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 > 0:00:15I'll be using this, my Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide,
0:00:15 > 0:00:20dated 1913, which opened up an exotic world of foreign travel
0:00:20 > 0:00:22for the British tourist.
0:00:22 > 0:00:26'It told travellers where to go, what to see,
0:00:26 > 0:00:29'and how to navigate the thousands of miles of tracks
0:00:29 > 0:00:31'crisscrossing the continent.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33'Now, a century later, I'm using my copy
0:00:33 > 0:00:37'to reveal an era of great optimism and energy,
0:00:37 > 0:00:39'where technology, industry,
0:00:39 > 0:00:41'science and the arts were flourishing.
0:00:42 > 0:00:45'I want to rediscover that lost Europe,
0:00:45 > 0:00:49'that in 1913 couldn't know that its way of life'
0:00:49 > 0:00:52would shortly be swept aside by the advent of war.
0:01:08 > 0:01:13I'm continuing my journey which began in the port of La Coruna.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15My route took me inland
0:01:15 > 0:01:18to the cathedral city of Santiago de Compostela.
0:01:18 > 0:01:23Today I'll follow the Atlantic coast via Pontevedra into Portugal.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28From Porto, I'll take the famous Douro valley line east
0:01:28 > 0:01:29before heading south once more,
0:01:29 > 0:01:32to the ancient university city of Coimbra
0:01:32 > 0:01:35and on to my final stop in Lisbon.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38Today I'll learn about a favourite British tipple...
0:01:38 > 0:01:41It's a Martinez 1953, a very rare wine.
0:01:43 > 0:01:44It's glorious.
0:01:44 > 0:01:48..and in Lisbon, investigate the turbulent events
0:01:48 > 0:01:49that shocked Edwardians.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53There are a group of armed republicans. In five minutes,
0:01:53 > 0:01:57they almost wiped out the entire royal family.
0:01:57 > 0:02:00So this square was the scene of appalling horror.
0:02:04 > 0:02:10'My 1913 guidebook is leading me across the border into a new land.'
0:02:10 > 0:02:11Obrigado.
0:02:13 > 0:02:14Estoy... Ya es Portugal?
0:02:14 > 0:02:16Is this Portugal already?
0:02:16 > 0:02:18Si, yes, yes.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20Portugal is...
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Ah, I've got to change my watch.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26- One hora.- One hour less.- Yes.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29- OK.- Obrigado.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32Unlike Spain, Portugal is on the same time as Britain,
0:02:32 > 0:02:35and that's not the only connection.
0:02:35 > 0:02:40I'm now in Portugal, about which Bradshaw's is enthusiastic.
0:02:40 > 0:02:42"The most favourable time of the year for a visit to Portugal
0:02:42 > 0:02:45"is November until May.
0:02:45 > 0:02:47"A charming variety of natural beauty,
0:02:47 > 0:02:49"inland, mountain and valley,
0:02:49 > 0:02:52"along the rugged coast, bold headlands
0:02:52 > 0:02:54"and stretches of sand downs."
0:02:54 > 0:02:56And then this intriguing reference.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59"The British sovereign is legal currency in Portugal."
0:02:59 > 0:03:03Now that is testimony to a long relationship,
0:03:03 > 0:03:06stretching back over seven centuries,
0:03:06 > 0:03:09cemented by alliances, and marriages,
0:03:09 > 0:03:13so that for all the time that we were fighting off Spanish armadas
0:03:13 > 0:03:16and defeating the Spanish at the Battle of Trafalgar,
0:03:16 > 0:03:19Portugal was our friend.
0:03:24 > 0:03:29'I'm travelling towards Porto on the Minho line, opened in the 1880s.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31'Compared to Britain,
0:03:31 > 0:03:35'19th-century Portugal was slow to adopt the railway.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38'The first line was built with British help in the 1850s,
0:03:38 > 0:03:41'amidst hopes that trains would bring to Portugal
0:03:41 > 0:03:44'the kind of economic growth Britain had enjoyed.'
