All language subtitles for Mysteries.of.the.Abandoned.S11E03.Operation.Just.Cause.1080p.DISC.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-DoGSO_track3_[eng]

[narrator] In Panama,

a military base
on the front lines
against a drug-running tyrant.

A ruthless dictator.
CIA meddling,
narco kingpins, you name it.

This story's got it all.

[narrator] In Italy, a life
cut short turns a utopian
dream into a nightmare.

Was the death the result
of nefarious activities
from a foreign power?

[narrator] And in Poland,
a grim facility caught between
the treachery of two regimes.

[Prof. Michele] The people
held here fought against
the very worst in humanity

and were jailed for it.

[dramatic music playing]

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Decaying relics,

ruins of lost worlds...

Sites haunted by the past.

Their secrets waiting
to be revealed.

In Panama, on the outskirts
of the capital,

a random collection
of buildings tells a complex
story of conquest.

[Rob] In the shadow
of the bridge of Americas

is what appears to be
a public park,

but have a closer look
and you'll see
some strange remains.

There's a lot of
long rectangular buildings.

They were clearly built
with some purpose in mind.

But there's very little left
to suggest what exactly
that might be.

[narrator] More structures
nearby point to
an official function.

You see the word "Polizia"
and we understand
that this must have been

a Panamanian police building
of some sort.

When you look at the pitting
here, people have been
shooting this place up.

And you don't shoot up
your own base.

For many years, this country
had very close ties
with the US.

But in the 1980s,
those ties were stretched
to breaking point.

It is as though Manuel Noriega
wants to force

George Bush Sr.

into having a war in Panama.

This place has changed
immensely.
It's not what it used to be.

The houses
were nicely painted.
Everything was new.

Grass was green.

[narrator] Ricardo Eva was
a soldier and interpreter
in the US Army.

When he was first
stationed here in 1984,

the country was
a very different place.

[Ricardo] Everything
was American right here
in the heart of Panama.

There were a lot of families
living here. Life was idyllic.

[narrator] The only reason
these buildings exist at all
is because of one thing...

the Panama Canal.

[Rob] The canal was built
by the Americans
in the early 1900s.

And under the terms
of the agreement with Panama,

they were granted ownership,
in perpetuity,

of a 553-square-mile
area of land
called the Canal Zone.

This was America's first step
onto the world stage
as an imperial great power.

Unsurprisingly,
an investment of this size
needed protecting.

[narrator] In 1913,
at the end of this highway,

huge gun batteries
were installed

to guard the Pacific entrance
of the Panama canal.

And here, administrative
and housing facilities
were built.

It was called Fort Amador.

[Ricardo] Whenever you pass
from Panama
to the Canal Zone area,

it's a totally
different world.

We had our own commissaries,
little stores, theaters,

bowling alleys,
swimming pools, you name it,
we had everything here.

[Rob] Amongst Panamanians,
especially as we moved
into the 1960s,

there was resentment
that started to grow
at this American presence.

So, the United States
used to guard this area
very jealously

to a point where it became
a problem for Panamanian
citizens to cross

the Panama Canal
to go to the other side
of their own country,

because we had Canal Zone
police officers
that could stop you at will.

[narrator] On January 9, 1964,
tensions boiled over

when a group of
angry Panamanian students

marched into the Canal Zone
and tried to raise
the Panamanian flag

next to the stars and stripes.

[Prof. Wawro]
It unleashed this riot
between the two groups.

Over 20 people killed
and several 100 injured
in this fighting.

That was a spark
that ignited the nationalism
in Panama.

[narrator] The rising wave
of anti-American sentiment
eventually forced the US

back to the negotiating table.

In 1977, an historic,
new canal treaty
was agreed upon.

[Dr. Lynette]
There was gonna be
a phased withdrawal

of American armed forces
from the Panama Canal Zone

and on the last day of 1999,

the Panama Canal itself
will become sovereign
Panamanian territory.

[Rob] Fort Amador
became a jointly-operated base

with the north side
remaining as US housing,

and much of the south side
was turned over to the
Panamanian forces.

[narrator] Relations
were strained, but hadn't
yet reached a breaking point.

That time came in the 1980s,
when a power-hungry
military leader

seized control of Panama.

[Prof. Wawro] Manuel Noriega
was absolutely ruthless,

and someone who was determined
to retain power at all costs.

So, he creates the PDF,
the Panamanian Defense Force.

And this is gonna be
under his personal control.

[narrator] During this time,
areas of Fort Amador

became a dangerous place
for Americans.

[Ricardo] The PDF
were pretty much under orders

to harass us Americans
that were here in Panama.

He put his strategic buildings
and headquarters
all throughout this area,

and that's what converted it
pretty much into a no-go zone.

It was one of Noriega's ways
of thumbing his nose
at the US.

"Look, you used to be here.
Now I'm here and you're not
allowed here any longer."

