Ancient Greece – the cradle of modern Europe. Around 3000 years ago, the cultural foundations of western civilisation were laid right here, on the shores of the Mediterranean. It’s the birthplace of democracy, where great thinkers forged the beginnings of scientific reasoning, where theatre was turned into mass entertainment, and where the Olympic Games began. Imaginative animation, stunning visuals and an entertaining narrative combine in an extraordinary exploration of Greece and the rise of an ancient super-power that would leave a permanent mark on western society.
The Romans created one of the greatest empires in history, built with the help of an incredible army of professional legionnaires and a well-oiled political machinery. At its height, a few hundred men ruled over a fifth of mankind and an area stretching from Britain to Syria and from Gibraltar to the Euphrates. They undertook some of the most ambitious building projects of their time: endless roads, gigantic bridges and imposing aqueducts formed a complex infrastructure and left a lasting legacy. This film is a revelatory and unique journey into the world of ancient Rome.
A nation of seafarers and merchants, the Vikings revolutionised exploration and trading in the Middle Ages and discovered America 500 years before Columbus. This gripping film unveils their bad reputation as wild, murdering and pillaging norsemen as misguided and reveals a strikingly tolerant people with an elaborate trading network that stretched right through Europe. For 900 years, their light, manoeuvrable sailing-ships could not be matched. As the best seafarers of their time, daring, tolerant explorers and expert merchants, they set new benchmarks and left their mark everywhere.
The Carthaginians were sly merchants and cruel child killers – at least according to the Ancient Romans and Greeks. But research shows that they weren’t as bad as their reputation. The Carthaginians’ story began around 3,000 years ago, when settlers left their homes in what is now Lebanon to set up new colonies around the Mediterranean. The most splendid and powerful of these settlements was Carthage, a bustling Metropolis in what is now Tunisia, with a port that was the envy of the entire world.
There is barely a country in Europe that can't look back on Germanic roots, though there has never been one unified people. The term 'Germanic' actually refers to a number of tribes and clans that lived in central and northern Europe from the sixth century BC. Gaius Julius Caesar is said to have used it when talking about the Gallic war. However, the Romans were full of contempt for the Germanic peoples and their civilisation, Tacitus calling their home a hideous blood-curdling place full of dark woods and swamplands.
The Arabs have been bringing knowledge of the ancient world to Europe since the eighth century. In the fields of medicine, mathematics or philosophy, the scholars in their civilisation were far beyond their time and still affect our world today. For a long time the Arabs were estranged, not united by one nation or leader. They had little in common but a shared language. This didn't change until Mohammed ended polytheism, founded a new religion and united all of the Arabic tribes in their faith in one God: Allah.
