World War II – The Arsenal of Democracy

This episode explores America’s role in World War II, from its entry after the attack on Pearl Harbor to its emergence as a world superpower. The U.S. mobilized its economy and people, fought brutal battles across Europe and the Pacific, and used the atomic bomb to end the conflict.

We examine the war’s impact on soldiers, civilians, minorities, and women, and the global legacy it left behind—from the United Nations to the Cold War, from Holocaust memory to nuclear power. World War II was both a victory and a transformation.