Uploaded March 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The German Newsweek (Die Deutsche Wochenschau) was the unified newsreel of Germany from 1940-1945. The concept of a weekly newsreel was much older, dating back to WWI, and in the 1930s, there were several different weekly newsreels in Germany. With the outbreak of WWII, these were unified and from June 1940 shown under the title of "The German Newsweek". It was one of the most important aspects of German propaganda.
Each week, over 2000 copies were sent to theaters and movie houses throughout Germany and shown to the general public, as private TV ownership was extremly rare during WWII. Over 700 episodes were produced, and many of the historical WWII footage we nowadays have comes from the Wochenschau.
This is issue No. 749 from January 18th, 1945.
It shows footage of Carl Benz and his inventions in commemoration of his 100th birthday, new buildings and cars for the German Railway, donation of clothing and textiles by civilians, navy convoys, combat footage from Hungary, footage from floodings in Holland, footage from Lieutenant Zubrod, who destroyed 11 enemy tanks in three weeks, combat footage from the western front and footage from V-2 launch.
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Subtitles made by me.
The German Newsweek (Die Deutsche Wochenschau) was the unified newsreel of Germany from 1940-1945. The concept of a weekly newsreel was much older, dating back to WWI, and in the 1930s, there were several different weekly newsreels in Germany. With the outbreak of WWII, these were unified and from June 1940 shown under the title of "The German Newsweek". It was one of the most important aspects of German propaganda.
Each week, over 2000 copies were sent to theaters and movie houses throughout Germany and shown to the general public, as private TV ownership was extremly rare during WWII. Over 700 episodes were produced, and many of the historical WWII footage we nowadays have comes from the Wochenschau.
This is issue No. 749 from January 18th, 1945.
It shows footage of Carl Benz and his inventions in commemoration of his 100th birthday, new buildings and cars for the German Railway, donation of clothing and textiles by civilians, navy convoys, combat footage from Hungary, footage from floodings in Holland, footage from Lieutenant Zubrod, who destroyed 11 enemy tanks in three weeks, combat footage from the western front and footage from V-2 launch.
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Subtitles made by me.
![“Me 163 B”- Instructional Film about the Me 163 Rocket Interceptor [Full HD]- ca. late 1944](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/xHlUlZw8P48/mqdefault.jpg "“Me 163 B”- Instructional Film about the Me 163 Rocket Interceptor [Full HD]- ca. late 1944
The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet was a rocket-powered interceptor developed by Messerschmitt during the latter stages of the Second World War. Powered by the Walter HWK 109-509 liquid-propellant rocket engine, it became the worlds first operational rocket-powered fighter aircraft and the first aircraft to exceed 1,000 km/h (621 mph) in level flight.
Unlike a conventional jet aircraft, the Me 163 carried both its fuel and oxidizer on board, giving it an extraordinary rate of climb and acceleration that no Allied fighter of the time could match. However, this performance came at a cost: powered flight lasted only around seven to eight minutes, usually allowing for only one or two attack passes before the aircraft had to glide back to base.
The Me 163 entered combat with Jagdgeschwader 400 (JG 400) in July 1944. Although it succeeded in shooting down approximately 19 Allied aircraft, its operational impact remained limited due to its short endurance, extremely high attack speeds, complex ground support requirements, and the hazardous nature of its hypergolic propellants, C-Stoff and T-Stoff, which caused numerous fatal accidents during fueling and after crash landings.
Despite its limited influence on the course of the war, the Me 163 represented a remarkable technological achievement. Its rocket propulsion system, turbopump-fed engine, and high-speed aerodynamic design contributed valuable knowledge to post-war aviation and rocket research.
The following film is a technical and instructional training film produced by the Luftwaffe in late 1944.
Intended for pilots and ground personnel, it explains the aircrafts design, operation, maintenance, fueling procedures, and tactical employment. While the film inevitably reflects the wartime perspective and propaganda of its producers, it also provides a rare and detailed insight into the operation of one of the most extraordinary aircraft of the Second World War.
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Subtitles made by me.")
