.

.

DISC ONE

The first part of the DVD opens with news reports detailing events during the latter part of the invasion of the Low Countries by the Third Reich and the beginning of the invasion of northern France:

THE NEWS IN FRANCE FROM PATHE  (23 MAY 1940):

Dutch refugees land in England

Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands flees to England

The Luftwaffe bombs Dutch and Belgian cities

Endless columns of refugees clog France's country roads

Allied troops fight in northern Norway

An Anglo-French expedition corps reaches Narvik

Total Time:  13 Minutes.  In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles.  Excellent digital quality.

 THE NEWS IN FRANCE FROM PATHE (06 JUNE 1940):

The American ambassador lays a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Narvik is taken by the Allied Expedtion Forces

German pilots target hospitals in northern France

1,100 German bombs fall on Paris and its suburbs

Fifth Columnists are apprehended in Paris

Rear guard units blow up bridges and towers to prevent their use by the Germans

Munitions factories all over France are working day and night

British and French soldiers are evacuated at Dunquerque

The Belgian king surrenders to the Germans

Total Time: 13 Minutes. In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles. Excellent digital quality.

The next two newsreels have been taken from German Wartime Newsreels 4 and chronicle the final stages of the Campaign in the West as well as France's capitulation:

 The Luftwaffe attacks fleeing Allied troops at Dunkirk

The Germans march into Dunkirk

The Italians declare war on the Allies

Luftwaffe raids on Paris

Air attacks on La Havre

German offensive begins from Amiens toward Rouen and La Havre

Allies set oil tanks on fire in Oisemont

The Marne is crossed

Germans take the Palace of Versailles

The Germans enter Paris

Einzugsparade in Paris

Scharnhorst and Gneisenau wreak havoc in the North Sea

Sinking of HMS Glorious

Offensive against the Maginot Line

Metz and Strasbourg fall into German hands

Verdun is taken

The battle for Alsace-Lorraine is finished

France capitulates at Compiegne

Total Time: 64 Minutes. In German with switchable English subtitles. Excellent digital quality.

DISC TWO

France has been defeated.  The period of hardship, humiliation --- and collaboration --- begins.  The newsreels on this DVD are all from Vichy and occupied France:

THE NEWS IN FRANCE FROM ACE (27 OCTOBER 1940):

An exhibition in the Petit Palais in Paris about Freemasonry

Cattle is rounded up to supplement rationing needs in Paris

Transportation by bus becomes popular in occupied Paris

Bus engines are modified to run on natural gas

Plain designs and Ersatz-materials are used for new Parisian fashions

The British re-open the Burma Road, in spite of Japanese pressure

Louisiana is flooded after heavy rains

Traditional swimming competition in Barcelona

The Wehrmacht gives a concert in Madrid's main arena

Tangier is occupied by Spanish troops

Dobruja is awarded to Bulgaria in the Treaty of Craiova

Italian forces push into Anglo-Egyptian Sudan

The Italians take Kassala

German bombers take off for England

 Total Time: 15 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality.

THE NEWS IN FRANCE FROM PATHE (27 OCTOBER 1940):

Severe flooding in Roussillon

Frenchmen, Germans and Italians attend the funeral of three officers -- one from each country -- who died in a plane crash together

General Weygand is named head of French forces in North Africa

The British bomb Dakar

Former POWs return to Vichy

Total Time: 5 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Excellent quality; some pixellization

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (12 FEBRUARY 1941):

Bicycle taxis replace motorized ones in Paris

France puts out a new stamp with the image of Marshal Petain

3,200 doctors and medics are released from POW camps by the Germans

14 to 17 year old unemployed boys are sent to camps to learn a skill

Mountain troops in training

Admiral Darlan is appointed vice president of the Council of Ministers

Marshal Petain meets General Franco at Montpellier

Total Time: 13 Minutes. In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with some pixellization.

THE NEWS IN FRANCE FROM ACE (02 JUNE 1942):

A million city children were able to go on vacation in the countryside

The Crusade for Clean Air begins

The 15th Imperial Games of French and colonial youth

Physical education final exam at the Parisian Academy

Opening of the German technical exhibition in Lisbon

Chandra Bose arrives at the Fuhrerhauptquartier

With the Wehrmacht at the Arctic Circle

The latest news about the Battle of Kerch

The conquest of Manila by the Japanese

Total Time: 15 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with some softness.  Audio inconsistencies.

