0:00:03 > 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 will be using this,
0:00:12 > 0:00:16my Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide, dated 1913,
0:00:16 > 0:00:19which opened up an exotic world of foreign travel
0:00:19 > 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 > 0:00:42when technology, industry, science and the arts were flourishing.
0:00:42 > 0:00:45I want to rediscover that lost Europe
0:00:45 > 0:00:46that in 1913 couldn't know
0:00:46 > 0:00:50that its way of life would shortly be swept aside
0:00:50 > 0:00:52by the advent of war.
0:01:14 > 0:01:15A train in Spain,
0:01:15 > 0:01:18and though I'm hundreds of miles from my London house,
0:01:18 > 0:01:22I feel at home here because my father was Spanish,
0:01:22 > 0:01:24because Spanish blood runs in these veins.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27And though I visit this country maybe once a month,
0:01:27 > 0:01:29every time I come here,
0:01:29 > 0:01:34I feel the excitement of being in a place where I feel that I belong.
0:01:35 > 0:01:40My family's Spanish roots are in Salamanca, in the north-west.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42My father came to Britain as a refugee
0:01:42 > 0:01:44at the end of the Spanish Civil War.
0:01:44 > 0:01:49I grew up in England with a love of Spain and the Spanish language.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Today, my journey starts in the capital.
0:01:52 > 0:01:55Madrid is the beating heart of modern-day Spain.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58I'll travel south-west to historic Cordoba,
0:01:58 > 0:02:00a city with ancient Moorish roots,
0:02:00 > 0:02:04before crossing the southern Spanish region of Andalusia to Seville
0:02:04 > 0:02:07and on to Jerez in the south-west.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10The hilltop town of Ronda will be my final inland stop,
0:02:10 > 0:02:14before I descend to the Costa Del Sol.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16My journey ends on the Rock of Gibraltar.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22On this journey, I explore the rich culture of Spain,
0:02:22 > 0:02:25which drew our 1913 Bradshaw's travellers
0:02:25 > 0:02:27in search of a taste of the exotic.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31'I meet my most unusual dance partner ever...'
0:02:31 > 0:02:33Gracias.
0:02:36 > 0:02:38'..Immerse myself in Cordoba's fair...'
0:02:45 > 0:02:47'..Discover in Jerez
0:02:47 > 0:02:50'how we have been getting a British tradition so wrong'.
0:02:50 > 0:02:53- How do we drink sherry? - Well, in England, very badly.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58'..Celebrate the ingenuity of British rail engineers.'
0:02:58 > 0:03:01180km through very difficult terrain,
0:03:01 > 0:03:05and they literally had to bevel out the tunnels from pure rock.
0:03:05 > 0:03:08'And find out the lengths that the British went to
0:03:08 > 0:03:10'to keep the Rock of Gibraltar.'
0:03:10 > 0:03:13Six men were prepared to entomb themselves
0:03:13 > 0:03:18literally inside the rock. It's a total James Bond story.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22Oh! It's an absolutely perfectly designed lookout.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30Madrid is the highest capital in Europe,
0:03:30 > 0:03:32surrounded by mountain ranges.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35Before the railways, it was easier to move goods
0:03:35 > 0:03:39from Barcelona to South America than it was by road to Madrid.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42My Bradshaw's Guide, 1913, tells me
0:03:42 > 0:03:45that Madrid is "a fine, attractive city,
0:03:45 > 0:03:48"the capital of the kingdom of Spain,
0:03:48 > 0:03:53"built upon an eminence rising from a wide stretching plain."
0:03:53 > 0:03:56Think of the Iberian peninsula as a square,
0:03:56 > 0:03:58and Madrid is at the very centre,
0:03:58 > 0:04:01the perfect place for a visitor to begin
0:04:01 > 0:04:03an exploration of the Spanish regions.
0:04:12 > 0:04:13Atocha Station.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18This fine structure of brick and iron and glass
0:04:18 > 0:04:21was built at the end of the 19th century.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23But with high-speed trains,
0:04:23 > 0:04:26it was necessary to have longer platforms and a wider space,
0:04:26 > 0:04:29and so they moved all the trains down the line,
0:04:29 > 0:04:32making out of the old station a conservatory,
0:04:32 > 0:04:37a railway terminus with a tropical touch.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48But Madrid has been drawing the world to it for hundreds of years.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50In the 16th and 17th centuries,
0:04:50 > 0:04:54it was the mighty nerve centre of the Spanish Empire.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57It's still the country's political heart today.
0:04:59 > 0:05:01Back in the time of my Bradshaw's guide,
0:05:01 > 0:05:05Spain avoided the rivalries that would embroil Europe in war.
0:05:07 > 0:05:11It was distracted by its own economic and political troubles.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15I'm meeting Kirsty Hooper,
0:05:15 > 0:05:18reader in Hispanic Studies at Warwick University,
0:05:18 > 0:05:19to discover more.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21In the early years of the 20th century,
0:05:21 > 0:05:24- what sort of condition was Spain in? - Pretty poor.
0:05:24 > 0:05:28In 1898, Spain had lost its last Atlantic colonies
0:05:28 > 0:05:31to the United States as part of the Spanish-American War,
0:05:31 > 0:05:34which is known in Spain as El Desastre, or The Disaster.
0:05:34 > 0:05:36So while the British Empire was growing,
0:05:36 > 0:05:39and the most powerful empire on earth, the Spanish Empire was reduced
0:05:39 > 0:05:44to a tiny number of possesions, mostly on the north coast of Africa.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46As Spain's imperial fortunes fell,
0:05:46 > 0:05:49the British, still basking in their own colonial might,
0:05:49 > 0:05:53were keen to indulge in a bit of dynastic diplomacy.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57Britain's King Edward VII, connected by birth or marriage to most of
0:05:57 > 0:06:02Europe's royal families, understood the power of these royal alliances.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06In 1906, at the Real Monasterio de San Jeronimo,
0:06:06 > 0:06:10an event occurred which linked Britain firmly with Spain.
0:06:10 > 0:06:14Behind the scenes, Edward had arranged for Queen Victoria's
0:06:14 > 0:06:1719-year-old granddaughter, Princess Victoria Eugenie,
0:06:17 > 0:06:18known as Ena,
0:06:18 > 0:06:21to marry the 20-year-old King Alfonso of Spain.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26How did people feel in Spain and Britain about this union?
0:06:26 > 0:06:29The establishments in both countries were not terribly happy
0:06:29 > 0:06:30when it was first announced.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33Alfonso himself was very keen on the idea of a British bride
0:06:33 > 0:06:36and he'd worked his way through a couple of Queen Victoria's
0:06:36 > 0:06:38granddaughters before, in the previous year, who had,
0:06:38 > 0:06:41for whatever reason, turned him down until he ended up with Ena.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44But the Spanish aristocracy were not terribly happy
0:06:44 > 0:06:47because Ena wasn't Catholic. The British were rather surprised
0:06:47 > 0:06:50because she was very low-ranking, and they weren't sure about losing
0:06:50 > 0:06:52one of their princesses to the Catholic Church.
0:06:52 > 0:06:56Determined to see his glamorous niece on the Spanish throne,
0:06:56 > 0:07:00Edward allowed Ena to convert to Catholicism, her fiance's religion.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05Well, it has the rich grandeur of a royal chapel.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08I'm thinking with an English princess and a Spanish king,
0:07:08 > 0:07:11- it must have been a big royal event. - It was enormous.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15Really, it was one of the first global royal weddings.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Although he didn't attend,
0:07:17 > 0:07:20the King saw off the royal party at London's Victoria Station.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23And they travelled down through France, Alphonso met them
0:07:23 > 0:07:27at the border and the royal train processed on to Madrid.
