Los cañones de agosto

"The Guns of August" is one of the most thorough historical accounts of World War I. The film is based on a 1962 book of the same title by American journalist, historian and author, Barbara Tuchman. The book earned her the 1963 Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction, and was made into this 99-minute documentary film in 1964 The book was highly popular and made the New York Times bestseller list for ten months. The documentary used news film collected from the U. S. and many European countries.

It may seem odd to many in modern times that a book and film about WW I should be so popular in the early 1960s. That time was much closer to World War II when most of the world's population had memories of the most destructive war in history. And, it was a time when the Cold War was at fever pitch, after the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. But this documentary story did something more and better than any previous history of World War I had done. It delved deeply into the background and the situation of world politics, particularly in Europe, of the several years before the war.

The opening prologue in the film sets the stage. "The year 1914. Millions of peaceful and industrious people were hounded into a war by the folly of a few all-powerful leaders. The war was in no way inevitable. But the results determined the shape of the world in which we live today (1964)." And, "The innocence of the people was in the streets of Europe. The guilt was in the Cabinets."

Fritz Weaver narrates this documentary. It includes more news clips of European royalty and prominent leaders than any film I can recall ever having seen. Winston Churchill will be the most familiar to people in the 21st century. But, in their day, many others were frequently in the news headlines. The list includes prominent English, French, German, Prussian, Austrian, Belgian, and Russian aristocrats and officers. So, heir-apparent of Austria-Hungary, Archduke Franz Ferdinand is here, as well as Austrian Emperor Franz-Josef, French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau, German Emperor Wilhelm II, and a host of other statesmen, generals and other military commanders. Prominent females of the period are here also. Most noted among these are the assassinated and exiled Russian royalty - Grand Duchesses Olga Nikolaevna, Romanov, Maria Romanov, and Anastasia Romanov.

History and war buffs especially should find this film very interesting.

This is an awesome way to get an introduction to the causes of the First World War.

From the death of Edward VII, through the Balkan wars and morrocon crisis, to the assasination of Franz Ferdinand this film goes through them all.

The recovered footage is incredible.

The descriptions of the central players are bang on.

The bizarre idea that Barbara Tuchman hated Germans is of course ridiculous.

They did start the war. They did commit unspeakable atrocities in Belgium and France.

The facts are the facts and no other documentary explains them so well.

Also, it is available on dvd now and the best transfer is from media outlet.com.

The Guns of August is a documentary that follows the book by the same title by author, Barbara Tuchman (1912-1989), an eminent American historian. She received the first of her two Pulitzer prizes for this 1962 masterpiece on World War I. The documentary was made in 1965. Barbara Tuchman was highly respected for her ability to present complex subjects and present them with clarity. Until I read the previous review, I have never heard of anyone accusing her of hating Germany or its people or of her book being anti-German propaganda. But there are pictures of shot civilians and movies of smoldering ruins. Then again, there are people who claim the Holocaust never took place and is just anti-Nazi propaganda... Facts: On August 3 1914, Germany declared war on France. The German invasion plan for France called for an attack through Belgium, instead of through the heavily defended Franco-German border. Belgium was neutral and its neutrality was protected by treaty with Great Britain. The Germans attacked on August 3rd. The next day, August 4th, Great Britain declared war on Germany. Germany warned Belgium that they only wanted to reach France and if Belgium complied, there wouldn't be any trouble. Despite its small army, Belgium chose to protect its sovereignty and its honor and paid for it. Liège, Aarschot, Andenne, Tamines, Dinant, and Leuven, where the worst of the German depredations occurred. Just look at the ruins of the city of Leuven! 90% of the 500 years old Middle-age University town reduced to ashes, including its precious library with many priceless manuscripts. (The town hall only survived because it was the German QG.) Without any legitimate pretext, German soldiers killed nearly 6,000 non-combatants in Belgium, including women and children (the equivalent of about 230,000 Americans today), and burned some 25,000 homes and other buildings. In this instance, Germany acted more like Attila the Hun that the noble birth country of Goethe, Holbein or Bach. I am not passing judgment on a country or its people but on a time in the history of a country and its people at that time. World War I started 96 years ago and for the sake of the victims, you just cannot ignore the facts, the films and the testimonies of the survivors. For more on this subject, read Jeff Lipkes "Rehearsals: The German Army in Belgium, August 1914" http://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/cup_detail.taf?ti_id=4865. The documentary was released on VHS in the 80's but I am not aware of a DVD version.

This is a historical documentary on the first World War starting with 1910. Great Britain's King Edward VII is dead. All the European royalties gather for the funeral. They would be going to war in a few years. Narrator Fritz Weaver brings the traditional Hollywood Trans-Atlantic accent and gives that documentary heft to the material. I am fascinated with the first thirty minutes up to the Archduke's assassination. I didn't know some of the situations. It's great to see the old photographs. This is all black and white with a lot of moving pictures. Director Nathan Kroll keeps the stationary images moving by panning around. The style is old but it seems to be very well researched and well made. It does have an Allied slant, but nothing is too propagandistic. I used to watch a lot of Vietnam War documentary and this one is laying out the format for all those shows.

I was impressed with all the authentic films of World War I. It's a Who's Who of historical figures, and the battle scenes are amazing. They're old and grainy, of course, but I didn't know footage like this existed. There are scenes of soliders going over the top and getting mowed down by gun fire, and a great view of the damage to the French countryside from the air.

I teach history and plan to start showing parts of this regularly in my class.