NaN/100 votesLoading...#1 - Destroyers and Cruisers
Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 6/8/2020
Destroyers and cruisers are the quintessential combat ships, each featuring speed and firepower while carrying out unique roles within a navy. We highlight the similarities and differences of these two warships and share stories of some of the most influential vessels and battles, from the lone-wolf cruiser, HMS Gannet, which became a powerful symbol of the Victorian anti-slavery campaign to the legendary USS Laffey, the World War II destroyer that stared down the largest kamikaze attack in history.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#2 - Secrets of the Sea
Season 2 Episode 5 - Aired 6/15/2020
From the capture of U-505 to the sinking of the Lusitania; from the war games of Gilbert Roberts that man behind the fabled 'Operation Raspberry," which nullified the threat of German U-boats, to the highly cinematic deception at the heart of the Pentagon's capture of a sunken Soviet nuclear sub. Covert missions and secret strategies have been at the heart of naval engagement since the very beginning, often helping pick the winners. Join us on a revealing and highly classified look.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#3 - Galleons and Privateers
Season 2 Episode 6 - Aired 6/22/2020
In the 16th century, the Spanish Armada were the reigning maritime superpower, with mighty galleons at their disposal. The English, on the other hand, were the upstarts, opportunistic pirates with inferior ships. Led by buccaneering figures such as Francis Drake and John Hawkins, English ships technology began to catch up, leading to the revolutionary "race-built galleons." In 1588, both sides would meet in battle for the right to be declared rulers of the waves.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#4 - Amphibious Assaults
Season 2 Episode 8 - Aired 7/6/2020
Amphibious vessels: specialized landing craft built to go where no other combat ship can reach and able to deliver tanks, jeeps, soldiers, and supplies to the front lines. We detail some of the greatest ships in the history of amphibious warfare, from the LCT, which dropped the huge Allied fighting force onto the beaches of Normandy in 1944, to the Swift boats that patrolled Vietnam's shores. We also chart the evolution of combat hovercraft, and how the PACVs of the '60s grew to become a mainstay for the U.S. Navy's Assault Craft Units.
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votesLoading...#5 - Game Changers
Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 2/27/2022
A look at the game-changers of maritime combat-revolutionary ships and the groundbreaking designers behind them
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votesLoading...#6 - The Battle of Trafalgar
Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 3/6/2022
The vessels employed in the Battle of Trafalgar, a naval engagement contested in October 1805 in the Atlantic Ocean between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#7 - The Battle of Inchon
Season 3 Episode 3 - Aired 3/13/2022
The Battle of Inchon, an amphibious invasion and conflict within the Korean War, which resulted in a decisive victory and strategic reversal in favor of the United Nations Command. It was one of the the riskiest amphibious assaults in history, in one of the world's most treacherous harbors.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#8 - Gulf War Warriors
Season 3 Episode 4 - Aired 3/20/2022
The ships involved in the biggest naval deployments in recent history - Persian Gulf, Iran-Iraq War and Desert Storm.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#9 - Sunk
Season 3 Episode 5 - Aired 3/27/2022
Stories of naval ships that sank below the waves, from veterans who survived during the Falklands War to a hi-tech mission to solve a Second World War mystery.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#10 - Top Guns
Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 4/3/2022
A look at naval armaments through history, from cannon armed sailing ships to cutting-edge weapon technology destined for the next generation of combat ships
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#11 - Fast and Furious
Season 3 Episode 7 - Aired 4/10/2022
A new breed of small-but-mighty high-speed torpedo crafts revolutionized naval technology and came to define the bloody battles of World War II.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#12 - River Raiders
Season 3 Episode 8 - Aired 4/17/2022
Historians and U.S. military veterans discuss the small and powerful riverboats used to navigate waterways from the shallows of the American South to the winding canals of Vietnam.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#13 - Explosion!
Season 4 Episode 2 - Aired 4/2/2023
Experts discuss nautical explosions, including an attack on the USS Westchester County during the Vietnam War, a collision in Canada during WWI and a nuclear test in the Pacific Ocean.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#14 - Hidden Figures
Season 4 Episode 3 - Aired 4/9/2023
A black Merchant Marine in World War II forces the Navy to desegregate his ship, a teenage slave pressed into Royal Navy service finds himself in the thick of the Seven Years' War, and more.
