produced by the u.s. army signal corps. this introduction to english society and to the events that led the united kingdom into world war ii, was shown to american troops in the lead up to the 1944 d-day invasion. ♪

♪ [applause] [cheering] narrator: that game was not one by the man that made that touchdown, it was by 18. and every man had a share in winning. now we're playing another kind of game only this one is not for fun. it is for keeps. [gunfire] this game will not be won by a single player, it will

be won by 18. a team called the united nations. the ball will be carried by those in the backfield, the tough guys from china, big joe russia, john britton and -- britain, and the guy called yank. let's take a look at the men that carry the ball with us. who are they? how do they live? we will start with the one that is toughest to understand, the one we know just enough about to tain.se us, john bri narrator: here is where he lives, and island no larger than idaho. half a million people live in idaho, 96 times that many live in great britain. the not these and -- the nazis and the japanese campaign about

-- complain about living space, but more people live in great britain than in japan and there is more congestion than anywhere on earth. that is a clue that explains a lot. we built front porches on our houses because we do not want to miss the chance to see neighbors. but great britain hides himself in a box and put the head around that to make sure that they don't, living that close to neighbors, privacy is part of the pursuit of happiness. in the sardine can, they learn to get on with neighbors. -- that iso, he is why they have so little time. believe it or not, even in war times, the british officer does not carry a gun. nor does the professional crook. heard6, when the world about great britain, transportation, the whole length of the country was paralyzed by a general strike.

it was still surprising to learn that they were playing football. you can only understand if you live in us is hard -- in a sardine can. but things improve with this guy on our team. no part of great britain is more than 100 miles from the sea. every day for hundreds of years, years of peace and of war, john britain watches ships sail. that means, whenever he wants to bust out of the sardine can, it is the sea that gets him there. he has been busting out for hundreds of years. and that led to australia, south canada, andzealand, for that matter the united states of america. ♪ britain: how did john get on our team? in 1938, the yankees won the

pennant, the last trains ran on the 6th avenue l, well, john britain got excited about the same things. job, getting exercise on his day off, playing football -- [applause] narrator: only 300 miles away, people were at another kind of event. [shouting] narrator: in london, at every british city, they were reading about what was going on and they got sore about it. but they were well determined to keep it none of their business. then -- this. chs had an -- cze

agreement with france and france had one with great britain. it could mean war even though everybody was anxious to avoid it. they had been through one war, they had been wounded. hundreds of thousands of brothers and friends had been killed. there was nothing beautiful about war and they had no desire for another. ♪ >> the last effort to preserve peace, the prime minister flew to munich. narrator: all is well, great britain, france, italy and germany where signing a packed -- pact, in which the germans agreed they had no further claims to make. it would be peace in our time. the it turned out to be a strange piece -- peace. hitler's first move was to break the pact.

now they knew that something had to be done about germany. they approved the construction atct, the first in their history. ♪ the british put their cards on the table. they had said to hitler's -- >> if you go into poland, we will fight. beely, there would conquerors of britain, he thought he understood the british. he did not. [explosion] narrator: he did not. the lion again to wake up. rowled.ped and grout -- g he dropped bombs.

he hoped that common sense would return to the german people, and that they would throw out hitler. --tead, invadederman armies luxembourg and belgium. armies., surrendering ♪ state hasnch chief of offered an armistice. narrator: great britain was alone. , polandovakia occupied was defeated, denmark was gone, non--- norway was gone, only great britain now. great britain was alone.

considered the war to be over and everybody considered it over except the british. on the 11th hour, the lion was loud.y allowed -- >> we will defend our island, whatever the cost. we shall fight on beaches, in fields, on the street. and we shall never -- [siren] narrator: for a year, they took everything that the nazis could throw at them. 1940ne solid year, from until 1941, they were the only major power fighting the greatest war machine in the world. [explosion] [sirens] ♪ blowtor: they took body

after a body blow, solid punches before they even had their guard up. they took it on the chin and hung onto the ropes. they never went down. ♪ buriedr: and while they the dead, they prepared to finally for the day when they could strike back. just were no victories, defeat after defeat. some heroic like the beaches of dunkirk, or like the hills of eece, where british soldiers landed. they landed knowing that they were facing overwhelming odds, but some left glorious. singapore, and burma. through all of these long months, the british people were

thinking and planning and working, only for the day when they themselves would take the offensive. that day came. [explosion] motors]e ♪ [gunfire] [airplane motors] [gunfire] narrator: it was the british

that made the germans realize that war could be brought to german soil too. day after day, night after night, . ♪ [explosion] narrator: it continued in greater strength. ground,ir and on the 1500 miles away in north africa. [explosion] [cannon fire]

