The Ever Widening War

Title

First
Broadcast

Comments

Holy War

20160112

In November 1914 the Ottoman Empire formally declared 'holy war' against Britain, France and Russia. In the second programme of his new series, Professor Sir Christopher Clark explores how the entry of the Ottoman Empire into the First World War brought the Middle East into the conflict, with consequences that are still felt today.

Chris travels to Gallipoli to visit the battlefields where thousands of allied troops, including Australian and New Zealanders, encountered a forceful foe in the Ottoman Turkish army, under the command of Mustafa Kamal, later known as Atatürk. As an Australian, Chris remarks on how the memory of the doomed Gallipoli campaign became a unifying legend for the young Australian nation. He is accompanied in Gallipoli by Professor Mustafa Aksakal, who explains how Gallipoli was also birthplace of the new Turkish republic and has a special significance in modern day Turkey.

Sir Christopher Clark is Regius Professor of History at the University of Cambridge. He is the author of Kaiser Wilhelm II: A Life in Power, Iron Kingdom and - most recently - the highly acclaimed and award-winning The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went To War. In 2014, he presented Month of Madness on BBC Radio 4 about the outbreak of the First World War. You can listen to that series online by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7p27 or clicking on the related link below.

Produced by Melissa FitzGerald

A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4.

Christopher Clark explores the Middle Eastern theatre of the First World War.

Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.

The Atlantic War

20160114

The year 1917 was a watershed for WW1. It began and ended with two momentous events - American's entry into the war and Russia's collapse amidst revolution. Both events had a profound impact on the course of world history. In this programme, Professor Sir Christopher Clark focuses on 1917 as a turning point in the conflict, examining why America entered the First World War and showing how this was the decisive factor in the outcome of the conflict.

At the Brookwood American military cemetery, Chris encounters German Americans among the names of the war dead and ponders the impact of the First World War on this ethnic group in America.

Finally, he argues that while the war established American pre-eminence in the world it also turned America in on itself, isolating it from the world's affairs. The result was a vacuum at the core of the new world order - a dangerous lack of cohesion that would leave it vulnerable to further shocks.

With John Thompson, Dominic Lieven, Gary Gerstle and Craig Rahanian.

Produced by Melissa FitzGerald
A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4.

Christopher Clark explores America's entry into the First World War.

Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.

The War of Empires

20160111

The First World War began as a local conflict between Austria-Hungary and its Serbian neighbour but, by the summer of 1918, more than 70 million military personnel were mobilised worldwide. In the first programme of his new series, Professor Sir Christopher Clark explores this transition from a continental war to a world war and shows how the imperial nature of the main belligerent powers ensured, from the outset, that this would be a war on a global scale.

As a result, the First World War was fought by people of all races and nationalities. This multinational character was expressed most strongly on the Western Front where a constellation of different nations, cultures and races worked and fought together. At Brookwood Military Cemetery in Surrey, Chris visits the First World War graves of men from all over the British Empire and marvels at the power of imperialism to mobilise men from across the globe.

With Margaret Macmillan, Hew Strachan, Tim Harper and Glynn Prysor.

Produced by Melissa FitzGerald
A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4.

Christopher Clark explores the entangling of empires in the First World War.

Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.

The War Without End

20160115

In the final programme of his series, Professor Sir Christopher Clark explores the dark legacy of the First World War. Although the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 was the most elaborate in the history of warfare, Chris considers how the Treaty of Versailles created serious instabilities in the European post-war system, particularly alienating Germany and Russia. These instabilities were played out in the rise of nationalist movements in the 20s and 30s and the onset of the even more devastating Second World War in 1939.

Chris also examines the longer-term impact of the war across the globe, including in Asia and in the Middle East, where the legacy of the First World War still resonates in the names of Sykes-Picot and Lord Arthur Balfour. This, he argues, was a war that has never really ended, the 'calamity out of which all other calamities sprang'.

With Margaret Macmillan, Dominic Lieven, Brendan Simms and Mustafa Aksakal.

Readings by Ewan Bailey and Fernando Tiberini.

Produced by Melissa FitzGerald
A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4.

Christopher Clark explores the dark legacy of the First World War.

Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.

The White War

20160113

Professor Sir Christopher Clark travels to the Julian Alps in Slovenia on the 1914 border between Austria-Hungary and Italy. This was the scene of some of the harshest fighting to take place during the war. He examines why Italy entered the war on the side of Britain, France and Russia and traces Mussolini's post-war rise to power back to Italy's involvement in the First World War.

Chris explores how the mountainous landscape shaped the nature of fighting on this front, where troops fought at altitudes of up to 12,000 feet in temperatures as low as -30ºC. Even today, warmer summers are releasing corpses and other material from their icy tombs. The river Soca, or Isonzo as it is known in Italian, has a similar burden of associations that the Somme does to the British because the Italians lost half of their entire war casualty here.

With Mark Thompson and eljko Cimpric.

Produced by Melissa FitzGerald
A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4.

Christopher Clark explores the Italian front of the First World War.

Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.