0:07:27 > 0:07:29But as the world watched,
0:07:29 > 0:07:31the wedding day celebrations turned to tragedy.
0:07:34 > 0:07:38Now, Bradshaw's says it was from a window on the top storey of number
0:07:38 > 0:07:4088, Calle Mayor,
0:07:40 > 0:07:45that the bomb was thrown at the carriage of the king and queen.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48And indeed this commemorates it. What an appalling incident.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50Who was it who did it?
0:07:50 > 0:07:53It was a young Catalan anarchist called Mateu Morral
0:07:53 > 0:07:57who had taken rooms up at the top of the building
0:07:57 > 0:07:58where you can see the rosettes.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02He believed that the social injustices in Spain were so great
0:08:02 > 0:08:05that only through an event designed to raise the consciousness
0:08:05 > 0:08:09of the public would he be able to really get his message across.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15The bomb was thrown, it was part of a bouquet, it was thrown,
0:08:15 > 0:08:18it bounced off the tram cables that lined the streets.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20So although it missed the royal carriage, it exploded,
0:08:20 > 0:08:23killing many horses and up to 30 people.
0:08:23 > 0:08:27Bradshaw's is mentioning it as though it was a place that tourists
0:08:27 > 0:08:30- might want to come.- It was one of the most notorious events of its time
0:08:30 > 0:08:33and British people were very keen to see the place where their princess
0:08:33 > 0:08:36had been attacked, and so they added it to their itineraries.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39The king and queen were lucky to escape with their lives.
0:08:39 > 0:08:43But Mateu Morral shot himself rather than face arrest.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45Today, over 100 years later,
0:08:45 > 0:08:49this tragic assassination attempt is still remembered locally.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51- Hola. Buenos dias.- Buenos dias.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53Foto?
0:08:53 > 0:08:55What is that photograph of?
0:08:55 > 0:08:58- MAN SPEAKS SPANISH - It's an authentic photograph?
0:08:58 > 0:09:02It was taken just after it happened. It shows a dead horse here, there is
0:09:02 > 0:09:05a carriage here that must've been part of the royal procession.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09There's a little X that marks the window from which the bomb was thrown.
0:09:09 > 0:09:12MAN SPEAKS SPANISH
0:09:18 > 0:09:23He's saying that every year he goes out and he puts a bouquet
0:09:23 > 0:09:26on there in memory of the 25 people who were killed
0:09:26 > 0:09:28and the many who were injured.
0:09:28 > 0:09:30How long have you been here?
0:09:30 > 0:09:33MAN SPEAKS IN SPANISH
0:09:38 > 0:09:42He says he's been doing it ever since the monument was opened
0:09:42 > 0:09:44and he had to open the monument himself.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48He said no-one was coming along to do the ceremony
0:09:48 > 0:09:50so he went out there with a broom and a Spanish flag
0:09:50 > 0:09:54and he performed an opening ceremony on the monument.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56THEY CONVERSE IN SPANISH
0:09:56 > 0:09:58- Hasta luego.- Hasta luego.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06Having made their royal pilgrimage, Bradshaw's travellers' spirits
0:10:06 > 0:10:08could have been lifted by the crowds
0:10:08 > 0:10:12and the noisy chatter of one of the city's most popular meeting places.
0:10:13 > 0:10:18This is the lovely Puerta del Sol at the very heart of Madrid.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21Bradshaw's tells me that the cafes in and around here
0:10:21 > 0:10:24may be used without question during the day
0:10:24 > 0:10:27but at night are not suitable for ladies.
0:10:27 > 0:10:32Especially those cafes where music is provided in the evening.
0:10:32 > 0:10:37Luckily, I'm male. And this is the midday sun, so I should be safe.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40But one tip - in Madrid, always look up.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44The architecture is wonderful, particularly these balconies
0:10:44 > 0:10:46with their marvellous wrought-iron work,
0:10:46 > 0:10:47so typical of Spain.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02- Hola.- Una cana, por favor.
0:11:08 > 0:11:11I defy any traveller, Edwardian or otherwise,
0:11:11 > 0:11:13not to fall in love with Spain's tapas.
0:11:15 > 0:11:19These small snacks originated from Andalusia in the 19th century
0:11:19 > 0:11:20to accompany sherry.
0:11:22 > 0:11:26Traditional dishes range from olive, meats and cheese
0:11:26 > 0:11:27to these croquettes.
0:11:30 > 0:11:35Very, very nice. They've got cod and flour and a little butter.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38Um, milk.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41A bit of nutmeg, and then breadcrumbs and egg on the outside.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43And then they're...
0:11:43 > 0:11:46deep-fried and they're lovely. Gracias.
0:11:46 > 0:11:50Despite being the most reluctant European country to join
0:11:50 > 0:11:54the railway age, Spain proved very much a magnet
0:11:54 > 0:11:57for Bradshaw's 1913 railway tourists.
0:11:57 > 0:12:01One of the biggest draws would have been Madrid's stunning
0:12:01 > 0:12:02royal art collection.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06Any young artist who came to the Prado Art Gallery
0:12:06 > 0:12:10around the beginning of the 20th century would have studied
0:12:10 > 0:12:15Diego Velazquez, the greatest genius of Spanish painting history.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19A man who made his fame and fortune with religious paintings
0:12:19 > 0:12:21and portraits of the royal family,
0:12:21 > 0:12:25but whose real greatness lay in the way that he captured light
0:12:25 > 0:12:29and the way that he portrayed ordinary people, workers,
0:12:29 > 0:12:32drunks, the lowest rungs of society.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45Velazquez was at the height of his powers in the 17th century.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53Early 20th-century travellers might have been more drawn to one of
0:12:53 > 0:12:58their era's most brilliant artists, who was also a devotee of Velazquez.
0:12:58 > 0:13:00I'm heading to his studio.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10This grand mansion was formerly the home of Joaquin Sorolla,
0:13:10 > 0:13:16and has changed little since he died in 1923. It now houses his works.
0:13:16 > 0:13:20I'm meeting the director of the museum, Consuelo Luca de Tena.
0:13:22 > 0:13:27He lived here for the last ten or more years of his life.
0:13:27 > 0:13:33- He had this house specially built for him.- It's absolutely magnificent.
0:13:33 > 0:13:38- I recognise these people. This is Victoria Eugenie, isn't it?- Yes.
0:13:38 > 0:13:39And King Alfonso XIII.
0:13:39 > 0:13:43- The king must have been a friend of Sorolla.- Yes.
0:13:43 > 0:13:48And this says, "To Don Joaquin Sorolla, I am supposing that
0:13:48 > 0:13:52"you're going to like the contrast of the light in this photograph."
0:13:52 > 0:13:54It's quite a nice little joke, isn't it?
0:13:54 > 0:13:58Sorolla portraited the king in the open air.
0:13:58 > 0:14:03The king is covered with spots of light that comes through
0:14:03 > 0:14:05the trees and it's very special.
0:14:05 > 0:14:09Born in Valencia, Sorolla used the train to travel back to
0:14:09 > 0:14:13the coastal city to paint some of his finest work.
0:14:13 > 0:14:14This is a huge room.
0:14:14 > 0:14:18I imagine, with all the light here, this would be where the artist
0:14:18 > 0:14:19- was painting.- Yes.
0:14:19 > 0:14:23We have so many paintings that show how Sorolla depicted light.
0:14:23 > 0:14:26I mean, here, for example, these ladies on the beach -
0:14:26 > 0:14:28the intensity of the light on their clothing
0:14:28 > 0:14:32- and reflecting off the sea, this is quite typical.- Very typical.