0:03:51 > 0:03:53'I've come to Sao Bento station,
0:03:53 > 0:03:56'a building whose ornate decorations are testament
0:03:56 > 0:04:00'to the excitement that surrounded the coming of the railways.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05'Carol Rankin's family has lived and worked in Portugal for generations.
0:04:05 > 0:04:10'Born and brought up here, she knows the station well.'
0:04:10 > 0:04:14The railway station is magnificent, when does it date from?
0:04:14 > 0:04:18Well, the foundation stone was laid by King Carlos I of Portugal
0:04:18 > 0:04:22in 1900, and then it obviously took a while to build, so, it opened...
0:04:22 > 0:04:26Actually, the whole thing completed, a few years after that.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30I think by the time the tiles were put in place, it was probably 1915.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34- All around the time of my Bradshaw's guide.- Indeed.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38The station walls are covered in spectacular painted tiles,
0:04:38 > 0:04:42a local tradition that evolved out of Moorish mosaics,
0:04:42 > 0:04:45introduced to Spain and Portugal in the Middle Ages.
0:04:45 > 0:04:47By the time of my guidebook,
0:04:47 > 0:04:51they were being used to celebrate the advent of the age of steam.
0:04:52 > 0:04:54But the tiles also tell the story
0:04:54 > 0:04:58of the birth of Portugal's special relationship with Britain.
0:04:59 > 0:05:04This shows us Juan I of Portugal and Philippa of Lancaster
0:05:04 > 0:05:09coming in through the streets of Oporto, strewn with rose petals
0:05:09 > 0:05:13as you can see, to celebrate their marriage in the city's cathedral.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16- Who was she?- She was the daughter of John of Gaunt,
0:05:16 > 0:05:19and he was uncle to Richard II
0:05:19 > 0:05:22who was on the throne of England at the time.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25So, this was quite an important marriage alliance
0:05:25 > 0:05:27between England and Portugal?
0:05:27 > 0:05:30It is indeed, because it cemented the treaty of Windsor
0:05:30 > 0:05:32which was signed in 1386.
0:05:32 > 0:05:37The terms of alliance and perpetual friendship that the treaty contained
0:05:37 > 0:05:42have never been broken, and it's the world's oldest diplomatic alliance
0:05:42 > 0:05:43still in force.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53Edwardian tourists arriving here could marvel at the legacy
0:05:53 > 0:05:56of Porto's 19th-century industrialisation,
0:05:56 > 0:06:01which included the magnificent Dom Luis Bridge, 395m long,
0:06:01 > 0:06:04opened in 1886.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08Today, it's one of six bridges that link picturesque Porto
0:06:08 > 0:06:10with Vila Nova de Gaia south of the river.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15"Porto," my guidebook tells me, "on the River Douro,
0:06:15 > 0:06:18"is very pleasantly placed in a hemmed-in situation
0:06:18 > 0:06:21"on slopes descending to the river.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24"And the river broadens out to a spacious harbour."
0:06:24 > 0:06:26And then, as these barrel-laden boats suggest
0:06:26 > 0:06:28and Bradshaw's confirms,
0:06:28 > 0:06:31the principal trade is connected with port wine,
0:06:31 > 0:06:34so my next move is evident.
0:06:34 > 0:06:35I must steer to port.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40Any smart Edwardian dinner party
0:06:40 > 0:06:43would culminate with a glass of this fortified wine.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47I'm meeting producer Jose Alvaro Ribiero
0:06:47 > 0:06:51at a 200-year-old wine lodge to discover its history.
0:06:54 > 0:06:57Well, that is on a grand scale.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01How much wine do you have here?
0:07:01 > 0:07:04Well, we have around 22 million litres of port.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10Wine produced in the Douro valley has been exported to Britain
0:07:10 > 0:07:14since the 17th century, and, in fact, port as we know it
0:07:14 > 0:07:18owes its origins to the requirements of the British market.
