0:00:04 > 0:00:06I'm embarking on a new railway adventure,
0:00:06 > 0:00:09that will take me across the heart of Europe.
0:00:11 > 0:00:12I'll be using this,
0:00:12 > 0:00:15my Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide,
0:00:15 > 0:00:20dated 1913, which opened up an exotic world of foreign travel
0:00:20 > 0:00:21for the British tourist.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25It told travellers where to go,
0:00:25 > 0:00:27what to see and how to navigate
0:00:27 > 0:00:31the thousands of miles of tracks criss-crossing the continent.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Now, a century later,
0:00:33 > 0:00:37I'm using my copy to reveal an era of great optimism and energy,
0:00:37 > 0:00:40where technology, industry, science
0:00:40 > 0:00:42and the arts were flourishing.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46I want to rediscover that lost Europe that in 1913
0:00:46 > 0:00:50couldn't know that its way of life would shortly be swept aside
0:00:50 > 0:00:52by the advent of war.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11Armed with my 1913 railway guide,
0:01:11 > 0:01:15I'm following in the footsteps of early 20th century travellers
0:01:15 > 0:01:18and making five long journeys across Europe.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23Today, I'm exploring Switzerland, whose remarkable railways
0:01:23 > 0:01:26helped to make it a favourite with Edwardian tourists.
0:01:26 > 0:01:27Cheers.
0:01:27 > 0:01:29Cheers.
0:01:29 > 0:01:30I'll discover the cargo carried
0:01:30 > 0:01:32on the country's first ever line...
0:01:32 > 0:01:34Mmm...
0:01:34 > 0:01:35wonderful!
0:01:35 > 0:01:37Before heading for the glorious Alps...
0:01:37 > 0:01:39I've been lucky enough to experience
0:01:39 > 0:01:41some very beautiful train journeys,
0:01:41 > 0:01:43but this must be one of the very best.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46Where the British left their mark on sport...
0:01:46 > 0:01:49British people are sometimes a little bit crazy.
0:01:49 > 0:01:50..And literature...
0:01:50 > 0:01:52Do you remember any Sherlock Holmes stories?
0:01:52 > 0:01:55HE HOWLS
0:01:55 > 0:01:58And where astonishing engineering feats
0:01:58 > 0:02:00conquered the most challenging peaks.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03That's the longest glacier of the Alps.
0:02:03 > 0:02:05That is awe inspiring.
0:02:15 > 0:02:19My Swiss adventure begins in Basel, then traces a route outlined
0:02:19 > 0:02:23in my guidebook, via the industrial city of Zurich,
0:02:23 > 0:02:25then south east to Chur.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29From there, the famous Glacier Express will carry me
0:02:29 > 0:02:32through some of Switzerland's most stunning alpine scenery,
0:02:32 > 0:02:35before I turn north to explore Lake Lucerne.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40Finally, I'll make the impressive railway ascent
0:02:40 > 0:02:43to Jungfraujoch, Europe's highest railway station.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49It's clear from the dizzying array of routes
0:02:49 > 0:02:50and the lyrical descriptions
0:02:50 > 0:02:54contained in my Bradshaw's 1913 Continental Railway Guide
0:02:54 > 0:02:56that by the beginning of the 20th century,
0:02:56 > 0:03:00the railways had opened Switzerland to tourists,
0:03:00 > 0:03:02and the draw of what my guidebook
0:03:02 > 0:03:05calls "the finest lake and mountain scenery"
0:03:05 > 0:03:09had made Switzerland one of the most aspirational of destinations.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16I shall be following one of my guidebook's recommended routes
0:03:16 > 0:03:19through this spectacular country, but to reach my first stop,
0:03:19 > 0:03:23I'm travelling on a French train, along French tracks.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28I'm heading for the Swiss border city of Basel,
0:03:28 > 0:03:29which, since medieval times,
0:03:29 > 0:03:33has been a melting pot of French, German and Swiss influences.
0:03:36 > 0:03:40By 1913, it had also become the nexus of a sprawling
0:03:40 > 0:03:42continental railway network.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48Bradshaw's tells me that Basel is the key to Switzerland,
0:03:48 > 0:03:51where several international railway lines meet,
0:03:51 > 0:03:53and the customs examinations take place.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57Here, the trains from Alsace, where I've just come from, run in,
0:03:57 > 0:04:00connecting with the principal Swiss railways,
0:04:00 > 0:04:03and although I've come to a Swiss city,
0:04:03 > 0:04:07this part of the station is still officially France.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12I'm unpicking the history of this railway hub
0:04:12 > 0:04:14with historian Martin Lengwiler.
0:04:16 > 0:04:17- Hello, Martin.- Hello, Michael.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20This is really a very international place, isn't it?
0:04:20 > 0:04:23I see French trains, Swiss trains, German trains.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25This is the meeting point of the nations, isn't it?
0:04:25 > 0:04:28That's true indeed and Basel has a special place in the history
0:04:28 > 0:04:30of the Swiss railway system
0:04:30 > 0:04:35because it's the first town that has been linked to any railway line
0:04:35 > 0:04:40and it's still the only town in Switzerland that has three stations
0:04:40 > 0:04:42of three national origins.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47Surprisingly, the very first railway on Swiss soil
0:04:47 > 0:04:49was actually built by the French.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52In 1844, they constructed a line from Strasbourg
0:04:52 > 0:04:58to the Swiss border and proposed a terminus within Basel's city limits.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02But they got a lukewarm reception from the ruling elite.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05They were anxious because of military reasons.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08They were afraid that the French would use the railway
0:05:08 > 0:05:12to attack Basel with their troops.
0:05:12 > 0:05:14That's quite surprising to us
0:05:14 > 0:05:17because we now associate the Swiss almost as much with railways
0:05:17 > 0:05:19as we do with wristwatches and clocks.
0:05:19 > 0:05:23It's strange to think that the Swiss were reluctant to have a railway.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27Railways got off to a slow start across the country.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30Thanks to Switzerland's mountainous landscape,
0:05:30 > 0:05:33late industrialisation and its decentralised political system,
0:05:33 > 0:05:38the first home-grown line wasn't built until 1847,
0:05:38 > 0:05:42by which time Britain had over 2,000 miles of tracks.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45Basel finally got a Swiss station in 1854,
0:05:45 > 0:05:48and the Germans soon followed with one of their own.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52Today, the French and Swiss termini share a site.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55But the French station has extra-territorial status -
0:05:55 > 0:05:57so to join the Swiss network,
0:05:57 > 0:06:00I'm crossing an international frontier.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04The murals are inviting us to visit the rest of Switzerland.
0:06:04 > 0:06:05A lot of alpine scenery here.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08That's true, the lake of Lucerne, the Berne Alps,
0:06:08 > 0:06:11this is designed for tourists, of course.
0:06:11 > 0:06:13Very appropriate for me,
0:06:13 > 0:06:15because I'll be visiting scenery quite like this.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20Before I continue my journey,
0:06:20 > 0:06:23I'm venturing out to explore this multicultural city,
0:06:23 > 0:06:25that straddles the River Rhine.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30Just a year after my guidebook was published,
0:06:30 > 0:06:33life in picturesque Basel was disrupted,
0:06:33 > 0:06:37as Switzerland's neighbours were drawn into the First World war.
0:06:39 > 0:06:41But for Edwardian readers of my Bradshaw's,
0:06:41 > 0:06:44this city's hub location made it the perfect pit-stop.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48In the days before air travel
0:06:48 > 0:06:51brought us jet-lag and climate shock,
0:06:51 > 0:06:54guidebooks were concerned to treat travellers gently.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56My Bradshaw's says, "Basel is recommended
0:06:56 > 0:07:00"as an intermediate station for the change of climate between
0:07:00 > 0:07:03"the warm south and the low-lying north and alpine districts.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08"It offers its visitors manifold points of pleasure."
0:07:08 > 0:07:10I think I might just stick to a meal.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Followers of my 1913 guide
0:07:15 > 0:07:19would have made a beeline for the beautiful historic centre.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23It's where I've come to see how French, German
0:07:23 > 0:07:26and Swiss traditions have influenced Basel's cuisine.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33We have here the veal, Basel style, and this is the rosti, it's typical.
