Madrid to Gibraltar - Part 1 Great Continental Railway Journeys

I'm embarking on a new railway adventure

that will take me across the heart of Europe.

I will be using this,

my Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide, dated 1913,

which opened up an exotic world of foreign travel

for the British tourist.

It told travellers where to go,

what to see and how to navigate

the thousands of miles of tracks criss-crossing the continent.

Now, a century later,

I'm using my copy to reveal an era of great optimism and energy,

when technology, industry, science and the arts were flourishing.

I want to rediscover that lost Europe

that in 1913 couldn't know

that its way of life would shortly be swept aside

by the advent of war.

A train in Spain,

and though I'm hundreds of miles from my London house,

I feel at home here because my father was Spanish,

because Spanish blood runs in these veins.

And though I visit this country maybe once a month,

every time I come here,

I feel the excitement of being in a place where I feel that I belong.

My family's Spanish roots are in Salamanca, in the north-west.

My father came to Britain as a refugee

at the end of the Spanish Civil War.

I grew up in England with a love of Spain and the Spanish language.

Today, my journey starts in the capital.

Madrid is the beating heart of modern-day Spain.

I'll travel south-west to historic Cordoba,

a city with ancient Moorish roots,

before crossing the southern Spanish region of Andalusia to Seville

and on to Jerez in the south-west.

The hilltop town of Ronda will be my final inland stop,

before I descend to the Costa Del Sol.

My journey ends on the Rock of Gibraltar.

On this journey, I explore the rich culture of Spain,

which drew our 1913 Bradshaw's travellers

in search of a taste of the exotic.

'I meet my most unusual dance partner ever...'

Gracias.

'..immerse myself in Cordoba's fair...'

'..Celebrate the ingenuity of British rail engineers.'

180km through very difficult terrain,

and they literally had to bevel out the tunnels from pure rock.

'And find out the lengths that the British went to

'to keep the Rock of Gibraltar.'

Six men were prepared to entomb themselves

literally inside the rock. It's a total James Bond story.

Oh! It's an absolutely perfectly designed lookout.

Madrid is the highest capital in Europe,

surrounded by mountain ranges.

Before the railways, it was easier to move goods

from Barcelona to South America than it was by road to Madrid.

My Bradshaw's Guide, 1913, tells me

that Madrid is "a fine, attractive city,

"the capital of the kingdom of Spain,

"built upon an eminence rising from a wide stretching plain."

Think of the Iberian peninsula as a square,

and Madrid is at the very centre,

the perfect place for a visitor to begin

an exploration of the Spanish regions.

Atocha Station.

This fine structure of brick and iron and glass

was built at the end of the 19th century.

But with high-speed trains,

it was necessary to have longer platforms and a wider space,

and so they moved all the trains down the line,

making out of the old station a conservatory,

a railway terminus with a tropical touch.

But Madrid has been drawing the world to it for hundreds of years.

In the 16th and 17th centuries,

it was the mighty nerve centre of the Spanish Empire.

It's still the country's political heart today.

Back in the time of my Bradshaw's guide,

Spain avoided the rivalries that would embroil Europe in war.

It was distracted by its own economic and political troubles.

I'm meeting Kirsty Hooper,

reader in Hispanic Studies at Warwick University,

to discover more.

In the early years of the 20th century,

-what sort of condition was Spain in?

-Pretty poor.

In 1898, Spain had lost its last Atlantic colonies

to the United States as part of the Spanish-American War,

which is known in Spain as El Desastre, or The Disaster.

So while the British Empire was growing,

and the most powerful empire on earth, the Spanish Empire was reduced

to a tiny number of possessions, mostly on the north coast of Africa.

As Spain's imperial fortunes fell,

the British, still basking in their own colonial might,

were keen to indulge in a bit of dynastic diplomacy.

Britain's King Edward VII, connected by birth or marriage to most of

Europe's royal families, understood the power of these royal alliances.

In 1906, at the Real Monasterio de San Jeronimo,

an event occurred which linked Britain firmly with Spain.

Behind the scenes, Edward had arranged for Queen Victoria's

19-year-old granddaughter, Princess Victoria Eugenie,

known as Ena,

to marry the 20-year-old King Alfonso of Spain.

How did people feel in Spain and Britain about this union?

The establishments in both countries were not terribly happy

when it was first announced.

Alfonso himself was very keen on the idea of a British bride

and he'd worked his way through a couple of Queen Victoria's

granddaughters before, in the previous year, who had,

for whatever reason, turned him down until he ended up with Ena.

