation had gone mad and struck out everywhere the compass. the m tied left its wreckage on 100 coasts. the german casts his fires around the globe, his strength drawn from the smoking fire lay in our weakness and at last his conquests smoldered hind the barriers of his arms.

along the channels to the west's wall of concrete and steel. wounded heart press and wasted on our strength, we can reach the wall and smash a german's might. first, the coast of europe. between -- we sought out the place of assault. sand and wind canceled the belgian coast. cliff's barred the approaches. the port of calais was heavily defended. it all resolved on normandy on the coast. there, planes could land, the coast defenses were more light and tides at a good range and men were safe from wind. five miles of still and bloodied sans, it would be assailed by armored missions.

now our people bent to the construction of a steel array and took the builders hammer in their hands. it seemed as though the sun stood still with people for of rage and power he would do the air spirit of war. this is our peoples story in their words. ♪ ♪ >> i suppose if the battle of the north atlantic had gone right, things might have been considerably different. it was then ugly time for all of us. i guess i had my share of ad luck. i lost three ships and some good friends. [explosions] >> i remember reading somewhere

that when a seagull comes out on a patch of oil, its feathers six together and it can't get off the water again. there must have been a lot of head seagulls around the north atlantic. >> we saw it all happening on the war map and it was quite real. when i started there, it looked like something out of some children's game. soon, ships carrying supplies and weapons. >> i remember coming over, the worst thing was you did not know where you were going. where ever it was, you would be a stranger and nobody likes that.

the ship was loaded from stem to stern with sad sacks. the fellow said we were all in the same book, a comic. finally, we got the -- we got to leave -- we got to liverpool. "i'm dreaming of a white christmas" they would play, but it is pretty corny. it was a nice gesture. funny thing, on the way over you like you are the whole works, but then, all over the u.k., you would see things that made you realize you are just part of a big opposition, all kinds of things.

[explosions] >> i was a premed student at johns hopkins. i do know a little something about anatomy and ice they it is scientifically impossible for the human body to stand up to the training we received, an absolute impossibility. don't ask me how it happened how we did stand up to it. i don't know.

it has no scientific explanation. >> listen to this -- to a young man, soldier in the army of today, i had exceptional advantages and opportunities such as physical training, foreign travel, sports, and many other facilities which are normally denied to those engaged in the majority of civilian occupations. the majority of occupations in civil life, not this to say the least. but in the army, life is so varied that there's little or no prospect of a monotonous or irksome time. >> so men were herded to their highest hour. the planners met to watch their work mature. beyond our view, the german,

proud and confident stood on the armored coast. the weapons were the factories and voices speaking in the hidden night. season by season, those you men on whom the mass of war weight worked ceaselessly. >> i used to wonder whether the millions of people doing the various jobs realized they were part of it all, paving their way for the invasion. >> we kept dashing away at german targets, mostly steel and oil. >> dings were getting tougher every trip, more ground defenses, more night fighters. >> we got away early in the morning. we struck at the same target they did.

it was deluxe service, day and night, 24 hours a day. >> we dropped agents over france. it must be awful to risk your neck and have to keep it secret. >> one-man submarines repeat owed both commandos. >> it had to be quick drying with a solid clay foundation and support 30 ton tanks. next i must have photographed every field in france. >> we dropped arms, ammunition, sabotage materials and so on and then went over ourselves and taught them how to use it. >> the only name it had was mallory. >> it is vital to know about the tides. >> we trained the men to negotiate those vehicle types. >> meyer -- miles of wire netting at the beaches. >> with an underwater pipeline to carry it to france. >> new ships poring through

stocks. >> listening to the german radio officer for fresh intelligence. >> that was just part of the preinvasion work. then the plan was set and we took it to final discussion. >> russian forces are a dancing the east and an invasion from the west. then, the date was set. >> i assumed command with the best all-around team for which a man could ask. some had already been working for months in england. others i brought with me from the mediterranean. we adopted first a master plan and then had to coordinate every last detail of the ground, c and airplanes.