♪ [explosion] [explosion] ♪

♪ 1700 miles in 122 days. 1700 miles of sand, wind and enemies. what's more, the people of great britain heard the church bells ring. [bells ringing] yearsor: more than three earlier, they were warned that this would be the signal of invasion. but long since the nightmare of the threat of invasion had

passed, now they rang out the song of thanksgiving, the sound of victory. ♪ [bells ringing] ♪ narrator: that is the plain and simple truth about great britain, but those on the axis team know that the only chance of winning is to spend our team up -- spin our team up. so they played a game called, divide and conquer. tell thee these british we are not taking the war seriously. they tell the russians that we are letting them down. they tell us -- >> it is ridiculous for

roosevelt to tell the american people that they have anything in common with the british. on the contrary, they are different in every respect. narrator: there are differences, that is true. for instance, we drive on the right side of the road. on the left.ain, we go for baseball. [applause] narrator: they have a number called cricket. [applause] narrator: anyone that every drink coffee over there -- drank coffee over there knows why there will always be an england. >> is your copy all right, --

coffee alright, sir? >> blimey. --so i went in for dinner hey! ♪ >> and the smaller piano. >> are they getting? -- kidding? sowhy do they always mush much, you cannot understand a word they say. narrator: there are differences, but there are some things they have in common. and these are the important things in life. a little thing called a free representative government, we call it congress. they call it parliament. a little thing called freedom of speech. in the next war, they will bring

it to you. called underng is the american workers body. it is dedicated to the organizing of the working class. narrator: freedom of the press, freedom of religion, they may not be important to hitler, but all of these things are the common heritage of john q public and great britain. several years ago, our ancestors fought for the manna carta -- magna carta. 300 years ago the petition for rights. >> no man should be compelled to yield any tax without parliament. narrator: these came to our country with the earliest settlers, then developed. >> congress will make new laws in respect of religion, where abridging -- where -- narrator: we make the same

language of freedom. even when we wrote the declaration -- >> you cannot but respect to their cause and wish to make it your own. narrator: and alongside his great naval hero, john britain has put george washington. and in parliament's there were -- square, abraham lincoln. hitler does not like this talk. he wants to say that we are a nation of money grabbers -- grubbers and gangsters. , he isnext studio telling us the british are dopes. that we are entirely different. ok, where of these miners?

wales or west virginia? devonshire or wisconsin? the steelworkers, sheffield or pittsburgh? these children, american or british? they live in land that share the ideals, andhe same unlike the poor children of germany in a land where the truth is free. ♪ narrator: let's not kid ourselves, great britain is not the united states. for instance, we do not go for this kind of thing. they do. but there is no mystery about that. remember our grandmothers house, old-fashioned and out of date, generations.y

well, john britain has been living in his house for a long time. in the modern house, we had built ourselves to suit ourselves. britain, there are traditions, like the king for instance. the king has gone to the same church and into the same ceremonies that his ancestors did. but his job is very different from theirs. there are changes. he can no longer impose taxes or interfere with the government. jobfamily and he work the that the people expected of him. he is a servant of the people and not the ruler. when an american is arrested and brought to trial, the bailiff call his case. >> the people versus john doe. narrator: but in great britain