But the Spanish aristocracy were not terribly happy

because Ena wasn't Catholic. The British were rather surprised

because she was very low-ranking, and they weren't sure about losing

one of their princesses to the Catholic Church.

Determined to see his glamorous niece on the Spanish throne,

Edward allowed Ena to convert to Catholicism, her fiance's religion.

Well, it has the rich grandeur of a royal chapel.

I'm thinking with an English princess and a Spanish king,

-it must have been a big royal event.

-It was enormous.

Really, it was one of the first global royal weddings.

Although he didn't attend,

the King saw off the royal party at London's Victoria Station.

And they travelled down through France, Alphonso met them

at the border and the royal train processed on to Madrid.

But as the world watched,

the wedding day celebrations turned to tragedy.

Now, Bradshaw's says it was from a window on the top storey of number

88, Calle Mayor,

that the bomb was thrown at the carriage of the king and queen.

And indeed this commemorates it. What an appalling incident.

Who was it who did it?

It was a young Catalan anarchist called Mateu Morral

who had taken rooms up at the top of the building

where you can see the rosettes.

He believed that the social injustices in Spain were so great

that only through an event designed to raise the consciousness

of the public would he be able to really get his message across.

The bomb was thrown, it was part of a bouquet, it was thrown,

it bounced off the tram cables that lined the streets.

So although it missed the royal carriage, it exploded,

killing many horses and up to 30 people.

Bradshaw's is mentioning it as though it was a place that tourists

-might want to come.

-It was one of the most notorious events of its time

and British people were very keen to see the place where their princess

had been attacked, and so they added it to their itineraries.

The king and queen were lucky to escape with their lives.

But Mateu Morral shot himself rather than face arrest.

Today, over 100 years later,

this tragic assassination attempt is still remembered locally.

-Hola. Buenos dias.

-Buenos dias.

Foto?

What is that photograph of?

-MAN SPEAKS SPANISH

-It's an authentic photograph?

It was taken just after it happened. It shows a dead horse here, there is

a carriage here that must've been part of the royal procession.

There's a little X that marks the window from which the bomb was thrown.

MAN SPEAKS SPANISH

He's saying that every year he goes out and he puts a bouquet

on there in memory of the 25 people who were killed

and the many who were injured.

How long have you been here?

MAN SPEAKS IN SPANISH

He says he's been doing it ever since the monument was opened

and he had to open the monument himself.

He said no-one was coming along to do the ceremony

so he went out there with a broom and a Spanish flag

and he performed an opening ceremony on the monument.

THEY CONVERSE IN SPANISH

-Hasta luego.

-Hasta luego.

Having made their royal pilgrimage, Bradshaw's travellers' spirits

could have been lifted by the crowds

and the noisy chatter of one of the city's most popular meeting places.

This is the lovely Puerta del Sol at the very heart of Madrid.

Bradshaw's tells me that the cafes in and around here

may be used without question during the day

but at night are not suitable for ladies.

Especially those cafes where music is provided in the evening.

Luckily, I'm male. And this is the midday sun, so I should be safe.

But one tip - in Madrid, always look up.

The architecture is wonderful, particularly these balconies

with their marvellous wrought-iron work,

so typical of Spain.

Despite being the most reluctant European country to join

the railway age, Spain proved very much a magnet

for Bradshaw's 1913 railway tourists.

One of the biggest draws would have been Madrid's stunning

royal art collection.

Any young artist who came to the Prado Art Gallery

around the beginning of the 20th century would have studied

Diego Velazquez, the greatest genius of Spanish painting history.

A man who made his fame and fortune with religious paintings

and portraits of the royal family,

but whose real greatness lay in the way that he captured light

and the way that he portrayed ordinary people, workers,

drunks, the lowest rungs of society.

Velazquez was at the height of his powers in the 17th century.

Early 20th-century travellers might have been more drawn to one of

their era's most brilliant artists, who was also a devotee of Velazquez.

I'm heading to his studio.

This grand mansion was formerly the home of Joaquin Sorolla,

and has changed little since he died in 1923. It now houses his works.

I'm meeting the director of the museum, Consuelo Luca de Tena.

He lived here for the last ten or more years of his life.

-He had this house specially built for him.

-It's absolutely magnificent.

-I recognise these people. This is Victoria Eugenie, isn't it?

-Yes.

And King Alfonso XIII.

-The king must have been a friend of Sorolla.

-Yes.

And this says, "To Don Joaquin Sorolla, I am supposing that

"you're going to like the contrast of the light in this photograph."

It's quite a nice little joke, isn't it?

Sorolla portraited the king in the open air.