0:07:33 > 0:07:37Rosti, typically Swiss, thank you very much indeed.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39- Bon appetit! - Thank you.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42I think Swiss-German farmers used to make it for their breakfast
0:07:42 > 0:07:46and during World War I, the term "Rostigraben" was invented,
0:07:46 > 0:07:48the ditch based on the rosti,
0:07:48 > 0:07:52which separated those of French and German sympathy
0:07:52 > 0:07:55and it's an expression that's still used today
0:07:55 > 0:07:58to express the cultural divide - the Rostigraben.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08Much as I'd like to stay and explore Basel,
0:08:08 > 0:08:10with almost 300 miles to cover
0:08:10 > 0:08:14on my 1913 guidebook's recommended route, there's no time to waste.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18And so Switzerland opens before me.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25From a slow start, the Swiss railway network
0:08:25 > 0:08:28has become one of the most admired in the world.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31And I'm going on a journey of discovery to find out why.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37The quality of Swiss trains is as you would imagine -
0:08:37 > 0:08:40beautifully clean, delightfully air-conditioned,
0:08:40 > 0:08:44and this is first class. Spacious and luxurious.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52And even second class is absolutely satisfactory.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56I'm following in the footsteps of Edwardian tourists,
0:08:56 > 0:08:59but I'm about to delve into Europe's
0:08:59 > 0:09:01much more distant past.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03- Hello. - Hello, may I see your ticket?
0:09:03 > 0:09:06- I'm going to Brugg.- Thank you. - Thank you very much.
0:09:06 > 0:09:07You're welcome, bye-bye.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15In the early 20th century, ancient history was a hot topic,
0:09:15 > 0:09:18as British archaeologists blazed a trail across the globe.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24Inspired by their exotic foreign discoveries,
0:09:24 > 0:09:27readers of my 1913 guide would have been tantalised
0:09:27 > 0:09:28by the description of my next stop.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33I'll be getting off this train at Brugg, and my Bradshaw's says,
0:09:33 > 0:09:35"A little to the north of Brugg,
0:09:35 > 0:09:38"the Aare river is joined by the Reuss,
0:09:38 > 0:09:40"coming from the lakes of Zug and Lucerne,
0:09:40 > 0:09:42"and at the point of junction
0:09:42 > 0:09:45"once stood the ancient Roman town of Vindonissa,
0:09:45 > 0:09:48"scarcely a trace of which now exists."
0:09:48 > 0:09:52I'm hoping that in the 100 years since my guidebook was published
0:09:52 > 0:09:54more traces have been unearthed.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00In fact, by 1913, pioneering archaeologists,
0:10:00 > 0:10:03working in the village of Windisch, just outside Brugg,
0:10:03 > 0:10:06had already begun to reveal what is today
0:10:06 > 0:10:10a nearly fully excavated Roman legionary camp.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15It was the Romans' key military stronghold in Switzerland.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21I'm exploring with archaeologist, Jurgen Trumm.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26I'm amazed by what I've found here because my Bradshaw's guide tells me
0:10:26 > 0:10:28there aren't many traces left of Vindonissa.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31When did people first become aware of what they had here?
0:10:31 > 0:10:34I think the beginning of the archaeology
0:10:34 > 0:10:39was linked with the railway, the railway from Basel to Zurich.
0:10:42 > 0:10:44The mid-19th century railway engineers
0:10:44 > 0:10:46unearthed a Roman rubbish dump,
0:10:46 > 0:10:50filled with bones, ceramics, coins and wooden objects.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52Then in the 1900s,
0:10:52 > 0:10:55the local community put things on a formal footing.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58They founded an archaeological society,
0:10:58 > 0:11:03and, in 1912, set up a museum proudly to display their heritage.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08The 20th century was also a high period for archaeology,
0:11:08 > 0:11:11I think of some of the great discoveries
0:11:11 > 0:11:14that excited the public so much, like Tutankhamen in the 1920s.
0:11:14 > 0:11:19Yes, in Switzerland, archaeology was en vogue at the beginning
0:11:19 > 0:11:22of the 20th century, so people dig the Roman ruins,
0:11:22 > 0:11:26they dig the ruins from the Stone and Bronze Ages.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29The work begun a century ago continues today.
0:11:29 > 0:11:32Whenever a building is planned in the modern towns of Windisch
0:11:32 > 0:11:37and Brugg, the archaeologists go in first to check for buried treasures.
0:11:37 > 0:11:39What's the most exciting thing you've found?
0:11:39 > 0:11:44So, a very nice one is that here, dice made out of bone,
0:11:44 > 0:11:47looks really like today's dice.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50That's absolutely wonderful.
0:11:50 > 0:11:53And these markings are the original markings?
0:11:53 > 0:11:55It's incised into the bone.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58Incised into the bone, isn't that beautiful?
0:11:58 > 0:12:01It's amazing to think that all this
0:12:01 > 0:12:05lay beneath the feet of the Edwardian tourists who came here.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07- OK. - That's OK, Joachim.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09Off we go.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11'Before I leave, a modern invention
0:12:11 > 0:12:14'gives me a new perspective on this remarkable site.'
0:12:15 > 0:12:18- We are going to have a wonderful view.- Yes, indeed.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25I'm looking out at a Roman world
0:12:25 > 0:12:29and I'm seeing it as no Roman ever did.
0:12:42 > 0:12:47I'm now continuing along the railway route recommended in my 1913 guide.
0:12:51 > 0:12:54I'm bound for a place which attracted Edwardian tourists
0:12:54 > 0:12:55concerned for their health.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02I shall be disembarking at Baden, which my Bradshaw's tells me is,
0:13:02 > 0:13:06"A picturesque town near Zurich, on the River Limmat,
0:13:06 > 0:13:08"noted for its hot mineral springs,
0:13:08 > 0:13:14"most beneficial in cases of gout, rheumatism, chronic catarrhs etc."
0:13:14 > 0:13:17I'm here in search of a local speciality
0:13:17 > 0:13:19which is probably a bit less healthy,
0:13:19 > 0:13:22but which is inextricably linked with the railways.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30Baden has the honour of being the starting point
0:13:30 > 0:13:31for the first fully Swiss railway,
0:13:31 > 0:13:37which, from 1847, carried wealthy Zurich folk to their water cure.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40But soon after it opened, the line gained an unusual nickname.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46Even today, it's known as the Spanisch-Brotli-Bahn,
0:13:46 > 0:13:47after a local sweet treat.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53Hello, Michael. A warm welcome to you in Baden.
0:13:53 > 0:13:55Thank you very much. It's a beautiful town,
0:13:55 > 0:13:56I'm very pleased to be here.
0:13:56 > 0:14:01Tour guide Beatrice Candrian knows the story.
0:14:01 > 0:14:05I'm half Spanish and I understand that, in Baden,
0:14:05 > 0:14:08you have a pastry which is called a Spanisch brotli.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11- That's true.- What is this?
0:14:11 > 0:14:15Well, it's a very nice fluffy pastry.
0:14:15 > 0:14:18We don't quite know the origin.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21We think that a Spanish baker
0:14:21 > 0:14:23just travelled through Baden
0:14:23 > 0:14:26and he brought this recipe here.
0:14:27 > 0:14:29The cake became a much-loved delicacy
0:14:29 > 0:14:32with the people of Zurich, 15 miles away.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35And when the railway was built between Zurich and Baden,
0:14:35 > 0:14:37I suppose that helped people in Zurich
0:14:37 > 0:14:38to come to Baden and buy their brotli.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42It sure did. It helped mostly the servants,
0:14:42 > 0:14:47because, before the opening of the railroad line,
0:14:47 > 0:14:53the servants had to walk through the darkness of the night
0:14:53 > 0:14:56along the Limmat, two to three hours,
0:14:56 > 0:14:59to buy them here very early in the morning
0:14:59 > 0:15:02and to bring them back for their breakfast,
0:15:02 > 0:15:06so you can imagine that those servants were mostly happy
0:15:06 > 0:15:09when they could board the train.
0:15:10 > 0:15:14By the mid-20th century, these rich pastries had fallen out of favour,
0:15:14 > 0:15:18but, five years ago, a few local bakeries revived the recipe.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23Now, Michael, here, meet, please, Benny,
0:15:23 > 0:15:26the baker of our Spanisch brotli.
0:15:26 > 0:15:27Benny, hello.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30'I'm going to learn how to make the modern version.'