0:07:20 > 0:07:24At the beginning, the wine that was exported was normal still wine,
0:07:24 > 0:07:28not port, but as there were years where the quality of the wine
0:07:28 > 0:07:30was not as good as other years,
0:07:30 > 0:07:34they started adding brandy to it to stabilise the wine so that it
0:07:34 > 0:07:40would reach the UK in great shape, so it really started as an accident.
0:07:40 > 0:07:46- So, it's an accident with a British accent?- Definitely.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48As well as being enthusiastic consumers of port,
0:07:48 > 0:07:53Britons have for centuries been involved in the trade.
0:07:53 > 0:07:58Porto's Factory House is the historic centre of their operations.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02Today, as in Edwardian times, there's a strict dress code.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06What a gorgeous ballroom.
0:08:06 > 0:08:07What is this institution,
0:08:07 > 0:08:10this Factory House, that you have such wonderful premises?
0:08:10 > 0:08:13Well, this Factory House here in Porto is a place
0:08:13 > 0:08:16where all the British that had businesses here
0:08:16 > 0:08:19in the north of Portugal would do business with locals.
0:08:19 > 0:08:22So it was like a place they felt protected.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25They also used it for social gatherings.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32"Factor" is an old term for businessman,
0:08:32 > 0:08:35and the Porto Factory House was paid for by British port shippers.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46Michael, I have some special vintage port for us to taste now.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49Looks wonderful, what age is this?
0:08:49 > 0:08:51Well, it's a very special age.
0:08:51 > 0:08:55- It's your birth year.- 1953.
0:08:55 > 0:08:581953. It's a Martinez 1953. A very rare wine.
0:08:58 > 0:09:01We only have six in our cellar.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03My goodness, what a privilege.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05This has to be done quite carefully
0:09:05 > 0:09:08because the cork, clearly, is an old one.
0:09:08 > 0:09:12Oh, yes. Anything from 1953 is very decrepit, I assure you.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16- There we are.- Well done.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Thanks to the added brandy,
0:09:18 > 0:09:21port can be aged for much longer than most wines.
0:09:21 > 0:09:27One of the oldest vintages to be sold was over 150 years old.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29The colour is just wonderful.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32I get some scents of tobacco.
0:09:32 > 0:09:33- Definitely.- And also nuts.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36It's quite amazing, because it's still got quite a lot of fruit
0:09:36 > 0:09:41for a wine of this age, it's amazing. And look at the colour, fantastic.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43I think, let's take a sip.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50- It's glorious.- Velvety.
0:09:51 > 0:09:531953 was a great year.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03With the taste of port still on my lips,
0:10:03 > 0:10:05I'm continuing my journey into its history,
0:10:05 > 0:10:09eastwards down the Douro valley on the Linha do Douro.
0:10:14 > 0:10:18It's been described as Portugal's best train ride.
0:10:18 > 0:10:20And I'm getting a front row seat.
0:10:28 > 0:10:29Bom dia.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Oh, yes, this is a fantastic view.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39As the railway line snakes along the banks of the river,
0:10:39 > 0:10:42it's really a very, very impressive valley.
0:10:42 > 0:10:47The steep sides, of course, covered in vines producing the port,
0:10:47 > 0:10:50and the other great wines of the Douro.
0:11:05 > 0:11:10The arrival of the railway transformed the port trade.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13Paul Symington's ancestors witnessed its impact.
0:11:15 > 0:11:17So, your family has been in the wine business quite a long time?
0:11:17 > 0:11:21Yeah, my great-grandfather came here in 1882 as a very young lad.
0:11:21 > 0:11:24He was only 18. He came from Scotland
0:11:24 > 0:11:26and he had the very good fortune to marry a woman
0:11:26 > 0:11:29who was half Portuguese, half English,
0:11:29 > 0:11:34and her family had been in port since the 1700s, so we go back a long way.
