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Civilisation

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S1 E13 · Heroic Materialism

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About Civilisation

Civilisation is a documentary TV series that premiered on BBC Two on February 23, 1969. It has 1 season and 13 episodes so far and has ended. The latest episode, Season 1 Episode 13 "Heroic Materialism", aired on May 18, 1969.

Sir Kenneth Clark guides us through the ages exploring the glorious rise of civilisation in western man. Beginning with the bleakness of the dark ages to the present day, we consider civilisation's articulations and expressions in some of man's finest works of art.

  • Documentary

Last updated

Episodes

13 episodes · 1 season

Season 1

1969 · 13 episodes · Last episode: 57 years ago

Civilisation Season 1 release dates →
  1. Civilisation S1 E13 still E13

    13. Heroic Materialism

    Finale

    Clark concludes the series with his discussion of materialism and humanitarianism of the past century. This takes us from the industrial landscape of nineteenth century England to the skyscrapers of twentieth century New York. The achievements of the engineers and scientists - such as Brunel and Rutherford - having been matched by the great reformers like Wilberforce and Shaftsbury.

  2. Civilisation S1 E12 still E12

    12. The Fallacies of Hope

    Here Clark argues that the French Revolution led to the dictatorship of Napoleon and the dreary bureaucracies of the nineteenth century and traces the disillusionment of the Romanticism artists is traced from Beethoven's, Byron's poetry, Delacroix's paintings to Rodin's sculpture.

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    11. The Worship of Nature

    Belief in the divinity of nature, Clark argues, usurped Christianity's position as the chief creative force in Western civilisation and ushered in the Romantic movement. Here Clark visits Tintern Abbey, the Alps, and there discusses the landscapes of Turner and Constable.

  4. Civilisation S1 E10 still E10

    10. The Smile of Reason

    Here Clark discusses the Age of Enlightenment tracing it from the polite conversations in the elegant Parisian salons of eighteenth-century, through the subsequent revolutionary politics to the great European palaces of Blenheim and Versailles finally to Jefferson's Monticello.

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    9. The Pursuit of Happiness

    Here Clark talks of the harmonious flow and complex symmetries of the works of Bach, Handel, Haydn and Mozart — and the reflection of these in the Rococo churches and palaces of Bavaria.

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    8. The Light of Experience

    Here Clark tells of new worlds in space and in a drop of water that the telescope and microscope revealed, and the new realism in the Dutch paintings which took the observation of human character to a higher stage of development.

  7. Civilisation S1 E7 still E7

    7. Grandeur and Obedience

    Again in Rome of Michelangelo and Bernini, Clark tells of the Catholic Church's fight against the Protestant north, the Counter-Reformation and the Church's new splendour symbolized by the glory of St. Peter's.

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    6. Protest and Communication

    Here Clark takes us back to the Reformation. That is to the Germany of Albrecht Duerer and Martin Luther, the world of the humanitarians Erasmus, Montaigne, and Shakespeare.

  9. Civilisation S1 E5 still E5

    5. The Hero as Artist

    Here Clark takes us back to 16th century Papal Rome noting the convergence of Christianity and antiquity. He discusses Michelangelo, Raphael, and da Vinci, the courtyards of the Vatican, the rooms decorated for the Pope by Raphael, and the Sistine Chapel.

  10. Civilisation S1 E4 still E4

    4. Man: The Measure of all Things

    Visiting Florence, where, Clark argues, European thought gained a new impetus from its rediscovery of its classical past. He also visits the palaces at Urbino and Mantua, other centres of (Renaissance) civilisation.

  11. Civilisation S1 E3 still E3

    3. Romance and Reality

    Beginning at a castle in the Loire, then travelling through the hills of Tuscany and Umbria to the cathedral baptistry at Pisa as he examines both the aspirations and achievements of the later Middle Ages in France and Italy.

  12. Civilisation S1 E2 still E2

    2. The Great Thaw

    In the second episode Clark tells of the sudden reawakening of European civilisation in the twelfth century . He traces it from its first manifestations in the Abbey of Cluny to its high point, the building of the Chartres cathedral.

  13. Civilisation S1 E1 still E1

    1. The Skin of Our Teeth

    In this the first episode Clark travels from Byzantine Ravenna to the Celtic Hebrides, from the Norway of the Vikings to Charlemagne's chapel at Aachen, telling his story of the Dark Ages; the six centuries following the collapse of the Roman Empire.

Cast & crew

Created by Kenneth Clark

  • Ian Richardson

    Ian Richardson

    Hamlet

  • Ronald Lacey

    Ronald Lacey

    Gravedigger

  • Patrick Stewart

    Patrick Stewart

    Horatio

  • William Devlin

    King Lear

  • Eric Porter

    Eric Porter

    Macbeth (voice)

  • Cecil Day-Lewis

    Poetry reader (voice)

Civilisation FAQ

Will there be new episodes of Civilisation?

Civilisation has ended, so no new episodes are scheduled. The final episode aired on May 18, 1969.

When did the latest episode of Civilisation come out?

The most recent episode of Civilisation, Season 1 Episode 13 "Heroic Materialism", aired on May 18, 1969.

How many seasons of Civilisation are there?

Civilisation has 1 season with 13 episodes in total.

When did Civilisation first air?

Civilisation first aired on BBC Two on February 23, 1969.

How do I get notified when new episodes of Civilisation are released?

Download the Streambay app, follow Civilisation, and you'll get a push notification the moment each new episode is released.

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