0:15:30 > 0:15:32What have you put in there?
0:15:32 > 0:15:35Hazelnuts, carrots, sugar and persipan.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39Wow, that sounds very, very sweet.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42'To keep the puff pastry perfect,
0:15:42 > 0:15:44'spreading the mixture requires a light touch.'
0:15:47 > 0:15:50This is the tricky bit, getting up to the limit.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56Mine has rather the look of a Swiss mountain range,
0:15:56 > 0:15:57just too many valleys.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00Here we go...
0:16:00 > 0:16:01Ooooh!
0:16:01 > 0:16:04Oh, no! Oh, Benny!
0:16:04 > 0:16:06My edges are all broken, argh.
0:16:07 > 0:16:09No-one will know, just patch that up.
0:16:09 > 0:16:13'The Spanisch brotli are cut into individual cakes.'
0:16:13 > 0:16:16Oh, you need a steady hand for this.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18First one is a bit squashed.
0:16:19 > 0:16:21The second one is going to be great.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25Ah, that one's brilliant.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30Then 18 minutes later, it's time for the acid test.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36Mmm, they are good.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39The pastry is great, isn't it? Very fluffy pastry.
0:16:39 > 0:16:40Fluffy and light, yes.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45Well, they taste OK to me, but I want to know whether they're worthy
0:16:45 > 0:16:49of their railway namesake, so I'm taking my efforts to the streets.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52These are Spanish brotli. Have you ever heard...?
0:16:52 > 0:16:53Ah, Spanisch-Brotli-Bahn.
0:16:53 > 0:16:55Yes. The Spanisch-Brotli-Bahn?
0:16:55 > 0:16:57I know, but not really.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59- Spanish-Brotli-Bahn. - Ja, that we know.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01Spanisch-Brotli-Bahn. What was the Spanisch-Brotli-Bahn?
0:17:01 > 0:17:03A train between Baden and Zurich.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06- Yeah?- The first train in Switzerland.
0:17:06 > 0:17:07- Would you like to try it?- Ja, yes.
0:17:07 > 0:17:09Go ahead, tell me what you think. Have a bite.
0:17:09 > 0:17:10Ja.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16Mmm, wonderful.
0:17:16 > 0:17:18- Yes, I try it for you. - Yeah, just a favour to me.
0:17:18 > 0:17:20Yes, sure.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26Very good.
0:17:29 > 0:17:30It's delicious.
0:17:30 > 0:17:34- It's good.- Is it good? - Tastes like one.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37Do you think it's worth a journey from Zurich to Baden to buy that?
0:17:38 > 0:17:40Yeah, why not!
0:17:40 > 0:17:42You can take it on your train,
0:17:42 > 0:17:44then your train will be the Spanisch-Brotli-Bahn.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46That's it. Thank you.
0:17:47 > 0:17:48- Thank you.- Bye.
0:17:53 > 0:17:57I'm now swapping my Spanisch brotli for the Spanisch-Brotli line,
0:17:57 > 0:18:00to head to the next stop on my Edwardian itinerary.
0:18:05 > 0:18:07I'm now travelling the route of the first railway
0:18:07 > 0:18:10ever built in Switzerland, towards Zurich,
0:18:10 > 0:18:14which my Bradshaw's tells me, "Is the capital of the canton of Zurich,
0:18:14 > 0:18:17"and commercially the most important town in Switzerland."
0:18:17 > 0:18:21I think of it for its financiers, the so-called Gnomes of Zurich,
0:18:21 > 0:18:25but it also has a substantial history as an engineering town.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29Zurich's entrepreneurs were at the heart
0:18:29 > 0:18:32of the Swiss Industrial Revolution, and the British traveller
0:18:32 > 0:18:37arriving here in 1913 could marvel at the city's many textile mills.
0:18:45 > 0:18:47Bradshaw's comments that,
0:18:47 > 0:18:50"The principal manufacture is concerned with silk,
0:18:50 > 0:18:53"but the engineering trade is also extensive,"
0:18:53 > 0:18:56and at the beginning of the 20th century those skills
0:18:56 > 0:18:59were being applied to railways.
0:19:00 > 0:19:05To the average Briton in 1913, trains meant steam.
0:19:05 > 0:19:07But a trip to Switzerland might mean
0:19:07 > 0:19:10an encounter with an exciting new technology electricity.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16Railway engineers had experimented with electric traction
0:19:16 > 0:19:19from the 1840s, but around the turn of the 20th century
0:19:19 > 0:19:23electricity was to transform European travel.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25I've come to the suburb of Oerlikon,
0:19:25 > 0:19:28to hear how a Zurich firm played a leading role in the story.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32My guide is railway enthusiast, Albert Schoch.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34- Hello, Albert.- Hello, Michael.
0:19:34 > 0:19:35This is the most extraordinary place.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38It has the feel of an industrial building but the look of a park.
0:19:38 > 0:19:39What is it?
0:19:39 > 0:19:43It's referring to these old buildings here of Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon
0:19:43 > 0:19:47and it shows the dimensions of an old assembly hall.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51Today, this is a peaceful public park
0:19:51 > 0:19:54but the Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon, or MFO,
0:19:54 > 0:20:00was once one of Zurich's biggest employers, with over 2,000 workers.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03It started out as a metal-works but then, in the early 20th century,
0:20:03 > 0:20:06the world's first electric locomotive,
0:20:06 > 0:20:09using alternating current, was constructed here.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14And these new trains proved ideally suited to Swiss conditions.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18Switzerland is very demanding territory for locomotives,
0:20:18 > 0:20:21very high mountains, very low temperatures, very steep slopes,
0:20:21 > 0:20:24and MFO was able to meet the need.
0:20:24 > 0:20:25Yes, Michael.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28Electric trains were cleaner in Switzerland's many tunnels
0:20:28 > 0:20:32than smoky steam engines and the country's abundant supply
0:20:32 > 0:20:35of hydroelectric power made them cheap to run.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40One of MFO's greatest achievements was when it designed a locomotive
0:20:40 > 0:20:44for the infamous St Gotthard line, one of the steepest in the country.
0:20:44 > 0:20:48They electrified the Saint Gotthard line in 1921
0:20:48 > 0:20:52and MFO gave the solution with the famous Crocodile,
0:20:52 > 0:20:59the CE68 or BE68 and a really powerful machine, never seen before.
0:20:59 > 0:21:05And this was not just a locomotive for Switzerland,
0:21:05 > 0:21:10this was a really outstanding object of admiration.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16After the triumph of the Crocodile, MFO went from strength to strength.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21But in the 1990s, its railway activities were outsourced,
0:21:21 > 0:21:24and by the year 2000, the factory was finally shut down
0:21:24 > 0:21:26and eventually dismantled.
0:21:29 > 0:21:32The only part to survive was the old administrative building.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38So, Albert, why have you brought me to a building site
0:21:38 > 0:21:39next to the railway line here?
0:21:39 > 0:21:43Michael, this beautiful brick stone building from 1889
0:21:43 > 0:21:47used to stand on this position where we are now.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Do you mean they demolished it and rebuilt it over there?
0:21:49 > 0:21:53No, not at all. They moved it, 60 metres westwards.
0:21:53 > 0:21:56They are enlarging the station of Oerlikon,
0:21:56 > 0:21:58so they had to decide to demolish or to move.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02Amazingly, rather than lose this last piece
0:22:02 > 0:22:06of the company's industrial history, the building was moved,
0:22:06 > 0:22:11lock stock and barrel, at a cost of over £8 million.
0:22:11 > 0:22:16After 10 months of preparation, on 22nd May 2012,
0:22:16 > 0:22:19it was carried along special tracks, at a rate of four metres per hour.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24Clearly the people here are very proud of MFO's history
0:22:24 > 0:22:28and clearly the Swiss are still engineers of world class.
0:22:28 > 0:22:30Yes, you may say.
0:22:39 > 0:22:44Directed by my 1913 guide, early 20th century visitors
0:22:44 > 0:22:47would have bypassed Zurich's industrial outskirts
0:22:47 > 0:22:49and headed straight for the centre
0:22:49 > 0:22:51and I'm now following in their footsteps
0:22:51 > 0:22:54to see why it receives such a glowing recommendation.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57My Bradshaw's comments that,
0:22:57 > 0:23:00"The older parts remain in places quaint and picturesque,
0:23:00 > 0:23:04"while the modern quarters are spacious and handsome."