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (04 JULY 1942):

Soccer tournament in Madrid

French swimming championship in Lyon

The Day of Youth in Valencia, Spain

The Rembrandt Prize for 1942 is given out in Holland

Dr. Goebbels opens the Grosse Deutsche Kunstausstelung in Munich

A Portuguese training ship for youth arrives in Casablanca

A riding competition in Budapest

1942 - The Year of the Middle East

Defeat of all Soviet forces in the Don Bend

German troops advance towards Stalingrad

An overview of British-controlled India

Total Time: 14 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality; some pixellization

THE NEWS IN FRANCE FROM ACE  (11 JULY 1942)

Governor General Chatel visits the Ben-Bedel dam in Algeria

A return to Mers El Kebir  (Oran)

The Day of the Navy in Rome

Bicycle race in Paris

Yearly feast of the Moorish Guard in Spain

German and Italian forces cross the ridge at Halfaya

Tobruk falls

Sevastopol is taken

A French commission inspects a camp for French fighters in the USSR

The Fuhrer receives Marshal Mannerheim

The Furher receives Lieutenant Marseille

The 2000th volunteer leaves to work in Germany

The harvest is worked by unemployed youth in France

Total Time: 19 Minutes. In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with pixellization and softness.  Audio inconsistencies.

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (29 AUGUST 1942):

The Battle of Stalingrad begins

German troops cut the rail line between Moscow and Stalingrad

German troops try to put out oil well fires started by withdrawing Soviet troops in the Caucasus

Caucasian militia keep order in Pyatigorsk

German mountain troops climb Mt. Elbrus

Royal regatta competition on the Grand Canal in Venice

The Danish royal pair visit the "Day of Sports" events

Rouen is bombed by the Anglo-Americans

Total Time: 14 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with some softness. Pixellization.

  

FRANCE ACTUALITES (03 October1942):

Boxing match between Cerdan and Ferrer

Creating vaccines from snake venom

Loire castles are opened to house children, whose parents were killed in Allied air raids

An appeal to turn in old clothing for POWs in Germany

Large companies in France are called upon to open collective farms and share the food with their workers

Two more metro lines are opened up in Paris

The Winterhilfswerk campaign begins in Germany

A Japanese submarine arrives at a German naval base on the Atlantic

Italian freight cars and locomotives are shipped to Tobruk

German planes bomb Murmansk

German troops conquer the southern section of Stalingrad

The Luftwaffe carpet bombs Stalingrad

A Soviet tank division attacks the Germans at Rzhev

The Japanese take Sumatra

Danish Waffen-SS volunteers return home from the Eastern Front

Marshal Petain visits Avignon

Total Time: 25 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Unsharp quality with some softness. Pixellization.

TOTAL DURATION OF DVD-R:  120 MINUTES

DISC THREE

The War is about to take a very different turn for the Axis powers and their Vichy admirers. The newsreels on this DVD are all from Vichy and occupied France:

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (30 OCTOBER 1942)

The "Comedy Francaise" puts on an anniversary performance of  'L'autre Danger'

The Exhibition for Handicrafts is opened in Paris

Bulls are inspected in Provence for the bullfighting arena

Dog racing in Holland

An exhibition about French colonial contributions to France is opened in Paris

Fighting south of Lake Ilmen

The battle for Stalingrad continues

Total Time: 11 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Good quality; strong pixellization.

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (07 NOVEMBER 1942):

Admiral Darlan makes an inspection trip of French West Africa

Admiral Darlan visits the "Jean Bart" battleship in Casablanca

Parisian children give away their Christmas presents to needy children

New hairstyles without using electricity for curlers

A lottery drawing for holders of savings coupons

The anniversary of the Black Shirt march on Rome

Sixth anniversary of Franco receiving the title "Caudillo"

Professor Thorak completes his latest work, "Mother and Child"

A rail line is laid north of Lake Ilmen to bring in supplies

Mountain troops dig in at Touapse, in the Caucasus

On board an Italian submarine in the Atlantic, the "Barbarigo"

A German squadron leaves its Norwegian base to intercept American convoys heading to Murmansk

Bombardment of Fort El-Tag in Libya

Total Time: 19 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality; strong pixellization

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (28 NOVEMBER 1942):

The Damnation of Faust is performed for the benefit of war invalids

The last motorcycle race of the year is held in Bucharest

Eight trains of released POWs arrives in Lyon

The avenue on the Bay of Angels in Nice is being widened

Wooden shoes are made for schoolchildren

Land is being reclaimed in Denmark to use as new farmland

Roadbuilding in Galicia, Ukraine

General Franco opens a school for Falangist women

Cotton is exported from harbors in the Crimea

The draft of young men for the army in rural Hungary is celebrated

Increased production of dried vegetables

A new kind of bread is developed to replace the disappeared white bread

Countermeasure training in the Norwegian fjords

The Italians counterattack near Stalingrad

The Anglo-Americans invade North Africa

Total Time: 21 Minutes. In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles. Good quality with some pixellization.

 FRANCE ACTUALITES  (26 DECEMBER 1942):

A Christmas message from Marshal Petain

Extracting energy from cow dung

The first "community restaurant" opens in Paris for low income families

A new camouflage suit for the soldiers outside of Leningrad

Total Time: 6 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with some pixellization.