0:11:34 > 0:11:38It strikes me that this is one of the great railway rides in Europe.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40When was this railway built?
0:11:40 > 0:11:421875, they started from Oporto
0:11:42 > 0:11:47and got up to the frontier in the early 1880s
0:11:47 > 0:11:49and that transformed the region.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53Before that, presumably, the wines had been moving along the river.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55Yes, right here, down this river.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57But the river wasn't dammed then, so there were rapids
0:11:57 > 0:12:01in many, many places, so there were huge disasters from time to time
0:12:01 > 0:12:05because if these big boats with 40 barrels on board
0:12:05 > 0:12:09got sideways in the tricky bit, that was, you know, chips. Game over.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14For port-producing families,
0:12:14 > 0:12:17the new line cut the travel time from Porto
0:12:17 > 0:12:20over the treacherous mountains from three or four days
0:12:20 > 0:12:21to around four hours.
0:12:35 > 0:12:40I could stay watching the stunning Douro countryside unroll,
0:12:40 > 0:12:43but I'm leaving the train to explore the Symington estate.
0:12:47 > 0:12:49And here we are at Vesuvio, a quinta,
0:12:49 > 0:12:52which is the Portuguese for a wine estate.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55That is absolutely beautiful.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06In vineyards like this, the story of port begins,
0:13:06 > 0:13:09and it's an awe-inspiring sight.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12Protected by mountains, the region has its own microclimate,
0:13:12 > 0:13:15warmer and drier than the surrounding area
0:13:15 > 0:13:19which contributes to the fruity richness of the wine.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21This is a really important time of year for us
0:13:21 > 0:13:24because the flowering will take place sometime in the next week
0:13:24 > 0:13:30to ten days and the fruit doesn't set if the flowering is done
0:13:30 > 0:13:34under damp conditions, and we can lose 20, 30% of the crop,
0:13:34 > 0:13:38so what we really want is nice, warm, dry weather
0:13:38 > 0:13:41to bring the flowering on. We've already got the little buds here,
0:13:41 > 0:13:44and that will be a lovely bunch of grapes one day.
0:13:47 > 0:13:52As evening draws in, I'll be keeping my fingers firmly crossed.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05After a peaceful night in the Douro Valley,
0:14:05 > 0:14:07I'm now swapping the countryside
0:14:07 > 0:14:10for one of Portugal's most ancient cities.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21My next stop will be Coimbra,
0:14:21 > 0:14:25which Bradshaw's tells me stands on a hill by the River Mondego.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28"The situation and climate have always been extolled.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30"The university library contains
0:14:30 > 0:14:34"100,000 volumes and many manuscripts."
0:14:34 > 0:14:38Which makes a good case for a hide-bound old book lover like me
0:14:38 > 0:14:39to visit.
0:14:46 > 0:14:50The beautiful city of Coimbra was once Portugal's capital
0:14:50 > 0:14:54and its ancient buildings reveal its long and illustrious history.
0:14:56 > 0:15:00The university, founded in 1290 in Lisbon,
0:15:00 > 0:15:02moved here in the 16th century,
0:15:02 > 0:15:04and, by the time of the railways,
0:15:04 > 0:15:07witnessed an Anglo-Portuguese exchange of ideas
0:15:07 > 0:15:10every bit as vigorous as the trade in wine.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19Carlos Fiolhais is showing me round the world-famous library.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23Carlos, this is the most fantastic building
0:15:23 > 0:15:27- but it reminds me more of a church than a library.- Yes.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30But it's not a church, we may call it a temple,
0:15:30 > 0:15:31but it's a temple of books.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34It was built at the beginning of the 18th century,
0:15:34 > 0:15:37at the time of the Enlightenment.
