Rise of the Nazis: Dictators at War

Hitler turns his attention to the Eastern Front

• Christina Zeiders
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  Christina Zeiders is the Communications Specialist at WITF. She helps get the word out about all of WITF's programs, events and community conversations.

Rise of the Nazis: Dictators at War is a three-part series that examines the defining conflict of World War II as Hitler faces an equally ruthless dictator, Stalin.

Now at the peak of his power, Hitler tries to deceive the Soviet leader with a plan to invade Britain, while secretly preparing an attack on the Soviet Union. But Stalin has a spy in Hitler’s HQ.

With Germany facing defeat on the Eastern Front, resistance builds as Hitler pushes Germany to untold destruction. This is the story of why dictatorships fail, and of the hubris that nearly destroyed freedom, but ultimately destroyed itself.

In Barbarossa, we’ll look at the battles on the Eastern Front, a campaign that saw some of the most brutal and inhumane warfare in all of history and are viewed by many as the defining conflict of the the Second World War.

The second episode, Stalingrad, we travel to 1942, after Hitler has just lost the Battle of Moscow. It’s now winter in the Soviet Union, German troops are in desperate need of fuel and resources.

In The Home Front, the third and final episode of the season, Hitler’s stress intensifies. For once, there is no master plan and Hitler leaves it to the men around him to pull Germany back from the abyss.

Watch Rise of the Nazis: Dictators at War on WITF TV Tuesdays, April 12, 19 and 26 at 9pm, or stream each episodes on-demand the day after its broadcast premiere through the PBS Video app or at video.witf.org. (Episodes will be available to stream for free for four weeks following their broadcast premiere.)

WITF Passport members can stream Rise of the Nazis season 1 now. Become a Passport member by donating at least $5 a month or $60 a year to WITF. Learn more, sign up or activate your Passport membership at witf.org/passport.