Preceded by a rush of naïve optimism, World War I swiftly demonstrated the awful might and unheroic nature of modern warfare, shattering European innocence and pulling America onto the world stage. This ABC News program anchored by Peter Jennings documents the course of the war that blighted a generation—and the punitive peace that ensured future enmity. From the prewar arms race between Germany and Britain to the stalemate on the Western Front, Germany’s last grab for victory, America’s knock-out blow, and the Treaty of Versailles, the program offers an overview of a catastrophic chapter of 20th-century history. (37 minutes)