Massacres of civilians during World War II
8 Episodes
The massacres of civilians during World War II were meant to break resistance and spread fear. Instead, they left scars that history can never erase. From Lidice to Lviv, from Oradour to Distomo, the slaughter of men, women, and children stands among the darkest chapters of human history. This collection shares the stories of entire communities destroyed in reprisals and hatred. Each film reveals the suffering, the scale of loss, and the need to remember, ensuring these voices are never forgotten.
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The Forgotten Massacre of 1000s of Polish Jews: Lviv 1941
Episode 1
The Lviv massacre of 1941 began as Nazi troops entered the city. Jews were dragged from homes, humiliated, beaten, and murdered in pogroms fueled by propaganda and hatred. Einsatzgruppen and Ukrainian nationalists carried out mass killings, while thousands were later confined to the Lviv ghetto a...
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The SS Massacre of 642 French Civilians in One Day: Oradour-sur-Glane
Episode 2
On 10 June 1944, just four days after D-Day, the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich descended on the peaceful village of Oradour-sur-Glane. In a few hours, they murdered 642 people—men, women, and children—and burned the village to the ground. This documentary recounts the massacre, the testimonies...
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340 Czech Men Shot, Women Deported, Children Killed: Lidice Massacre
Episode 3
In June 1942, following the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich, Nazi forces carried out one of the most infamous reprisals of World War II: the massacre of Lidice. On Hitler’s orders, 173 men were shot, women were deported to camps, and 88 children were murdered. The village was burned to the gro...
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Massacre of 228 Greek Men, Women & Children by Nazis: Distomo 1944
Episode 4
On 10 June 1944, the SS descended on the Greek village of Distomo. In just hours, 228 civilians—men, women, and children—were slaughtered. Pregnant women were mutilated, infants bayoneted, and homes burned to the ground. This film reveals how Nazi reprisals against partisans turned into one of Gr...
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The SS’s Bloody Reprisal: Massacre at Tulle in 1944
Episode 5
June 1944. As Allied forces storm the beaches of Normandy, the German 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich begins a campaign of terror across occupied France. In the town of Tulle, 99 men are hanged in public as a warning to others. The next day, the same SS unit destroys the nearby village of Oradou...
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Operation Barbarossa and the Khatyn Massacre: Nazi Terror in Belarus
Episode 6
On 22 June 1941, Nazi Germany launches Operation Barbarossa, invading the Soviet Union and unleashing a war of extermination. In occupied Belarus, entire villages are wiped out in brutal reprisals. One of the most horrifying atrocities occurs in Khatyn, where 149 civilians – including 75 children...
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Piasnica: Germany’s First Mass Killing Operation in WWII
Episode 7
Hidden deep in the forests near Wejherowo, one of the earliest Nazi mass murder sites claimed the lives of up to 16,000 people. They were Poles, Kashubians, Jews, and the mentally ill — executed simply because they were deemed “undesirable.” This is the chilling story of Piaśnica, a crime Europe ...
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Blood and Fire: The SS Massacre at Kleisoura
Episode 8
On 6 April 1941, Nazi Germany invaded Greece under Operation Marita, but the brutal occupation that followed would leave scars far deeper than the battle for territory. Three years later, on 5 April 1944, soldiers of the 4th SS Polizei Panzergrenadier Division, aided by Bulgarian collaborators, d...
