This late 1930s to early 1940s black and white film “Sea of Strife” is about the Mediterranean Sea and the centuries-long struggles to control it and the areas that border it from Carthage to Phoenicia to the present day. The end of the film focuses on the Italian aggression in Ethiopia and the Spanish Civil War, which was raging at the time the film was made. The conflict threatened to become international in scope, as Germany openly supported the Nationalist forces with air power. The film was produced by Front Page Productions.
The film opens with a shot of a long camel train moving across the desert sand (:30-:42). Re-enactment is shown of ancient Mediterranean occupants loading a boat with supplies. A large wheel is hand-turned as a group of men pull a large stone slab up a hill. Men in ancient dress fight and throw fire brands. A map is shown of the Mediterranean Sea area (:43- 2:18). Remains of buildings are shown in Crete. Re-enactors show a large fight among fleeing people (2:19-3:17). A map of Carthage shows the shipping routes of 800 BC Phoenicians (3:18-3:42). A group of reenactors march in Rome. The Emperor eats as he and his female companion are fanned with large feathers. Roman soldiers ride in horse-drawn chariots. Sails are raised on an ancient ship, shown destroyed by Rome (3:43-5:00). A map shows the Old Roman Empire. Medieval soldiers ride through a town. Crusaders fight with swords on horseback. The city’s sick lie in the streets due to the plague (5:01-6:24). The map shifts from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. An English Clipper ship sails through the water (6:25-7:23). The story shifts to sometime prior to 1948 as Palestine is still occupied by the British. Palestine is shown. British soldiers march in the streets (7:24-7:45). People gather on the banks of a river in India. Highly decorated elephants walk in a line (7:46-8:06). The Rock of Gibraltar is shown. British destroyers patrol the Mediterranean Sea (8:07-9:05). 1935 Mussolini emphatically gestures as he speaks to a crowd from an upstairs balcony. The map shows the Italian soldiers invade Ethiopia. Troops fire cannons, a tank drives over a short cliff, planes drop bombs that explode, and troops run through the smoke and fire. Dead soldiers are shown. British troops stand with native Ethiopians (9:06-11:01). England’s military fleet moves through the Mediterranean Sea. The camera pans England’s fleet of planes protecting the Mediterranean (11:02-11:54). The map moves to Spain. Scenes of the Spanish Civil war show soldiers firing, planes buzzing overhead, crowds looking up at the sky running beneath the German and Italian planes as the air raid siren goes off, bombs are dropped, and buildings burn. Dead victims are shown in the destroyed areas (11:55-13:46). A submarine periscope is seen. Torpedoes move through the water towards a ship. A large tall ocean explosion occurs. Hit ships slowly sink into the water (13:47-14:39). Short clips already seen move through the history again of the conflicts in the Mediterranean Sea area, with additional footage of dead Spanish civilians (14:40-15:20).
We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: “01:00:12:00 — President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.”
This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: “01:00:12:00 — President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.”
This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