0:14:32 > 0:14:39Sorolla was very fond of painting the beach, the light in the open air
0:14:39 > 0:14:44and particularly the light reflecting itself in the waters.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49In complete contrast is this poignant picture,
0:14:49 > 0:14:53painted in 1895, called The White Slave Trade.
0:14:54 > 0:14:58A group of young women travelling in a third-class railway carriage
0:14:58 > 0:15:01is being taken to the city to work as prostitutes.
0:15:04 > 0:15:09So, did Sorolla paint a lot of this kind of social realism?
0:15:09 > 0:15:11Not so many paintings.
0:15:11 > 0:15:16He disliked the insistence of some artists and writers
0:15:16 > 0:15:23of his time on the poor social conditions of Spain in that moment.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27He was a very optimistic man and very positive
0:15:27 > 0:15:33and thought that it was better to find the good part of things.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36How do you think we should remember Joaquin Sorolla?
0:15:36 > 0:15:41I think his paintings, many times, make us happy.
0:15:41 > 0:15:46He is very contagious in his optimistic feelings.
0:15:46 > 0:15:52Sorolla has left us a wonderful vision of the early 20th-century Spain,
0:15:52 > 0:15:55even if most of his scenes are rose-tinted.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00Across the city, in the Retiro district of Madrid,
0:16:00 > 0:16:03is another building with royal connections.
0:16:03 > 0:16:08When guests arrived in 1906 for Alphonso and Eugenie's wedding,
0:16:08 > 0:16:11they discovered that they had nowhere suitable to stay.
0:16:11 > 0:16:15Afterwards, the couple honeymooned in the Ritz in Paris.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17And they liked it so much,
0:16:17 > 0:16:20they decided to commission one for Madrid.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26While I'm in this magnificent hotel,
0:16:26 > 0:16:29I'm sneaking a view of the Royal Suite.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32Edward VIII stayed here with Wallis Simpson
0:16:32 > 0:16:36and Prince Rainier with Princess Grace.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38And they enjoyed all this elegance and luxury.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41I'm going to enjoy the view that they had.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03No time to get used to this royal luxury, as today I'm heading
0:17:03 > 0:17:05south-west out of Madrid.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11Early 20th-century visitors from Britain to the high central
0:17:11 > 0:17:15plain of Spain would have found their fair share of strange noises
0:17:15 > 0:17:20and smells, but at least Madrid, with its royal family
0:17:20 > 0:17:23and its works of art was familiar enough.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26Those visitors might have needed a fortifying breakfast of omelette
0:17:26 > 0:17:31and ham and cheese before venturing south over the mountains to
0:17:31 > 0:17:35somewhere altogether more exotic, with its Islamic history,
0:17:35 > 0:17:39its gypsies, its bullfighting, its crimes of passion
0:17:39 > 0:17:42and other thoroughly un-British activities.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54I'm taking Spain's high-speed train from Madrid, the Ave,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57and travelling about 400km to Cordoba.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11Bradshaw's has warnings for the British traveller.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14First-class carriages are tolerably comfortable.
0:18:14 > 0:18:17Second-class carriages are wanting in comfort.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21Third-class carriages are unsuitable for British travellers.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25Railway speed is slow, rarely more than 15mph.
0:18:25 > 0:18:29Well, since today there is a club class and a preferential class
0:18:29 > 0:18:33and I'm in tourist class, you could say that I'm in third,
0:18:33 > 0:18:38but now the speed is more like 170mph on the high-speed trains
0:18:38 > 0:18:42that were introduced in Spain more than 20 years ago.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56But I remember the really slow Spanish trains.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59When I was eight, I travelled to meet my Spanish family
0:18:59 > 0:19:04and the trains felt not a lot faster than in Bradshaw's day.
0:19:04 > 0:19:09The seats were wooden and extremely uncomfortable. But it WAS exciting.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17- Hello.- Hello, how are you?- Do you mind if I join you for a moment?
0:19:17 > 0:19:19- Not at all, it's a pleasure. - How do you do?
0:19:19 > 0:19:20Do you regularly use this train?
0:19:20 > 0:19:24Regularly, yes, to go to Seville, to Barcelona.
0:19:24 > 0:19:28It's a big, big difference with the past.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32How is it that Spain has made such a big change?
0:19:32 > 0:19:37I think it's our generation who has started after Franco's
0:19:37 > 0:19:44death, I think the political transition has created common ground
0:19:44 > 0:19:46to grow together.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50Well, my guidebook from 1913 tells me
0:19:50 > 0:19:55that third class is not suitable for British travellers.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58- Do you think this is suitable for British travellers?- I think so.
0:19:58 > 0:20:04I am a chairman of a company in Spain with 6,000 people working in it.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07Precisely today we go to our shareholder meeting.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11- And all the board, we are in tourist. - You're all going tourist class.
0:20:11 > 0:20:16Because we are in times, we need to save money and secondly,
0:20:16 > 0:20:20I'm not seeing any difference between first, second and tourist.
0:20:28 > 0:20:32Travelling at this speed, in an hour and a half, we go to a different
0:20:32 > 0:20:36climate, to a different people, with a different take on life.
0:20:36 > 0:20:41We swap the austerity of Castile for the exuberance of Andalusia,
0:20:41 > 0:20:45people who bear the influences of centuries of Islamic
0:20:45 > 0:20:48rule during the Middle Ages and of Gypsy culture.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52And in their singing, their dancing and their bullfighting,
0:20:52 > 0:20:56they are fired by an inner spirit known as duende, which
0:20:56 > 0:20:59drives them to poetry and passion.
0:21:09 > 0:21:13Cordoba's period of greatest glory began in the eighth century
0:21:13 > 0:21:16after the Moorish conquest.
0:21:16 > 0:21:17With 300 mosques,
0:21:17 > 0:21:22it became the greatest Islamic centre in the Western world.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29Ever since Roman times, it's had a unique position
0:21:29 > 0:21:32as the crossroads of Spain, because of its bridge.
0:21:34 > 0:21:38Situated on the mighty Guadalquivir River, Jews from the east
0:21:38 > 0:21:40and Arabs from the south were funnelled through
0:21:40 > 0:21:43the city by this natural geographical divide.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53I find this really very moving.
0:21:53 > 0:21:57I am walking across a Roman bridge that has spanned
0:21:57 > 0:22:00this river for 2,000 years and is still doing its job today.
0:22:01 > 0:22:06And I can now see the perimeter of the Islamic mosque,
0:22:06 > 0:22:08one of the great mosques of the world -
0:22:08 > 0:22:10and then imprinted in the middle of it
0:22:10 > 0:22:12is a Catholic cathedral.
0:22:14 > 0:22:16The three cultures mixed in one moment.
0:22:17 > 0:22:23With its towering walls, the Great Mosque, dating back 13 centuries -
0:22:23 > 0:22:26is a masterpiece of granite, jasper and marble.
0:22:28 > 0:22:33I wouldn't feel comfortable speaking inside the cathedral, so let me say some thing now.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36It was originally a mosque, begun in the eighth century,
0:22:36 > 0:22:38and the Muslim architects used pillars
0:22:38 > 0:22:42and columns that has been recycled from the Roman and Christian
0:22:42 > 0:22:45civilisations and they support arches so that as you're
0:22:45 > 0:22:48moving around inside, sometimes it's as though you're moving
0:22:48 > 0:22:52through an avenue of trees, but also as you look to left and right,
0:22:52 > 0:22:55it's as though you're in a forest, you're not quite sure where you are.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59That simple device of pillars and arches is repeated again
0:22:59 > 0:23:02and again on a grand scale.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05But it also provides a feeling of spirituality.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13And embedded in its centre, this remarkable
0:23:13 > 0:23:17Gothic Catholic Cathedral edifice, added in the 16th century.
