La Coruna to Lisbon Great Continental Railway Journeys

I'm embarking on a new railway adventure

that will take me across the heart of Europe.

I'll 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

'crisscrossing the continent.

'Now, a century later, I'm using my copy

'to reveal an era of great optimism and energy,

'where 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.

Following my 1913 Bradshaw's, today I'm exploring

north-western Spain and Portugal.

Relatively little-known to visitors from Britain today,

in the early 20th-century, British tourism briefly flowered here.

Westward-facing and very different from the Spain I know best,

this part of the Iberian peninsula

is bursting with British connections,

which my guidebook will help me to enjoy.

I'm back in my beloved Spain, land of my father.

But, as Bradshaw says,

"Owing to the configuration of the country,

"there are as many variations in climate

"as there are contrasts in the character of the population."

This is Galicia, cradle of the Celts, with its own language,

and this green and rainy landscape

would be more home to a Briton than to many a Spaniard.

Travelling south into Portugal, as I will do,

the early 20th-century traveller

entered the warm embrace of England's oldest ally.

'From the Celtic ties that bind Galicia to the British Isles...'

-Muy bien. Gracias.

-Gracias. Gracias.

'..to the Atlantic fishing industry

'that courted early 20th-century tourists...'

Isn't that a beautiful beast? Isn't that fantastic?

'..and the trade in a favourite British tipple...'

It's a Martinez 1953, a very rare wine.

It's glorious.

'..I'll explore this Edwardian home from home

'on the region's remarkable railways...'

Oh, yes. This is a fantastic view.

'..uncovering the close political links

'between Portugal and the United Kingdom.'

It's the world's oldest diplomatic alliance still in force.

'And the turbulent 20th-century events

'that shocked Edwardian Britain.'

They're a group of armed republicans.

In five minutes, they almost wiped out the entire royal family.

So, this square was the scene of appalling horror.

Beginning in the seaside city of La Coruna,

my route will take me inland

to the cathedral city of Santiago de Compostela,

then follow the Atlantic coast as I travel via Pontevedra into Portugal.

From Porto, I'll take the famous, scenic Douro valley line east

before heading south once more,

to the ancient university city of Coimbra

and on to my final stop in Lisbon.

My guidebook says of my first destination,

"La Coruna is a prosperous trading town

"and principal military station in North Spain."

Today, the city known to Galicians as 'A Coruna'

is still the region's economic powerhouse,

with a thriving industry and a busy harbour.

In 1900, barely a single British tourist had ventured here,

but by the time of my guidebook,

Galicia was a fashionable destination

welcoming hundreds of Britons every year.

And it's easy to see why this elegant city had such appeal.

I love these glassed-in balconies which are so typical of La Coruna.

They're practical. In winter, you shut the glass

and you keep out the Atlantic gale,

and then, in the summer, you open them up and the sun streams in.

I'm taking a tour with historian Kirsty Hooper

who has researched Galicia's early 20th-century tourism boom.

At the beginning of the 20th century,

what would have brought British travellers to La Coruna?

Well, first of all it was the first stop on the big transatlantic routes

from Southampton to South America,

so lots of British tourists would have taken the opportunity

to hop off after two days to see the city

and to see something more of Galicia themselves.

Galicia held lots of attractions for the British

at the beginning of the 20th-century.

There was a large British business community

and also British industry was quite well established here.

We're talking about railways, the mines,

also the sea port and the shipyards.

These expatriate industrialists

clubbed together with steam liner companies and local businessmen

to woo visitors.

But La Coruna boasted an attraction that needed no marketing.

My Bradshaw's directs Edwardian tourists

to the Jardin de San Carlos, to the east of the harbour,

the burial place of Sir John Moore,

whose death in 1809 had made him a war hero.

At the time of my Bradshaw's guide,

would Sir John Moore still have been well remembered?

Absolutely, because your Bradshaw was published

very shortly after the centenary of his death

which had brought him back into the British imagination,

and the tomb formed a very popular stop

on the battlefield tourism circuit

which had begun in 1815, straight after the Battle of Waterloo.

The Duke of Wellington's victory at Waterloo

marked the end of the Napoleonic Wars which had raged

as French forces occupied vast swathes of Europe.

Sir John Moore's final battle

had been part of a British attempt to oust them from Spain.

He was leading the British Army in a strategic retreat

from Salamanca further south, and when they arrived, they established

a strategic position up on a hill and they managed to hold off

the French until most of the army was able to embark

upon the waiting warships to leave.

Unfortunately, Sir John Moore didn't go with them

because at the front of his army, he was hit in the shoulder and died.

It's a sort of early version of Dunkirk, this, isn't it?

I mean, a retreat which is somehow converted into a victory.

Absolutely, that's a great comparison.

People at home, initially, were very unhappy.

They felt that Sir John Moore had let everybody down,

but when it became clear that this defensive manoeuvre

had in fact contributed to Wellington's victory overall,

he was converted into a hero,

and is remembered both here in Galicia and in Britain.

Sir John Moore had said that he wished to be buried where he fell,

and so a hasty grave was dug

before the rest of the troops made their escape to fight another day.

Today, his tomb,

and a nearby pavilion decorated with poetry written in his honour

still attract British tourists.

Hello. Hello. Have you come to see Sir John Moore?

ALL: Yes.

And what has brought you to see Sir John Moore?

Saga!

-Is Sir John Moore a little bit of a hero for you?

-I think so.

To tell you the truth, I hadn't heard about him before I came on this trip.

And he seems an extraordinary person. The things he achieved in his life.

How do you feel about the fact that

the British were retreating when he died?

Probably quite sensible!

THEY LAUGH

Who else wants to talk about Sir John Moore?

Sorry, do you want... No?

You're all running away now.

It seems the British still have a talent for the tactical retreat.

Edwardian travellers arriving in Galicia

were fascinated by local people's traditional costumes and customs.

Like the Irish, the Cornish and the Welsh, the people of Galicia

trace their roots back to pre-Roman Celtic tribes.

THEY GREET EACH OTHER IN SPANISH

And a vital symbol of their Celtic identity is the Gaita, or bagpipes.

Alvaro Seivane's family have been making them for 75 years.

How popular is the bagpipe now in Galicia compared with a century ago?

HE ANSWERS IN SPANISH

Even though a century ago it was popular, there's no comparison.

Now, there are thousands and thousands of people

playing the bagpipes.

Alvaro's family has played a leading role

in this extraordinary revival.

His daughter is a famous piper who plays at music festivals

all over the world.

BAGPIPES PLAY

And the family tradition looks set to continue.

Muy bien, muy bien, muy bien.

Who is this?

HE ANSWERS IN SPANISH

This is your grandson, Brice.

This is the youngest bagpipe player in the family?

HE ANSWERS IN SPANISH

He's just turned six but he's already spent two years

playing the bagpipe.

HE THANKS HIM IN SPANISH

Making bagpipes takes patience.

The wood for the pipes is seasoned for ten years

before it's ready to be worked,

and it takes another five years to complete the instrument.

BAGPIPES DRONE TUNELESSLY

Despite Brice's performance,

extracting music from the gaita isn't child's play.

It's a modern composition!

HE SPEAKS SPANISH

I have a big future as a bagpipe player, he says.

I don't think so but gracias.

In the middle years of the 20th century,

during General Franco's dictatorship,

Galicians were prevented from expressing their distinct identity.

But since the 1980s,

there's been a resurgence of interest in the local culture,

flamboyantly expressed in La Coruna through the traditional dances

that take place in the city square.

PIPES AND DRUMS PLAY

Edwardian tourists would have loved this spectacle.

Back home there was a Celtic revival in full swing

with renewed interest in folk dance and music.

To Galicians, keeping traditions like this alive helps set them apart

from their Latin Spanish neighbours.

-Muy bien. Gracias.

-Gracias, gracias.

Is this very important for you, as a Galician person, this dancing?

Yes, for sure it is.

Now, you're Celtic. Do you feel any connection with maybe Scotland,

with Ireland, with Cornwall, any of those places?

I definitely do. I do feel that we have similar characteristics

in traditional dancing and music and so on.

So, you feel Celtic, you feel Galician,

do you feel Spanish as well?

Yeah, I also do.

-And European?

-Yes, why not?

But first more Galician than Spanish and European.

First, I want to be Galician, then the rest.

Already, Galicia has been full of surprises.

But before I leave La Coruna, I'm keen to uncover one more.

-Ruben?

-Hola, Michael.

Ruben Ventureira is showing me round a small museum,

hidden away in this unassuming house.

Because this apartment is where Pablo Picasso came of age.

By the time of my guidebook,

Picasso was well on the way to becoming a 20th-century master,

though his more avant-garde works

were too radical for most Edwardian tastes.

But 20 years earlier, having moved to La Coruna with his family,

the adolescent Pablo was still learning formal painting

from his father, a tutor at the local Academy of Fine Art.

So, this is by Pablo Picasso's father,

it's the painting that has the most doves or pigeons in it.

It was his favourite subject.

It also then became the favourite subject of Pablo Picasso.

The anecdote that is told is that the feet of the birds

were actually done by Pablo Picasso, by the boy, by the son.

How would you describe the relationship

between Picasso and his father?

HE ANSWERS IN SPANISH

Here in La Coruna, the father and the son establish

a teacher-pupil relationship, in which,

curiously, the pupil ends up surpassing the teacher.

It was in La Coruna that Picasso held his first exhibition in 1895,

at the tender age of 13.

In the same year,

the family was touched by tragedy, when Pablo's seven-year-old sister

Conchita died of diphtheria in this very room.

THEY TALK IN SPANISH

Picasso, when his sister was so ill, swore an oath to God

that if God saved the girl he would never paint again.

God did not save the girl

and the world was given, instead of Conchita, the great artist Picasso.

Later that year, Pablo Picasso's family moved to Barcelona,

and it's time for me to wave goodbye to La Coruna too,

and to continue my journey following my 1913 Bradshaw's guide.

As evening sets in, I've bought myself a little snack.

I'm on my way to Santiago de Compostela which is perhaps

the most famous of all the destinations for pilgrims

and. over the centuries, they used to sustain themselves

with this sort of Spanish pasty.

It's called an empanada and this one is filled with scallops.

The fresh taste of the sea on a train.

A new day, and I'm approaching my next destination not by rail,

but on foot, following the Camino de Santiago,

or the pathway of St James.

Pilgrims must come prepared to walk in all weathers,

for green and pleasant Galicia shares much by way of climate,

as well as culture, with the British Isles.

Some years ago, I walked for seven days

the last stretch of the pilgrims' trail into Santiago de Compostela

with my rucksack and my walking stick.

It was an unforgettable experience.

All the time, you are meeting other pilgrims

and there is a sort of etiquette that you catch up with them

for a short while and you have a chat.

You only ever give your first name,

you don't normally give much background

about your reasons for walking the way.

And all the time that I was walking,

I could see a line of pilgrims behind me

and a line of pilgrims ahead

and quite a thought that the line ahead really stretched out

for centuries since people first began to visit

the tomb of St James.

When I walked my little pilgrimage, I covered 130km,

just more than the shortest distance that you can do

to qualify officially as a pilgrim.

But walkers set out for Santiago from destinations across Europe.

Good day. Congratulations, you're very close to Santiago.

How far have you come?

Me, I come from St Jean Pied De Port, that's about 780km.

-That's a long, long walk. You've become friends on the Camino?

-Yes.

What made you think of doing the Camino?

For me, it's the fourth Camino.

It's like a drug, being on the Camino.

It's the first time for me, yes.

I have thought about doing the Camino for the last ten years,

but I was always afraid of doing it alone because I thought

I would be alone which turned out to be quite wrong, actually.

So, now you've only got a few kilometres to go.

You must be feeling what? Elated, excited, how do you feel?

Elated, but also I think I'm a bit sad that it's coming to an end.

I've done this for 30 straight days.

Thank you so much for stopping and Godspeed, pilgrims.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

The popularity of the Camino peaked in the Middle Ages,

but the Reformation stopped pilgrims from Britain in their tracks.

In Edwardian times, a party of British Catholics who visited

the city were feted as the first English pilgrims for four centuries.

These days, around 100,000 people complete the challenge every year

and as they take the last weary steps on their journey,

the promise of reaching Santiago's magnificent cathedral

inspires them onward.

Bradshaw's is full of superlatives about this building.

The cathedral is considered one the most impressive examples

of early Romanesque architecture in Spain, dating from 1078 to 1211

and then the gothic cloisters are amongst the best in Spain.

Altogether it's one of the greatest glories of Christian art.

This was the building that Christians felt

they had to construct to house the tomb of St James the Apostle.

And this is the destination

of pilgrims who have walked for hundreds of miles

and behind me, the Capilla Mayor,

housing the tomb of the saint himself.

The story goes that St James's body was brought to Spain

after he was martyred in Jerusalem in 44AD.

It was then rediscovered 800 years later,

and before long, people began to journey to venerate his tomb.

Medieval pilgrims didn't have the benefit of Bradshaw's.

-INTO INTERCOM:

-Buenos dias, Michael Portillo.

But the cathedral houses an ancient

illuminated manuscript that helped them on their way.

Jose Manuel Sanchez is the guardian of this prized Latin text.

Jose Manuel, I'm Michael.

Hi, nice to meet you.

-Well...

-So, what is this book?

This is the Codex Calixtinus.

It's one compilation of all the traditions

related with the apostle Santiago in the Middle Ages.

When was it written, do we think?

It was written in the middle of the 12th century.

The book is an important source of information

on the history of St James,

but it also lays claim to being one of the world's first guidebooks,

packed with handy hints for pilgrims.

Give me some practical tips for going on the Camino.

Yes, for example, we have, er...

HE READS IN LATIN

So, horses must not drink there because they could die.

Because the river is...

The river is dangerous.

READING LATIN

Very good water to drink or to refresh.

Limpha, dulcis and sana.

So, clean, sweet and healthy.

Yeah, great! You did great!

Next time I come on the walk, this will be the book I'll take.

The Codex is a remarkable relic, but to continue my railway journey,

I think I'll stick with Bradshaw's.

My 1913 guide is not complimentary about Spanish trains,

remarking on their slow speeds and uncomfortable facilities.

But Edwardian tourists taking the West Galician Railway

from Santiago might have been reassured to know

that the company manager was British born and bred.

I'm hearing the story from Javier Losada Boedo.

-Hello, Xavier.

-Hi, Michael.

Very good to see you.

I'm interested in a great British railway man, John Trulock,

and I believe that he is your ancestor. What's the connection?

He was the father of my grandmother.

He was the eldest of six brothers

but his father died really young, when he was 15.

So, he had to earn his living.

Trulock decided to seek his fortune in Galicia.

And by the 1880s,

he was running the West Galician Railway company.

So what sort of a railway was this?

It was the first railway in Galicia.

It was from Carril in the coast to Compostela,

Santiago de Compostela in the Galician centre.

Begun in 1862, construction was overseen by a British engineer,

and by Trulock's time,

the railway had been bought by a British company.

Trulock ruled the line for over 40 years,

setting up home in Galicia where he continued to live

in Edwardian English style.

What sort of man was John Trulock?

I would say he was of course a gentleman. He was a character.

He was especially strict in terms of punctuality.

He was said to be quite focused on people being punctual

and he hated Galician people because of that.

But no-one was on time.

He liked to write that punctuality was a virtue for human beings.

We need him on the British railways today, I think.

Yeah.

By the turn of the 20th century,

James Trulock was helping to lure British tourists to Galicia.

In 1910, he laid on a special train

to carry journalists on a press tour.

I'm getting off in Pontevedra

to hunt down one of the more unusual sights that they saw.

I do love to be beside the seaside,

but here in the little village of Bueu, the sea is a place of work,

and what comes out of the sea gives rise to light industry close by

and that's the sort of light industry

that was a magnetic attraction for the discerning traveller

in the early 20th century.

Surprisingly, an Edwardian tourist's trip to Galicia wasn't complete

without a visit to a sardine cannery,

thanks to a local sardine entrepreneur

who was one of the main promoters of British tourism here.

I'm taking my own tour of this 21st-century fish canning factory,

guided by export manager Jose Emilio Dopazo.

Jose Emilio, it's an impressive and very noisy canning factory.

When did this business begin?

Well, this business has been here for 141 years now.

We founded the company, the family Alonso, in 1873,

and it has been kept in the same family for five generations.

Like so much in Galicia,

there's a British connection to the region's canning industry.

The idea of canning food came from a British merchant.

In the beginning of the 19th-century,

he had the idea of preserving food in cans.

The initial idea was a Frenchman,

but the Frenchman was only doing it in glass,

and the English man said, "No, we can put this also in tins,"

The idea rapidly expanded to the continent and came here.

By Edwardian times,

canned fish had helped to transform British people's diets,

bringing delicacies like sardines within everyone's reach.

At the moment, it's not the sardine season,

but this factory packs plenty of other types of seafood

including a million tins of octopus every year.

-Hola.

-Hola, buenos tardes.

HE SPEAKS SPANISH

They are washing the octopus.

Just like washing the laundry, isn't it?

Give that a good scrub

Let's get those tentacles in there.

HE SPEAKS SPANISH

I asked her whether she could actually still eat octopus,

and she says she absolutely loves it.

The thriving canning trade on this stretch of coast is

thanks to the extraordinary bounty of the Atlantic

and the unique geography of the so- called 'rias' of Galicia.

So, the rias are part of an estuary,

and are they like long fingers, something like that?

They are long fingers.

The legend says that God, when constructing the world

put five fingers on the land, and these are the five Galician rias.

In these estuaries, fresh water from the rivers

mixes with the salty sea, creating ideal conditions for plankton,

which in turn feeds the fish and other sea creatures.

So, today we are fishing for octopus, are we?

Yes, we have here a big devotion for the octopus.

Devotion for the animal itself, for the taste,

for the role in the factory, for everything.

The fishermen have previously lowered traps,

and now it's time to see what they've caught.

-Oh, that is a weird feeling.

-Very big one!

It's a lovely big octopus, isn't it? Yeah, it is indeed,

I can feel it pulsing and wriggling in my hand.

Look at its tentacles now, whoo!

-Fantastic.

-Wow.

-Lovely one.

Well, you are a Spanish fisherman now!

-Wonderful.

-Isn't that a beautiful beast? Isn't that fantastic?

It's a fantastic one.

One of the things that's special about Galicia, eh?

I'm not sure that Edwardian tourists were quite so hands-on,

but if not, they missed out.

And there's one last treat in store for me in Bueu.

This is a wonderful way to end the day.

A beautiful presentation of octopus.

This is the very special recipe in Galicia.

It's boiled, olive oil, and paprika.

-How is it?

-It's magnificent.

I'm glad you like it.

My Galician fishing trip has been the perfect way to draw

the Spanish leg of my journey to a close.

Two days in Galicia have opened my eyes to a side of Spain

that I've rarely seen before.

Now my 1913 guide is leading me over the border to a new land.

I'm bound for the gateway to the port wine region

where I'll board Portugal's most scenic railway.

I'll trace the impact of trains on Coimbra's ancient university,

before reliving dramatic early 20th-century history in Lisbon.

Obrigado.

Is this Portugal already?

HE ANSWERS IN PORTUGUESE

Ah, I've got to change my watch. One hour less.

-Yes, yes. OK.

-Obrigado.

Unlike Spain, Portugal is on the same time as Britain,

and that's not the only connection.

I'm now in Portugal, about which Bradshaw's is enthusiastic.

"The most favourable time of the year for a visit to Portugal

"is November until May.

"A charming variety of natural beauty,

"inland, mountain and valley,

"along the rugged coast, bold headlands

"and stretches of sand downs."

And then this intriguing reference.

"The British sovereign is legal currency in Portugal."

Now that is testimony to a long relationship,

stretching back over seven centuries,

cemented by alliances, and marriages,

so that for all the time that we were fighting off Spanish armadas

and defeating the Spanish at the Battle of Trafalgar,

Portugal was our friend.

'I'm travelling towards Porto on the Minho line, opened in the 1880s.

'Compared to Britain,

'19th-century Portugal was slow to adopt the railway.

'The first line was built with British help in the 1850s,

'amidst hopes that trains would bring to Portugal

'the kind of economic growth Britain had enjoyed.'

'I've come to Sao Bento station,

'a building whose ornate decorations are testament

'to the excitement that surrounded the coming of the railways.

'Carol Rankin's family has lived and worked in Portugal for generations.

'Born and brought up here, she knows the station well.'

The railway station is magnificent, when does it date from?

Well, the foundation stone was laid by King Carlos I of Portugal

in 1900, and then it obviously took a while to build, so, it opened...

Actually, the whole thing completed, a few years after that.

I think by the time the tiles were put in place, it was probably 1915.

-All around the time of my Bradshaw's guide.

-Indeed.

The station walls are covered in spectacular painted tiles,

a local tradition that evolved out of Moorish mosaics,

introduced to Spain and Portugal in the Middle Ages.

By the time of my guidebook,

they were being used to celebrate the advent of the age of steam.

But the tiles also tell the story

of the birth of Portugal's special relationship with Britain.

This shows us Juan I of Portugal and Philippa of Lancaster

coming in through the streets of Oporto, strewn with rose petals

as you can see, to celebrate their marriage in the city's cathedral.

-Who was she?

-She was the daughter of John of Gaunt,

and he was uncle to Richard II

who was on the throne of England at the time.

So, this was quite an important marriage alliance

between England and Portugal?

It is indeed, because it cemented the treaty of Windsor

which was signed in 1386.

The terms of alliance and perpetual friendship that the treaty contained

have never been broken, and it's the world's oldest diplomatic alliance

still in force.

The alliance helped to usher in a golden age in Portuguese history,

with John and Philippa's son Henry the Navigator

initiating a period of exploration

which ultimately gave Portugal an extensive empire.

500 years later,

Edwardian tourists arriving here could marvel at the legacy

of Porto's 19th-century industrialisation,

which included the magnificent 395-metre-long Dom Luis Bridge,

opened in 1886.

Today, it's one of six bridges that connect picturesque Porto

with Vila Nova de Gaia south of the river.

"Porto," my guidebook tells me, "on the River Douro,

"is very pleasantly placed in a hemmed-in situation

"on slopes descending to the river.

"And the river broadens out to a spacious harbour."

And then, as these barrel-laden boats suggest

and Bradshaw's confirms,

the principal trade is connected with port wine,

so my next move is evident.

I must steer to port.

Any smart Edwardian dinner party

would culminate with a glass of port.

But the history of this fortified wine in Porto predates my guidebook.

I'm meeting producer Jose Alvaro Ribiero

at a 200-year-old wine lodge to hear the tale.

Well, that is on a grand scale.

How much wine do you have here?

Well, we have around 22 million litres of port.

Wine produced in the Douro valley has been exported to Britain

since the 17th century, and, in fact, port as we know it

owes its origins to the requirements of the British market.

At the beginning, the wine that was exported was normal still wine,

not port, but as there were years where the quality of the wine

was not as good as other years,

they started adding brandy to it to stabilise the wine so that it

would reach the UK in great shape, so it really started as an accident.

-So, it's an accident with a British accent?

-Definitely.

As well as being enthusiastic consumers of port,

Britons have for centuries been involved in the trade.

Porto's Factory House is the historic centre of their operations.

Today, as in Edwardian times, there's a strict dress code.

What a gorgeous ballroom.

What is this institution,

this Factory House, that you have such wonderful premises?

Well, this Factory House here in Porto is a place

where all the British that had businesses here

in the north of Portugal would do business with locals.

So, it was like a place they felt protected,

and they also used it for social gatherings.

'Factor' is an old term for businessman,

and the Porto Factory House was paid for by British port shippers.

A century ago, when my guidebook was written,

they came here to network, and of course,

to enjoy the wine that kept them in business.

Michael, I have some special vintage port for us to taste now.

Looks wonderful, what age is this?

Well, it's a very special age.

-It's your birth year.

-1953.

1953. It's a Martinez 1953. A very rare wine.

We only have six in our cellar.

My goodness, what a privilege.

This has to be done quite carefully

because the cork, clearly, is an old one.

Oh, yes. Anything from 1953 is very decrepit, I assure you.

-There we are.

-Well done.

Thanks to the added brandy,

port can be aged much longer than most wines.

One of the oldest vintages to be sold was over 150 years old.

The colour is just wonderful.

I get some scents of tobacco.

-Definitely.

-And also nuts.

It's quite amazing, because it's still got quite a lot of fruit

for a wine of this age, it's amazing. And look at the colour, fantastic.

I think, let's take a sip.

-It's glorious.

-Velvety.

1953 was a great year.

With the taste of port still on my lips,

I'm continuing my journey into its history,

eastwards down the Douro valley on the Linha do Douro.

It's been described as Portugal's best train ride.

And I'm getting a front row seat.

Bom dia.

Oh, yes, this is a fantastic view,

As the railway line snakes along the banks of the river,

it's really a very, very impressive valley.

The steep sides, of course, covered in vines producing the port,

and the other great wines of the Douro.

The arrival of the railway transformed the port trade.

Paul Symington's ancestors witnessed its impact.

So, your family has been in the wine business quite a long time?

Yeah, my great-grandfather came here in 1882 as a very young lad.

He was only 18. He came from Scotland

and he had the very good fortune to marry a woman

who was half Portuguese, half English,

and her family had been in port since the 1700s, so we go back a long way.

It strikes me that this is one of the great railway rides in Europe.

When was this railway built?

1875, they started from Oporto

and got up to the frontier in the early 1880s

and that transformed the region.

Before that, presumably, the wines had been moving along the river.

Yes, right here, down this river.

But the river wasn't dammed then, so there were rapids

in many, many places, so there were huge disasters from time to time

because if these big boats with 40 barrels on board

got sideways in the tricky bit, that was, you know, chips. Game over.

For port-producing families,

the new line cut the travel time from Porto

over the treacherous mountains from three or four days

to around four hours.

But within a few years of my guidebook's publication,

this lifeline to the outside world

took on a bittersweet significance for Paul's family.

My grandfather, who was born in Oporto in 1895,

was in the British Army in the first war.

In 1916 he was in the trenches,

and he was told that his mother was dying.

And they gave him permission to come home,

so he went to London, Liverpool, Lisbon and then up by train

and he was only allowed four days in Oporto to see his mother

and I've got his diary and he writes in it that he got on this train

at six o'clock in the morning, from Sao Bento, where you got on today,

and he writes in it,

"May God damn in hell the people responsible for this war.

"I will never see my mother again."

And he never did. She died about ten days later.

I could stay watching the stunning Douro countryside unroll,

but I'm leaving the train to explore the Symington estate.

And here we are at Vesuvio, a quinta,

which is the Portuguese for a wine estate.

That is absolutely beautiful.

In vineyards like this, the story of port begins,

and it's an awe-inspiring sight.

Protected by mountains, the region has its own microclimate,

warmer and drier than the surrounding area

which contributes to the fruity richness of the wine.

This is a really important time of year for us

because the flowering will take place sometime in the next week

to ten days and the fruit doesn't set if the flowering is done

under damp conditions, and we can lose 20, 30% of the crop,

so what we really want is nice, warm, dry weather

to bring the flowering on. We've already got the little buds here,

and that will be a lovely bunch of grapes one day.

As evening draws in, I'll be keeping my fingers firmly crossed.

After a peaceful night in the Douro Valley,

I'm now swapping the countryside

for one of Portugal's most ancient cities.

My next stop will be Coimbra,

which Bradshaw's tells me stands on a hill by the River Mondego.

"The situation and climate have always been extolled.

"The university library contains

"100,000 volumes and many manuscripts."

Which makes a good case for a hide-bound old book lover like me

to visit.

The beautiful city of Coimbra was once Portugal's capital

and its ancient buildings reveal its long and illustrious history.

The university, founded in 1290 in Lisbon,

moved here in the 16th century,

and, by the time of the railways,

witnessed an Anglo-Portuguese exchange of ideas

every bit as vigorous as the trade in wine.

Carlos Fiolhais is showing me round the world-famous library.

Carlos, this is the most fantastic building

-but it reminds me more of a church than a library.

-Yes.

But it's not a church, we may call it a temple,

but it's a temple of books.

It was built at the beginning of the 18th century,

at the time of the Enlightenment.

The library's grandeur reflects the wealth then pouring into Portugal

from its colony Brazil, rich in gold and diamonds.

At the time, Portuguese thinkers were being influenced

by British Enlightenment figures such as Isaac Newton.

But later, technology injected new life into academia in Coimbra.

Do the railways have an impact on the transfer of ideas?

Oh, tremendous impact.

It was in the middle of the 19th century,

so later on, and the train arrived to Coimbra in 1864.

And there was a connection to France

and to central Europe and to England.

It was not only a symbol of progress, the train,

it was really progress.

The railway carried radical new ideas to the university,

including Darwin's theory of evolution.

An important Portuguese writer, he wrote that,

every day a torrent of new ideas was coming here as the new sun,

and this is indeed a nice expression of what was happening at that time.

That's a lovely idea, that the train was bringing a torrent of ideas,

every day a new dawn, every day a new sun. Precisely.

Coimbra is still one of Portugal's most prestigious universities,

and when its students aren't studying hard, they're making music.

The university is famous for its version of Fado,

a Portuguese form of music full of mournful longing.

THEY SING IN PORTUGUESE

That was so beautiful.

So beautifully sung and so beautifully played. So sad.

You've stolen my heart and left it in Coimbra. Thank you, Maestro.

Thank you very much.

My 1913 guide is now steering me towards my last Portuguese stop

as I race towards Lisbon on one of Portugal's modern high-speed trains.

By the turn of the 20th century,

Portugal had invested heavily in its railways.

But sadly, this had failed to bring the hoped-for prosperity.

Instead, overspending on public works including railways

had brought the state close to financial ruin.

There were tumultuous times ahead in Portuguese politics.

I'm alighting in the capital to trace the story.

This is Rossio station.

Bradshaw's tells me that it's at the heart of Lisbon

and that express trains used to arrive here from Spain and France.

A century ago, the gateway to Portugal was changing

from the seaport to this beautiful terminus.

British tourists were following in the footsteps

of King Edward VII, who had come to Lisbon on a state visit in 1903.

Warmly received by his relation King Carlos,

after the trip, this park was renamed in Edward's honour.

It was a measure of the longevity of the special relationship

between Britain and Portugal.

But by the 1900s, the balance of power had shifted.

Britain now ruled the waves,

and the Portuguese Empire was much diminished.

For a bird's eye view of the city

whose ships had colonised Brazil, India and beyond,

Edwardian tourists could travel in this remarkable lift,

opened in 1902.

"Lisbon," says Bradshaw's, "is pre-eminent

"for the natural beauty of its situation,

"lying in and upon an amphitheatre of hills.

"Regarded from the sea,

"the city seems to rise in picturesque terraces.

"Lisbon is poised on the edge of ocean,

"peering towards the Americas."

During Portugal's 15th and 16th-century golden age,

the launch pad for its seafaring explorers was the harbour at Belem,

protected by this extraordinary fortress, completed in 1521.

I'm seeking out another attraction of the Belem quarter,

on a form of transport familiar to the Edwardian traveller.

Bradshaw's tells me that inclined railways

connect the upper and lower parts of the city.

In this, as in so many other things,

my ancient guidebook remains reliable.

Belem is the birthplace of Pasteis de nata,

the custard tarts which have become Portugal's national sweetmeat.

-Dulce.

-Hello, Michael. How are you?

'I'm hearing their story from pastry chef Dulce Roque,

'who's worked at this pasteleria for 37 years.'

Apparently, the cakes were invented by local monks and nuns.

What are the main ingredients?

The main ingredients, I don't know, because it is a secret.

A secret recipe, but I can tell you about milk and flour

and sugar and butter and eggs, that are very important because

the nuns, of the monasteries, used to use the egg whites

as starch for their robes.

The egg yolks they use for making sweets.

In the 1830s, Portugal abolished its monasteries,

and monks from the nearby Jeronimo monastery, seeking a living,

began to sell tarts in this shop.

Soon after, the shop started manufacturing them

to the monks' original recipe.

This is the puff pastry.

She is cutting the puff pastry into little pieces.

Now, you are going to cut a little piece, aren't you?

Yes, please. I'd love to have a go at that.

Yes, and you stretch and you pull, and stretch...

SHE SPEAKS PORTUGUESE

-Round it. Make it round. Yeah.

-Make it round.

The buttery puff pastry case is what makes a pastel de nata

different from an English custard tart.

I'm cutting them a bit too big.

She says it ought to be like the top of my thumb

but I'm quite worried about leaving the top of my thumb in the mix.

-Nice, nice, nice.

-Thank you.

The pastry case has to be thin enough that it cooks through

before the delicate custard curdles.

-What do you think?

-Good. Very good.

-Is that one all right?

-Yes.

-You're just going to perfect it, I know.

The recipe for the custard itself is so closely guarded

that even the pastry cooks aren't allowed to see it being made.

Once it's piped into the cases,

the tarts go into a fiercely hot oven

before being carried straight to the shop,

where as many as 18,000 go on sale every day.

Will you have one?

I will, but we have to sprinkle first with cinnamon.

And, as the cinnamon is a sour spice,

then we sprinkle, to cut the sourness, with icing sugar.

Mmm, magnificent custard.

Lovely pastry, and the taste of cinnamon on the top,

that's wonderful.

Perhaps this one, you made. Who knows?

That's so good.

Having sampled Lisbon's cafe culture,

Edwardian tourists were refuelled

and ready to press on with their sightseeing.

A must-see was the Praca do Comercio,

described in Bradshaw's as the centre of Lisbon life.

But while they admired the handsome architecture, readers were reminded

that just five years before their guide was published,

on the 1st of February, 1908,

events unfolded here that devastated the Portuguese monarchy.

I'm hearing the story from Rui Ramos of the University of Lisbon.

So, the royal family is returning to Lisbon

after a fortnight in the country.

They arrived at a station on the other side of the river

and then they take a boat into Lisbon.

They disembark near this square,

where they get into an open carriage.

They progress into the square with no guards.

And in the square, there are a group of armed republicans

that were looking for the Prime Minister.

They didn't find the Prime Minister,

but they suddenly see the royal family in front of them

and they take advantage of it.

They kill the king.

They wounded the crown prince that later dies.

The youngest son, future King Manuel II,

escapes with a wound to the arm,

so in five minutes they almost wiped out the entire royal family.

So, this square was the scene of appalling horror.

King Carlos's death was the culmination

of a century of political upheaval.

Since the early 1800s,

liberals had sought to limit the monarchy's powers,

while by the early 20th century,

shaky finances and the decline of Portugal's Empire

had brought public discontent to fever pitch.

The killings sparked outrage in Britain,

especially from King Carlos's relative, King Edward VII.

Meanwhile, 18-year-old Manuel ascended the throne,

but his lack of experience soon brought the monarchy

to crisis point.

From 1908 to 1910, there is this succession of very weak governments.

Parties splitting, ministers falling one after the other,

until the king has this bright idea of appealing to the left.

Now, with that appeal to the left, he didn't convince the left,

but he managed to have the conservatives

against the monarchy too.

So, when the republicans make their move against the monarchy,

there was no-one to defend the monarchy,

and on the 5th of October, 1910, on that morning,

the Portuguese republic is proclaimed

from this balcony to a half full square.

Viva a republica.

In a further twist, Manuel fled the country, seeking asylum in Britain.

He lived the rest of his days in Richmond and Twickenham,

where he adopted the lifestyle of an English aristocrat.

It was the final chapter in the relationship

of the Portuguese and British royalty,

united since the days of Richard II.

A century ago, the traveller knew that, long before the railways,

the Atlantic Ocean bound together

the bagpipe playing Celts of the British Isles and Galicia.

The Atlantic was no limit for Portugal.

England's oldest ally discovered and colonised land on three continents,

and built this Belem Tower to defend its harbour.

The British, Spanish and Portuguese empires are no more,

and the kings and queens who made alliances have passed into history.

But on this journey, I've sensed a welcome rooted in long friendship.

'Next time, I'll visit the holy sites in Jerusalem...

'..discover how the Holy Land left a mark on British royals...'

-You're telling me that British kings were tattooed?

-Yes.

'..and follow in the footsteps of a celebrated British hero.'

And up we go.

Wow. What sort of targets does T E Lawrence select?

He blows up substantial sections of the Hejaz Railway.