0:23:04 > 0:23:07With the main station behind me, Hauptbahnhof,
0:23:07 > 0:23:10and this being Bahnhofstrasse,
0:23:10 > 0:23:14this is part of the modern Zurich and it's time to take a tram.
0:23:18 > 0:23:20In the cradle of modern electric trains,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23what better way could there be to travel?
0:23:23 > 0:23:27While some British cities have recently restored a tram line
0:23:27 > 0:23:30or two, most still regret the fact that they did away
0:23:30 > 0:23:32with their tram systems many years ago.
0:23:33 > 0:23:37Look at Zurich's map - this is a place for tram lovers.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44My 1913 guide directs me south,
0:23:44 > 0:23:47towards the shore of the famous Lake Zurich.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56My Bradshaw's says that from the quays, "There's a beautiful view
0:23:56 > 0:23:59"over the lake and the surrounding country."
0:23:59 > 0:24:01I find Zurich a stunning city,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04made all the prettier by pink evening light.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09The sunset's my cue to find a hotel
0:24:09 > 0:24:11and as usual my guidebook has the answer.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18Well, for my night's stay in Zurich I turn to my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:24:18 > 0:24:20which has an advertisement for the Savoy Hotel.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23"First class family hotel,
0:24:23 > 0:24:26"apartments with bath and toilette,
0:24:26 > 0:24:29"restaurant Francais, American bar."
0:24:29 > 0:24:31Sounds ideal.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34I'm checking in with manager, Manfred Horger.
0:24:34 > 0:24:36- Manfred.- Evening, great pleasure meeting you.
0:24:36 > 0:24:37Great to see you.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40You stay, in fact, in the hotel
0:24:40 > 0:24:44which has been the first hotel ever built in Zurich.
0:24:44 > 0:24:46So, how old is the Savoy?
0:24:46 > 0:24:52It was opened on the 24th December, 1838.
0:24:54 > 0:24:58American bars first opened in Europe in the late 19th century
0:24:58 > 0:25:01and readers of my guidebook would have known that any hotel
0:25:01 > 0:25:06advertising one would serve fashionable US-style cocktails.
0:25:06 > 0:25:08It's good to know that my Bradshaw's
0:25:08 > 0:25:10could point the thirsty cognoscenti
0:25:10 > 0:25:13in the direction of a perfect Martini.
0:25:14 > 0:25:15- Manfred, cheers.- Cheers.
0:25:18 > 0:25:24You know, after a long and busy day, I was feeling a little shaken,
0:25:24 > 0:25:27but the beauty of your hotel has left me stirred.
0:25:27 > 0:25:29Thank you, that's very kind of you.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40Fortified by a night of Edwardian-era luxury,
0:25:40 > 0:25:42it's time for me to continue
0:25:42 > 0:25:45along the route recommended by my 1913 guide.
0:25:45 > 0:25:49But before I leave, I want to get an insight into this country's
0:25:49 > 0:25:51famously efficient rail service.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Zurich is, of course, Switzerland's busiest railway station.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59Today I've been given privileged access to the control tower.
0:25:59 > 0:26:01It's a complex operation,
0:26:01 > 0:26:06for no terminus in Europe has more trains arriving and departing.
0:26:09 > 0:26:14From Zurich, you can travel directly to all corners of the continent.
0:26:14 > 0:26:183,000 trains and around 350,000 passengers
0:26:18 > 0:26:23pass through this vital railway hub every day.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26And the nerve centre of the operation is this tower
0:26:26 > 0:26:29that looms over the station's 24 platforms.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Inside, the banks of screens are watched over
0:26:39 > 0:26:41by a team of highly-trained staff.
0:26:46 > 0:26:47Hello, I'm Michael.
0:26:47 > 0:26:49Hello, Michael, nice to meet you.
0:26:49 > 0:26:51I notice you're all very calm.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54It's a wonderful atmosphere in here, actually.
0:26:54 > 0:26:59Yeah, but that can be different when we have...delays.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03I didn't know there WERE delays in Switzerland. This is news to me.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05- SHE LAUGHS - Yes!
0:27:05 > 0:27:11But we are talking about delay when a train is three minutes late.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14The Swiss reputation for precision
0:27:14 > 0:27:16is maintained by the latest technology
0:27:16 > 0:27:19and faultless attention to detail.
0:27:19 > 0:27:23Well, here, you just see the station so well.
0:27:23 > 0:27:25And you see it's now 10 o'clock,
0:27:25 > 0:27:282 minutes after 10 o'clock,
0:27:28 > 0:27:31and all the trains in Zurich Main Station,
0:27:31 > 0:27:34they come some minutes before full and half hour
0:27:34 > 0:27:37and they leave some minutes after.
0:27:37 > 0:27:42So now all the trains are leaving and if you see in 10 minutes,
0:27:42 > 0:27:4510-15, the whole station will be empty.
0:27:45 > 0:27:49- Really?- And it's every hour exactly the same thing.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52That is the secret of Swiss time keeping!
0:27:52 > 0:27:53Exactly.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00It's my cue to return to the platform
0:28:00 > 0:28:04and recommence my route along the tracks of Edwardian travellers.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10The signal box is looking after us every kilometre of the way.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16I'm leaving the city behind and heading towards the Swiss landscapes
0:28:16 > 0:28:18promised in my 1913 guide.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23I've been lucky enough to experience some very beautiful train journeys,
0:28:23 > 0:28:26but this one, along the southern shore of Lake Zurich,
0:28:26 > 0:28:28must be one of the very best.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34My Bradshaw's paints a wonderful picture, saying,
0:28:34 > 0:28:37"On either hand, sloping meadows rise from the water's edge,
0:28:37 > 0:28:41"the higher lands being clothed with vineyards and orchards".
0:28:43 > 0:28:46I'm hoping it's just the first of many views that will amaze.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51My journey across Switzerland now enters a new phase.
0:28:51 > 0:28:55I've left behind the big city of Zurich and I'm headed for the Alps.
0:28:55 > 0:28:58I can trace my journey on the pull-out map.
0:28:58 > 0:28:59My train started in Zurich,
0:28:59 > 0:29:02moved along the southern shores of Lake Zurich,
0:29:02 > 0:29:05and then it will go down towards Chur.
0:29:07 > 0:29:11From Chur, one of Europe's most scenic train journeys
0:29:11 > 0:29:12will carry me west.
0:29:12 > 0:29:15At Goschenen, I'll join the engineering triumph,
0:29:15 > 0:29:19the Gotthard line, before crossing by boat to Lucerne.
0:29:19 > 0:29:23I'll then stop off at Meiringen's famous Reichenbach Falls,
0:29:23 > 0:29:27en route to a station 3,500 metres above sea level.
0:29:32 > 0:29:34Danke!
0:29:34 > 0:29:37What better to accompany the Swiss mountains
0:29:37 > 0:29:39than a rugged range of Swiss cheeses?
0:29:40 > 0:29:44Nowadays, it's winter sports that bring people to the Alps
0:29:44 > 0:29:48and I'm on my way to discover how that story began
0:29:48 > 0:29:50in the age of my 1913 guide.
0:29:51 > 0:29:53I'm changing train in Chur.
0:29:53 > 0:29:57My Bradshaw's tells me it's "The capital of the canton of the Grisons.
0:29:57 > 0:30:00"1,935 feet above sea,
0:30:00 > 0:30:03"the Curia Rhaetorum of the Romans,
0:30:03 > 0:30:06"in an attractive situation on the River Plessur.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09"In the winter, skating and skiing,"
0:30:09 > 0:30:12while in summer, like today, there's no snow to be seen,
0:30:12 > 0:30:17but this important railway junction is gateway to a lovely ski region
0:30:17 > 0:30:21and British tourists played an important part in its development.
0:30:25 > 0:30:29To find out more, I'm taking one of the most spectacular trips
0:30:29 > 0:30:32that the nation has to offer the Glacier Express.
0:30:34 > 0:30:37The moment you get on the Glacier Express, it has a special feel,
0:30:37 > 0:30:39because, of course, there's so much more light
0:30:39 > 0:30:42because of these windows all along the roof line
0:30:42 > 0:30:44and it looks like everyone on board
0:30:44 > 0:30:47is going to be tucking into a very good lunch.