0:23:22 > 0:23:26Cordoba is a living expression of the different cultures that
0:23:26 > 0:23:27have existed here.
0:23:37 > 0:23:41I've met up with local guide Isabel Martinez to learn about this
0:23:41 > 0:23:45remarkable city's more recent Christian culture.
0:23:45 > 0:23:46You're curious.
0:23:46 > 0:23:50I am very sure that you will be enlightened, what you will see.
0:23:51 > 0:23:54In 1570, King Philip II ordered
0:23:54 > 0:23:57the building of the Royal stables.
0:23:58 > 0:24:02His ambition was to create a pure Spanish thoroughbred,
0:24:02 > 0:24:04the Andalusian horse.
0:24:05 > 0:24:09Today, the Royal stables are home to an intriguing equestrian display.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21FLAMENCO MUSIC
0:24:32 > 0:24:34This is the most extraordinary sight -
0:24:34 > 0:24:36a horse dancing with a woman.
0:24:36 > 0:24:40I told you that it will be a very big surprise!
0:24:40 > 0:24:43This is something very special here from Cordoba,
0:24:43 > 0:24:46combining the horse dancing, of our famous Andalusian horses
0:24:46 > 0:24:48together with the famous flamenco dancers.
0:24:48 > 0:24:51This building is obviously very, very historic.
0:24:51 > 0:24:55It's a beautiful royal stable of the 16th century.
0:24:55 > 0:24:59- What sort of horse is that?- It's the Pura Raza Espanola as we call it -
0:24:59 > 0:25:03the pure Spanish race, the Andalusian horse.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07It's a very noble animal, very intelligent
0:25:07 > 0:25:10and it was very admired in all of Europe.
0:25:10 > 0:25:13In fact, during the 16th and 17th centuries, the pure-breed
0:25:13 > 0:25:17Andalusian horses were THE horses of the British court.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19Is flamenco gypsy?
0:25:19 > 0:25:22Flamenco is a melting pot which received
0:25:22 > 0:25:26influences from very different countries and cultures.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31You will recognise Indian movements if you look at the hands, her hips...
0:25:31 > 0:25:33- Oh, yes. - ..and very passionate.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37It's something you want to express with your body language.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41APPLAUSE
0:25:43 > 0:25:47Congratulations. What's it like to dance with a horse?
0:25:47 > 0:25:49REPEATS IN SPANISH
0:25:49 > 0:25:51SHE REPLIES IN SPANISH
0:25:56 > 0:25:59So she says it's a very, very beautiful dance
0:25:59 > 0:26:02and she's kind of absorbing from the horse the elegance
0:26:02 > 0:26:05of the Andalusian horse, those beautiful, beautiful movements.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08- ASKS FIRST IN SPANISH:- Would you like to show me how to do it?
0:26:08 > 0:26:10Si, claro.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13IN SPANISH
0:26:18 > 0:26:20IN SPANISH
0:26:23 > 0:26:25I have to go very, very slowly, she says.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29This is definitely a first for me.
0:26:29 > 0:26:31Look at the way the horse dances.
0:26:31 > 0:26:33Absolutely fantastic!
0:26:39 > 0:26:40Gracias!
0:26:43 > 0:26:45What a lovely dancing partner!
0:26:45 > 0:26:47Thank you so much.
0:26:47 > 0:26:49I really enjoyed that. Thank you.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57As the heat of the day begins to cool,
0:26:57 > 0:27:01I feel the duende calling me to the Andalusian city's nightlife.
0:27:04 > 0:27:08Every town and village in Spain has its feria, or fair.
0:27:08 > 0:27:10In some ways, they're like British funfairs -
0:27:10 > 0:27:13you've got Ferris wheels and terrifying rides,
0:27:13 > 0:27:16but the special thing about Spain is that the ladies in particular
0:27:16 > 0:27:19get dressed up and people ride on horses
0:27:19 > 0:27:24and there's flamenco dancing... Oh, and did I mention booze?
0:27:29 > 0:27:32I'm pretty sure that Cordoba's feria would have surprised
0:27:32 > 0:27:36and transfixed Bradshaw's 1913 travellers.
0:27:38 > 0:27:40- Hola!- ALL:- Hola!
0:27:40 > 0:27:43Buenas tardes. Are you having a nice time?
0:27:45 > 0:27:47THEY CONVERSE IN SPANISH
0:27:50 > 0:27:53HE SPEAKS IN SPANISH
0:27:53 > 0:27:55I'm saying they're very young -
0:27:55 > 0:27:58is the enthusiasm for the ferias growing with the young people?
0:27:58 > 0:28:00SHE REPLIES IN SPANISH
0:28:00 > 0:28:03Whether you're young, whether you're old, we all enjoy the fair.
0:28:03 > 0:28:04SHE REPLIES IN SPANISH
0:28:04 > 0:28:06Ah, that's what special!
0:28:06 > 0:28:09The Cordoba girls are what are special!
0:28:14 > 0:28:17IN SPANISH
0:28:19 > 0:28:21Let's see if we can get...
0:28:21 > 0:28:24THEY SING AND CLAP
0:28:37 > 0:28:39THEY CHEER
0:28:39 > 0:28:41Estupendo!
0:28:45 > 0:28:50What I LOVE about the Spanish feria is the energy, the passion
0:28:50 > 0:28:51and the zest for life.
0:29:10 > 0:29:12When this guidebook was published, the exotic
0:29:12 > 0:29:16and adventurous rail journey across Spain would have been slow.
0:29:16 > 0:29:21Now the country has over 3,000km of track and its high-speed system
0:29:21 > 0:29:24serves a staggering 60% of the population.
0:29:27 > 0:29:29I'm heading further south-west to Seville,
0:29:29 > 0:29:34a journey of around 130km through Andalusia's rolling hills that
0:29:34 > 0:29:37today will take me only 40 minutes.
0:29:41 > 0:29:45Bradshaw says that Seville is the capital of Andalusia.
0:29:45 > 0:29:48"The streets present a bright cheerfulness of life
0:29:48 > 0:29:51"and a charm that go far to justify the boast..."
0:29:51 > 0:29:55HE QUOTES IN SPANISH
0:29:55 > 0:29:59"Who hasn't seen Seville has not seen a wonder", and indeed,
0:29:59 > 0:30:04with its avenues and fountains and gardens and cathedral, all enveloped
0:30:04 > 0:30:07in the scent of orange blossom,
0:30:07 > 0:30:10it is indeed one of the world's wonders.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18Seville's fortunes have been shaped by its river port.
0:30:20 > 0:30:24The 16th century was its golden age, when it became the major
0:30:24 > 0:30:28European point of departure for the New World of the Americas.
0:30:29 > 0:30:32During the 19th century's rapid industrialisation,
0:30:32 > 0:30:36rail connections brought an influx of artists and intellectuals,
0:30:36 > 0:30:40keen to escape the manufacturing cities of northern Europe.
0:30:45 > 0:30:48Touring the city of Seville in 1913 would have been made easier
0:30:48 > 0:30:51for the traveller by the tram system.
0:30:56 > 0:30:59Bradshaw's tells me that the cathedral in Seville is
0:30:59 > 0:31:04"a Gothic edifice of surpassing architectural and historic interest.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07"It suffered much from earthquake and two or three times,
0:31:07 > 0:31:13"the dome has collapsed, the last collapse being on August 1st, 1888".