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (02 JANUARY 1943):

4,000,000 Francs have been collected for the children of POWs held in Germany

On New Year's Day, the diplomatic corps is received in Vichy by President Laval and Marshal Petain

A 14-day campaign against tuberculoses begins

Stamps with surcharges are issued for the fight against tuberculosis

New Parisian hat fashions

Increase in the output of electricity at the plant at La Plain St. Denis

100 soldiers and nine officers taken prisoner in North Africa are returned to France

A large bread factory is opened by the Germans in Kyiv

Admiral Horthy cuts the ribbon for a new rail line in Hungary

President Carmona's 73rd birthday is celebrated in Lisbon

Spanish students hike to Escorial to pay homage to the founder of the Falange movement

The Finnish Red Cross receives rolling hospitals from Sweden

Tunisian farmers work hard to prevent famine

Serious flooding in the Caucasus

Total Time: 19 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Good quality; strong pixellization

FRANCE ACTUALITES  (27 FEBRUARY 1943)

In Paris, a "Night of Film" is being given for charity

Former POW artists show off their work at the Galeria Museum

A large census is held in Marseille

1% of mined coal will go to needy families

Dr. Goebbels gives his "Total War" speech at the Sportpalast in Berlin

Armament factories work day and night for German victory

Pullback in the southern sector of the Eastern Front

A supply ship leaves an Italian harbor for Tunisia

Traffic between the two zones of France is made unrestricted

Total Time: 14 Minutes. In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with pixellization.

FRANCE ACTUALITES (03 APRIL 1943):

A mass rally of POWs is held in Paris

Review of police and local reserve units in Clemont-Ferrand

Anglo-American bombers raid Rouen

Memorial Day in Berlin

Admiral Doenitz is received by Admiral Riccardi in Italy

U-Boat commander Schewe arrives in an Italian port with his crew

The fourth anniversary of Slovakia's independence is celebrated

Elections to the Folketing in Copenhagen

Hitler Youth swear allegiance to the Fuhrer in Breslau

Total Time: 20 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Good quality with strong pixellization.

FRANCE ACTUALITES (18 APRIL 1943):

Rennes is bombed by the Americans

Rouen is bombed

Lorient is destroyed by bombing

Amiens is hit by an air raid

X-ray trains travel throughout France to treat tuberculosis patients

Another contingent of French volunteers leaves for the Eastern Front

Spanish naval cadets sail to Argentina

Religious procession in Zagreb

The largest diesel motor in the world in Denmark

A Dutch SS man is the first foreigner to be awarded the Iron Cross

The Soviets attempt an amphibious assault at Novorossisk

Rommel's second anniversary in North Africa

Total Time: 14 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with some softness. Pixellization.

TOTAL DURATION OF DVD-R: 124 MINUTES

DISC FOUR

At Kursk, the Germans lose their final bid to recover from the psychological disaster of Stalingrad.  Vichy newsreel reporting of the War sugarcoats the coming Amageddon, but even a little reading between the lines makes clear, that the tide had changed. The newsreels on this DVD are all from Vichy and occupied France:

FRANCE ACTUALITES (08 MAY 1943):

France celebrates Marshal Petain's 87th birthday

250,000 French POWs will henceforth work as foreign laborers in Germany

Children are evacuated from Paris' suburbs after recent air raids

Procession of the "Black Pentinence" in Perpignan

The government appeals for scrap iron donations

Croatia celebrates its second year of independence

In Sofia, Bulgarian youth march to celebrate Bulgaria's entry into the Three Power Pact two years ago

The tragedy of Katyn

Pictures of the new German tank, the "Tiger"

The Atlantic Wall is completed

Total Time: 16 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Good quality; some pixellization.

FRANCE ACTUALITES (15 MAY 1943):

POWs on vacation from Germany return back to work as foreign laborers

How to repair stockings without a sewing machine

Parisian artists sing for the benefit of POWs

514th birthday of Joan of Arc

An event is held in St. Etienne for the children of POWs

POWs put on an exhibition of peasant costumes all made with paper

Laval is received by Hitler and von Ribbentrop

A Japanese jiu-jitsu demonstration in Vichy

A parade in Madrid commemorates Spain's liberation from Bolshevism

Supply problems in the swamps around Wolchow

A U-Boat in the Atlantic gets re-supplied at sea

An appeal to remember mothers on Mother's Day

Total Time: 20 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Good quality; strong pixellization

FRANCE ACTUALITES (03 JULY 1943):

An event to honor legionnaires heading to the Eastern Front is given in Paris

An exhibition of Ersatz products and materials is presented in Paris

A restaurant is opened in Marseille for the children of laborers sent to Germany

Flag Day in Stockholm

Athletes in France take the Oath of Athletes

A German convoy sails the waterway near Murmansk

Training of German paratroopers

Marshal petain receives a delegation of farmers from Charente and Herault

Total Time: 13 Minutes. In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles. Good quality with strong pixellization.