[narrator] But Noriega's
relationship
with the United States

was complicated,

dating back to around 1958.

[Rob] Allegedly,
he was recruited
by the CIA initially

whilst studying at
a military academy in Peru.

And from there, he went on
to forge close ties
with Washington.

[Prof. Wawro] Noriega was
a very useful client

because Panama was a place
where the United States could,

you know, base a lot of
its anti-Communist activity
in Central America.

[narrator] Noriega also
provided the CIA
valuable information

on drug cartel activity.

[Prof. Wawro]
But the Americans
became aware

that Noriega wasn't working
against the cartels.

In fact, he was working
with the cartels

and making big profits
by shipping drugs
into the United States.

[Rob] By this point,
Washington's relationship
with Noriega was over,

and they wanted him out.

[dramatic music playing]

[narrator] In the late 1980s,

the United States demanded
that Panamanian dictator
Manuel Noriega

step down from office,
after his close ties with
the cartels came to light.

Noriega remained defiant.

[Rob] On December 15, 1989

Noriega even went as far
as declaring

that a state of war existed
between America and Panama.

The day after, a marine
is killed by Noriega's people.

The United States said,
"You know what, this is it.

We can no longer
deal with this."

[narrator] At 1:00 am,
on December 20,
Operation Just Cause begins.

The objectives of
the US invasion are clear.

Protect American lives,
preserve the integrity
of the Panama Canal,

and apprehend Manuel Noriega.

Fort Amador
is a key battleground.

This was one of Noriega's
main headquarters.

Operationally, we had
to take this building.

We had a couple
of Apache helicopters
flying around,

and they shot off the rooves.

While ground troops,
82nd Airborne, surrounded
this whole area.

[Prof. Wawro]
And then they're pinned down
for a while by snipers,

but then they start moving in
to Fort Amador.

[Ricardo] You're scared,
they're scared.
What's gonna happen?

There's bullets flying
all over the place.

[gunfire]

After issuing warnings
to surrender,
the US military

bring out the big guns
and start shelling
the PDF barracks.

[Dr. Lynette]
The Panamanian National Guard
hasn't got a chance.

It is a decisive victory
for the United States

in record time.

[Ricardo] About three hours,
we had everything
under control.

People who were
in this building,
we detained them.

We had them sitting here,
of course, with their hands
tied, and all that.

[narrator] But Noriega
was nowhere to be found.

A few days later,
he turned up,

hiding out at
the Vatican Embassy
in Panama City.

And what happened next
was one of the most bizarre
scenes of the invasion.

The Americans pull up
some loudspeakers mounted
on the back of vehicles,

and they blast
the loudest rock music
they can find.

[Prof. Geoffrey] Noriega,
believe it or not, actually
likes classical music,

and then after some time,
Noriega says, "I'm done."

And he comes out with his
hands up and surrenders
to American Forces.

[narrator] In 1992,
the fallen dictator was found
guilty of drug trafficking

and sentenced to 40 years
in a federal prison.

Seven years later,
in December 1999,

the now democratic country
took full control
of the Panama Canal.

[Rob] When the Americans left,
Fort Amador, no longer needed,

fell into complete disrepair.

But the ghosts of American
imperialism live on.

[narrator]
Noriega served 17 years
in a US prison,

and was eventually extradited
back to Panama
to face charges there.

He died in 2017.

But, ultimately, it was not
without cost,

this American intervention
against him.

[narrator]
Official estimates suggest
500 civilians were killed

during Operation Just Cause.

Unofficial estimates
say the death toll
was much higher.

[Ricardo] The damage was huge.

Actually, I felt sad
seeing all that

because I don't believe
the ends justify the means

at all. I don't believe it.

[narrator] In Warsaw, Poland,
is a secretive facility
that struck fear

into the hearts
of the city's residents.

[Jim] We see this
complex building
behind a tall wall.

There's not that much
to distinguish them
from the rest of the city,

but the other buildings
don't have barbed wire
around them,

or bars on the windows.

And there are multiple
housing blocks,

some of them connected
by sky bridges.

[narrator] Inside,
the function of this compound
quickly becomes clear.

But all is not as it seems.

[Jim] The prison was built
to house common criminals,
but almost from the start,

it took on
a political dimension.

The cells look
really sparse and dank,
like literal hell holes.

And there's a spooky corridor
that leads into a boiler room.

[Prof. Wawro] But you have
this very eerie sense
when you walk in

that something far worse
was going on here.

[narrator] These rooms hide
the stories
of innocent victims

considered "inconvenient"
by the government.

[Prof. Michele]
In a different set
of circumstances,

many of the Polish inmates
would be revered,
national heroes.

I can only imagine
what it must have felt like
being taken prisoner,

not knowing what was
gonna happen.
Were they going to be killed,

were they
going to be tortured,
would they ever return?

[dramatic music playing]

[narrator] Historian
Dr. Alex Richie is an expert
on this prison's dark history.