0:30:50 > 0:30:52The Glacier Express links two
0:30:52 > 0:30:57of Switzerland's most famous ski resorts, St Moritz and Zermatt.
0:30:57 > 0:31:00The complete trip takes over seven hours, winning the service
0:31:00 > 0:31:04the reputation as the slowest express train in the world.
0:31:10 > 0:31:14These panoramic tourist trains have been in use for only 30 years,
0:31:14 > 0:31:17but the line was completed back in the 1930s,
0:31:17 > 0:31:21when it first began to carry eager skiers to the Alps.
0:31:23 > 0:31:24- Hello, Guido.- Hello, Mike.
0:31:24 > 0:31:28- How lovely to see you. Have a seat. - Thank you.
0:31:28 > 0:31:30'Guido Ratti is joining me
0:31:30 > 0:31:34'to explain how the winter holiday was born right here in Switzerland.'
0:31:37 > 0:31:38British tourists.
0:31:38 > 0:31:43They are really the founder of winter tourism and winter sports.
0:31:43 > 0:31:47Which is very surprising, because we have really no mountains
0:31:47 > 0:31:48and very little snow.
0:31:48 > 0:31:53Yes, but if you allow, British people are very special,
0:31:53 > 0:31:56sometimes a little bit crazy
0:31:56 > 0:31:59and they like to have action.
0:32:00 > 0:32:03Until the 1860s, British thrill-seekers
0:32:03 > 0:32:07contented themselves with summer hiking trips
0:32:07 > 0:32:08through the Alpine scenery.
0:32:08 > 0:32:12But then an enterprising hotelier from nearby St Moritz,
0:32:12 > 0:32:15keen to extend the season, had a brainwave.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19We had the famous bet of Mr Johannes Badrutt,
0:32:19 > 0:32:22he owned the Hotel Kulm.
0:32:22 > 0:32:26And he made a bet with his English guests -
0:32:26 > 0:32:29they should come in winter and he promised them
0:32:29 > 0:32:32if they come in winter and they don't like it,
0:32:32 > 0:32:35he would pay the journey from London to St Moritz and back.
0:32:35 > 0:32:38I was told they came at Christmas time
0:32:38 > 0:32:41and left St Moritz only after Easter.
0:32:41 > 0:32:45They probably did in those days, they were people of leisure.
0:32:48 > 0:32:51Sold on the idea of Switzerland in the winter,
0:32:51 > 0:32:55the British soon took to skating and skiing,
0:32:55 > 0:32:58but that wasn't enough for the biggest adrenaline addicts.
0:32:58 > 0:33:02First they came, of course, for skiing, but as British people
0:33:02 > 0:33:07are very special and very sporty, they founded the skeleton sport,
0:33:07 > 0:33:12the bob sport. Even horse racing in St Moritz was due to British people.
0:33:12 > 0:33:15Horse racing in St Moritz?
0:33:15 > 0:33:18Yes, of course, on the frozen lake, we have a very special race.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21We have a full-blood horse, without jockey,
0:33:21 > 0:33:26but a skier in his back and this is a very exciting race.
0:33:26 > 0:33:29A racehorse towing a skier - fantastic.
0:33:29 > 0:33:33Some of the hair-raising pursuits founded by British tourists
0:33:33 > 0:33:38continue today, including the infamous Cresta run.
0:33:38 > 0:33:41But winter sports weren't just for the adventurous few.
0:33:41 > 0:33:44In the early 20th century, British entrepreneur Henry Lunn
0:33:44 > 0:33:47organised the first package ski holidays
0:33:47 > 0:33:51and, by 1913, the trains were bringing over 1,000 winter tourists
0:33:51 > 0:33:54to the Alps every year.
0:33:54 > 0:33:58My Bradshaw's guide of 1913 has a lot of timetables in it
0:33:58 > 0:34:04and I noticed that in 1913 you could get on the train in London
0:34:04 > 0:34:07and it lists all the way down to getting off in St Moritz.
0:34:07 > 0:34:08That's amazing, isn't it?
0:34:08 > 0:34:11That's true. That was a very special tourist train
0:34:11 > 0:34:14and you went, after a journey of 24 hours,
0:34:14 > 0:34:18you were from London in St Moritz.
0:34:18 > 0:34:22Yes. It's extraordinary, isn't it? 100 years ago it was just 24 hours
0:34:22 > 0:34:26- from one world to a completely different universe.- That's true.
0:34:26 > 0:34:30It's astonishing to think that downhill skiing in Switzerland
0:34:30 > 0:34:33is less than 150 years old.
0:34:33 > 0:34:36But travelling on this extraordinary train today,
0:34:36 > 0:34:40it's easy to see why people want to enjoy this landscape all year round.
0:34:50 > 0:34:53It's a new day, and I can't wait to get started on the next section
0:34:53 > 0:34:55of my guidebook's recommended route.
0:34:57 > 0:35:01My Bradshaw's Guide is breathless about the next stage of my journey.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03"Limits of space preclude any attempt
0:35:03 > 0:35:07"to describe the journey from Goschenen to Fluelen,
0:35:07 > 0:35:10"as the train glides through engineering triumphs
0:35:10 > 0:35:13"that constitute the Saint Gotthard line."
0:35:13 > 0:35:15I fear that I too may be lost for words,
0:35:15 > 0:35:20as clearly I experience one of the great train rides of my life.
0:35:23 > 0:35:26When the Gotthard line opened in 1882,
0:35:26 > 0:35:30it marked a turning point in this country's railway history.
0:35:30 > 0:35:32WHISTLE BLOWS
0:35:36 > 0:35:39Although it wasn't the first to conquer the Swiss Alps,
0:35:39 > 0:35:42it did involve building the world's longest tunnel,
0:35:42 > 0:35:44at a cost of 200 lives.
0:35:46 > 0:35:48Between Goschenen and my next stop,
0:35:48 > 0:35:51the line has to drop over 2,000 feet,
0:35:51 > 0:35:52and the engineer came up with a clever way
0:35:52 > 0:35:55to keep the gradient as shallow as possible.
0:35:56 > 0:36:00To make the descent, the train has to go through a series of loops,
0:36:00 > 0:36:02as my Bradshaw's says,
0:36:02 > 0:36:05"With a tunnel and a bridge every few yards."
0:36:05 > 0:36:07These are the engineering triumphs
0:36:07 > 0:36:10and I'm going to leap around from side to side of the train
0:36:10 > 0:36:15trying to catch a glimpse of where I'm going and where I've been.
0:36:15 > 0:36:19Thanks to the line's ingenious design, the scenery appears to shift
0:36:19 > 0:36:23around you as the train corkscrews ever deeper into the valley.
0:36:28 > 0:36:30So that pretty church, the church of Wassen...
0:36:30 > 0:36:32appeared now on my right.
0:36:32 > 0:36:35I believe we are going to see it on different sides of the train
0:36:35 > 0:36:37as we wind our way down.
0:36:47 > 0:36:48How did that happen?
0:36:48 > 0:36:51In a few moments the church has switched sides.
0:36:51 > 0:36:53It was on the right, now it's on the left.
0:36:54 > 0:36:58The Gotthard line shows just how far Swiss railways had come
0:36:58 > 0:36:59by the turn of the 20th century.
0:36:59 > 0:37:04The sheer vision and ambition demonstrated by blasting a line
0:37:04 > 0:37:07through the towering Alps astonishes me.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10It put Switzerland at the heart of the European railway network.
0:37:13 > 0:37:14It's brought me to Fluelen,
0:37:14 > 0:37:17where I'm swapping the train for another form of transport.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23So, my Bradshaw's tells me that here at Fluelen,
0:37:23 > 0:37:27"We embark upon the southern arm of Lake Lucerne,
0:37:27 > 0:37:31"and many pleasant excursions may be made by the steamer services."
0:37:31 > 0:37:34If I'm going to continue to enjoy this wonderful scenery,
0:37:34 > 0:37:36it's time for me to get aboard.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50I'm taking a boat trip from the southernmost tip of the lake
0:37:50 > 0:37:53right to the top and my 1913 guidebook
0:37:53 > 0:37:56is packed with landmarks to look out for on the way.
0:37:58 > 0:38:01My Bradshaw's says, "As we leave Fluelen, on the left,
0:38:01 > 0:38:04"in the hollow between the peaks of the Uri-Rotstock,
0:38:04 > 0:38:06"a glacier is plainly seen.