Episodes

Title	First Broadcast	Comments
Holy War	20160112	In November 1914 the Ottoman Empire formally declared 'holy war' against Britain, France and Russia. In the second programme of his new series, Professor Sir Christopher Clark explores how the entry of the Ottoman Empire into the First World War brought the Middle East into the conflict, with consequences that are still felt today. Chris travels to Gallipoli to visit the battlefields where thousands of allied troops, including Australian and New Zealanders, encountered a forceful foe in the Ottoman Turkish army, under the command of Mustafa Kamal, later known as Atatürk. As an Australian, Chris remarks on how the memory of the doomed Gallipoli campaign became a unifying legend for the young Australian nation. He is accompanied in Gallipoli by Professor Mustafa Aksakal, who explains how Gallipoli was also birthplace of the new Turkish republic and has a special significance in modern day Turkey. Sir Christopher Clark is Regius Professor of History at the University of Cambridge. He is the author of Kaiser Wilhelm II: A Life in Power, Iron Kingdom and - most recently - the highly acclaimed and award-winning The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went To War. In 2014, he presented Month of Madness on BBC Radio 4 about the outbreak of the First World War. You can listen to that series online by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7p27 or clicking on the related link below. Produced by Melissa FitzGerald A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4. Christopher Clark explores the Middle Eastern theatre of the First World War. Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.
The Atlantic War	20160114	The year 1917 was a watershed for WW1. It began and ended with two momentous events - American's entry into the war and Russia's collapse amidst revolution. Both events had a profound impact on the course of world history. In this programme, Professor Sir Christopher Clark focuses on 1917 as a turning point in the conflict, examining why America entered the First World War and showing how this was the decisive factor in the outcome of the conflict. At the Brookwood American military cemetery, Chris encounters German Americans among the names of the war dead and ponders the impact of the First World War on this ethnic group in America. Finally, he argues that while the war established American pre-eminence in the world it also turned America in on itself, isolating it from the world's affairs. The result was a vacuum at the core of the new world order - a dangerous lack of cohesion that would leave it vulnerable to further shocks. With John Thompson, Dominic Lieven, Gary Gerstle and Craig Rahanian. Sir Christopher Clark is Regius Professor of History at the University of Cambridge. He is the author of Kaiser Wilhelm II: A Life in Power, Iron Kingdom and - most recently - the highly acclaimed and award-winning The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went To War. In 2014, he presented Month of Madness on BBC Radio 4 about the outbreak of the First World War. You can listen to that series online by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7p27 or clicking on the related link below. Produced by Melissa FitzGerald A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4. Christopher Clark explores America's entry into the First World War. Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.
The War of Empires	20160111	The First World War began as a local conflict between Austria-Hungary and its Serbian neighbour but, by the summer of 1918, more than 70 million military personnel were mobilised worldwide. In the first programme of his new series, Professor Sir Christopher Clark explores this transition from a continental war to a world war and shows how the imperial nature of the main belligerent powers ensured, from the outset, that this would be a war on a global scale. As a result, the First World War was fought by people of all races and nationalities. This multinational character was expressed most strongly on the Western Front where a constellation of different nations, cultures and races worked and fought together. At Brookwood Military Cemetery in Surrey, Chris visits the First World War graves of men from all over the British Empire and marvels at the power of imperialism to mobilise men from across the globe. With Margaret Macmillan, Hew Strachan, Tim Harper and Glynn Prysor. Sir Christopher Clark is Regius Professor of History at the University of Cambridge. He is the author of Kaiser Wilhelm II: A Life in Power, Iron Kingdom and - most recently - the highly acclaimed and award-winning The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went To War. In 2014, he presented Month of Madness on BBC Radio 4 about the outbreak of the First World War. You can listen to that series online by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7p27 or clicking on the related link below. Produced by Melissa FitzGerald A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4. Christopher Clark explores the entangling of empires in the First World War. Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.
The War Without End	20160115	In the final programme of his series, Professor Sir Christopher Clark explores the dark legacy of the First World War. Although the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 was the most elaborate in the history of warfare, Chris considers how the Treaty of Versailles created serious instabilities in the European post-war system, particularly alienating Germany and Russia. These instabilities were played out in the rise of nationalist movements in the 20s and 30s and the onset of the even more devastating Second World War in 1939. Chris also examines the longer-term impact of the war across the globe, including in Asia and in the Middle East, where the legacy of the First World War still resonates in the names of Sykes-Picot and Lord Arthur Balfour. This, he argues, was a war that has never really ended, the 'calamity out of which all other calamities sprang'. With Margaret Macmillan, Dominic Lieven, Brendan Simms and Mustafa Aksakal. Readings by Ewan Bailey and Fernando Tiberini. Sir Christopher Clark is Regius Professor of History at the University of Cambridge. He is the author of Kaiser Wilhelm II: A Life in Power, Iron Kingdom and - most recently - the highly acclaimed and award-winning The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went To War. In 2014, he presented Month of Madness on BBC Radio 4 about the outbreak of the First World War. You can listen to that series online by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7p27 or clicking on the related link below. Produced by Melissa FitzGerald A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4. Christopher Clark explores the dark legacy of the First World War. Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.
The White War	20160113	Professor Sir Christopher Clark travels to the Julian Alps in Slovenia on the 1914 border between Austria-Hungary and Italy. This was the scene of some of the harshest fighting to take place during the war. He examines why Italy entered the war on the side of Britain, France and Russia and traces Mussolini's post-war rise to power back to Italy's involvement in the First World War. Chris explores how the mountainous landscape shaped the nature of fighting on this front, where troops fought at altitudes of up to 12,000 feet in temperatures as low as -30ºC. Even today, warmer summers are releasing corpses and other material from their icy tombs. The river Soca, or Isonzo as it is known in Italian, has a similar burden of associations that the Somme does to the British because the Italians lost half of their entire war casualty here. With Mark Thompson and eljko Cimpric. Sir Christopher Clark is Regius Professor of History at the University of Cambridge. He is the author of Kaiser Wilhelm II: A Life in Power, Iron Kingdom and - most recently - the highly acclaimed and award-winning The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went To War. In 2014, he presented Month of Madness on BBC Radio 4 about the outbreak of the First World War. You can listen to that series online by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7p27 or clicking on the related link below. Produced by Melissa FitzGerald A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4. Christopher Clark explores the Italian front of the First World War. Professor Christopher Clark presents a documentary series on the First World War.