It's back to the past, with the Once Upon a Time series. How did America get its name? Take a trip back to Renaissance Italy in this first episode of The Explorers to find out.

Daniel Benchimol continues his tour of the Normandy coast with stops in Tourgéville, Houlgate, and Dives-sur-Mer. Along the way, he shows us some interesting houses built on top of German bunkers from World War II.

In the French town of Lantages, a group of history buffs and other volunteers reenact a series of World War II battles from the years 1940 and 1944. Their equipment and clothing are authentic to the period, which helps to preserve that memory of that difficult time.

The cathedral of Chartres is one of the most famous in Europe and is a prime example of Gothic architecture. Daniel Benchimol gives us an exclusive tour of this magnificent cultural landmark.

Why is this dead-end street named after a big bottle? The local historian will reveal all.

In the last segment of this animated series on ancient Greece, we learn about the later years of the empire, filled with endless wars and the ostracism of some of its most famous citizens.

In the next installment of Il était une fois..., we meet some of the great thinkers of ancient Greece: Socrates, Euripides, Sophocles, Protagoras, Anaxagoras, and others. You're sure to be enlightened by the end!

While the Athenians were constructing and reconstructing the Acropolis, young Spartans were undergoing a harsh, often brutal education -- a walk in the park compared to what Spartan women experienced during the traditional marriage ritual.

A young man consults the Pythia (aka the Oracle of Delphi) to see if the gods will sanction his marriage to the girl of his dreams. What is her forecast? Find out in this video!

Learn about the birth of democracy in ancient Greece and watch a scene from Sophocles's famous tragedy, Antigone, in the next installment of Il était une fois....

Il était une fois... ("Once Upon a Time...") takes us back to the origins of Western civilization on the island of Crete. This lively animated series is for French learners of all ages!

The first electric car? 1899! La Jamais contente. This car and other rare self-propelled antique vehicles can now be seen in car museums.

Lazare Ponticelli was the last of the “Poilus” — French infantry soldiers who served in World War I. Ponticelli, who was actually an Italian immigrant to France, first served in the French Foreign Legion and then eventually, the Italian army. He died in 2008 at the age of 110.

What is the best way to explain the horrors of the Holocaust to nine-year-old children? France’s Holocaust memorial has taken measures to avoid disturbing children by placing the most graphic photographs out of their line of sight and by offering a tour specifically designed for younger viewers. The idea is for children to learn about this dark moment in our history without being overwhelmed.

On the 9th of November, 1989, the wall that divided the German city of Berlin began to fall along with the East German state that built it. Claudia Rusch, a young Francophile, was one of the first to scramble over what remained of the divide, meeting up with a French friend on the western side. She’s recently recounted her story in a book, which is a best-seller in her native Germany.