Everything Everywhere Daily: History, Science, Geography & More - Gibraltar: The Only Park of the UK in Continental Europe

Episode Date: June 16, 2021

Located on a peninsula off of Southern Spain, best known for the massive rock which dominates its landscape, Gibraltar is one of the most strategic locations in the world. It has been fought over for millennia, been the focus of many sieges, and is still the subject of diplomatic disputes in the 21st Century. It also has the only population of wild monkeys in Europe. Learn more about Gibraltar on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Located on a peninsula off of southern Spain, best known for the massive rock which dominates its landscape, Gibraltar is one of the most strategic locations in the world. It has been fought over for millennia, been the focus of many sieges, and is still the subject of diplomatic disputes in the 21st century. It also has the only population of wild monkeys in Europe. Learn more about Gibraltar, the only part of the United Kingdom in continental Europe, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. What if your perceptions about the past were wrong?

ThruLine is a podcast that takes you back in time to uncover the parts of the story that may have gone unnoticed. It effectively turned day and tonight. And how it shaped the world now. Time travel with us every week on the ThruLine podcast from NPR. This episode is sponsored by audible.com. My audiobook recommendation today is Gibraltar. greatest siege in British history by Leslie and Roy Atkins. For more than three and a half years from 1779 to 1783, the tiny territory of Gibraltar was besieged and blockaded on land and at sea

by the overwhelming forces of Spain and France. It became the longest siege in British history and the obsession with saving Gibraltar was blamed for the loss of the American colonies in the War of Independence. This is military and social history at its best, a story of soldiers, sailors, and civilians, with royalty and rank and file, workmen and engineers, priests, prisoner of wars, spies, and surgeons, all caught up in a struggle for a fortress, located on little more than two square miles of awe-inspiring rock. You can get a free one-month trial to audible and two free audiobooks by going to audibletrial.com slash everything everywhere, or by clicking on the link in the show notes. Gibraltar has the distinction of being one of the most

strategic places on earth. Located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula, it's situated near the eponymous strait of Gibraltar, which is the narrow entrance that separates the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The current territory of Gibraltar is only 6.8 square kilometers, or 2.6 square miles, making it one of the smallest territories in the world, and only slightly larger than the country of Monaco. The distance between Europe and Africa at this point is only 13 kilometers or 8.1 miles. The history of Gibraltar actually goes way back to before-recorded history. There's evidence of Neanderthals who lived in caves in Gibraltar going back 50,000 years. It was one of the last places where Neanderthals lived as they were pushed west

into the Iberian Peninsula until they reached the sea and went extinct. The archaeological evidence shows that as soon as Neanderthals died out, humans took over and settling the area. The ancient civil civilizations which inhabited the Mediterranean were very familiar with Gibraltar. It was considered a sacred site by the Phoenicians, and the ancient Greeks and Romans called the Straits of Gibraltar the pillars of Hercules. The site wasn't of strategic importance to ancient civilizations, because they almost never sailed out into the Atlantic. For them, it was effectively the end of the world. The site was important insofar as it was known and revered, but holding the strait wouldn't

give anyone a strategic advantage. The strait of Gibraltar began to be a began to grow in the Middle Ages with the spread of Islam. Its importance came not from being the entrance to the Mediterranean, but rather because it was the closest point between Africa and Europe. When Islam began to spread, this was the point where the Moorish invasion of the Iberian Peninsula was launched and it sustained the 700-year occupation of Spain. The name Gibraltarion comes from the Arabic term Jabal Tarik,

which means the mountain of Tarik, which refers to the Muslim general, Tarik bin Zayad. The Caliphate was the first group that saw this strategic importance of Gibraltar and built the very first military fortifications. In 1462, Gibraltar was taken by the Spanish as part of the Reconquista. This also coincided with the beginning of the age of exploration, and Europeans began sailing out into the Atlantic Ocean, both sailing to the Americas as well as sailing around Africa. This completely changed the importance of Gibraltar. Now it wasn't the easiest way to go from Africa to Europe. it became the choke point for controlling the Mediterranean and the rest of the world.

In particular, Gibraltar had a large rock which could serve as a fortification, and there was also a large harbor immediately to the west known as the Bay of Gibraltar. Its importance can be seen in the fact that since 1309, Gibraltar has been besieged a total of 14 times. The modern history of Gibraltar dates back to the early 18th century and the War of Spanish Succession. King Charles II of Spain died without leaving an heir. This resulted in a continent-wide conflict as to who should be the king of Spain. The English and the Dutch sided with the Holy Roman Empire which opposed the French.

