An epic documentary bringing life to America's most destructive - and defining - conflict. Here is the saga of celebrated generals and the ordinary soldiers. A heroic and transcendent president and a country that had to divide itself in two in order to become one again.

Originally produced as a television mini series in 1990. Special features: behind-the-scenes: "The Civil War Reconstruction"; commentary track by Ken Burns; interviews with George Will, Shelby Foote and Stanley Crouch; biography cards and interactive maps. Originally produced for PBS in 1990. Originally broadcast as a television mini-series in 1990; produced in 1989. Special features, disc 1: behind-the-scenes: "The Civil War Reconstruction" ; commentary track by Ken Burns ; interviews with George Will, Shelby Foote and Stanley Crouch ; biography cards and battlefield maps. "88582" "A production of Florentine films and WETA-TV; producers, Ken Burns and Ric Burns; writers, Geoffrey C. Ward, Ric Burns and Ken Burns; editors, Paul Barnes, Bruce Shaw and Tricia Reidy; narration, David McCullough." Special features: behind-the-scenes: "The Civil War Reconstruction"-- Commentary track by Ken Burns -- additional interviews Ken Burns, filmmaker; Shelby Foote, writer; George Will, writer; Stanley Crouch, writer; Jay Ungar and Molly Mason, musicians -- Inside the Civil War: the people, the places -- Civil War challenge -- Ken Burns: making history -- A conversation with Ken Burns

disc 1. Episode one : The Cause (1861) -- disc 2. Episodes two and three : A Very Bloody Affair, Forever Free (1862) -- disc 3. Episodes four and five : Simply Murder, the Universe of Battle (1863) -- disc 4. Episodes six and seven : Valley of the Shadow of Death, Most Hallowed Ground (1864) -- disc 5. Episodes eight and nine : War is All Hell, the Better Angles of Our Nature (1865).