0:38:06 > 0:38:08"And in a line from the glacier,
0:38:08 > 0:38:12"on the lake's shore, is the dynamite factory of Isleten."
0:38:12 > 0:38:16I'll give you a prize if you can think why there's a dynamite factory
0:38:16 > 0:38:18in such a noble and peaceful place.
0:38:20 > 0:38:24Dynamite was invented in the 19th century and was a vital tool
0:38:24 > 0:38:28for the railway engineers carving new routes through the mountains.
0:38:28 > 0:38:31The factory here was established by dynamite's inventor,
0:38:31 > 0:38:33the famous chemist, Alfred Nobel.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38His explosives were later used extensively in war,
0:38:38 > 0:38:42but he wanted to be remembered for something more positive.
0:38:42 > 0:38:45On his death, Alfred Nobel left a legacy,
0:38:45 > 0:38:48which was to form a prize to be awarded to those who did,
0:38:48 > 0:38:52"The most or the best work for fraternity amongst nations,
0:38:52 > 0:38:55"for the abolition or reduction of standing armies
0:38:55 > 0:38:58"and for the promotion of peace congresses."
0:38:59 > 0:39:04My 1913 Bradshaw's lyrically describes Lake Lucerne as,
0:39:04 > 0:39:09"A narrow sheet of water, with lofty, wall-like, forest-clad mountains,
0:39:09 > 0:39:13"rising sheer out of the water on either side"
0:39:13 > 0:39:16Its beauty is today in no way diminished,
0:39:16 > 0:39:19but not everyone on board seems to appreciate it.
0:39:19 > 0:39:21- Hello, gentlemen.- Hello.
0:39:21 > 0:39:23- May I sit down for a second?- Yeah.
0:39:23 > 0:39:25So...
0:39:25 > 0:39:29you're travelling on the boat through this beautiful scenery,
0:39:29 > 0:39:33but you're playing cards. Why don't you look at the scenery?
0:39:33 > 0:39:35We know it.
0:39:35 > 0:39:37Ah!
0:39:37 > 0:39:39Do you travel very frequently, then?
0:39:39 > 0:39:41No, we live over there.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44Why are you on the boat if you know it so well?
0:39:44 > 0:39:47We are a carnival group and every year
0:39:47 > 0:39:50we make a little journey...
0:39:51 > 0:39:55The locals may be blase, but I can just imagine the wonder
0:39:55 > 0:39:57that British Edwardian tourists
0:39:57 > 0:39:59must have felt experiencing this landscape.
0:40:00 > 0:40:04And I'm now approaching one of their most favoured holiday spots.
0:40:07 > 0:40:08Bradshaw's says that,
0:40:08 > 0:40:13"Lucerne is perhaps the most beautifully-situated tourist centre in Europe.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17"Surrounded on three sides by exquisitely wooded hills
0:40:17 > 0:40:21"with a magnificent prospect over a small arm of the lake."
0:40:21 > 0:40:25And to judge by the pages of advertisements for hotels,
0:40:25 > 0:40:28it was, at the beginning of the 20th century,
0:40:28 > 0:40:30a very popular tourist resort.
0:40:30 > 0:40:33But I'm here in pursuit of one of my personal heroes
0:40:33 > 0:40:36from the 19th century.
0:40:40 > 0:40:43In the 1860s, the musical genius Richard Wagner
0:40:43 > 0:40:46joined the growing numbers of wealthy families
0:40:46 > 0:40:49drawn to Lucerne's stunning waterfront.
0:40:53 > 0:40:55He made his home in the suburb of Tribschen,
0:40:55 > 0:40:57in this luxurious lakeside villa.
0:40:59 > 0:41:02In 1913, fans making the pilgrimage here were disappointed,
0:41:02 > 0:41:05as it was still a private house.
0:41:05 > 0:41:08Luckily for me, in the 1930s, the city of Lucerne
0:41:08 > 0:41:11finally responded to the flood of visitors
0:41:11 > 0:41:12by turning it into a museum.
0:41:12 > 0:41:16I'm meeting the museum's manger, Yvonne Bieder.
0:41:16 > 0:41:17- Hi.- Lovely to see you.
0:41:17 > 0:41:20I'm quite a fan of the opera composer Richard Wagner.
0:41:20 > 0:41:22What years was he living in this house?
0:41:22 > 0:41:29He spent six years of his life in this house from 1866 to '72.
0:41:29 > 0:41:31Were these quite happy years for the composer?
0:41:31 > 0:41:32Very happy years, yes.
0:41:32 > 0:41:36He said they were the happiest of his life.
0:41:36 > 0:41:39German-born Wagner moved to Switzerland from Munich
0:41:39 > 0:41:43and was closely followed by his married lover, Cosima von Bulow.
0:41:43 > 0:41:45Two of their three children were born here
0:41:45 > 0:41:49and, in 1870, he finally married his mistress in Lucerne.
0:41:50 > 0:41:54Wagner is best known for music that's big and loud
0:41:54 > 0:41:57but this stunning setting and the birth of his son, Siegfried,
0:41:57 > 0:41:59inspired a dreamy kind of work.
0:41:59 > 0:42:04So, as a surprise for her 33rd birthday,
0:42:04 > 0:42:08Richard Wagner composed a very nice piece of music
0:42:08 > 0:42:09called Siegfried's Idyll,
0:42:09 > 0:42:13and it was performed for the very first time on this staircase.
0:42:14 > 0:42:17He was standing exactly here and conducting,
0:42:17 > 0:42:20and all the musicians standing upwards
0:42:20 > 0:42:23and downwards the staircase and around him.
0:42:23 > 0:42:26And Cosima woke to hear this orchestra playing.
0:42:26 > 0:42:28Yes, she was so moved.
0:42:28 > 0:42:30I know a lot of people wonder what surprise birthday present
0:42:30 > 0:42:33they should give their wives. Now they know -
0:42:33 > 0:42:37they just have to compose a piece of music and bring in an orchestra.
0:42:37 > 0:42:38Yes, exactly!
0:42:40 > 0:42:41Wagner's birthday composition
0:42:41 > 0:42:44was originally entitled the Triebschen Idyll,
0:42:44 > 0:42:47which was how he referred to his lakeside home.
0:42:48 > 0:42:51And I'm being treated to a piano duet version of the work,
0:42:51 > 0:42:54performed on a very special instrument.
0:42:59 > 0:43:03The piece is now being played on Wagner's piano.
0:43:03 > 0:43:07Yes, his original Erard grand piano,
0:43:07 > 0:43:12standing in the same corner as the period he was living in this house.
0:43:29 > 0:43:32Thank you so very much. I enjoyed that enormously.
0:43:32 > 0:43:35You know many people think of Wagner
0:43:35 > 0:43:38as being loud and bombastic and tuneless
0:43:38 > 0:43:44and yet this is very, very soft and loving and very melodious.
0:43:44 > 0:43:47This is kind of Wagner for Wagner-haters.
0:43:53 > 0:43:56I can see why this most stunning of Swiss cities
0:43:56 > 0:43:59inspired Wagner's gentlest music.
0:44:09 > 0:44:11I'm now taking to the tracks again,
0:44:11 > 0:44:14to make one last journey before nightfall.
0:44:22 > 0:44:24Every year, thousands of tourists
0:44:24 > 0:44:27come to Switzerland on railway holidays
0:44:27 > 0:44:30and it's great to be among so many like-minded travellers.
0:44:30 > 0:44:34You've got your map of Switzerland out, are you doing a grand tour?
0:44:34 > 0:44:38We are, we are trying to InterRail the old railway lines
0:44:38 > 0:44:40and boats of Switzerland.
0:44:40 > 0:44:43You're a man after my own heart, doing it all by railway.
0:44:43 > 0:44:45Are you an aficionado of trains?
0:44:45 > 0:44:48I wouldn't say so, but we went InterRailing 20 years ago
0:44:48 > 0:44:51and we wanted to do it again with our kids and see the changes.
0:44:51 > 0:44:54And there are some. It's not as easy as it used to be.
0:44:54 > 0:44:58- No?- Switzerland, you can still hop on and hop off,
0:44:58 > 0:44:59but the rest of Europe,
0:44:59 > 0:45:02you really have to pre-plan and do your reservations.
