NOVA

S43E10 Secret Tunnel Warfare

In the midst of World War I, the stalemate of trench combat left both Allies and Germans at an impasse. During the harsh winter of 1916, Allied engineers crafted an ambitious plan: to detonate over a million pounds of explosives concealed within secret tunnels beneath German defenses. Constructing these tunnels was perilous, with tunnelers facing threats from flooding, collapses, and enemy counter-digging. When the mines at Messines detonated in June 1917, around 10,000 German soldiers were killed instantly. Today, archaeologists are uncovering the remarkable scale and dangers of these Allied tunneling efforts, providing insight into the frantic preparations and the harrowing consequences that followed.