0:31:13 > 0:31:15I've often been in Seville and I didn't know that.
0:31:15 > 0:31:20But what I DO remember is that the vast majority of the steeple
0:31:20 > 0:31:25was formerly an Islamic minaret and it has an exact twin in Marrakech.
0:31:31 > 0:31:36I love Seville so much that now I have a house near here,
0:31:36 > 0:31:38in a town ringed by Roman walls.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42It means that I can truly enjoy this beautiful city
0:31:42 > 0:31:45and THIS place has always intrigued me.
0:31:46 > 0:31:49"The tobacco factory is usually included among the sites
0:31:49 > 0:31:53"of Seville", says Bradshaw's. I'm curious to know why.
0:31:53 > 0:31:56"It's an immense building where are employed 5,000 cigareras" -
0:31:56 > 0:32:00that is, of course women cigar workers.
0:32:00 > 0:32:01That could be the clue.
0:32:02 > 0:32:06Columbus's sailors brought the first tobacco plants
0:32:06 > 0:32:09from the Americas at the end of the 15th century.
0:32:09 > 0:32:14By 1728, Spanish King Philip V began work on what is
0:32:14 > 0:32:18possibly the grandest tobacco factory ever built.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21Originally, only men were employed in the tobacco industry,
0:32:21 > 0:32:24to make snuff, but by 1829,
0:32:24 > 0:32:28the nimbler and cheaper fingers of women were in demand to make cigars.
0:32:29 > 0:32:33Today, the Seville factory houses the city's university.
0:32:33 > 0:32:38I want to find out why it became such a tourist attraction.
0:32:41 > 0:32:46My Bradshaw's guide recommends visitors to come to the factory
0:32:46 > 0:32:49and I'm just wondering why visitors would want to come here.
0:32:49 > 0:32:53Most of the 19th-century travellers came to Spain
0:32:53 > 0:32:58escaping from the dreary life of industrial Europe.
0:32:58 > 0:33:01The first thing they visited was a factory, which is
0:33:01 > 0:33:03a bit of a paradox!
0:33:03 > 0:33:09But of course there was this added charm of seeing lots of ladies.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12And how would the tourists see them?
0:33:12 > 0:33:14They had to be invited by the administrator,
0:33:14 > 0:33:17but normally people of some standing,
0:33:17 > 0:33:21some social standing, had no problem in getting here.
0:33:21 > 0:33:23And were these women very beautiful?
0:33:23 > 0:33:26Well, according to the visitors, yes, they were.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30But in fact, the photographs we have of them taken at the end
0:33:30 > 0:33:33of the 19th century show that most of them were pretty awful.
0:33:33 > 0:33:38It's a myth of the cigareras - it was obviously an imaginary thing!
0:33:38 > 0:33:42Well, my experience of Seville women is that they're very beautiful!
0:33:42 > 0:33:43My experience, too!
0:33:44 > 0:33:48MUSIC: "Habanera" from Carmen by Bizet
0:33:48 > 0:33:52These fierce cigareras were immortalised by the French
0:33:52 > 0:33:57composer George Bizet in his passionate opera, Carmen.
0:33:57 > 0:34:01Bizet depicted the heroine Carmen as an amoral seductress with
0:34:01 > 0:34:05both men and women behaving badly.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07Did Spanish people get a bit offended that their women
0:34:07 > 0:34:12- and their men were being represented as libertines in opera?- No.
0:34:12 > 0:34:14Not really, I don't think so.
0:34:14 > 0:34:19This sort of reaction took place in the very recent
0:34:19 > 0:34:22times in the dictatorship of Franco
0:34:22 > 0:34:26when some composer decided to create a figure which was the good
0:34:26 > 0:34:31and virtuous Carmen, which embodied the virtues of the Spanish people,
0:34:31 > 0:34:34to come to balance the influence of the French Carmen,
0:34:34 > 0:34:38which was, er...rather libertine.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41It was composer Manuel Quiroga who wrote the more reserved
0:34:41 > 0:34:43Spanish version.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47WOMAN SINGS IN SPANISH
0:35:15 > 0:35:17Ole!
0:35:28 > 0:35:32Seville would have seemed risky, exotic and a little rough around the
0:35:32 > 0:35:36edges, but as the Edwardian tourists headed south, they were about
0:35:36 > 0:35:40to discover a taste of Spain that would have been far more familiar.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48Because the next stop on my journey is Jerez de la Frontera -
0:35:48 > 0:35:50the sherry capital of the world,
0:35:50 > 0:35:53thanks to the town's perfect conditions for growing
0:35:53 > 0:35:54the palomino grape.
0:36:02 > 0:36:04As well as being famous for its fortified wine,
0:36:04 > 0:36:08Jerez is the transport and communication hub of its province.
0:36:14 > 0:36:15Mucho gusto.
0:36:15 > 0:36:18Adios. Hasta luego.
0:36:21 > 0:36:24Throughout my Spanish journey so far, I've been at stations
0:36:24 > 0:36:28which are utilitarian, modern, made of concrete and glass, reflecting
0:36:28 > 0:36:31how much railway building has been done in the last two decades.
0:36:31 > 0:36:34It's so nice to arrive now at a traditional station,
0:36:34 > 0:36:38here covered in ceramic tiles in these brilliant, bright colours,
0:36:38 > 0:36:40so typical of the south of Spain.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47Jerez's success and the British love affair with sherry all
0:36:47 > 0:36:50started with a military incident.
0:36:50 > 0:36:54In 1587, Sir Francis Drake made a daring raid on the Spanish fleet.
0:36:54 > 0:36:57His triumphal return from Spain included
0:36:57 > 0:37:01a cargo of 2,900 butts of sherry.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04His liquid spoils of war were instantly popular.
0:37:04 > 0:37:10In 1855, British businessmen Robert Byass joined forces with
0:37:10 > 0:37:14Manuel Gonzalez and their sherry empire started
0:37:14 > 0:37:18with the production of 7.5 hectares of vineyards.
0:37:18 > 0:37:22Today, it's his great-great-grandson
0:37:22 > 0:37:26and my friend Gonzalo del Rio who is a leading light at Gonzales-Byass.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34- Gonzalo!- Michael!
0:37:34 > 0:37:38Lovely to see you. I'm good. Is it time for a little sherry?
0:37:38 > 0:37:42I've heard you love sherry, now you follow trains!
0:37:42 > 0:37:44I do, I'm a trainspotter!
0:37:44 > 0:37:48- Is there any connection between sherry and trains?- Yes, a lot.
0:37:48 > 0:37:52Look, this is a book written by my grandfather and where he does a
0:37:52 > 0:37:55big description about the project of the railway
0:37:55 > 0:37:59to Jerez Puerto in 1829.
0:37:59 > 0:38:03This is about the time of the very earliest railways in England.
0:38:03 > 0:38:05So this is going down to the port?
0:38:05 > 0:38:08This is going down to the port of Santa Maria.
0:38:08 > 0:38:10This was a way to try
0:38:10 > 0:38:13and transport the barrels of wine
0:38:13 > 0:38:16in a faster way and in a better way.
0:38:16 > 0:38:20And the founder of this company, my great-great-grandfather,
0:38:20 > 0:38:24- he financed all that project. - So he was very forward-looking?
0:38:24 > 0:38:29Yes, and used to go all the way through the different
0:38:29 > 0:38:32sellers of the winery to fetch the barrels of wine.
0:38:32 > 0:38:36- So the railway wasn't just picking up from this bodega?- No, no.