we led off with an air show designed to make the landing point as soft as possible and battered german communications. to make sure we had control of the. it was quite a show. those airmen did a magnificent job. >> we had polish am a french check folks in our outfit. the only word you could ever make out was marshaling yard. >> we would just ask each other have you cut any good bridges lately? finally, there's only one bridge over paris and the sea. >> in the late spring through the wounded town moved the mass made by our patient -- our patients. all the maps were on the walls. across the channel, germans stood beside their guns and

reinforcements rumbled from the right. there generals were prepared. they looked across the heaving sea and grinned. they would wreak harvest on us on the beaches and even death itself would stand amazed. yet came the thin thunder of a massive power drawn from the great peoples of the earth to crowd upon the steel encumbered ships. ♪

>> it was a funny sort of feeling marching down to the ships. we had done it previous times before. they did not tell us this was the big show. might have been just another exercise. i think we all guest. the general feeling was if this is it, let's get in there and get it over with. even waiting for a bus, never could stand it. our ship found its way in the middle of the rest of the stuff in there we stayed for days.

[siren] >> they gave us the final briefing. we knew what to do and how, they told us where and when. i listened to every word. i wrote it down in my head like a record and it began playing over and over again. ever since i became a soldier, they have been getting me ready for this. now that time had worn away and there were only a few hours left, in a morning, i would have to face it. i tried to imagine how much fear i had that would keep me from doing my job and i suppose everyone else was wondering the same thing.

>> nobody said anything official, but all of a sudden, the ship got much busier and over the amplifier, the chaplain said he would be seeing mass at 18:30 hours. i don't think i ever believed that the invasion was going to come off. then a voice on the loudspeaker said anyone who wishes to take seasick pills should take the first one now.

that did it. ♪ [airplane engines roar] ♪

>> i was plugging a lighter the way we always practiced. three airborne divisions british, 82nd and 101st american. the glider pilot was cast off over the landing zone and i wished him good luck on the radio. it seemed an inadequate thing to say. >> as supreme commander, let me break in at this point to say a word about the navy. from the moment of embarkation the full burden fell upon the

navy and our merchant fleets. they had to sweep the mines, bombard the coastal batteries, marshall and protect the transport along the coastal line and finally, man the small boats that carried the soldiers to the beach. on that day, there were more than 8000 ships and landing craft on the shores of normandy. it was a most intricate task and a vital one for the success of our plans. their courage, fidelity and skill of the royal and american navies have no brighter page in her history and that of june 6 1944. ♪ [explosions]

♪

>> back in london, only a few people knew. it was a well-kept secret. around a break, we

correspondents were called and told to be at the ministry of information at 8:00, and they told us. ♪ >> a called our beach omaha. don't ask me why. i've never been to omaha, but it's in nebraska. if it's anything like omaha, france come you can have it. i understand omaha was the roughest spot. we lost some good men, took a few prisoners. i wasn't -- i was told what to expect, so it wasn't like a surprise or anything. for a while, we were pinned

down, but a lucky thing -- other beaches were going better, so we got a little more than our share from the old teamwork. the navy came down and finally we got moving. you hear about how long it takes to make battle hardened soldiers of green troops, i got to be a veteran and one day that day. >> and so they paved the beaches with our blood. the germans carried fiercely. the three airborne divisions fought lion like and loud across the plains of friends came german reinforcements. locked in battle, the armies clashed. our first objective then was to merge all of the beachheads into one and 50 miles of men drive on together beyond the red sands to the broken wall.

>> where i was, it wasn't too bad getting ashore. it was the same each time. crawl on your belly, checking a few hand grenades and then rush them. sometimes a killed us, but we were killing more of them. they were regular little fortresses and we would have to wait until their company commander called for artillery support. the navy commander was ahead of us and in three days, we advanced seven miles and we were told to stand fast and the again. next morning, we heard the news from the bbc. it sounded great. we had joined all along the bridge head.

there was a solid line, 45 miles of it. we were in. ♪ >> we did not have to do much navigating to get there. we waited around and the ground troops would whistle us out and tell us about some target they wanted removed and we would go on. >> there's something nice about a beach. any beach. think of a beach in kansas or iowa and you think of something nice. girls and bathing suits.