![German Newsweek No. 549- 12 March 1941 [Full HD] (Fw 200 Maritime Bombers, Afrikakorps)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ySsCjg0qc2A/mqdefault.jpg "German Newsweek No. 549- 12 March 1941 [Full HD] (Fw 200 Maritime Bombers, Afrikakorps)
The German Newsweek (Die Deutsche Wochenschau) was the unified newsreel of Germany from 1940-1945. The concept of a weekly newsreel was much older, dating back to WWI, and in the 1930s, there were several different weekly newsreels in Germany.
With the outbreak of WWII, these were unified and from June 1940 onwards shown under the title of The German Newsweek.
It was one of the most important aspects of German wartime propaganda. These Newsreels were made to show the war in a favorable way for the Germans, even when the tide of the was clearly turned against German after 1943. Even in 1945, they still tried to generate a feeling of resistance and told the people that Germany is able to continue its defense.
They also often contain other elements of Nazi propaganda, such a antisemitic footage, or footage describing the alleged misery or bad conditions among the Allied nations or the Soviet Union, and the superiority of Germany in fields of arts, social programs and living conditions.
Each week, over 2000 copies were sent to theaters and movie houses throughout Germany and shown to the general public, as well as frontline soldiers, RAD-workers etc.
The showing was mandatory before films, and later, a regulation was added that people were not allowed to enter the cinema after the Wochenschau started, forcing people to sit through it if they wanted to watch a film.
285 wartime issues were produced, from September 1939 (No. 470) to March 1945 (No. 755).
This is issue No. 549, released on March 12th, 1941.
It starts with a short segment about Japanese troops in China, followed by footage from a large fire in Santandar, Spain. The next segment is about ice blasting on the Vistula and Danube rivers, and some footage of flooding on the Danube. This is followed by various other civilian news, including footage from the naturalization of ethnic Germans from Romania, the opening of a trade fair in Leipzig and Winter Games of the Hitler Youth in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
The issue also shows footage of German army and air force units moving into Bulgaria, German troops of the Afrikakorps being transported across the Mediterranean into Africa, and footage of a German long-range Fw-200 bomber attacking British convoys off the coast of Scotland.
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Subtitles made by me.")
![Battle of Kursk- German Propaganda Footage- 21 July 1943 [Full HD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zDOVmWjtMz0/mqdefault.jpg "Battle of Kursk- German Propaganda Footage- 21 July 1943 [Full HD]
The Battle of Kursk, officially called Operation Citadel, was a German offensive against the Kursk salient from early to mid-July 1943.
The Germans planned to attack the Kursk salient simultaneously from the north, near Orel, and from the south, near Belograd, to cut off and destroy the Soviet forces inside the salient. The Germans planned to do so with strong tank forces, committing around 3,000 tanks and assault guns to the attack, including many Panther and Tiger tanks.
Thanks to Allied intelligence, the Soviets were warned long before the attack and used that to prepare by setting up extensive defense positions, including minefields, AT-gun emplacements and other defensive structures.
Because of the extensive Soviet preparations, the German attack, which started on July 4th, only progressed slowly, before coming to a complete stop around mid-July, as the Germans greatly underestimated the strength of the Soviet reserves.
Although Soviet losses were far higher than the Germans (the Soviets lost around 1,500 to 2,000 tanks and assault guns during Operation Citadel, the Germans around 323) the Soviets were able to replace their losses quickly, while the Germans were not. Additionally, while the Germans only lost around 330 tanks, the number of damaged tanks was around 1,600, and repairing these tanks timely was difficult for the Germans.
The Allied invasion of Sicily from July 9th forced the Germans to stop the attack to pull forces away from the Eastern Front.
This was the last time the Germans had the strategic initiative on the Eastern Front, after Operation Citadel, this initiative went to the Soviets until the end of the war.
The following video shows scenes from the batlte, shown in German propaganda newsreels.
It shows footage of German tank and infantry units advancing, German bombers and artillery attacking Soviet positions, destroyed Soviet tanks and other material, footage of German generals Model and von Kluge, among other scenes.
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Subtitles made by me.")