FRANCE ACTUALITES (22 AUGUST 1943):

The "Crusade into Fresh Air" for children continues

The training of young men for the French Navy

A demonstration of a new invention:  Micropropulsion

Wounded soldiers and those on leave are invited by the Fuhrer to attend the Bayreuth Festival

At a glassmaker's in the Generalgouvernement

The Bulgarian Labor Corps has begun construction of a rail line between Sofia and Saloniki

French youth are trained how to be railwaymen

A sports competition for foreign laborers in Upper Silesia

An air raid on Paris

The Princess of Piedmont helps bombed out civilians in Rome

Supplies are brought to the frontlines by glider

Generalfeldmarschall Rommel inspects troops in Greece

Total Time: 17 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality with strong pixellization.

FRANCE ACTUALITES (10 OCTOBER1943):

Campaign against polio in the country

Using wood to re-sole shoes instead of leather

Orthodox church service in Paris marking the death of King Boris of Bulgaria

Paris is hit in more than 100 places after the latest air raid

Pictures from an air attack on Rome

Reinforced fortifications are constructed on the Eastern Front

Total Time: 13 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles.  Very good quality; strong pixellization

FRANCE ACTUALITES (06 NOVEMBER 1943):

All Saints' Day in France

The river Allier overflows its banks

Chandra Bose inspects the Hindu Division

A machine cleans the rail beds

Pilgrims in Spanish Morocco are on their way to Sidi Ali-bin

The harvesting of sugar beets

Hothouse grapes are grown in Brussels for wine production

Vietnamese plant rice in France

Chestnut hunting

Youth from all over France help in the harvest

Total Time: 16 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Very good quality; some pixellization

TOTAL DURATION OF DVD-R:   95 MINUTES

DISC FIVE

The end of the occupation of France is finally in sight.  On this DVD, we see three more Vichy newsreels, followed by an American one with details about the Normandy invasion.  Then we see a German newsreel about the same event and finally, another American one about the liberation of Paris in August 1944 :

FRANCE ACTUALITES (04 JANUARY 1944):

A remembrance of the 1934 Stavisky Affair

President Laval pays his respects to three auxiliary policemen killed in battle with Communists

Field Marshal Rommel inspect Atlantic Wall fortifications

600 Polish deserters join the German Army against the Soviets

An anti-submarine net is set up in the Baltic

The "Giant" carries supplies to forward units on the Eastern Front

Marshal Petain receives the new Bulgarian envoy in Vichy

Dutch volunteers report for duty in German transport units

Mussel farming near Barcelona

The German Army transports artwork from Monte Cassino to the Vatican

Total Time: 22 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Good quality; strong pixellization and snow

FRANCE ACTUALITES (09 FEBRUARY 1944):

Anti-tuberculosis campaign in France

Vichy's representative returns from Washington DC

A school to train thermal bath attendents

News about French workers in Germany

Exchange centers in Germany to barter goods

The Philippines declares independence

Universal conscription is ordered in Estonia

The Fuhrer receives officers who distinguished themselves at Cherkassy

Leon Degrelle is awarded the Ritterkreuz

The Anglo-American landing at Salerno

Civil Defense in the 17th District

Total Time: 16 Minutes. In French with hard-encoded, German subtitles and switchable English subtitles. Good quality; strong pixellization.  Beginning of newsreel is missing.

FRANCE ACTUALITES (23 FEBRUARY 1944):

Leon Degrelle speaks at a rally for French Waffen-SS

The Mobile Garde battles resistance fighters in Roche-sur-Faron

20% of all Frenchmen are threatened by tuberculosis

Demolition of the old quarter in Marseille

A wide boulevard is constructed in Bucharest

A school for teaching local art is opened in Spanish Morocco

Record year for herring fishing in Belgium

Grand Admiral Doenitz inspects U-Boat and S-Boat crews

The Battle of Monte Cassino

Total Time: 16 Minutes. In French with German voice-over and switchable English subtitles. Good quality with strong pixellization.

UNITED NEWS NEWSREEL ABOUT THE D-DAY LANDINGS  (JUNE 1944):

Total Time: 9 Minutes. In English  with no subtitles. Very good quality with some softness and pixellization.

GERMAN NEWSREEL ABOUT THE D-DAY LANDINGS  (JUNE 1944):

Total Time: 16 Minutes. In German with switchable English subtitles. Very good quality; strong pixellization

UNITED NEWS NEWSREEL ABOUT THE LIBERATION OF PARIS  (AUGUST 1944):

Total Time: 11 Minutes. In English with no subtitles. Good quality; unclear picture with strong pixellization

TOTAL DURATION OF DVD-R: 90 MINUTES