-- >> the king versus john doe. narrator: it means the same thing. today, the king is a symbol of the people. the british are fans of buckingham palace, but when they sing god save the king, they are not singing about his health, they are talking about the british people. and in 1911, the people took away the last remaining power of the lords. ls do not girls -- ear run the country anymore. today there are only two people that do that, john britain and his wife. they go to the polls and the elect their representatives to the house of commons. and they fixed the taxes and the laws. and if they wanted to get rid of the representatives, they could

vote them out of existence. what john does not want to get rid of them. they keep dukes and lords in a country where unions have long been accepted as an essential part of the system. where the labour party controlled by the unions is one of the two great political parties. where railroad engineers and longshoremen work together and for 30 years, they have had social security, even more extensive than our own. about the lords , do not think they got jobs because of -- they got them because they were the best man for the jobs, just as the former labor leader and now member of the war cabinet, and an errand boy that is now the minister of home security, got there important jobs because they were the best men for them.

service,hings on the urface, differ. but the important things, do not. this gentleman never bothered about the troops. and when john britain started carrying the war to germany, they used a line. narrator: ok, we will take a look. here is the british empire. here is where the germans were going after britain declared war. does that look like trying to save the empire? germany when they were going into poland and russia? fell, hitler

tried to work with the british. this was a chance to save the empire. but that is not what the british were thinking about. >> the position of the any --ent, in respect of by hitler, we are not prepared to negotiate with him at any time. [applause] and after britain had been on the losing end, they had another chance to save the empire. hitler thought that britain would make a deal. we heard the answer. >> what kind of people today think we are? is it possible they do not realize that we shall never cease to fight against them until they have been taught a lesson, which they and the world

will never forget. [applause] narrator: let's take a look at the british empire. the freedom we fought for britain has since given to australia, new zealand, south africa. these are independent nations, with their own parliaments, their own laws, even their own money systems, their own tariffs , which often work to the disadvantage of great britain. [explosion] narrator: great britain could not even take them into war it she wanted to. -- if she wanted to. >> nobody ever talks about the

british empire today without mentioning india. men of goodwill in great britain and other countries have been outspoken in their demand for indian freedom. no man who believes in democracy can support the foreign role of any people. onthat the indians fix their laws, frequently to britain's disadvantage. 11 of the 15 members are indian. judges have never been conscripted for the service in the army and navy. from 170,000 to the outbreak of war to a million and a quarter today.

and on the subject of india, listen to the words of field marshal. he fought against the british 40 years ago and became the leader of one of the british commonwealth of nations. prime minister of south africa. will, can beshe free in the same way and by the same means as canada and australia, and new zealand. those people worked out the constitution for themselves. the same course is open to india if the peoples of india will agree to the terms of a free constitution. freedom is not a thing that can be imposed from without. it can only be created from within. >> the indians have a responsibility to reconcile the indian population with its hundreds of different languages. the 11th, 1942, the

british government promised full self-government to india if india will work out a constitution that will satisfy its people after the war is over. during this word military leaders agreed that troops are needed in india to keep the not these and japs from uniting. it provides the basis to get at the japs. in other parts of the empire, democracy stand on guard. alexandria --for they are hanging on to them regardless of the cost. there would have been no american landing in north africa. there's another tune they play

about the british empire. the british let others fight the war for them. >> britain will fight to the last. that thousands of canadians and australians and new zealanders have gallantly --and gallantly died in greece and in libya. there's something pretty important. inhabitants of the british empire, one comes from britain. but of the casualties suffered so far in this war, seven out of 10 were born and raised in britain. seven of 10 in casualties. air, as the planes three are manned by cruise from britain and the

planes on the overseas front, four out of five are manned by men from britain. and then there's a little thing called the british navy. it went against the spanish armada. in 1940 it is moving on a two ocean navy. is manned almost entirely by men from britain. a little island in the atlantic. and the british royal navy, still the greatest merchant navy in the world. , onfrom every british town ice coated darks, in grimy into dreams, men have been to repeated twice, three times.

