Silver Spring, MD — Offering the secret history of 9 historic battles, BATTLEFIELD DETECTIVES debuts on DVD from Athena on February 14, 2012. Investigators re-create the conditions of history’s major battles using 3-D computer models, maps, artifacts, original footage, and dramatic reenactments. From the muddy fields at Hastings to the sweltering jungles of Vietnam, a variety of experts offer compelling new evidence on the wars that shaped the modern world. Produced in 2003, Battlefield Detectives aired on the History Channel. The 3-volume boxed set includes a 16-page viewer’s guide and biographies of major military leaders, among other bonus features ($59.99, www.Athenalearning.com).

What explains the massacre at Waterloo? Why was Gallipoli such a disaster? What role did luck play at Hastings? Battlefield Detectives puts these and other famous battles under the microscope by revisiting the sites—some little changed, others transformed completely—where the fighting took place. Using 3-D computer models, maps, artifacts, original footage, and dramatic reenactments, investigators recreate the conditions at the scene.

New research is adding to our understanding of what really happened in some of the great battles of history, including Agincourt, Trafalgar, Balaklava, Little Big Horn, and Vietnam. Geologists are finding answers in the landscape and psychiatrists in the minds of the warriors, while climatologists and meteorologists are showing how weather was often crucial. From firearms experts and forensic scientists to crowd-behavior specialists, genealogists, and engineers, a wide range of authorities unlock the long-buried secrets of the battlefields.

Episodes: Who Got Lucky at Hastings?, Agincourt’s Dark Secrets, What Sank the Armada?, Trafalgar’s Fatal Flaw, Massacre at Waterloo, The Charge of the Light Brigade, Custer’s Last Stand, The Gallipoli Disaster, Vietnam’s Bloody Secret

BONUS FEATURES: 16-page viewer’s guide with articles on the Anglo-Saxons and Normans, the treasure ship Girona the Crimean War, the history of Kemal Atatürk, and Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, and a map of Bonaparte’s battles; as well as biographies of major military leaders; plus Nelson’s notable quotes, the story of “The Charge of the Light Brigade” poem, and discussion questions at athenalearning.com

Street: Feb. 14, 2012
SRP: $59.99
DVD 3-Vol. Boxed Set: 9 episodes; approx. 432 min.; 16:9 widescreen; SDH subtitles

Athena releases provide an authoritative and entertaining learning experience through high quality, informative, non-fiction programming. 2011 Athena releases included: The Making of the President: The 1960s, Discovering Hamlet, The Battle for Marjah, Joseph Campbell: Mythos III, and Art of the Western World. Early 2012 releases include Bill Moyers: Capital Crimes and Amazing Grace, and In Their Own Words. Clips are available at www.athenalearning.com. Athena’s DVD sets are available from select retailers, catalog companies, and direct from Acorn at (888) 870-8047 or www.acornonline.com.

Battlefield Detectives is distributed by ITV STUDIOS Global Entertainment; one of the world’s leading international TV distribution, home-entertainment and merchandising & licensing businesses.