The king is covered with spots of light that comes through

the trees and it's very special.

Born in Valencia, Sorolla used the train to travel back to

the coastal city to paint some of his finest work.

This is a huge room.

I imagine, with all the light here, this would be where the artist

-was painting.

-Yes.

We have so many paintings that show how Sorolla depicted light.

I mean, here, for example, these ladies on the beach -

the intensity of the light on their clothing

-and reflecting off the sea, this is quite typical.

-Very typical.

Sorolla was very fond of painting the beach, the light in the open air

and particularly the light reflecting itself in the waters.

In complete contrast is this poignant picture,

painted in 1895, called The White Slave Trade.

A group of young women travelling in a third-class railway carriage

is being taken to the city to work as prostitutes.

So, did Sorolla paint a lot of this kind of social realism?

Not so many paintings.

He disliked the insistence of some artists and writers

of his time on the poor social conditions of Spain in that moment.

He was a very optimistic man and very positive

and thought that it was better to find the good part of things.

How do you think we should remember Joaquin Sorolla?

I think his paintings, many times, make us happy.

He is very contagious in his optimistic feelings.

Sorolla has left us a wonderful vision of the early 20th-century Spain,

even if most of his scenes are rose-tinted.

Across the city, in the Retiro district of Madrid,

is another building with royal connections.

When guests arrived in 1906 for Alphonso and Eugenie's wedding,

they discovered that they had nowhere suitable to stay.

Afterwards, the couple honeymooned in the Ritz in Paris.

And they liked it so much,

they decided to commission one for Madrid.

While I'm in this magnificent hotel,

I'm sneaking a view of the Royal Suite.

Edward VIII stayed here with Wallis Simpson

and Prince Rainier with Princess Grace.

And they enjoyed all this elegance and luxury.

I'm going to enjoy the view that they had.

No time to get used to this royal luxury, as today I'm heading

south-west out of Madrid.

Early 20th-century visitors from Britain to the high central

plain of Spain would have found their fair share of strange noises

and smells, but at least Madrid, with its royal family

and its works of art was familiar enough.

Those visitors might have needed a fortifying breakfast of omelette

and ham and cheese before venturing south over the mountains to

somewhere altogether more exotic, with its Islamic history,

its gypsies, its bullfighting, its crimes of passion

and other thoroughly un-British activities.

I'm taking Spain's high-speed train from Madrid, the Ave,

and travelling about 400km to Cordoba.

Bradshaw's has warnings for the British traveller.

First-class carriages are tolerably comfortable.

Second-class carriages are wanting in comfort.

Third-class carriages are unsuitable for British travellers.

Railway speed is slow, rarely more than 15mph.

Well, since today there is a club class and a preferential class

and I'm in tourist class, you could say that I'm in third,

but now the speed is more like 170mph on the high-speed trains

that were introduced in Spain more than 20 years ago.

But I remember the really slow Spanish trains.

When I was eight, I travelled to meet my Spanish family

and the trains felt not a lot faster than in Bradshaw's day.

The seats were wooden and extremely uncomfortable. But it WAS exciting.

-Hello.

-Hello, how are you?

-Do you mind if I join you for a moment?

-Not at all, it's a pleasure.

-How do you do?

Do you regularly use this train?

Regularly, yes, to go to Seville, to Barcelona.

It's a big, big difference with the past.

How is it that Spain has made such a big change?

I think it's our generation who has started after Franco's

death, I think the political transition has created common ground

to grow together.

Well, my guidebook from 1913 tells me

that third class is not suitable for British travellers.

-Do you think this is suitable for British travellers?

-I think so.

I am a chairman of a company in Spain with 6,000 people working in it.

Precisely today we go to our shareholder meeting.

-And all the board, we are in tourist.

-You're all going tourist class.

Because we are in times, we need to save money and secondly,

I'm not seeing any difference between first, second and tourist.

Travelling at this speed, in an hour and a half, we go to a different

climate, to a different people, with a different take on life.

We swap the austerity of Castile for the exuberance of Andalusia,

people who bear the influences of centuries of Islamic

rule during the Middle Ages and of Gypsy culture.

And in their singing, their dancing and their bullfighting,

they are fired by an inner spirit known as duende, which

drives them to poetry and passion.

Cordoba's period of greatest glory began in the eighth century

after the Moorish conquest.

With 300 mosques,

it became the greatest Islamic centre in the Western world.

Ever since Roman times, it's had a unique position

as the crossroads of Spain, because of its bridge.

Situated on the mighty Guadalquivir River, Jews from the east

and Arabs from the south were funnelled through

the city by this natural geographical divide.