0:15:37 > 0:15:41The library's grandeur reflects the wealth then pouring into Portugal
0:15:41 > 0:15:46from its colony Brazil, rich in gold and diamonds.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55Coimbra is still one of Portugal's most prestigious universities,
0:15:55 > 0:16:00and when its students aren't studying hard, they're making music.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03The university is famous for its version of Fado,
0:16:03 > 0:16:06a Portuguese form of music full of mournful longing.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12THEY SING IN PORTUGUESE
0:17:18 > 0:17:20That was so beautiful.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24So beautifully sung and so beautifully played. So sad.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26You've stolen my heart and left it in Coimbra. Thank you, Maestro.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28Thank you very much.
0:17:36 > 0:17:42My 1913 guide is now steering me towards my last Portuguese stop
0:17:42 > 0:17:46as I race towards Lisbon on one of Portugal's modern high-speed trains.
0:17:49 > 0:17:51By the turn of the 20th century,
0:17:51 > 0:17:55Portugal had invested heavily in its railways.
0:17:55 > 0:18:00But sadly, this had failed to bring the hoped-for prosperity.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04Instead, overspending on public works including railways
0:18:04 > 0:18:07had brought the state close to financial ruin.
0:18:07 > 0:18:11There were tumultuous times ahead in Portuguese politics.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14I'm alighting in the capital to trace the story.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19This is Rossio station.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22Bradshaw's tells me that it's at the heart of Lisbon
0:18:22 > 0:18:27and that express trains used to arrive here from Spain and France.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30A century ago, the gateway to Portugal was changing
0:18:30 > 0:18:33from the seaport to this beautiful terminus.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46British tourists were following in the footsteps
0:18:46 > 0:18:51of King Edward VII, who had come to Lisbon on a state visit in 1903.
0:18:51 > 0:18:55Warmly received by his relation King Carlos,
0:18:55 > 0:18:58after the trip, this park was renamed in Edward's honour.
0:19:00 > 0:19:03It was a measure of the longevity of the special relationship
0:19:03 > 0:19:06between Britain and Portugal.
0:19:06 > 0:19:10But by the 1900s, the balance of power had shifted.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12Britain now ruled the waves,
0:19:12 > 0:19:14and the Portuguese Empire was much diminished.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20For a bird's eye view of the city
0:19:20 > 0:19:23whose ships had colonised Brazil, India and beyond,
0:19:23 > 0:19:27Edwardian tourists could travel in this remarkable lift,
0:19:27 > 0:19:28opened in 1902.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36"Lisbon," says Bradshaw's, "is pre-eminent
0:19:36 > 0:19:38"for the natural beauty of its situation,
0:19:38 > 0:19:43"lying in and upon an amphitheatre of hills.
0:19:43 > 0:19:44"Regarded from the sea,
0:19:44 > 0:19:48"the city seems to rise in picturesque terraces.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51"Lisbon is poised on the edge of the ocean,
0:19:51 > 0:19:53"peering towards the Americas."
0:20:00 > 0:20:04During Portugal's 15th and 16th-century golden age,
0:20:04 > 0:20:09the launch pad for its seafaring explorers was the harbour at Belem,
0:20:09 > 0:20:13protected by this extraordinary fortress, completed in 1521.
0:20:18 > 0:20:22I'm seeking out another attraction of the Belem quarter,
0:20:22 > 0:20:25on a form of transport familiar to the Edwardian traveller.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33Bradshaw's tells me that inclined railways
0:20:33 > 0:20:36connect the upper and lower parts of the city.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39In this, as in so many other things,
0:20:39 > 0:20:41my ancient guidebook remains reliable.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56Belem is the birthplace of Pasteis de nata,
0:20:56 > 0:21:00the custard tarts which have become Portugal's national sweetmeat.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04- Dulce.- Hello, Michael. How are you?
0:21:04 > 0:21:07'I'm hearing their story from pastry chef Dulce Roque,
0:21:07 > 0:21:11'who's worked at this pasteleria for 37 years.'
0:21:12 > 0:21:15Apparently, the cakes were invented by local monks and nuns.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20What are the main ingredients?