0:38:36 > 0:38:42All the different wineries - or bodegas - had their own place
0:38:42 > 0:38:45to put all the barrels inside the train.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53Sherry is produced in a variety of styles, from the driest
0:38:53 > 0:38:58and palest fino to the darkest and smoothest oloroso.
0:39:00 > 0:39:03The grapes are harvested in September, lightly pressed
0:39:03 > 0:39:07and then the juice or "must" is fermented in vats.
0:39:09 > 0:39:13The longer the sherry spends in the 600-litre oak barrels, the more
0:39:13 > 0:39:18character the wine takes on in terms of taste, colour and alcohol.
0:39:20 > 0:39:24Probably the oldest brand is Tio Pepe.
0:39:24 > 0:39:26..Michael Portillo.
0:39:26 > 0:39:31- How do you do?- He's going to give us a glass of Tio Pepe.
0:39:31 > 0:39:34At last, I thought you'd never ask!
0:39:38 > 0:39:40Now, Gonzalo, how do we drink sherry?
0:39:40 > 0:39:43Well, in England, very badly!
0:39:43 > 0:39:46We failed in that - it's not your fault, it's our fault.
0:39:46 > 0:39:49We haven't shown people how to drink sherry properly.
0:39:49 > 0:39:54Two different ways - one way, because they don't have it cold.
0:39:54 > 0:39:57In the second way, they open it on Sunday lunch
0:39:57 > 0:40:00and after three months, they go back to it.
0:40:00 > 0:40:04A bottle of wine should be drank immediately.
0:40:04 > 0:40:06You're absolutely right.
0:40:06 > 0:40:09I remember I had some lovely aunts and they would always
0:40:09 > 0:40:11serve us a glass of sherry, but we might go there every three
0:40:11 > 0:40:15months and it would be the same bottle again and again and again!
0:40:15 > 0:40:16Then you agree with me?
0:40:16 > 0:40:18Yes, but I didn't realise it was a bad thing to do -
0:40:18 > 0:40:22- sherry doesn't last that long, no? - No, no. This is alive.
0:40:22 > 0:40:27So, two easy rules - drink it cold and drink it fast!
0:40:27 > 0:40:28To sherry and to the railways!
0:40:28 > 0:40:30- Thank you.- Thank you.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35- Mm!- How was that?
0:40:35 > 0:40:38- I- think it's pretty good! - Smell it, smell it.
0:40:38 > 0:40:40It's REALLY good!
0:40:43 > 0:40:46I can't think of a better way to finish my day than
0:40:46 > 0:40:49a glass of sherry, catching up with an old friend.
0:40:59 > 0:41:03A new day and I'm taking the Algeciras to Bobadilla line,
0:41:03 > 0:41:06climbing high into the Andalusian mountains.
0:41:11 > 0:41:12My next stop will be Ronda.
0:41:12 > 0:41:15Bradshaw's tells me "it's a finely-situated,
0:41:15 > 0:41:20"interesting town, 2,460 feet above sea,
0:41:20 > 0:41:22"on a projection of the Sierra Nevada,
0:41:22 > 0:41:26"in the midst of a magnificent range of mountains.
0:41:37 > 0:41:41Ronda's impregnable position made it one of the last Moorish strongholds.
0:41:46 > 0:41:50Its fame as the spiritual home of bullfighting made it
0:41:50 > 0:41:52a magnet to the Edwardian tourist.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58Nowadays, there are few bullfights at the Plaza de Toros,
0:41:58 > 0:42:01but every year, a traditional festival is held
0:42:01 > 0:42:05in honour of Pedro Romero, one of Ronda's most famous matadors.
0:42:13 > 0:42:17Arriving here early, I, like the rest of Spain, need my traditional
0:42:17 > 0:42:20breakfast and it's definitely best eaten freshly cooked.
0:42:21 > 0:42:23- Buenas dias.- Buenas dias.
0:42:23 > 0:42:27HE ORDERS IN SPANISH
0:42:27 > 0:42:28Si, senor.
0:42:28 > 0:42:32I've asked for churros, which are a kind of floury,
0:42:32 > 0:42:37battery, sausage-like thing cooked in very hot oil
0:42:37 > 0:42:41and then you dip them in chocolate, you can have them with coffee, too.
0:42:41 > 0:42:46He plunges the batter into the boiling oil...
0:42:47 > 0:42:49..and then they come out all crisp and golden.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52Sometimes, they get covered in sugar as well.
0:42:54 > 0:42:58Gracias. There's my chocolate, as well.
0:42:58 > 0:43:02So... Just break off a little piece of this...
0:43:02 > 0:43:04dip it in the chocolate...
0:43:06 > 0:43:08Wow. That is amazing.
0:43:09 > 0:43:12I don't recommend that you do this every day,
0:43:12 > 0:43:16but on the other hand, you DEFINITELY have to do this once.
0:43:34 > 0:43:38Bradshaw's tells me that here in Ronda, the old
0:43:38 > 0:43:42Moorish town is separated from the modern quarter by the "tajo",
0:43:42 > 0:43:47an imposing gorge over the River Guadalevin,
0:43:47 > 0:43:49350 feet deep.
0:43:49 > 0:43:53This is known as the New Bridge, built in the 1790s, but the
0:43:53 > 0:43:56previous effort collapsed into the ravine
0:43:56 > 0:43:58with massive loss of life.
0:43:58 > 0:44:01You might think this is pretty unpromising territory
0:44:01 > 0:44:05for railway builders, but that would be to underestimate
0:44:05 > 0:44:09British engineers at the height of their powers.
0:44:14 > 0:44:17To discover more about how they tamed this rugged
0:44:17 > 0:44:21and inaccessible landscape, I'm travelling on the Ronda to
0:44:21 > 0:44:25Algeciras line, heading south towards my final stop, Gibraltar.
0:44:27 > 0:44:30I'm meeting railway enthusiast and guide Mani,
0:44:30 > 0:44:34who knows about the engineers' epic achievement.
0:44:39 > 0:44:42- Hello, Mani.- Hi, Michael.- Well met!
0:44:42 > 0:44:46I think this ride is quite a treat, isn't it? Beautiful scenery.
0:44:46 > 0:44:49- Yes, it really is. - Who built this railway line?
0:44:49 > 0:44:53It was built by the British, Greenwood and Company, out of London.
0:44:53 > 0:44:56- Did they have experience of difficult terrain?- Yes,
0:44:56 > 0:45:00they had been... The owner of the company was called Mr Henderson
0:45:00 > 0:45:02and together with Morrison, they'd already installed
0:45:02 > 0:45:06lots of the trains in South America, Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina.
0:45:06 > 0:45:10So this was 180km through very, very difficult terrain,
0:45:10 > 0:45:13but to them, it wasn't too much of a challenge.
0:45:13 > 0:45:14For the British, there was
0:45:14 > 0:45:18also another reason for wanting to build the railway.
0:45:18 > 0:45:20Beyond the end of the line is Gibraltar,
0:45:20 > 0:45:24which was totally cut off and only reachable by sea.
0:45:24 > 0:45:25Originally, they wanted to take the train
0:45:25 > 0:45:27all the way to the border with Gibraltar
0:45:27 > 0:45:31and the Spanish didn't allow that - that's why this train
0:45:31 > 0:45:34finishes in the Spanish city of Algeciras. Because they couldn't
0:45:34 > 0:45:38take the train there, Mr Henderson's company had to build a link by sea
0:45:38 > 0:45:43and there were two steamboats that crossed the Bay of Gibraltar.