0:45:02 > 0:45:04- Ah, yes. - So it's not as easy.
0:45:04 > 0:45:06But Switzerland is a good place for railways, isn't it?
0:45:06 > 0:45:08Oh, it's excellent.
0:45:16 > 0:45:20After a long day's travel, my 1913 guidebook has led me
0:45:20 > 0:45:24to a dramatic Alpine valley and, I hope, my bed for the night.
0:45:33 > 0:45:38I've spent the night in Meiringen, at the Hotel du Sauvage,
0:45:38 > 0:45:40barely changed since 1880.
0:45:41 > 0:45:46I am allegedly not the first Englishman to stay in this hostelry.
0:45:46 > 0:45:50"In this hotel, called by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle The Englischer Hof,
0:45:50 > 0:45:57"Mr Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson spent the night of 3rd-4th May, 1891."
0:45:57 > 0:46:00I can't wait to find out what happened next.
0:46:02 > 0:46:06Out on the streets, the Sherlock Holmes connection is obvious,
0:46:06 > 0:46:09but I wonder whether visitors to Meiringen
0:46:09 > 0:46:13know why Britain's favourite detective will be for ever linked
0:46:13 > 0:46:15to this Swiss town.
0:46:15 > 0:46:17Do you know about Sherlock Holmes?
0:46:17 > 0:46:20- The detective?- Yes.- Sherlock Holmes? Ja, wir kennen das.
0:46:20 > 0:46:22Ah-ah!
0:46:22 > 0:46:25Do you remember any Sherlock Holmes stories?
0:46:25 > 0:46:27HE HOWLS
0:46:27 > 0:46:29He always had the...
0:46:29 > 0:46:31Erm, pipe?
0:46:31 > 0:46:32ALL: Chipuk.
0:46:32 > 0:46:33Ah-ha!
0:46:33 > 0:46:37Ja, das ist ganz typisch Sherlock Holmes.
0:46:37 > 0:46:39Yeah. Ganz typisch Sherlock Holmes.
0:46:39 > 0:46:40Sherlock Holmes?
0:46:40 > 0:46:44- The Reichenbach Falls. - He died...- He's dead.- ..Here.
0:46:48 > 0:46:51In 1893,
0:46:51 > 0:46:54Arthur Conan Doyle famously chose the Reichenbach Falls,
0:46:54 > 0:46:59just outside Meiringen, as the setting for Sherlock Holmes's death.
0:46:59 > 0:47:03And ever since then, fans have been visiting the scene of the crime.
0:47:05 > 0:47:08Reaching the spot on foot entails a gruelling climb,
0:47:08 > 0:47:12but since 1899, there's been a more restful route to the top.
0:47:19 > 0:47:22My Bradshaw's says, "On the south side of Meiringen,
0:47:22 > 0:47:25"in the summer, the Reichenbach Falls
0:47:25 > 0:47:28"are illuminated by electricity.
0:47:28 > 0:47:32"An electric rail runs from near the Hotel Reichenbach."
0:47:32 > 0:47:36No mention there of the famous fictional detective.
0:47:36 > 0:47:39I think because every reader knew about Sherlock Holmes,
0:47:39 > 0:47:44and the Reichenbach Falls were a notorious household name.
0:47:44 > 0:47:46Conan Doyle decided on the Reichenbach Falls
0:47:46 > 0:47:49as the scene of Holmes's shocking demise
0:47:49 > 0:47:52after visiting them on a summer holiday.
0:47:52 > 0:47:55Guy Marriott is from the Sherlock Holmes Society of London.
0:47:55 > 0:47:59- Guy!- Oh, Michael. - Hello. How good to see you.
0:47:59 > 0:48:01Nothing prepared me for the Reichenbach Falls,
0:48:01 > 0:48:03they are absolutely tremendous.
0:48:03 > 0:48:06No wonder that Conan Doyle set his melodrama here.
0:48:06 > 0:48:09They are looking particularly good today.
0:48:09 > 0:48:11They are looking as Conan Doyle would have seen them
0:48:11 > 0:48:13when he was here in the summer of 1893.
0:48:13 > 0:48:17What had led Conan Doyle to kill off Sherlock Holmes?
0:48:17 > 0:48:20Conan Doyle was tired of the character of Sherlock Holmes.
0:48:20 > 0:48:25He had been writing monthly stories for The Strand magazine.
0:48:25 > 0:48:29He was finding it difficult to think of good plots
0:48:29 > 0:48:35and he felt that Sherlock distracted him from more important work.
0:48:36 > 0:48:40As in many of his Holmes stories, Conan Doyle's intended last case
0:48:40 > 0:48:45for the great detective, The Final Problem, features a railway journey.
0:48:45 > 0:48:50Like all good Victorians, Holmes and Watson knew the best way
0:48:50 > 0:48:52to plan a trip by train.
0:48:52 > 0:48:54Holmes, more particularly Watson,
0:48:54 > 0:48:57made very good use of Bradshaw's, didn't they?
0:48:57 > 0:49:02Yes, they did, they had in their rooms at 221b Baker Street,
0:49:02 > 0:49:05a copy of each month's Bradshaw's railway timetable
0:49:05 > 0:49:08and on several occasions in the stories,
0:49:08 > 0:49:12it's recorded that Holmes instructs Watson to check Bradshaw
0:49:12 > 0:49:14in order find the best time of a train
0:49:14 > 0:49:19to whichever destination they need to go to because a case has arisen.
0:49:20 > 0:49:23No journey can begin without Bradshaw.
0:49:23 > 0:49:28In The Final Problem, Holmes and Watson travel by train further afield.
0:49:28 > 0:49:31Staying ahead of criminal mastermind Moriarty,
0:49:31 > 0:49:33they journey to Switzerland
0:49:33 > 0:49:36and decide to make the steep climb to the Reichenbach Falls.
0:49:37 > 0:49:41But just before they reach a narrow ledge at the edge of the torrent,
0:49:41 > 0:49:44Dr Watson receives a message calling him back to the hotel.
0:49:46 > 0:49:47When Watson finally returns,
0:49:47 > 0:49:52having discovered, of course, that it's a hoax that has taken him back,
0:49:52 > 0:49:55he finds no trace of either Holmes or Moriarty,
0:49:55 > 0:49:58instead only a hand-written note from Holmes,
0:49:58 > 0:50:00saying that Moriarty has found him here
0:50:00 > 0:50:05and they are going to fight out the issues between them.
0:50:05 > 0:50:09Watson concludes that both men have plunged to their deaths,
0:50:09 > 0:50:13and his devastation was shared by Holmes's many fans.
0:50:13 > 0:50:17It is said, although this is probably apocryphal,
0:50:17 > 0:50:21that clerks in the City went to work wearing black crepe armbands,
0:50:21 > 0:50:24in memory of the great detective.
0:50:24 > 0:50:27- A moment's silence, I think. - It seems appropriate.
0:50:31 > 0:50:34But Holmes's body hadn't been found
0:50:34 > 0:50:36and that left readers with a sliver of hope.
0:50:36 > 0:50:40Despite Conan Doyle's resolve,
0:50:40 > 0:50:43he was eventually persuaded to revive his hero
0:50:43 > 0:50:47and went on writing cases until his own death in 1930.
0:50:58 > 0:51:02Like Sherlock Holmes, I rely on Bradshaw's.
0:51:02 > 0:51:06Unlike Sherlock Holmes, I've made it back from the Reichenbach Falls
0:51:06 > 0:51:07to continue my journey.
0:51:09 > 0:51:13I'm now embarking on the final leg of my Swiss trip
0:51:13 > 0:51:18and I'm departing from my guidebook's recommended route.
0:51:18 > 0:51:21I'm making a long ascent, which takes me via Interlaken
0:51:21 > 0:51:23ever upwards through the Alps,
0:51:23 > 0:51:27towards Europe's highest railway station, Jungfraujoch.
0:51:27 > 0:51:29The Swiss may have been slow starters
0:51:29 > 0:51:33when it came to the railways, but as this journey's shown me,
0:51:33 > 0:51:36they came to build ever more impressive and daring lines.
0:51:39 > 0:51:42I've come to Kleine Scheidegg to experience
0:51:42 > 0:51:46what might just be the apogee of Swiss railway engineering.
