Episode list

Harsh winter at Valley Forge, PA.

An investigation into the history of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in North America, created by pioneers who had been instructed by James I to find gold and a water route to the Orient. Details the power struggle between John Smith and George Percy and the ultimate fate of the colony and its inhabitants.

Archaeologists from the University of Bristol study historical records, grave sites and DNA from a medieval body to determine whether Black Death and the bubonic plague are the same disease.

Archaeologists uncover a huge mass grave in Vilnius, capital of Lithuania, which contains the remains of the soldiers of Napoleon's army and evidence of Napoleon Bonaparte's catastrophic attempt to conquer Russia in 1812. The many bones, coins, buttons and pieces of clothing provide a new perspective on the final days of the dictator's military forces. The documentary asks who these men were and how they died and also details the strategy of Tsar Alexander I that helped to defeat the French.

Examining the great migration of Irish in 1845, and the potato famine that caused it. A team of scientists excavate a 19th-century village in an attempt to discover what life was like for farmers and residents during the great famine, when more than a million people were killed by starvation or disease.

In 1733, slaves rise up to take St. John's, an island controlled by the Danish and Dutch. This examines the slave revolt led by King June and Prince Aquashi. The slave trade of the era is also detailed.

The last battle of the Crusades in 1291 is examined as the Muslim Saracens lay siege to the town of Acre, defeating the Christians who hold it and bringing to an end Christendom's 300-year struggle to control the holy city of Jerusalem. Includes a comparison of weapons technology and defensive and offensive strategies.

The legendary romance of Antony and Cleopatra is revealed, including their ill-fated alliance as they attempted to defeat Octavian in the Battle of Actium in 31 B.C. Octavian mobilized his army and navy against the demoralized forces of his adversaries, launching a series of guerrilla attacks that gradually wore them down, and culminated in a bloody confrontation on a promontory in western Greece.