Channel 4 · Ended

A World in Arms Britain's War Against Napoleon

War · 2002

Last aired: S1 E3, Freedom · 2002-02-04

The Revolution of 1789 transformed France from decadent monarchy to modern state. It threw up the first citizen's army and introduced the concept of Total War. Under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte, the greatest general of his age, France established a mighty empire. Its haughty ambitions naturally brought it into conflict with the British Empire, and the war that erupted as a result shook the world ... It was, truly, the first 'world war'. As empires clashed, five million people died in fighting that raged from Russia to Spain and from Java to the Caribbean. And when it ended with the British Empire triumphant and French ambitions crushed, nothing would ever be the same again. This major three-part series from Channel 4 brings to life the story of that epic war, combining expert commentary and analysis with dramatic battle re-enactments and journal and diary entries from those who fought. It provides vivid accounts of the key battles at Trafalgar and Waterloo as well as many lesser-known engagements, and reveals how a new kind of warfare and world was born in the maelstrom of conflict.

Cast

Denis Lawson Narrator

Season 1

E1 Armies 2002-01-22 · 60 min Examination of how a ramshackle British army managed to defeat the formidable French at the Battle of Waterloo. Napoleon Bonaparte had used a policy of total war and military might to build a huge empire and create the most powerful country in Europe in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Written testimonies from soldiers of the era help to explain how the fate of the world was decided through bloodshed.

E2 Navies 2002-01-28 · 60 min A glimpse at the Battle of Trafalgar through the eyes of Admiral Pierre Villeneuve, who not only saw his navy fail, but may have lost his life at the hands of Napoleon as a consequence. Plus, a look at how the battle changed the future of Britain, France and South America.

E3 Freedom 2002-02-04 · 60 min An examination of how British ideas of liberty in the 18th century were dramatically changed by events across the English Channel, prompting a move toward conservative thinking. The French Revolution terrified the British government, and the need to fund the fight against Napoleon meant the introduction of taxation, bureaucracy and censorship : but how much do these ideas continue to influence thinking today?

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