60 Second Histories
WW1 - Gas attack
An overview of the different types of gas used during WW1 together with the developments of gas masks and hoods to protect soldiers.
National Film Board of Canada
To Wake Up the Nakota Language
Across North America, Indigenous languages are at risk of disappearing. “When you don’t know your language or your culture, you don’t know who you are,” says Armand McArthur, one of the last fluent Nakota speakers in Pheasant Rump First...
60 Second Histories
Roses of No Man's Land
A recital of a popular WW1 song which explains why nurses became known as the "Roses of No Man's Land"
60 Second Histories
WW1 - No Man's Land
A WW1 soldier explains what No Man's Land is and how it came by its name
60 Second Histories
Life in the trenches - Part 5
This video describes how injured soldiers were taken care of both on the battlefield and in the trenches by their comrades and the medical officer. Part 5 of a 7 part series
60 Second Histories
WW1 - Shell shock
This video takes a look at shell shock and the effect it has on soldiers. It also highlights the treatments for shell shock and the way in which officers were treated differently to the ordinary soldier
60 Second Histories
WW1 - Trench foot
A WW1 nurse gives a gruesome account of trench foot and frostbite together with the cause and treatment available to soldiers
60 Second Histories
British soldier's equipment 1916-18
A British WW1 soldier describes the equipment during 1916-18 and explains how it adapted to suit the changing way the war was being fought
60 Second Histories
Life in the trenches - Part 1
A description of the trenches that stretched from Belgium to Switzerland which were built after the war was bogged down in stalemate. Part 1 of a 7 part series
60 Second Histories
Lewis gunner - Part 2
A Lewis gunner explains how the Lewis gun was loaded and used in short bursts for the best effect and how it could even be taken into No Mans Land to support troops in an attack
60 Second Histories
Princess Mary's Christmas Gift
A description of the brass box given to every serving soldier; it explains why and what the different boxes contained.
60 Second Histories
Christmas Truce - 1914
A WW1 soldier describes the Christmas Truce 1914, he explains it was more an opportunity for burying their dead than playing football.
60 Second Histories
Lewis gunner - Part 1
A description of the Lewis gunner, the first machine gunner who could pick up his gun and take it with him even though it weighed over twelve kilos.
60 Second Histories
Life in the trenches - Part 2
A description of a trench; the traversing, loop holes and the use of trench periscopes to view the enemy. Part 2 of a 7 part series
60 Second Histories
WW1 - Gangrene dressing
A WW1 nurse talks about her first experience of dressing a gangrene wound and the limited pain relief available
60 Second Histories
WW1 Munitions worker - part 1
A munitionette describes how they worked, the explosives they came into contact with and the reason their skin turned yellow. Part 1 in a 4 part series
60 Second Histories
WW1 Weapons - hand grenade
A look at the development of hand grenades and the ingenuity of the soldiers who made their own.
60 Second Histories
Life in the trenches - Part 3
A description of the practicalities and problems the army faced in the trenches when it came to supplies and latrines. Part 3 of a 7 part series
60 Second Histories
Life in the trenches - Part 7
A description of going 'over the top'; the noise of the explosions, the vibration, the fear….. The last in a 7 part series
60 Second Histories
WW1 - Bad news at home
A war widow explains how women were given the news of their loved one's death and shows that some war pensions were only temporary
60 Second Histories
WW1 Munitions worker - part 3
A munitionette talks about the practicality of getting to the shops when, as a munitions worker, you work such long hours and of course there was never much on the shelves due to rationing. Part 3 in a 4 part series
60 Second Histories
WW1 Munitions worker - part 2
A description of life in a munitions factory; the danger, the accidents, the camaraderie and of course, the gossip. Part 2 in a 4 part series
60 Second Histories
WW1 weapons - the rifle
A WW1 soldier describes the Lee Enfield rifle, its workings and effectiveness; so rapid was the fire that the Germans actually thought it was a machine gun
60 Second Histories
Shot at dawn
A sad tale of a firing squad and a young seventeen year old who, although probably suffering from shell shock, was shot for desertion