0:51:48 > 0:51:51I'm about to begin the very last stage of my journey,
0:51:51 > 0:51:58on the Jungfrau railway, which Bradshaw's tells me, "Is 7 1/2 miles long and was begun in 1896.
0:51:58 > 0:52:02"The line ascends from Kleine Scheidegg
0:52:02 > 0:52:07"through narrow tunnels to the Eismeer at 10,275 feet,
0:52:07 > 0:52:10"the Monch at 10,995 feet
0:52:10 > 0:52:15"and Jungfraujoch at 11,090 feet."
0:52:15 > 0:52:18It's one of the epic railway journeys of our continent.
0:52:23 > 0:52:27This extraordinary line opened just a year before the publication
0:52:27 > 0:52:31of my 1913 guide and, a century after it was built,
0:52:31 > 0:52:35its final station remains the highest in Europe.
0:52:35 > 0:52:39It attracts over 750,000 visitors every year
0:52:39 > 0:52:43and my companion for the final ascent is Roland Fontanive.
0:52:45 > 0:52:49So now our journey begins, our epic journey to the top.
0:52:49 > 0:52:51The audacious Jungfrau line project
0:52:51 > 0:52:54was the brainchild of Swiss entrepreneur
0:52:54 > 0:52:57and passionate promoter of the railways, Adolf Guyer-Zeller.
0:52:57 > 0:53:00His brilliant plan was to harness the power
0:53:00 > 0:53:01of a local mountain river,
0:53:01 > 0:53:05creating a state-of-the-art electric cog railway to the summit.
0:53:08 > 0:53:11The railway always was electric. What were the old carriages like?
0:53:11 > 0:53:17They was by wood, they was much slower than this train.
0:53:17 > 0:53:19Maybe 10 minutes more to go up.
0:53:19 > 0:53:21Do you have any of those original cars?
0:53:21 > 0:53:25We have only one, one here in Kleine Scheidegg.
0:53:25 > 0:53:29You can rent for... maybe for special days
0:53:29 > 0:53:31or for honeymoon like this.
0:53:31 > 0:53:35Quite an idea for a honeymoon, to rent a 1912 car and come up here.
0:53:37 > 0:53:40The hydroelectric plant built for the railway
0:53:40 > 0:53:42was one of the first in Europe.
0:53:42 > 0:53:45But the biggest challenge was building the line itself.
0:53:45 > 0:53:49To reach the Jungfraujoch, tunnels had to be bored through
0:53:49 > 0:53:54two of the tallest peaks in the Alps - the Eiger and the Monch.
0:53:54 > 0:53:56And soon after leaving Kleine Scheidegg,
0:53:56 > 0:53:59the train is plunged into darkness.
0:53:59 > 0:54:01When you hear you're going to go up a mountain,
0:54:01 > 0:54:04you don't expect it to be an underground railway experience,
0:54:04 > 0:54:06- but it is, isn't it?- Yes.
0:54:10 > 0:54:14Seven of the line's nine kilometres are in tunnel,
0:54:14 > 0:54:18but beyond them is some of Europe's best alpine scenery.
0:54:18 > 0:54:21Panoramic windows carved into the rock at each station
0:54:21 > 0:54:25provide passengers with views that make your jaw drop,
0:54:25 > 0:54:27over features such as the Eismeer, or ice sea.
0:54:29 > 0:54:31Very impressive. This is the ice sea here, is it?
0:54:31 > 0:54:33Yes, that's correct, yes.
0:54:33 > 0:54:35And so this the Eiger now going up above us.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38That's the south face of the Eiger here.
0:54:38 > 0:54:41And you see how the glacier goes down to Grindelwald.
0:54:41 > 0:54:45It's really beautiful and impressive isn't it?
0:54:45 > 0:54:47When the line was first proposed,
0:54:47 > 0:54:51there were concerns that ascending to this altitude at speed
0:54:51 > 0:54:52was a risk to health.
0:54:52 > 0:54:55Guyer-Zeller even commissioned a medical report
0:54:55 > 0:54:57to allay people's fears.
0:54:57 > 0:55:01And, approaching the summit, you can understand why they were worried.
0:55:03 > 0:55:05Well, Roland, we're here. I can really feel it in my breathing.
0:55:05 > 0:55:07I'm having to take long breaths.
0:55:07 > 0:55:09I'd better walk rather slowly, I think.
0:55:09 > 0:55:13Yes, and welcome to Jungfraujoch, top of Europe.
0:55:13 > 0:55:14Thank you.
0:55:17 > 0:55:23So here I am at 11,333 feet at the Jungfraujoch,
0:55:23 > 0:55:27that is to say, the saddle of the Jungfrau mountain.
0:55:27 > 0:55:30This is nicknamed The Top of Europe.
0:55:30 > 0:55:32After all, it is about three times as high
0:55:32 > 0:55:36as any piece of land in the United Kingdom.
0:55:39 > 0:55:42The climax of the long journey to the top is a visit
0:55:42 > 0:55:47to the Sphinx building, perched on a rock 117 metres above the station.
0:55:49 > 0:55:51Tourists come for the spectacular views
0:55:51 > 0:55:53but ever since the 1930s,
0:55:53 > 0:55:56the visiting crowds have shared the mountain-top with scientists.
0:55:59 > 0:56:01The High Alpine research station
0:56:01 > 0:56:04is today looked after by two custodian-couples
0:56:04 > 0:56:06and for Maria and Urs Otz,
0:56:06 > 0:56:09this inhospitable spot is a part-time home.
0:56:11 > 0:56:14- Hello, Maria, I'm Michael. - Hi, Michael.
0:56:14 > 0:56:16Hello, Michael. Lovely to see you.
0:56:17 > 0:56:22At first, scientists came here to research high-altitude medicine
0:56:22 > 0:56:26and astronomy, but recent work has helped to document climate change
0:56:26 > 0:56:30and charted the impact of the Icelandic volcanic eruption in 2010.
0:56:32 > 0:56:35Maria and Urs send daily weather observations
0:56:35 > 0:56:37to Zurich from their remarkable home in the sky.
0:56:39 > 0:56:42- So, this is our terrace. - This is absolutely divine.
0:56:42 > 0:56:46Your terrace, yes. A very special terrace.
0:56:46 > 0:56:48And this fantastic valley, what is this?
0:56:48 > 0:56:53- That's the Aletsch glacier. - It's a huge glacier.
0:56:53 > 0:56:57And the place you see there, there are coming three glaciers together.
0:56:57 > 0:57:01The deepness of the glacier there is about 900 metres.
0:57:01 > 0:57:03900 metres?!
0:57:03 > 0:57:08Yes, and that's the longest glacier of the Alps.
0:57:08 > 0:57:12It's about 23 kilometres long.
0:57:12 > 0:57:13That is awe-inspiring.
0:57:14 > 0:57:19As I marvel at what must be one of Europe's most spine-tingling vistas,
0:57:19 > 0:57:23I can't think of a more fitting end to my Swiss railway adventure.
0:57:23 > 0:57:26Here, at the top of Europe, cutting edge science
0:57:26 > 0:57:31and technology are juxtaposed with the raw beauty of the Alps.
0:57:31 > 0:57:35Switzerland is a country of exceptions.
0:57:35 > 0:57:37It lies at the heart of our continent
0:57:37 > 0:57:40and yet it isn't a member of the European Union.
0:57:40 > 0:57:43Its rail engineers helped to make it special
0:57:43 > 0:57:46by taming this wild landscape.
0:57:46 > 0:57:49Where else by 1913 could you have constructed
0:57:49 > 0:57:54an electric underground railway to a station above the clouds?
0:58:00 > 0:58:03Next time, I'll experience fin de siecle opulence
0:58:03 > 0:58:04in the Low Countries.
0:58:04 > 0:58:06Feels like you want to take a bath in it.
0:58:06 > 0:58:09Yeah, you would like to take a bath in it.
0:58:09 > 0:58:10Following my guidebook...
0:58:10 > 0:58:12It's like a railway bible.
0:58:12 > 0:58:15..To the Western Front where from 1914,
0:58:15 > 0:58:17tourists were replaced with soldiers,
0:58:17 > 0:58:19facing the horrors of the trenches.
0:58:19 > 0:58:26He was one of the 72,000 people who never had a grave.
0:58:31 > 0:58:34Subtitles by Red Bee Media