the one i worked, utah, looked more like a freight yard once we got going. we brought more supplies right onto the open beach. it was like we made it up as we went along. life's -- life rafts and boats, stuff just kept pouring -- tanks, trucks, food, ammo, millions of things. >> we did not think we would spend 15 nights in the same field in the wood behind us and the germans in a wood in front of us and a little empty valley in between. we got into a routine. two hours, wait for breakfast, came up fairly odd -- sausage, tea, of course, biscuits.

it was good food, but you got tired of it. i would have given a lot for a slice of bread and butter or a cup of tea. 15 days is a long time to stay in one place. you think everyone is coming straight for you. ♪ >> i can remember every case we ever had, especially the first one. the ambulance brought him in. i looked at where he was lying.

he looked up and grinned. he said something about the german with the machine pick using him for a dart board. he was quiet and patient. he had never been hurt fighting before. he passed out. the doctor came over and looked at his wounds, said he is no business to be alive. we put him on the operating table, did what we could. we could not stop the bleeding. i remember the radio news that night. they said the casualties of been surprisingly light. >> they said the whole thing was to roald winston's idea collapsible prefabricated armor. it worked in the end.

i felt pretty good about it, because i watched it grow from the first ships to the outer bank and further along west, the yanks have brought one, too. but then, and onshore wind started up. not much at first, but it got worse, and unloading onto the beaches got very tricky. we heard it over on the yank section. the other harbor had been put right out of action. the wind dropped, old mulberry looked pretty sick and after that time, it was the only bleeding harbor we had. >> at the green tip of normandy, cherbourg. the german new our lack. all our plans turned upon

cherbourg. so, the americans swung toward the north. through hedge and field, they carved their heavy way. >> remember back now it seems like we took cherbourg a couple days after we took the beach. actually, it took 19 days to cover 30 miles. a battle at every hedgerow. otherwise, it was nice country. like connecticut. pretty trees, cows, nice little farmhouses. the apples were too green to eat i remember. , we hit it off i'm with the

people. farmers. nice people. they had great defenses. and the artillery really carry the war. for three days we stuck it to them. sometimes we were firing at point-blank range. finally, the german commander tossed the sponge. after telling his men to fight to the death. we took cherbourg on june 25. everything was great except the way they have left the harbor. they had really tore it up. then, we fought our way up to cherbourg. now we would have to fight our way out of it. >> everywhere inside france, we were fighting, too. i went into the north myself.

we had telephone and telegraph lines. it was a little easier in the mountains. factories and bridges would disappear. but the price we paid for it was frightful. the germans floated 1200, and the place was completely burned. they were accused to have ambushed german troops. every house was destroyed. women, children burned in flames. the price we paid was very grave, but our job was done.

narrator: it is the capital of normandy. and this is where the british set up the stonewall. this was the tightening of a drill, inch, by inch, forward. 10 of 12 divisions of armor -- paratroops, the young, against the veterans. we wanted him to fight here and hold the battleground because thee future path depended on it. everything in the ground was priceless. it was the pivot of the war.

>> caen was the first decent sized town we had taken. jerry was as strong as ever.

one of the men said, are we going to have to go around the world doing this to beat them? caen was death, just plain death. i wondered what it would look like back home after a beating like that. we knew that there was a big dude coming in. >> the show for us begian to the south. >> when they begin moving forward, rommel was on the road. i knew he was not on the run. there was no outflanking, no nothing like that. it was an arms, bitter, bloody slugging match. we had to stay there and get as good as we could, even if we couldn't get better.

>> beyond the rubble, the empire troops kept up aggression. the germans did not dare to disengage. still unaware of the plans. the americans were poised to defend freedom for the whole of france. the arrow waited.

>> one minute it was quiet. the next minute, a tank comes around the corner. my buddy says, where do those tanks come from? i asked the tanker. he said they are taking down. , been waiting for three weeks. man, what a ride. >> when i think the breakthroughs, i don't seem to be able to remember anything but french people. people by the side of the road. kids we stopped to give candy to. farmworkers nearby. it's easier for them to look at their face and think about having to smash their homes. that morning we got in.

boy, that really was liberation. [bells ringing] [chanting] >> american armor plan to drive east and northeast. the foe laid plans to stop the arrow dead, by cutting its path along the coast. a great force exploded, hoping to achieve defeat. to burn it down to the smoking ground.