one of the sailors has been torpedoed six times and still find on again. we never hear about these things because of ways that will never be understandable to an american. has an idea that he shouldn't talk about himself and what he does. he calls it bad form. spitfire, oh he is not exact type. but this band, the boss of the german air force, who is been the most deadly fighter in the world, and we certainly need an interpreter when this happens. spent twot that he days in the icy waters of the

north atlantic after being torpedoed. see this man. or not, iselieve it the first man who flew the atlantic nonstop. in 1919, eight years before anyone else, he and another man flew nonstop from newfoundland to ireland. he went back into its security. there is nothing wrong with john britain that a course in showmanship wouldn't cure. for a moment imagine that you are not american, but british. you would still be in uniform. but in britain every man between the age of 18 and 41, in less you cannot be replaced, is already in uniform. o.ur old man to

they are starting to draft men up to 51. if you got yourself into this , he was say, frightfully sorry old chap, you're in the army anyway. if you are a sailor or in the air force are and the land army or a pilot or in the fire brigade, she is probably in the navy. and even if she is married anyone up to 41 can be drafted. workers, men and women, can quit their jobs and enroll with government permission. woman, youngan or or old, is in the front lines.

maybe this isn't your idea of britain. the ads were different and you wonder if they still make bows and arrows in the village. they have quest -- kept quiet about industry, just as this kept out the aircraft in the auto fields. they have what you have read about. the quiet country lanes. but they also have sheffield and the pittsburgh of britain. they have the picturesque little village. castles, but they also have the shipyards of the river clyde.

still one of the greatest in the world. they also have the great industrial cities of burning home him. they seldom if ever saw an american tourist that they may britain, even in peacetime, one of the greatest industrial powers in the world. wartime, even as late as noy 1942, this country larger than the state of idaho, was making more war equipment than we were. maybe you thought britain sat there and waited for us to send in planes, and guns, and tanks. it saves his skin when he was in a tough spot. thant works in more ways one. today john britain himself sonishes planes and guns

they can be of aid to us, to russia, and allies all over the world. in prison of all our forces have received free from the british and millions and a half tons of food, clothes, and ammunition. there is another thing you want to know about britain. if your unit gets sent there, you probably won't be invited out for supper or a drink. that's not because the british don't want to entertain you, they have nothing to entertain you with. britain is mobilized for war. total war. and that means an end to civilian supplies. youou are a britisher, wouldn't expect your girl to use lipstick. there isn't any access what we bring over as bait. nicely dressed

because of severe rations. very unlikely she wears stockings because if she bought a pair of stockings a month they'll be all the clothes of any kind she could buy. that is some rationing. john britain gets at all. he goes to a pub to buy a bottle of whiskey, the pub keeper glass in his face. green is needed for -- grain is needed for industrial alcohol. industrial alcohol is need for munitions. -- it is all sent to america for the goods britain by fear. don't forget, britain buys and pays for vast quantities of goods. if the cash purchases that britain made before we entered , allowed our industry to be built up in record times. he goes to buy a pack of

cigarettes, or probably aren't any. but if there are, that's $.40 for a pair of cigarettes. the pack is paid to the government. britain is going all out in taxation. nobody is making any money out of this war. industry is paying. excess profits tax is 100%. labor is paying. weekan who earns $32 a pays 35% income tax. man, if there are any of them left, pay that income tax no less than 90 half percent. there is the matter food. there are not many fat men these days. he knows that it is helping him to win the war. the british rations are the rations of a free people. food as they did in peacetime from canada, australia, but that would mean ships and the british prefer to

use the ships for supplies to russia. planes for america, trips to the mediterranean, to win the war, every britisher is on short rations and has been for two years. everyone except the children. they get four times the eggs that grown-ups do. they get all the oranges that arrived in britain. and practically all of the extra milk. but john britton is thinking of after the war. that his children and ours will inherit. a world where it will not only be freedom of speech and freedom of worship, that also freedom and freedom from fear. us,f it is not given to , in theo the future days to come the british and

american people will for their own safety and for the good of in majesty,ether justice, and in peace. >> this is what the british are fighting for. people, an old stubborn people, and sometimes they had moved slowly. blood, ande years of sweat, and tears, john britain has been strong. ♪ >> now he is tough, now he is determined, and now he knows where he is launching to victory into a new world. he is a good man to have on our team. ♪

>> you are watching american history tv all weekend, every weekend on c-span3. to join the conversation like us on facebook at c-span history. coverage posted by the civil war institute at gettysburg college. the focus was reconstruction. a panel of historians talk about challenges confederate veterans place -- face in the civil war aftermath. good afternoon i am peter carmichael. i am a history has her -- professor here at gettysburg college.