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Ancient Assassins
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More from this Show
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Sir John Hawkwood and his White Company threw away the rulebook while fighting in the Italian city-states of the 14th century
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02:26
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Ancient Assassins
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The Clever English Mercenary Maneuvers His Way Through 14th Century Italy
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In the 16th century a collection of 20,000 Germanic mercenaries attempt to breach the walls of Rome so that they can take the Pope hostage
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03:27
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Ancient Assassins
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Mercenaries Attempt to Take Rome So as to Ransom the Pope
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The Kung Fu Nun imitates nature to develop a figthing style that is designed to take down a bigger, stronger, and faster opponent.
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02:17
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Ancient Assassins
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Nature as Inspiration for a New Fighting Style
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It is posited that 9th century Vikings conquering the kingdoms of England had the upper edge in battle because they believed that the more they killed the better their standing would be in Valhalla.
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02:36
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Ancient Assassins
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The More The Vikings Kill The Better Their Standing in Valhalla
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While the Scottish were greatly outnumbered by the English army, Sir William Wallace used the Scottish terrain to his advantage.
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02:21
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Ancient Assassins
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William Wallace Maximizes the Advantages of Scottish Terrain
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The Roman invasion of present-day Great Britain was similar to that of the Normandy invasion in terms of the relative scale and risks involved in an amphibious assault across the English Channel.
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02:06
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Ancient Assassins
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The Roman Empire's D-Day Invasion
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At the beginning of the Battle of Shinohara in late 12th century Japan each side selects their champion for a one-on-one duel, and to the surprise of the vanquished champion his opponent reveals that she is a woman.
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03:32
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Ancient Assassins
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Tomoe Gozen the Legendary Female Samurai Champion
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In his drive to expand his empire towards India Alexander the Great's biggest obstacle is keeping his supply lines traversing Afghanistan secure. US and British forces today face the same challenges.
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03:16
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Ancient Assassins
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The United States and Alexander the Great Face the Same Challenges in Afghanistan
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The Janissaries of the Ottoman Empire were highly trained killers taken from their homes at a young age as part of a blood tax, who distinguished themselves in battle, notably during the siege of Constantinople of 1453.
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03:04
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Ancient Assassins
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Janissaries Were the Ottoman Empire's Elite Shock Troops
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Eagle Warriors were the elite shock troops of the mighty Aztec Empire and they fought war the Aztec way - trained not to kill but capture their enemies. Their main weapon was the ingenious macuahuitl, which used obsidian to tear through flesh.
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02:12
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Ancient Assassins
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The Aztec Eagle Warriors and Their Awesome Macuahuitl
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The elite units of the Byzantine Army, the Varangian Guard, served as personal bodyguards to the Byzantine Emperors, and originated primarily from Scandinavia and England. Along with the prowess in combat they wielded highly effective weapons.
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01:50
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Ancient Assassins
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Varangian Guard Weapons and Tactics
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Just as the US Navy Seals have their super-elite Team 6, so the Spartans have their own best of the best, the Krypteia, or Secret Operations Force. As part of their initiation they must stealthily and successfully assassinate an unsuspecting target.
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03:26
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Ancient Assassins
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The Spartan Elite Must Assassinate as Part of Their Initiation
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A dagger experts explains the three different types of daggers: the stabber, the slasher, and combo slasher/stabber. Watch demonstrations of each type.
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01:03
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Ancient Assassins
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Differences in Daggers
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The Ninja, or Shinobi warrior, developed a unique set of tactics that the samurai could not employ because of their honor code. Ninjas were free to conduct what today would be described as black ops, such as assassinations, spying, and sabotage.
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02:44
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Ancient Assassins
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Ninjas Were the First to Conduct Black Ops
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Viking Berserkers used highly effective weaponry to compliment their exceptional battlefield aggression. In the hands of the fearsome Vikings the Dane axe and double-sided sword hacked their way through opponents throughout a large swath of Europe.
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03:05
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Ancient Assassins
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The Viking Axe and Sword Dole Out Death
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An elite warrior class, the Koa, emerged in Hawaii amid constant warfare between the islands and its leaders. The Koa practiced a punishing martial art called Lua and sought to enrich themselves through their vanquished enemies' life force.
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03:22
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Ancient Assassins
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The Elite Hawaiian Koa Feed Off Their Enemy
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While the Scottish were greatly outnumbered by the English army, Sir William Wallace used the Scottish terrain to his advantage.
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Ancient Assassins
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William Wallace Maximizes the Advantages of Scottish Terrain
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In 1932 Rear Admiral Harry Yarnell mounted a simulated attack on Pearl Harbor utilizing carrier-based airplanes to expose how vulnerable it was to a carrier-borne attack. The Japanese took notice.
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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The Pearl Harbor Attack of 1932
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The Articles of Confederation proved to be more trouble than help, with individual states all pushing their interests and agendas, to the point of threatening the country as a whole.
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:Articles of Confederation
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Such were his powers of organization and logistics, Dwight Eisenhower was always kept away from combat because he made others better and more well-prepared for it.
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Eisenhower Had How Much Combat Experience?
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George Washington was preceded by several other Presidents of the United States.
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:George Washington Not our First President
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There are many misconceptions surrounding our understanding of General George Armstrong Custer and his final campaign against the Plains Indians but the actual facts are more compelling than the fiction.
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02:59
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction (Season 2):The Real General Custer and What Really Happened at Little Bighorn
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Our vision of Paul Revere's midnight ride is all wrong, especially how it concludes.
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02:38
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:The Truth About Paul Revere
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Paul Revere has been billed as America?s first action hero after his famous "Midnight Ride" but as truth would have it, he was part of a network.
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:It Wasn't Just Paul Revere
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There were actually two boats of Pilgrims that left England for the US, and Plymouth Rock was not the first place the Mayflower disembarked.
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02:51
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:What Really Happened with the Mayflower
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A small anecdote from the crossing of the Mayflower to America reveals that an indentured servant, John Howland was swept off the deck of the ship during a storm, and that had he not been saved US history would have taken a different turn.
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01:40
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:The Mayflower and What May Not Have Been
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When one thinks of America's first amusement ride Coney Island comes to mind, but another ride in Pennsylvania was attracting large crowds of thrill-seekers a decade before.
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02:48
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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The Truth About America's First Amusement Rides
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Witness how childhood boredom escalated into the mass hysteria that led to the Salem Witch Trials.
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02:24
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:Salem Witch Craft Hysteria
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There are several facts and fictions associated with New York City's Empire State Building, like that one about a penny dropped from the top having the ability to kill someone on the sidewalk.
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02:09
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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What Happens When a Penny is Dropped From the Empire State Building?
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The two-day weekend wasn't always the case. What caused the 20th century weekend we've all come to know and love?
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01:54
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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The Origins of the Weekend
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Halloween in the early-to-mid-20th century was not a sweet nor pleasant holiday, but an excuse for pranks and general mischief.
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction:How Halloween Has Changed
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Just as with their flags there are many misconceptions about pirates and how they operated.
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02:34
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America: Facts vs. Fiction
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Facts vs. Fiction (Season 2):Pirates and Their Flags Aren't As They Seem
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