Bitesize Battles

The Battle of Osowiec in 1915 was darkly horrifying despite the bright summer's morning. The Germans gassed the stubborn Russian defenders of the Osowiec Fortress with a vicious mix of chlorine and bromine, killing every single one.

Or so they thought.

Because as the Germans advanced they spotted a single figure jerk suddenly upright, skin blistered and torn, eyes peeled back, teeth bared where lips had once been.

The dead had risen and now they were coming for their revenge.

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Once Vercingetorix was in chains and the Gallic Wars over, you might have thought Caesar would be in for a well-earned rest.

But Pompey and the Optimates in the Roman Senate were jealous and wanted Caesar back in Rome so they could prosecute him for any number of crimes - including his conquest of Gaul, which they had never given permission for.

But Caesar wasn't about to spend the rest of his life in court, jail or exile, and sought to outmanoeuvre the Senate.

The Optimates and Pompey sought to drag Caesar back to Rome.

It ended in a tussle which led Caesar to the banks of the Rubicon, and the biggest decision of his life.

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​Vercingetorix was a proud, young Gallic chieftain who gave Caesar his first bloody nose of the Gallic Wars and led a rebellion so serious that it nearly cost Caesar everything.

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This is where Caesar made himself a Roman legend. He fought hundreds of thousands of Gauls, saw off Germanic invasions, and even had a little jaunt over the sea to Britannia. 

The Senate had been desperate to prosecute him for crimes during his Consulship, but he had taken a governorship of provinces bordering Gaul which gave him immunity for five years.

He then used those years to craft seemingly legitimate reasons to continually intervene in Gallic affairs, crushing tribes and intimidating others. In just over three years, Gaul was his. But it was far from easy, and on more than one occasion, Caesar was lucky to get out alive.

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It was Alexander the Great who spurred Julius Caesar to new heights. When Caesar saw a statue of him when he was 31, he realised that at his age Alexander had conquered half the world. Caesar was so distraught at his own relative lack of achievements, it's said he wept at Alexander's feet.

In just a few years Caesar had become the Chief Priest of Rome, Consul, and one of the members of Rome's first Triumvirate. 

Join us on his journey to political power, and meet Pompey, Crassus, and a rebel gladiator named Spartacus who sparked the whole thing off in the first place.

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Julius Caesar is one of the world's most famous and successful military genius' of all time. He conquered the fierce and warlike multitudes of Gaul with a few thousands men, and he beat some of the best Roman commanders in a civil war he ignited by crossing the Rubicon.

But where did Caesar come from? Where did it all start?

This episode covers the extraordinary groundwork of this extraordinary man's rise, from his childhood during the Marius-Sulla Civil War, near-death experience and his capture by pirates, to returning to Rome a military hero.

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In the face of the crushing ideologies of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, hundreds of thousands of civilians and former soldiers banded together in resistance right across Europe and Asia.

These created tales that need telling, and while some of them are already famous, I want to bring you some of those that are lesser-known but equally gripping.

Much as you’d imagine from WW2, these stories are full of horror and heroism, catastrophe and courage, tragedy and triumph. From daring rescues to audacious assassinations, and everyday people risking death by hiding Jews from Nazi hunters, to young men and women blowing up bridges and laying ambushes.

So get ready for an emotional rollercoaster in this, the final episode of the Bitesize Battles Secret Warfare series, the Resistance of WW2.

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The Middle East of WWI was controlled by the Ottoman Empire, but it was beginning to unravel. Arab nationalism was rising, and Britain told them that they would be allowed to establish a new, independent Arab nation following WWI.

So the Arab Revolt broke out. But in secret, Britain also settled on the Sykes-Picot Agreement with France, which divided the area between them instead, leaving nothing for the Arabs.

Into this cauldron of conspiracy strode Lawrence of Arabia, an unconventional archaeologist, writer, romantic, soldier and intelligence officer of the British Army. He was a lover of all things Arabia, and his effect on the Arab Revolt, and the coming post-war geopolitical battleground was profound.

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The Battle of the Teutoberg Forest in 9 AD was one of Rome's worst ever defeats. Just a few years either side of the death of Christ, the Romans had been subjugating many of the Germanic tribes just east of the Rhine – some by treaty, some by force.

But the Germans resented the encroachment and the will to resist was building.

All they needed was an opportunity to fight back. And soon, there was someone willing to give them one by betraying Roman trust.

In the year 9 AD, three Roman legions would be lured to the Teutoberg Forest, and the result would lead to the Emperor Augustus butting his head against a wall screaming.

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There was once a group of unsung heroes from World War II, a pioneering band of jungle warfare specialists fighting the Japanese behind enemy lines. This elite force was named after the mythical Burmese beast, the Chinthe, a fearsome blend of eagle and lion. To its commander, Orde Wingate, the Chinthe symbolised his vision of the close co-ordination of air and land forces.

The Chindits braved searing humidity, deadly diseases, impenetrable jungle and the remorseless Japanese army to disrupt the enemy behind their lines, destroy vital bridges and railways, and provoke them into rash decisions from which they could be punished.

The Chindits were responsible for provoking one of the greatest defeats for the Japanese Empire, and the lessons learned greatly enhanced the Allied cause both during and after World War 2.

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