0:21:20 > 0:21:23The main ingredients, I don't know, because it is a secret.
0:21:23 > 0:21:28A secret recipe, but I can tell you about milk and flour
0:21:28 > 0:21:33and sugar and butter and eggs, that are very important because
0:21:33 > 0:21:37the nuns, of the monasteries, used to use the egg whites
0:21:37 > 0:21:39as starch for their robes.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42The egg yolks they use for making sweets.
0:21:43 > 0:21:47In the 1830s, Portugal abolished its monasteries,
0:21:47 > 0:21:51and monks from the nearby Jeronimo monastery, seeking a living,
0:21:51 > 0:21:53began to sell tarts in this shop.
0:21:54 > 0:21:57Soon after, the shop started manufacturing them
0:21:57 > 0:21:59to the monks' original recipe.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02This is the puff pastry.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06She is cutting the puff pastry into little pieces.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08Now, you are going to cut a little piece, aren't you?
0:22:08 > 0:22:11Yes, please. I'd love to have a go at that.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14Yes, and you stretch and you pull, and stretch...
0:22:15 > 0:22:16SHE SPEAKS PORTUGUESE
0:22:16 > 0:22:20- Round it. Make it round. Yeah. - Make it round.
0:22:21 > 0:22:26The buttery puff pastry case is what makes a pastel de nata
0:22:26 > 0:22:28different from an English custard tart.
0:22:32 > 0:22:33I'm cutting them a bit too big.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36She says it ought to be like the top of my thumb
0:22:36 > 0:22:39but I'm quite worried about leaving the top of my thumb in the mix.
0:22:39 > 0:22:41- Nice, nice, nice.- Thank you.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47The pastry case has to be thin enough that it cooks through
0:22:47 > 0:22:50before the delicate custard curdles.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54- What do you think?- Good. Very good. - Is that one all right?
0:22:54 > 0:22:57- Yes.- You're just going to perfect it, I know.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05The recipe for the custard itself is so closely guarded
0:23:05 > 0:23:09that even the pastry cooks aren't allowed to see it being made.
0:23:09 > 0:23:11Once it's piped into the cases,
0:23:11 > 0:23:13the tarts go into a fiercely hot oven
0:23:13 > 0:23:16before being carried straight to the shop,
0:23:16 > 0:23:19where as many as 18,000 go on sale every day.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29Will you have one?
0:23:29 > 0:23:32I will, but we have to sprinkle first with cinnamon.
0:23:34 > 0:23:39And, as the cinnamon is a sour spice,
0:23:39 > 0:23:43then we sprinkle, to cut the sourness, with icing sugar.
0:23:48 > 0:23:50Mmm, magnificent custard.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53Lovely pastry, and the taste of cinnamon on the top,
0:23:53 > 0:23:54that's wonderful.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57Perhaps this one, you made. Who knows?
0:24:00 > 0:24:02That's so good.
0:24:08 > 0:24:11Having sampled Lisbon's cafe culture,
0:24:11 > 0:24:12Edwardian tourists were refuelled
0:24:12 > 0:24:15and ready to press on with their sightseeing.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20A must-see was the Praca do Comercio,
0:24:20 > 0:24:23described in Bradshaw's as the centre of Lisbon life.
0:24:25 > 0:24:29But while they admired the handsome architecture, readers were reminded
0:24:29 > 0:24:31that just five years before their guide was published,
0:24:31 > 0:24:34on the 1st of February, 1908,
0:24:34 > 0:24:38events unfolded here that devastated the Portuguese monarchy.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42I'm hearing the story from Rui Ramos of the University of Lisbon.
0:24:44 > 0:24:46So, the royal family is returning to Lisbon
0:24:46 > 0:24:49after a fortnight in the country.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52They arrived at a station on the other side of the river
0:24:52 > 0:24:55and then they take a boat into Lisbon.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57They disembark near this square,
0:24:57 > 0:24:59where they get into an open carriage.
0:24:59 > 0:25:03They progress into the square with no guards.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07And in the square, there are a group of armed republicans
0:25:07 > 0:25:09that were looking for the Prime Minister.
0:25:09 > 0:25:11They didn't find the Prime Minister,
0:25:11 > 0:25:14but they suddenly see the royal family in front of them
0:25:14 > 0:25:17and they take advantage of it.
0:25:17 > 0:25:18They kill the king.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21They wounded the crown prince that later dies.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24The youngest son, future King Manuel II,
0:25:24 > 0:25:27escapes with a wound to the arm,
0:25:27 > 0:25:32so in five minutes they almost wiped out the entire royal family.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35So, this square was the scene of appalling horror.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41King Carlos's death was the culmination
0:25:41 > 0:25:43of a century of political upheaval.
0:25:43 > 0:25:45Since the early 1800s,
0:25:45 > 0:25:48liberals had sought to limit the monarchy's powers,
0:25:48 > 0:25:50while by the early 20th century,
0:25:50 > 0:25:53shaky finances and the decline of Portugal's Empire
0:25:53 > 0:25:56had brought public discontent to fever pitch.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00The killings sparked outrage in Britain,
0:26:00 > 0:26:03especially from King Carlos's relative, King Edward VII.
0:26:04 > 0:26:08Meanwhile, 18-year-old Manuel ascended the throne,
0:26:08 > 0:26:11but his lack of experience soon brought the monarchy
0:26:11 > 0:26:13to crisis point.
0:26:13 > 0:26:18From 1908 to 1910, there is this succession of very weak governments.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22Parties splitting, ministers falling one after the other,
0:26:22 > 0:26:26until the king has this bright idea of appealing to the left.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30Now, with that appeal to the left, he didn't convince the left,
0:26:30 > 0:26:33but he managed to have the conservatives
0:26:33 > 0:26:35against the monarchy too.
0:26:35 > 0:26:39So, when the republicans make their move against the monarchy,
0:26:39 > 0:26:42there was no-one to defend the monarchy,
0:26:42 > 0:26:45and on the 5th of October, 1910, on that morning,
0:26:45 > 0:26:47the Portuguese republic is proclaimed
0:26:47 > 0:26:51from this balcony to a half full square.
0:26:52 > 0:26:53Viva a republica.
0:26:58 > 0:27:04In a further twist, Manuel fled the country, seeking asylum in Britain.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07He lived the rest of his days in Richmond and Twickenham,
0:27:07 > 0:27:10where he adopted the lifestyle of an English aristocrat.
0:27:11 > 0:27:15It was the final chapter in the relationship
0:27:15 > 0:27:17of the Portuguese and British royalty,
0:27:17 > 0:27:21united since the days of Richard II.
0:27:22 > 0:27:26A century ago, the traveller knew that, long before the railways,
0:27:26 > 0:27:28the Atlantic Ocean bound together
0:27:28 > 0:27:33the bagpipe playing Celts of the British Isles and Galicia.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36The Atlantic was no limit for Portugal.
0:27:36 > 0:27:41England's oldest ally discovered and colonised land on three continents,
0:27:41 > 0:27:45and built this Belem Tower to defend its harbour.
0:27:45 > 0:27:49The British, Spanish and Portuguese empires are no more,
0:27:49 > 0:27:54and the kings and queens who made alliances have passed into history.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58But on this journey, I've sensed a welcome rooted in long friendship.
0:28:02 > 0:28:05Next time, I'll rediscover early 20th-century France
0:28:05 > 0:28:07at the height of its technical prowess...
0:28:09 > 0:28:12Wow, off we go.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16..where railway explorers could sample the finest French cuisine...
0:28:16 > 0:28:18It's rolling itself!
0:28:18 > 0:28:21..en route to the nation's imperial hub.
0:28:21 > 0:28:24The Port of Marseille is as big like Paris.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27- As big as Paris?! - Yes.- That is extraordinary.