In 1704, the British sailed down and captured Gibraltar with very little resistance. Most of the residents just fled and moved to nearby towns. When the war was ended with the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, the English were ceded Gibraltar as part of the deal to get them to exit the war. Almost immediately after the treaty, the Spanish wanted Gibraltar back. and have been working to get it back for over 300 years. The first Spanish siege of Gibraltar began immediately after it was taken by the English. That lasted from 1704 to March 1705. The Spanish and French outnumbered the English four to one, but couldn't take the rock.

The next siege was in 1727 and lasted four months. Here the Spanish had 17,500 troops versus England's 5,500. Once again, the English managed to hold Gibraltar. The final siege of Gibraltar is known as the Great Siege of Gibraltar. This siege lasted almost four years and went from June 1779 to February 1783. For the Great Siege, the size of the forces was even more lopsided. The Spanish had over 65,000 troops versus England's 7,500. Moreover, the Spanish had over 100 ships with guns, whereas the English had only 12 gunboats.

The siege was actually part of the American War, of independence, believe it or not. The Spanish joined with the French in support of the Americans. As the British were busy trying to crush a rebellion and had their attention elsewhere, the Spanish figured it was a good opportunity to try to take back Gibraltar. The biggest day of the siege was on September 18, 1782, when France and Spain led an all-out attack on the fortress with over 60,000 men and failed spectacularly. The results of the siege played a part in Britain's negotiation of the peace of Paris with the United States. It was also the longest siege in British military history. After 1783, the Spanish

gave up trying to retake Gibraltar via military means, but they have never given up trying to get it back. The 19th century saw the British using Gibraltar as a fortified base, which allowed them to expand their influence into the Mediterranean. They ended up controlling Malta and Cyprus during this period, as well as digging the Suez Canal. Then they literally were able to exert control over both entrances in or out of the Mediterranean. Gibraltar proved to be especially useful to the British and World War II. Pilots shot down over Europe would try to make their way to Spain. Once in Spain, they could then get to Gibraltar and get home. Gibraltar was also vital for supporting the siege of Malta, as well as the invasions of Sicily.

The Nazis actually wanted to take Gibraltar, but Spain's dictator, Francisco Franco, who was otherwise sympathetic to the Germans, refused to allow them to enter Spanish territory. The unexecuted German plan was called Operation Felix. Had the Spanish supported Operation Felix, it might have radically changed the war and Spanish history. After the war, Franco continued to press Spanish claims to the rock, often making it difficult for people and goods to cross the border. This came to a head in 1967 when the people of Gibraltar voted in a referendum about whether they wished to remain under British control or be under Spanish control.

They voted to remain British by an overwhelming 99.64% of the vote. 12,138 people voted for staying, and only 44 people were against it. In 1969, Franco then completely shut down the border, banning any movement of people or goods. The only way in or out was by sea or air. This lasted until 1982, seven years after Franco died when the border was partially opened, and then in 1985 the border was totally opened as a condition of Spain joining the European Union. In 2002, the British held talks with Spain about joint control over Gibraltar. However, when this was put to a referendum, again, 99% of the people living in Gibraltar rejected the idea.

Today, Gibraltar has a population of about 34,000 people. It no longer has quite the strategic importance it did a century ago. Today, the economy is mostly centered around banking, tourism, and internet gambling. One of the unique quirks about Gibraltar is that it's home to the only wild monkeys in Europe. There are about 300 Barbary Macawks that live in Gibraltar, and the legend has it when the macaques are gone, the British will leave. During World War II, Churchill actually imported some just to make sure their numbers went up. They all originally came from Morocco. In addition to the rock of Gibraltar, there is a narrow strip of land that connects it to Spain.

That is the only place in the territory where you can put a runway, so everyone that enters Gibraltar by land has to cross over the airport runway. When I visited Gibraltar, I literally had to wait for a plane to land before I was allowed to cross. It's one of the only places in the world where you can actually go in a walk on a commercial airport runway. Another quirk is that the country, which is directly south of Gibraltar across the strait is Spain. If you remember back to my episode on Spanish Africa, the land direct. Directly across from Gibraltar is actually the Spanish city of Ceuta, which is actually in Africa. English is the official language of Gibraltar. However, almost everyone also knows Spanish as well. The working language of most people is called Yanito. It's mostly Andalusian Spanish, but with a whole lot of English thrown in as well as words from other languages.

Gibraltar is a really interesting place. If you're ever in Andalusia, it's worth it to take a trip there. It's small enough where you can see almost everything in a single day. Likewise, there are cheap discount flights from London, and there are some cruise ships that stop there as well. The future of Gibraltar is still up in the air. Its status, after Britain left the European Union, is in question. While the citizens of Gibraltar have overwhelmingly rejected the idea of joining Spain, other ideas which have been floated include complete independence, as well as formerly joining the United Kingdom and electing members to parliament. Regardless of what the future holds for Gibraltar, it will always be a unique place in Europe, and will have a history unlike anywhere else. The associate producer of Everything Everywhere daily is Thor Thompson.

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