0:45:43 > 0:45:45With the line in place, soldiers stationed at the British
0:45:45 > 0:45:49garrison on Gibraltar had a chance to escape and relax,
0:45:49 > 0:45:51drawn by the excitement of the bullfights
0:45:51 > 0:45:54and the hilltop pleasures of the Ronda.
0:45:54 > 0:45:57And what were the challenges of the terrain?
0:45:57 > 0:46:00They were vast, one because of the elevation - climb -
0:46:00 > 0:46:03sea level to Ronda is 750m.
0:46:03 > 0:46:06And the second because of the actual terrain.
0:46:06 > 0:46:08We're just about to go into the gorge,
0:46:08 > 0:46:11we're following the track of the river, the Guadiaro River.
0:46:11 > 0:46:17They literally had to bevel out the tunnels from rock, from pure rock.
0:46:17 > 0:46:20They had to build a series of switchbacks over the river -
0:46:20 > 0:46:2416 tunnels and about six bridges.
0:46:24 > 0:46:27- Tunnel number one. - Tunnel number one!
0:46:27 > 0:46:29So what was the impact of this railway when it opened
0:46:29 > 0:46:32at the end of the 19th century, on the communities here?
0:46:32 > 0:46:35Vast - they called it railway fever.
0:46:35 > 0:46:38The great thing about this railway and I suppose all railways
0:46:38 > 0:46:42that opened at that time is that they transcended class.
0:46:42 > 0:46:43They were important for everybody,
0:46:43 > 0:46:46because all these communities were very,
0:46:46 > 0:46:50very cut off and it gave them all a vital lifeline to the rest of Spain.
0:46:50 > 0:46:54- What is the future of the railway? - Right now, it's up in the air.
0:46:54 > 0:46:56Renfe, the national rail company,
0:46:56 > 0:47:00they are studying the closure of about eight lines in Andalusia.
0:47:00 > 0:47:03It makes me very sad that this is one of the lines that might be close.
0:47:03 > 0:47:06- And is there a fuss going on about that?- Yes.
0:47:06 > 0:47:09A lot of people are reliant on this railway, not just for pleasure
0:47:09 > 0:47:13but to get to work, to get to school, to go shopping.
0:47:13 > 0:47:14So there's a campaign under way
0:47:14 > 0:47:19- and some poor politician has to make the decision!- I think so.
0:47:19 > 0:47:22I can see what a valuable lifeline this route is.
0:47:22 > 0:47:26Britain's experience with the 1960s Beeching cuts was that once
0:47:26 > 0:47:29a line had closed, it rarely reopened.
0:47:37 > 0:47:41My last stop by railway is Algeciras,
0:47:41 > 0:47:44which was very different in 1913 from what it is today.
0:47:46 > 0:47:49The then-quiet beaches are now obscured by a vast
0:47:49 > 0:47:52network of cranes, ships and lorries.
0:47:52 > 0:47:55It's Spain's second-busiest container port.
0:48:01 > 0:48:03Having constructed the railway line,
0:48:03 > 0:48:07Mr Henderson built a hotel for his travellers in Ronda.
0:48:07 > 0:48:10Its sister hotel is here in Algeciras.
0:48:12 > 0:48:16This irresistible advertisement in Bradshaw's guide has
0:48:16 > 0:48:19brought me to the hotel Reina Cristina.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22"Modern hotel, furnished by maples.
0:48:22 > 0:48:27"Frequent saloon steamers daily to and from Gibraltar.
0:48:27 > 0:48:30"Best sanitary arrangements."
0:48:30 > 0:48:34It's also the very first hotel to be built on the Costa Del Sol
0:48:34 > 0:48:38and very early in its history, it welcomed Winston Churchill
0:48:38 > 0:48:42to the Algeciras Conference to resolve the Moroccan Crisis.
0:48:45 > 0:48:49In 1905, Germany was eager to expand its empire to rival
0:48:49 > 0:48:51those of Britain and France.
0:48:51 > 0:48:55Kaiser Wilhelm landed in Morocco and controversially backed
0:48:55 > 0:48:59the Sultan in his bid for independence from France.
0:48:59 > 0:49:03The French were furious and the Algeciras Conference was
0:49:03 > 0:49:07called to try to get France and Germany to negotiate.
0:49:07 > 0:49:09A diplomatic solution was found,
0:49:09 > 0:49:13but Britain, France and Russia allied themselves against Germany.
0:49:14 > 0:49:17- Hola, buenas tardes.- Hola!
0:49:17 > 0:49:20Michael Portillo, por favor.
0:49:22 > 0:49:25The hotel became a firm favourite with the garrison officers
0:49:25 > 0:49:28in Gibraltar, who wanted to get off the Rock to relax,
0:49:28 > 0:49:31which is exactly what I'm going to do.
0:49:41 > 0:49:45Algeciras is very definitely in Spain, but this morning I've
0:49:45 > 0:49:50chosen an English breakfast, because Gibraltar is very close by and it's
0:49:50 > 0:49:55my next destination, so today, it's eggs, bacon and baked beans.
0:49:58 > 0:50:02Gibraltar is 2.5 square miles of Jurassic limestone,
0:50:02 > 0:50:06rising in a bold headland fronting the Straits of Africa.
0:50:06 > 0:50:10On a clear day, you appreciate how narrow those straits are
0:50:10 > 0:50:14and why that little stretch of water was so important to the British.
0:50:14 > 0:50:15For three centuries,
0:50:15 > 0:50:19British artillery on the Rock has been able to deny access to
0:50:19 > 0:50:23shipping from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean and vice versa.
0:50:23 > 0:50:26Given its strategic importance, you can see why
0:50:26 > 0:50:30the British have clung to it like a limpet to a rock.
0:50:37 > 0:50:42In 1704, the British took Gibraltar by force and ever since,
0:50:42 > 0:50:45there have been Anglo-Spanish tensions.
0:50:45 > 0:50:47The best place to understand why the British were prepared to
0:50:47 > 0:50:50fight to keep possession of Gibraltar is up here.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57BIRDSONG
0:50:57 > 0:50:59Hello.
0:51:09 > 0:51:14It's like taking off in a plane, the views come rushing into sight.
0:51:14 > 0:51:20We're going up 412m, so we're going up about the height
0:51:20 > 0:51:24of the very top of the Empire State Building in New York.
0:51:24 > 0:51:28I think the panorama today is going to be spectacular.
0:51:38 > 0:51:41Spain is laid out before me today like a map.
0:51:41 > 0:51:43The coastline snaking away there towards Malaga,
0:51:43 > 0:51:46and on that side towards, eventually, Portugal.
0:51:47 > 0:51:50Ronda will be up there, and then of course the railway
0:51:50 > 0:51:55snakes its way down to...Algeciras, there.
0:51:56 > 0:52:01And my early 20th-century travellers would then have taken
0:52:01 > 0:52:03a saloon steamer across here
0:52:03 > 0:52:05to Gibraltar.
0:52:11 > 0:52:14But my crow's-nest view also reveals why the British
0:52:14 > 0:52:17so badly wanted Gibraltar.
0:52:17 > 0:52:19It was only 14 miles away from the coast of North Africa
0:52:19 > 0:52:23and the waters were a shortcut for shipping through to the
0:52:23 > 0:52:26Mediterranean and the rest of the British Empire.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29Without access to Gibraltar, ships would have had to go all
0:52:29 > 0:52:32the way round the African coast, taking more time
0:52:32 > 0:52:34and more risks.
0:52:34 > 0:52:38With tensions over Africa hotting up between the European powers,
0:52:38 > 0:52:42Gibraltar looked as though it might be the front line in war.
0:52:43 > 0:52:47I'm meeting Prof Clive Finlayson, director of Gibraltar's museum.