>> there's a lot of other places i'd rather talk about than that. we had been going great up until there. some of the guys had been singing, harmonizing, and then that first german artillery crossed. pretty accurate, too. we were short 18 men. we hit back with everything we had. they were not just trying to stop us. they wanted to come right through. and then me, i get a built in -- belt in the face, left his side and i get healed. the next thing i see are the raf tycoons. when i heard them screaming, i thought, geez, i'm glad they are on our side. >> i was sitting in front of the

intelligence office, doing a bit of sunbathing when it came , through saying that the german army was heading west. we went nonstop. take off the tank, refuel, take off again. it was the same on any airfield in normandy. the only briefing i gave the chaps was where they were and the only intelligence we got was where they were going to be. >> three days it lasted. every soldier, every weapon. for me it was eating and smoking. no sleeping. then things quieted down. we stopped them cold. nobody felt like celebrating but that was a tough order out there. >> the counterattack did not hinder our plans.

the north flank was weakened. now the stage was set. the empire troops swept together. the american armor turned toward aregentan. he found himself within a closing trap. >> i covered him with a gun down at the clearing station.

>> i covered him with a gun down at the clearing station. the tough ones with the smile froze stiff on their faces

by shell fire. the plane joe's for the much ready to tell you that. and poker-faced officers with a poker-faced look. the ss, the parachute troops, the old soldiers off the russian front. i have seen them all. the hitler youth babies looking , like they walked off the lincoln high, expert killers. smart alex talking about their , rights under the geneva convention, asking, when do we go to america? the other guys who crawled out of a hole with his hands up. and he would swear that he hated hitler all the time. kids you knew how i machine gun -- how a machine gun worked, but nothing else. holding that trigger finger still. middle-aged guys wanting to tell you about their wife and kids. they were through killing when i saw them. and through getting killed too.

some thought they were lucky and others did not. i will cover it down to the rear. it was not my job to think about. i just kept them covered. i never gave them more than the geneva convention. that was all. >> american tanks drawn dawn. the germans, their hands upraised, the roads littered with smoking gear. >> a good solid map -- a map does much for him at united army traveling at a high -- at a high speed. the situation was well in hand. then everything went mad, stark raving mad.

one morning i woke up, and the army went off the map, absolutely off the map. we rushed in order of 500 maps. they arrived in due time. to our horror, the army progressed far beyond the operation. off the map again. this is a time of acute crisis for me. i give the highest priority to a fresh order of maps. the final blow came when it became evident that we were going to bypass. eventually we had to drop 10 tons by parachute. it was a very humiliating experience. i will be glad when i get back to the library of congress. >> we french soldiers were fighting in the normandy field. and suddenly an order came. go to paris, it said.

and take it. the allies, after having equipped our division with tanks, guns, jeeps, at night decided to give us paris, too. so, at 4:00 in the morning, they start rushing in the rolls. on the right, on the left, everywhere. the american air force. what a treat. 250 kilometers in one day. i think i will tell my grandchildren and bore them until i die. >> at the beginning of august we in paris started to be concerned. at the end of the month, the german started to leave the city. yes, those were the same germans who signed five-year leases on

their apartments. the next day, that was the day too, when the police car opened fire and began the evacuation of the city. after that, it seemed the french flag was hanging from every window. all of the flags were made of curtains. everything. it didn't matter. four days later, we heard shouting. as we ran people were screaming. when we got to the plaza, we saw it. i kissed my husband because he was crying. we began to realize how unhappy we had been for four years. and how lucky we were to be

allies. -- alive. >> the great pursuit was on. suddenly, another of d-day plus photos. -- d-days does. american armies struck. and then they moved in light waves to join the forces on the rights. beyond this stage, where from 100 sites, germans launched the campaign of distraction on english towns -- the americans advanced, garrisons enforced by desperate foes and the canadians were sent. and then the british swept through.

