Oliver Halmburger

People have always wanted to reach the horizon and go beyond it. It wasn't and isn't just about discovering for the sake of discovering. Exotic goods, wealth and power were the driving forces of these people. The steamship ultimately brought the breakthrough for global mobility and trade. In the past, as now, shipping is the engine of globalization.

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Today London, tomorrow Paris, the day after New York – the life of the "jetsetter." Long before the climate crisis and flight shame, flying was considered the epitome of luxury, freedom, and cosmopolitanism. Passenger aviation is making flight attendants and pilots the ultimate dream jobs. Modern aircraft are setting new standards in comfort, technology, and style. Flying is becoming a hobby of high society.

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Spectacular crimes in German criminal history: Investigators and experts explain the possibilities and limitations of investigative work at that time – and why the cases still amaze today.

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Part architectural genius, part kitsch fairytale, Neuschwanstein Castle is closely linked to the tragic fate of Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1886). The "Mad King" poured his heart and soul into this unique construction which looks back nostalgically to the Middle Ages. A focus on the history of a building filled with dreams and legends which has become an icon of Germany around the world.

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Germany 1923: Inflation, starvation, unstable political conditions. During this time, 24-year-old Paula Schlier goes undercover at the “Völkischer Beobachter”, the Nazi Party’s official newspaper, and gets caught at the centre of Hitler’s attempted coup.

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During the Cold War, many of those who tried to flee westward across the dangerous and blurred line separating communist Czechoslovakia from freedom were gunned down: the story of Europe's deadliest border.

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The heart of Islam beats on the Arabian Peninsula. For there lies Mecca, the holy city of the Muslims. Almost 100 years ago, one of the peninsula's many clans founded a kingdom there: Saudi Arabia. The rule of the Al Saud is based on a pact that combined, and still combines, strict religious zeal with political calculation.

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He is considered the richest German, yet he is arguably the most mysterious billionaire: Dieter Schwarz. Most people are familiar with his Lidl discount stores, but he himself is regarded as a phantom. Who is behind the discount store empire? How did the corporate group come into being? What is legend, and what is truth? This documentary tells the story of Lidl, which holds a few surprises. A fascinating family portrait. While researching in archives, filmmakers Annebeth Jacobsen and Frank Diederichs came across previously unpublished documents that offer insights into the history of the corporate group and the lives of its family members.

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In January 2012 Italian divers discovered the wreck of a massive plane off the coast of Sardinia. At a depth of 65 meters (213 feet) lies a Messerschmidt `Gigant', the biggest aircraft to fly in WWII.

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At the end of January 1945, Soviet troops liberated the Auschwitz extermination camp. The advance of the Allies brought to light the most horrific crimes committed by Hitler's Germany, and the traces of the machinery of death could no longer be concealed.

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March, 2013. A sensational, incomparable find in the basement of a Munich auction house: 44 auction catalogs from the years 1936 to 1944, containing hand-written notes from the Third Reich. Katrin Stoll, present-day owner, takes a brave step and decides to have her own company's history investigated. Adolf Hitler was the worst art thief in history.

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Little-known events that played a large role in determining the outcome of World War II are revealed in this documentary series.

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In August 1961, a few railway cars and barbed wire divided East Germany from West. It was a barrier that would be extended and become increasingly more sophisticated, a technological counter to each escape attempt. Computer imagery reconstructs how the Berlin Wall grew from a meager obstacle to a 97 mile barrier of concrete slabs, watchtowers and guards.

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Documentary, also known as "Mission to Murder Hitler", chronicling Valkyrie, the true story of a German Resistance group attempting to murder Adolf Hitler.

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In 1916, the name of the French fortress town of Verdun came to symbolize the greatest battle of attrition of all time - a portent of mass death on the battlefields of the 20th century. Based on selected individual fates, the film "The Hell of Verdun" tells the story of a military inferno in which people were regarded as material, not as individuals. More than 700,000 soldiers, German and French, died, were wounded or remained missing, without the course of the front changing significantly.

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Documentary concerning the battle of Verdun which, with its weapons of mass destruction, marked the beginning of modern warfare in what is considered to be the most gruesome military confrontation of World War I. The programme conveys the horror of this military inferno, illustrating the similar experiences of the French and German soldiers and their struggle for survival. It also provides the unknown soldier with a face through various letters, diaries and private photographs.

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Adolf Hitler consistently hushed up or denied his family lineage for fear that his ragtag bunch of ancestors and living relatives could tarnish his reputation or expose his imperfect Aryan background. His family had a history of psychiatric disorders, and his second cousin, Aloisia Veit, was locked up in an asylum for nine years before being sent to the gas chambers for being "unworthy of life". Hitler was embarrassed by his sister Paula, and made her live under the assumed name of Paula Wolf. Paula became engaged to Dr Erwin Jekelius, medical director of the asylum who sent hundreds of mentally ill patients, including Aloisia Veit, to their deaths.

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Emmy Awards nominee for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Craft: Research: Multi-faceted portrait of the man who succeeded Lenin as the head of the Soviet Union. With a captivating blend of period documents, newly-released information, newsreel and archival footage and interviews with experts, the program examines his rise to power, deconstructs the cult of personality that helped him maintain an iron grip over his vast empire, and analyzes the policies he introduced, including the deadly expansion of the notorious gulags where he banished so many of his countrymen to certain death.

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"Hitler's Women" - A six part series about some of the women Hitler enjoyed and adored.

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The spectrum of topics ranges from political history with a focus on contemporary history (especially National Socialism and post-war history) to cultural history and social history. In addition, ZDF-History also regularly deals with pre-modern history, art and cultural history.

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People have always wanted to reach the horizon and go beyond it. It wasn't and isn't just about discovering for the sake of discovering. Exotic goods, wealth and power were the driving forces of these people. The steamship ultimately brought the breakthrough for global mobility and trade. In the past, as now, shipping is the engine of globalization.

Open details →

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When the first railroads were built some two hundred years ago, they brought about a revolutionary change for mankind, linking cities and countryside, driving the industrial revolution and irrevocably changing the landscape: a history of the railroad from its beginnings to the present day.

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Germany 1923: Inflation, starvation, unstable political conditions. During this time, 24-year-old Paula Schlier goes undercover at the “Völkischer Beobachter”, the Nazi Party’s official newspaper, and gets caught at the centre of Hitler’s attempted coup.

Open details →

The heart of Islam beats on the Arabian Peninsula. For there lies Mecca, the holy city of the Muslims. Almost 100 years ago, one of the peninsula's many clans founded a kingdom there: Saudi Arabia. The rule of the Al Saud is based on a pact that combined, and still combines, strict religious zeal with political calculation.

Open details →