0:52:47 > 0:52:48Clive, in 1913,
0:52:48 > 0:52:52we're only, as it turned out, a year away from war and already
0:52:52 > 0:52:55the colonial powers were in dispute over bits of North Africa.
0:52:55 > 0:52:57The visitor from Britain, clutching his Bradshaw's guide,
0:52:57 > 0:53:00what might he have noticed in Gibraltar at that time?
0:53:00 > 0:53:03Well, intense activity related to the dockyards
0:53:03 > 0:53:07and the whole of the port was built over a period of 12 years.
0:53:07 > 0:53:09That really transformed the whole of Gibraltar.
0:53:09 > 0:53:11There was intense quarrying,
0:53:11 > 0:53:13the whole physical landscape of Gibraltar changed completely.
0:53:13 > 0:53:16It was of course related to the fact that the British knew
0:53:16 > 0:53:18the German submarines, U-boats, posed a threat
0:53:18 > 0:53:21and they wanted to construct a torpedo-proof harbour.
0:53:21 > 0:53:22So that's what they would have seen.
0:53:22 > 0:53:27Was this traditionally the Royal Navy area of Gibraltar?
0:53:27 > 0:53:31Right from the start, in 1704, the port had been in the North,
0:53:31 > 0:53:34but suddenly, the enemy was in the North, so they had to move
0:53:34 > 0:53:38the harbour, the naval facility, away from the land and the guns.
0:53:38 > 0:53:40So it was brought here.
0:53:40 > 0:53:43Tunnels begun in the 18th century were used to store naval
0:53:43 > 0:53:46ammunition during the First World War.
0:53:46 > 0:53:48During the Second World War,
0:53:48 > 0:53:51they were developed into a clandestine network and Clive's got
0:53:51 > 0:53:55a recently-declassified top-secret surprise for me.
0:53:56 > 0:53:59Well, we've come through a huge number of tunnels - what was
0:53:59 > 0:54:01the purpose of this, Clive?
0:54:01 > 0:54:05Well, this was one of the most secret projects of the Second World War.
0:54:05 > 0:54:10The British planned that should Franco reach an agreement
0:54:10 > 0:54:15and allow Hitler through Spain, Germany took Gibraltar.
0:54:15 > 0:54:19Six men were prepared to entomb themselves,
0:54:19 > 0:54:25literally inside the Rock and spy on the Germans from the inside.
0:54:25 > 0:54:27It's a total James Bond story.
0:54:28 > 0:54:32So we're coming through another tunnel, we're now pointing west.
0:54:32 > 0:54:36If you don't mind, to go up there and look through that little slit.
0:54:36 > 0:54:37Ho!
0:54:39 > 0:54:42This tiny slit, which can only be what, six inches long
0:54:42 > 0:54:46and half an inch wide, I can see all the bay down to Algeciras...
0:54:48 > 0:54:51And actually, I can see down to the wharfs of Gibraltar as well.
0:54:51 > 0:54:55An absolutely perfectly-planned lookout.
0:54:55 > 0:54:58From inside, you could see any movement of enemy ships
0:54:58 > 0:55:02and then push an aerial out at night when nobody is watching
0:55:02 > 0:55:04and transmit that information back to London.
0:55:04 > 0:55:07Hopefully, they'd be able to come and re-take Gibraltar.
0:55:09 > 0:55:13Having served as Defence Secretary, I can appreciate here that the
0:55:13 > 0:55:16Rock is the best sentry box in the Mediterranean.
0:55:18 > 0:55:20Although the Rock was bombed
0:55:20 > 0:55:24during the Second World War, Nazi Germany did not invade Gibraltar.
0:55:25 > 0:55:27But in the years after the war,
0:55:27 > 0:55:30struggles between Spain's military leader General Franco
0:55:30 > 0:55:35and the British have left their mark on its 30,000 inhabitants.
0:55:35 > 0:55:39To find out how it's affected this multinational population,
0:55:39 > 0:55:42I'm meeting local, Tito Vallejo.
0:55:42 > 0:55:45- Hello, Tito.- Hello, Mike. How are you?- Good to see you.
0:55:45 > 0:55:48I see you're here with your fish and chips
0:55:48 > 0:55:50and of course I see the post-boxes
0:55:50 > 0:55:54and telephone boxes - all of it very reminiscent of the UK.
0:55:54 > 0:55:56But you're a Gibraltarian - what does that mean, really?
0:55:56 > 0:56:00We are British, obviously, British subjects, but the English
0:56:00 > 0:56:03usually call us Spanish and the Spanish call of English.
0:56:03 > 0:56:04But we cannot say that,
0:56:04 > 0:56:07because we have our own roots - for example, I am half and half.
0:56:07 > 0:56:10Given there are so many nationalities in Gibraltar,
0:56:10 > 0:56:11why are they so pro-British?
0:56:11 > 0:56:13I wonder if it's partly
0:56:13 > 0:56:15because of the difficulties that there have been with Spain.
0:56:15 > 0:56:20That is one of the main problems. The constant strangulation of Gibraltar.
0:56:20 > 0:56:24It didn't intensify until the Queen came to Gibraltar in 1954.
0:56:24 > 0:56:26Franco got annoyed.
0:56:26 > 0:56:28He said, from now on, I'm going to strangle Gibraltar
0:56:28 > 0:56:32and I want it back. From then on, things started to heat up.
0:56:32 > 0:56:33Because of that rift,
0:56:33 > 0:56:38our young children are now losing the way of speaking Spanish.
0:56:38 > 0:56:40It's a very great pity about that.
0:56:40 > 0:56:43- How do you describe your nationality or ethnicity?- British.
0:56:43 > 0:56:46British to the core. But how about you? You're in the same boat!
0:56:46 > 0:56:49Well, I regard myself as British AND Spanish,
0:56:49 > 0:56:53but I think they're both so different and so marvellous
0:56:53 > 0:56:58and so distinct, I don't see them being put together in one country.
0:57:02 > 0:57:07I find it frustrating that Spain and Britain are in dispute.
0:57:07 > 0:57:10If the two countries could only work together, Gibraltarians
0:57:10 > 0:57:13and Spaniards could reap richer rewards.
0:57:17 > 0:57:21I've travelled down across Spain on fast and efficient trains,
0:57:21 > 0:57:24quite a change since my guide book was written.
0:57:24 > 0:57:27The early 20th-century traveller would have been struck at the end
0:57:27 > 0:57:30of the journey as I am that Africa
0:57:30 > 0:57:32is almost within touching distance.
0:57:32 > 0:57:36Invaders from there occupied Spain for centuries.
0:57:36 > 0:57:41Perhaps that helps to explain why, for all its modernity,
0:57:41 > 0:57:46in its food, its customs, its dances and its architecture,
0:57:46 > 0:57:51Spain remains today unlike anywhere else in Europe.
0:57:59 > 0:58:03Next time, I find out how the Edwardian traveller
0:58:03 > 0:58:05discovered a love of the high life.
0:58:05 > 0:58:09A traveller with my Bradshaw's guide in 1913 could have gone
0:58:09 > 0:58:13- up in a plane and seen this wonderful view.- Absolutely.
0:58:13 > 0:58:14And on the Grand Canal,
0:58:14 > 0:58:17I hear about the amorous conquests
0:58:17 > 0:58:21- of Venice's most famous son. - Casanova loved women.
0:58:21 > 0:58:22He only had 130 lovers.
0:58:22 > 0:58:25- That's extremely moderate. - Absolutely!
0:58:27 > 0:58:30Viva Italia!
0:58:55 > 0:58:56Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd