The Germans said it was impregnable, but the confines of Colditz inspired legendary escapes.

A body discovered on the coast of Spain formed one of the most elaborate hoaxes of World War II.

With access to Eva Braun's personal photograph album, this programme reconstructs the final days in the Dictator's underground lair, and in particular it examines the possibility of escape for the selected few.

In 1941 four Italian frogmen used their two-man underwater 'chariots' to place explosive charges on two British battleships in Alexandria Harbour. They were the first of many brave men to use these unconventional weapons.

Just after midnight on 28 February 1942, 119 men dropped into the village of Bruneval in France.

In June 1942 two German U-Boats landed secret agents on Long Island and at Jacksonville, Florida. Their aim was sabotage, but their methods left a lot to be desired!

German military command used the 'Enigma' device to encode strategic messages during World War II.

In 1943 as the Germans were producing 'heavy water' to build their atomic bomb, the Norwegian resistance launched a daring raid against the Norsk Hydro plant.

He was nicknamed the 'Desert Fox' and highly decorated by Hitler. However, Rommel was not in sympathy with the Nazi party and may have been involved in the plot to kill Hitler. Did the legendary German General commit suicide or was he murdered?

Had it not been winter, North America's vast western forests, farms and cities might have been decimated by a secret weapon sent in thousands across the Pacific by the Japanese in 1944.

The underwater war saw many innovations and a rapid increase in electronic technology, which eventually enabled the Allies to achieve ultimate victory.

The fascinating story of the secret heavily-armed cargo ships deployed by the Germans which were in reality designed to sink Allied merchant ships as well as refuel German U-boats and warships.

In 1944 as Hitler faced defeat he tried one last gamble of an offensive on the Western Front. The result was the 'Battle of the Bulge'. But what the Germans did not know was the Allies were decoding their radio messages.

One thousand bomber raids flown by the US airforce by day and the same by Britain's RAF by night. The result was a firestorm which destroyed German cities, industry and communications; raids which involved much personal bravery and the use of secret technology.

Amazing new footage has become available which shows the raid by the US Air Force against the Ploesti oil fields in Rumania which supplied 60 percent of Hitler's oil in 1943.

One of the most feared weapons of World War II was the mine. Some were laid by ship and submarine, others by aircraft. Of all of these the most lethal was the magnetic mine, and the race to counter it was one of the most crucial of the war.

Hundreds of sailors, eight ships and two American Admirals were to be lost in actions where valour overcame many mistakes on both sides - leading to the defeat of the Japanese Admiral Yamamoto.

After numerous adventures, a small number of American officers managed to rendezvous with their submarine on the North Africa coast in 1942 and relay back to Eisenhower information which would save thousands of British and American lives.

There have been larger land battles and more protracted air campaigns than Okinawa but this was a combined operation, unparalleled in size, scope and ferocity.

The Royal Air Force confronted the V-weapon threat, which inflicted immense suffering in Britain.

Between 1941 and 1943 some of America's most talented fighter pilots flew for Nationalist China against the Japanese. They became known as the 'Flying Tigers' and with the name a legend was born.

The exciting story of the emergence of special forces such as the British SAS and the US Rangers.

America's answer to fighting behind Japanese lines in the jungle was to deploy a highly trained unit called Merrill's Marauders.

Throughout occupied Europe the Nazis systematically plundered the continent's museums, galleries, and private collections. At the war's end, a massive effort was mounted by the Allies to locate the missing art treasures and return them to their rightful owners. But even today many great objects a...