>> the people of ruffles laughed and cried and -- of brussels laughed and cried and threw flowers in the tank and said goodbye, tony. they meant to say hello. i saw they were no longer afraid. i remember wondering then how the first germans were able to react to us. >> i remember one day we were coming across a big, flat field. it did not look like anything special. i hopped a barb wire fence and a guy said to me, guess what? i said, what? he says, you are in germany. it will not be long now. >> i had a fiver on it being over by october 1. i remember the point system for getting out of the army came out

at this time. i began to think of that great double-breasted suit. >> i was in the seventh army coming up from the south of france. one day a lieutenant said, take a ride with me. i have prisoners for you to guard. a whole german division. >> one day we came across a thing i had never seen before. that really made me feel good. >> if it shows up white it is american it it shows up dark it is that, and if it never shows up -- >> i found that the risk was for five miles. >> i wrote to the old man and i told him he better cut prices on g.i. neckties and stocks if he did not want to be stuck with a lot of military apparel. >> don't worry about me. >> it was a terrific eating.

-- beating. we were sure nothing could stop us. narrator: every line must at some point have an end. in southeast holland, nothing lay between the southeast army and the british and the german planes except to riveter's and a town. so we made our plans. then they would hold them for the force that could sweep up. thus where no line existed, over the rhine at last. we crossed in force. >> i sat right forward by the window. i could see nothing but the blue skies. one of the boys is reading a newspaper. he showed me a funny piece in it. i could not laugh. someone yelled -- we are planning now.

i remember thinking, what a bit of luck. >> the army came down and said -- let's bring it to a place in holland. you have to wait for the british army and then we would join them and head out.

>> we crossed the river and started out, but we did not get far. he put in everything he'd got. that was the worst. knowing our men needed army when , we could not get to them. >> we got ourselves well dug in. we were short of ammo and food, i will never forget those supply initiatives, the way jerry came in. towards the end, we knew the situation was bad. we knew it was possible we would not get out. more than anything, i remember the way that everyone behaved. the toughest fighters became gentle, kind and considerate to

each other. i knew a lot more about men after holland. >> the guns died out in arnhem and then we knew the greatest gallantry wasn't not enough to cross the bridge. now no choice remains, a direct force would be the only way to carve our corridor into the rigreich. thundering german guns controlled the 30 miles from antwerp to the sea. all the ports lay dead. it was a useless city on the sea. it would stay dead and so we cut away. >> i covered that battle for the associated press. i only wish i could have written the story with the greatness of the men who fought it. it was vicious and fearsome fighting all the way.

the canadians and the poles, the norwegians charging deepblood and water. it was the kind of fighting that makes legends. it was the greatest operation of its kind in history. the cost of the first ship into antwerp harbor was the lives of thousands of our bravest men. i reported it as well as i could. their memory deserves more than words. >> i was on the first call to antwerp. i saw more empty supply dumps than i wanted to see. i always wanted to know where stuff was.

you can't fight without stuff. everybody knows that. i made lots of trips. i don't know how many. driving all day, all night. and thinking, -- singing things , like, milkman, keep those bottles quiet. >> my job was to see if they had a new toothbrush, a cut, maybe a book to read the came from the east bank to the west bank of the mosul. we brought over one regiment at a time because that was all anyone could spare. someone tapped them on the shoulder and said, all right boy, you are going over the river for 24 hours rest. they couldn't believe it. here they were for 24 hours without war. everything was down to essentials. one night sleep, one days hot

meals, change of underwear clean pair of pants, issued, hot -- one was it a hot shower? the long legged girl of the screen it? it was over by morning. they were going back with their one clean suit of underwear and a good nights sleep. >> by that time we knew we were going to see a winter campaign. it there was no way out of it. the germans were dug in and they were tough. we weren't going anyplace. >> there was not a lot of flying. >> i suppose you are having a

swell time in paris with all that perfume. it >> they called it the end of the line south. there was very little warmth in the south. i remember the mediterranean where -- >> that is what we did. the sergeant said we do it every year. they don't man machine guns as well. >> there was no heating. >> i never smoked before. i found myself smoking a pack a day. i worried about that law percentages. you could be fighting alongside a stranger. it was a lonesome of feeling it.