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votesLoading...#15 - Heroes of Guadalcanal
Season 4 Episode 4 - Aired 4/16/2023
American troops' determination to secure a vital airfield and preserve communications lines with Australia leads to a chaotic and deadly night battle in the Pacific theater of World War II.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#16 - Mutiny
Season 4 Episode 5 - Aired 4/23/2023
Anti-war sentiment and racial unrest during the Vietnam War spark rebellions at sea, mutineers overthrow Captain Bligh on the HMS Bounty, and a U.S. slave ship revolt ends in triumph.
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votesLoading...#17 - Smugglers and Pirates
Season 4 Episode 6 - Aired 4/30/2023
The Navy captures an armed group of Somali pirates, a Coast Guard crew raids a drug-smuggling submarine, and Norwegian civilians in fishing boats outwit the Germans during World War II.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#18 - Record Breakers
Season 4 Episode 7 - Aired 5/7/2023
A look at how technological advances over the centuries have led to bigger and faster combat ships and transformed maritime warfare.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votesLoading...#19 - Lightning Strikes
Season 4 Episode 8 - Aired 5/14/2023
French surveillance frigate Nivôse executes a plan to capture pirates off the coast of Somalia, and the U.S. retaliates after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor with the help of the USS Hornet.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.9/108 votesLoading...#20 - Viking Longships
Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 5/18/2020
Over the centuries, longships evolved from swift war canoes to become the preeminent fighting machines of the age. For over 200 years, Vikings depended on these vessels to carry them across the ocean to trade and to plunder. With names such as Surf Dragon and Great Serpent, these ships became part of Viking culture and took on almost magical properties. But what was the secret behind their power? We examine the story of longships and those who built them, a people who were often violent and bloody...but also expert craftsmen.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.3/107 votesLoading...#21 - Secrets and Lies
Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 4/16/2017
Explore the dark side of naval warfare--a world of deception, double-dealing, and disguised vessels--throughout the first half of the 20th century. See how Britain's Royal Navy attempted to fool German U-boats through the technique of "dazzle painting," then look at the ingeniously designed Gizmo, an American spy vessel that never made it beyond American waters.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.3/107 votesLoading...#22 - The Battle of Leyte Gulf
Season 2 Episode 7 - Aired 6/29/2020
It was a microcosm of naval warfare, involving battleships, carriers, destroyers, submarines, kamikazes, and fighter jets, all embroiled in an epic, three-day battle that marked the beginning of the end to the Pacific War. This is an inside look at the Battle of Leyte Gulf and the thousands of vessels involved, including the largest, most powerful battleships ever built: Japan's Musashi and Yamato. We detail the brilliant strategies, heroic acts, stunning decisions, and mighty machines that made this the biggest sea conflict in history.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.7/107 votesLoading...#23 - Rescue Ships
Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 3/26/2017
In the past two centuries of combat, ships have played a major role in rescuing thousands of people--some injured, some in need of transport, and others fleeing for their lives. Board some of history's most remarkable rescue ships, from the USS Constellation, which hunted down illegal slave ships to the most unlikely rescue ship of World War II, a tiny workboat that saved hundreds of Danish Jews from Nazi terror.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.8/1010 votesLoading...#24 - Warships of the World Wars
Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 6/20/2017
At the start of the 20th century, the battleship was the key naval vessel, escorting convoys and overpowering the enemy. But over the course of two world wars, technology raced ahead, drastically changing their role from flagships of the fleet to floating artillery vessels. Revisit some of the mighty battleship's greatest triumphs and tragedies and witness tales of heroic acts and daring missions, from the Battle of Jutland to the sinking of the HMS Royal Oak to the D-Day invasion.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.8/109 votesLoading...#25 - Torpedo Boats at War
Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 7/19/2017
In the late 1800s, the invention of the self-propelled torpedo incited a revolution in ship design. Navies needed new vessels to fire them and to defend against them. Enter torpedo boats--fast, lightweight ships that would play a big role in both World Wars. Examine some of these sophisticated speedsters, from the German S-boats, which turned one D-Day rehearsal into a very real battle, the MTB 102, the smallest vessel to ever serve as a Royal Navy flagship, and the PT 109, which made a hero of a young JFK.
Director: N/A
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The Worst Episodes of Combat Ships
Every episode of Combat Ships ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of Combat Ships!
The very first submarine, which legend claims lurked beneath New York Harbor during the American Revolutionary War. The small ships that rescued thousands from Dunkirk....
Genre:Documentary
Network:Smithsonian Channel
Worst Episodes Summary
"Destroyers and Cruisers" is the worst rated episode of "Combat Ships". It scored N/A/10 based on 0 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 6/8/2020. This episode scored NaN points lower than the second lowest rated, "Secrets of the Sea".