I find this really very moving.

I am walking across a Roman bridge that has spanned

this river for 2,000 years and is still doing its job today.

And I can now see the perimeter of the Islamic mosque,

one of the great mosques of the world -

and then imprinted in the middle of it

is a Catholic cathedral.

The three cultures mixed in one moment.

With its towering walls, the Great Mosque, dating back 13 centuries -

is a masterpiece of granite, jasper and marble.

I wouldn't feel comfortable speaking inside the cathedral, so let me say some thing now.

It was originally a mosque, begun in the eighth century,

and the Muslim architects used pillars

and columns that has been recycled from the Roman and Christian

civilisations and they support arches so that as you're

moving around inside, sometimes it's as though you're moving

through an avenue of trees, but also as you look to left and right,

it's as though you're in a forest, you're not quite sure where you are.

That simple device of pillars and arches is repeated again

and again on a grand scale.

But it also provides a feeling of spirituality.

And embedded in its centre, this remarkable

Gothic Catholic Cathedral edifice, added in the 16th century.

Cordoba is a living expression of the different cultures that

have existed here.

I've met up with local guide Isabel Martinez to learn about this

remarkable city's more recent Christian culture.

You're curious.

I am very sure that you will be enlightened, what you will see.

In 1570, King Philip II ordered

the building of the Royal stables.

His ambition was to create a pure Spanish thoroughbred,

the Andalusian horse.

Today, the Royal stables are home to an intriguing equestrian display.

FLAMENCO MUSIC

This is the most extraordinary sight -

a horse dancing with a woman.

I told you that it will be a very big surprise!

This is something very special here from Cordoba,

combining the horse dancing, of our famous Andalusian horses

together with the famous flamenco dancers.

This building is obviously very, very historic.

It's a beautiful royal stable of the 16th century.

-What sort of horse is that?

-It's the Pura Raza Espanola as we call it -

the pure Spanish race, the Andalusian horse.

It's a very noble animal, very intelligent

and it was very admired in all of Europe.

In fact, during the 16th and 17th centuries, the pure-breed

Andalusian horses were THE horses of the British court.

Is flamenco gypsy?

Flamenco is a melting pot which received

influences from very different countries and cultures.

You will recognise Indian movements if you look at the hands, her hips...

-Oh, yes.

-..and very passionate.

It's something you want to express with your body language.

APPLAUSE

Congratulations. What's it like to dance with a horse?

REPEATS IN SPANISH

SHE REPLIES IN SPANISH

So she says it's a very, very beautiful dance

and she's kind of absorbing from the horse the elegance

of the Andalusian horse, those beautiful, beautiful movements.

-ASKS FIRST IN SPANISH:

-Would you like to show me how to do it?

Si, claro.

IN SPANISH

IN SPANISH

I have to go very, very slowly, she says.

This is definitely a first for me.

Look at the way the horse dances.

Absolutely fantastic!

Gracias!

What a lovely dancing partner!

Thank you so much.

I really enjoyed that. Thank you.

As the heat of the day begins to cool,

I feel the duende calling me to the Andalusian city's nightlife.

Every town and village in Spain has its feria, or fair.

In some ways, they're like British funfairs -

you've got Ferris wheels and terrifying rides,

but the special thing about Spain is that the ladies in particular

get dressed up and people ride on horses

and there's flamenco dancing... Oh, and did I mention booze?

I'm pretty sure that Cordoba's feria would have surprised

and transfixed Bradshaw's 1913 travellers.

-Hola!

-ALL:

-Hola!

Buenas tardes. Are you having a nice time?

THEY CONVERSE IN SPANISH

HE SPEAKS IN SPANISH

I'm saying they're very young -

is the enthusiasm for the ferias growing with the young people?

SHE REPLIES IN SPANISH

Whether you're young, whether you're old, we all enjoy the fair.

SHE REPLIES IN SPANISH

Ah, that's what special!

The Cordoba girls are what are special!

IN SPANISH

Let's see if we can get...

THEY SING AND CLAP

THEY CHEER

Estupendo!

What I LOVE about the Spanish feria is the energy, the passion

and the zest for life.

On the second part of my journey, I'll find out why

a tobacco factory in Seville became an Edwardian tourist attraction.

Discover in Jerez how we've been getting

a British tradition so wrong.

-How do we drink sherry?

-Well, in England, very badly.

And find out the lengths that the British went to to keep the Rock of Gibraltar.

Six men we prepared to entomb themselves literally inside the Rock.

It's a total James Bond story.

Oh! It's an absolutely perfectly designed lookout.