>> it was pretty quiet. we started a military training ground. one day i am standing there. i thought this was it. the shells were not outgoing. they were incoming. the next thing i knew, it was essential but it was going the wrong way. >> the offensive was set aside. he cut a fiery path to the american lines and set his tanks toward the river. he aimed for the harbor from the edge. we held fire while we curbed the

germans in the bulge. >> one night i was a replacement. the next day they showed me in an airplane and that night i was fighting germans and being kicked around. i do know about the other outfit but mine was being cut to ribbons. the thing that still sticks in my head is the medics. the only weapon they had was a needle, but they were around where it was the hardest. they were yelling, medic, medic!

>> our whole division got a presidential citation. even me, just the cook. i will never forget that old lieutenant running into the kitchen and hollering at me, if i had any idea of how to operate a bazooka? i said no, and he said, you will learn to now, son. and by dogged, if i did not get me a jerry tank. they said it was a cracker jack story. i would tell it at the drop of a hat. >> coming down through belgium we noticed how scare some of the civilians were. natural, i suppose. we waited for action. >> on account of the fog, we

could not get any air coordination. on december 20 fourth, like a christmas present, the sun,, and after a while, we were giving them the old one to again. -- we were giving them the old 1-2 again. >> we stopped them dead, finally. it cost us plenty of men, but we stopped them. and we started moving ahead again.

>> back on the recoiling spring. the army sagged sodden toward the rhine. the three great architects of freedom that to fix the final blow. that even as they met, we moved to act on the strategy. now we could destroy him outside his headquarters. down the gauntlet, challenging him to stand and fight. [gunfire]

>> we were attacking the north would be canadians in the dutch frontier area. it was wet and filthy. i nicknamed the army commander admiral. they put up stiff opposition

but actually this is just what we hoped for. it showed that jerry's and motions about fighting for every foot of his mother and father land were getting the better of his sense of strategy and every german would make it easier for us. it was the bloodiest i have seen in this war. [explosions] >> a captain said eight positions, they follow things like that. i was with the outfit but to the city. there were not many civilians in the streets. there was a $65 ration for fraternization. i wonder how they figured out that number? i mean, why 65? >> we could see cologne cathedral a long time before we got there. it was on the rhine river. we got faster.

by the time we got there, there was not too much left. there were still a few bullion's, and i was sorry. i thought about those french cities flattened. anyway, we got our objective. no we had to cross that river. >> i thought they must be short of men when they put us sailors on the front. i'd never been sick at sea, but i was sick as a dog on the road. when we reached our destination, i was feeling lousy. it was under a stinking smokescreen. the next day, we got up to the rhine. it was good to have a glimpse of the water. >> our air force was giving them the lump sum the east side of the rhine, but i was still

nervous. i couldn't eat nothing but a couple of milky way bars. it was going to be d-day all over again. dangerous. >> a miracle. i'm no architect, but to me, -- there it was. i'm no architect, but to me, that was the most usable bridge in the world. they have the choppers working overtime. they give us a break and we cashed in on it. the rhine was finished, washed up. ♪

>> we got across in a meeting was going fine. the airborne blokes started to come over. they started looking and after about half an hour of it, one of them looks at me and says, drop again.

>> the pocket was the first big objective across the rhine. they exploded in all directions. they got the jerry, they were going to take them one by one. that was the program. they were carved up like a christmas turkey. >> chasing the germans was getting monotonous. there were a few shells, the

occasional sniper rifles shot. then one day, i saw myself in the war camp. there were cries. i've never seen him so happy. i told them -- president roosevelt died yesterday afternoon. they quieted down. they all felt that they had suffered a major defeat. i might have stayed there until noon trying to do them up, but there was no time to lose. where to get the men a few hundred square miles. you've got to hurry them up. >> we were in the home stretch getting deeper all the time. we ran into slave workers. they were sick and hungry and all over europe. the roads were jammed with them. i guess there's a lot more than

towns going to have to be reconstructed. >> i started to wonder with those personnel, as they were urgently called for. i soon found out. we are taken the concentration camp. well, i'm not squeamish. i've seen amputations, operations, deaths, long before i went into the army and -- in '41. i was a warden. i lost count of everything i had seen. this was different. bloody different. i'm not proud of this. i had to fall out. like i said, i'm not squeamish, but well -- [indiscernible] >> the government sent a few of

those congressmen over to see those camps and if there is anyone left to wonders if this war was worth fighting, well, i wish they had been along. there it was, right in front of us, fascism, and what it does wherever it crops up. i talked to some of the britons, the ones that had the strength -- some of the prisoners, the ones that have the strength to talk. they had the wrong religion, wrong race, wrong political party. in germany, it led to over 400 camps like the ones i saw. it was the worst thing i have ever saw in my life and i would not have missed it or anything.

>> we have been flying around with the british transport command since d-day. >> as pocket after pocket left in italy, a million prisoners came in as with a single side and blow the german power was smashed. the russians took berlin and cut the heart from hitler's empire. and he vanished like smoke. upon the green banks of the river elbe, we waited for east and west to meet.

>> we linked up with the russkis at the elba river. he did not know any english. i taught him to say something. we did all right. i don't like to think where we would have been without this. [explosions] >> we were going toward the danish frontier. a million and a half surrendered in the north. the fighting would be over and our job was beginning. we were prepared for plenty of

trouble. resistance. perhaps something more violent. where wolves in sheep's clothing. they seemed healthy, well fed. their disease was in their minds. a german woman, looking to the left of the town said to me -- if only you had given up in 1940, none of this need have happened.

[explosions] >> at one minute after midnight, may 9, 1945, the guns stopped. d plus 347. >> now it starts. all the arguments about which country won the war. anyone who wants to take it up by himself is not only boasting, but nuts. >> i spent four years in the infantry. during that time i only met three men who likes to fight but they were little cracked. it had to be done. now that it is over, i feel good except for one thing.

all this talk about world war iii. these big pessimists to talk so easy about another were just did not see this one. or enough of it. >> i would rather be friends with some of them. i was thinking of those who bought it -- friends shot down missing. our member their faces or a joke they played -- i remember their faces or a joke they played or the way they laughed or something. it can be such a loss. >> to the victor belongs these spoils. that's what they say. a chance to build a free world better than before. it may be our last chance. remember that. >> now the time has come to put

our victory to the test. in the rebuilding of a broken earth, may we keep in our hearts this ancient prayer -- the lord god now giveth to thy servants -- grant to us also to know it is not the beginning, but the continuing of same until it is utterly finished, which ye have given. ♪ [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2015] which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] -- [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

>> here are some of our featured programs. starting at noon, politicians and white house officials offer encouragement to the class of 2015. speakers include george w. bush and melanie hobson. at 9:15 p.m., the presidency of george h w bush. or commencement speeches from across the country and former secretaries of state. on c-span two, book tv is in new york city with the best from this week's books expo america beginning at 10:00. there are live call-in segments with publishers.

on afterwards, we look at the case which considered the constitutionality of the law that resends the right of same-sex couples to marry in california. this evening at 7:00, conversation with story and william seal on first ladies who had the most impact on the executive mansion. the life and death of our 20th president, james garfield who served two decades as a congressman from ohio and was assassinated 200 days into his term as president. get our complete schedule at www.c-span.org. >> real america brings you archival films that tell the story of the 20 century. >> we delay the start of the tonight show to bring you the following nbc news special report.

at noon, a north vietnamese tank broke the gate. the revolution's flight raised across the empty lot. the shooting on this day was a celebration of. saigon had already surrendered. >> the palace guard it, there was no resistance from the palace guard. they were disarmed quietly and lined up on the grass area --. their weapons were taken away. >> president bill clinton's

address to the coast guard academy from 15 years ago. it is followed by the u.s. naval academy in a 2005. we are looking back at presidential commencement speeches at the military academy. president obama spoke at the coast guard academy last week. now, president clinton from 2000. this is just over 30 minutes. president clinton: secretary slater, admiral lloyd, senator dodd, distinguished members of the diplomatic corps, dr. huff members of the faculty and staff and honored guests -- distinguished family and members of the class of 2000 -- i want to begin by complementing -- on