Her interest goes much deeper
than just scholarly curiosity.

This cell was inhabited by
my father-in-law,
Wladyslaw Bartoszewski.

He spent almost six years
of his life in this prison.

[narrator] His only crime
was fighting
to save his country.

He was only 23 years old,
and the things that happened
to him

were absolutely terrible.

[narrator]
This is Mokotow Prison.

The events
that tied Wladyslaw's fate

to this cruel facility
began with the outbreak
of WWII.

At the start of the conflict,
the Soviet Union, not yet
fighting with the Allies,

made a side deal
with Nazi Germany.

Poland was in the crosshairs
of this pact, not only not to
go to war with each other,

but to, essentially, split up
the spoils of Europe.

So, the Nazis invaded Poland
from the west.

The Soviets
invaded from the east.

[narrator] Hitler's
well-trained forces

quickly took
Poland's capital, Warsaw.

But the Polish people
didn't give up the fight.

[Dr. Richie] They create
an underground army, military,

the Home Army, eventually,
it's called.

They were fighting for
a free Poland.

[Prof. Wawro]
These people are priests,
they're army officers,

they're school teachers,
they're college professors.

And they're seeded
throughout Polish society.

[narrator]
Alex's father-in-law,
Wladyslaw,

joined the Polish Home Army
in 1942.

For the next two years,
he risked his life fighting
in a guerilla war

against the Nazi occupiers.

By 1944, the tide
seemed to be turning.

[Jim] It was becoming obvious
that Germany
was losing control

over the territories
that it had occupied.

[Dr. Richie]
The Warsaw uprising
broke out on August 1, 1944.

And the main aim for the Poles
was to try and take over

as many important buildings,
bridges, airports
as they possibly could.

It was a gamble,
and they threw everything
that they had

into taking the city back.

[narrator]
But the Polish resistance
was no match for the Germans.

One hope was that
the Soviet army
now siding with the Allies,

was nearing Warsaw
and would come
to Poland's aid.

The Poles had allied
themselves to the British
and to the Western Allies

but, of course, by definition,
to the Soviets as well.

And so, they went
and fought, thinking
that they were allies.

[narrator] But Poland
hadn't banked

on the treachery
of one of history's
most notorious dictators.

In the final days
of the Second World War,

in Nazi-occupied Warsaw,

the Polish resistance
was being crushed.

The only ones who
could stop the destruction
were approaching Red Army.

But the Soviet leader,
Joseph Stalin,
had other plans for Poland.

The Soviets made no effort
to intervene and help
the Poles,

and get the Germans
out of there
and save the city of Warsaw.

Eighty-five percent
of Warsaw is destroyed
during the rising,

while the Soviets are sitting
on the hulls of their tanks

on the outskirts of the city
just, like, watching.

[Dr. Richie] Stalin always
had an ulterior motive, and
that was political control.

He wanted to create
a buffer zone between Russia
and the rest of Europe.

[Prof. Wawro] The Soviets were
happy to see the Germans
do their dirty work for them.

"Kill all these
Polish nationalists."
Then the Soviets roll in,

so they could take over
this passive,
defeated population

and easily bring them
into the Soviet Empire.

[narrator] When the Red Army
entered the ruined city,

Mokotow Prison is one of
the few buildings
left standing.

It was quickly transformed
into a notorious tool
of Communist repression.

The first thing that
the Soviets do is they create
a Ministry of Public Security.

Very Orwellian name.

It has nothing to do
with public security.

It has to do
with public persecution.

They wanna find
every remnant of the Polish
nationalist movement.

They either wanna, like,
kill them, or they wanna
convert them

to, you know, passive pawns
of the Soviet state.

[Dr. Richie]
The Home Army represented
a huge threat for Stalin

because they represented
Western democratic values

in the sense of freedom,
freedom of speech,
freedom of religion.

[narrator] Alex's
father-in-law, Wladyslaw,
was one of those rounded up

and imprisoned without trial
during Stalin's violent purge.

From this cell, he remembers
hearing people being executed.

So, they didn't know
what was going on,
had no idea.

And then, all of a sudden,
would hear this loud shot
ringing out.

You didn't know if you were
going to be next.

And this was all part
of the fear that was
generated in this prison.

[narrator] The torture
didn't end there.

[Dr. Wawro] One of the most
disgusting ironies
of this Soviet conquest

is that they then
take Polish nationalists
who'd been fighting so bravely

against the Nazis
to free their country,

and they put
these Polish nationalists
in cells with German Nazis

in Mokotow Prison,
as if they're just as bad.

[Dr. Richie] My father-in-law
was in Auschwitz.

And for him, the experience
of Auschwitz was, by far,

the worst he ever experienced
in his life.

Just two doors down
was the prison cell of Hoss,

who was the commandant
of Auschwitz.

This was to humiliate
and demean
the Polish prisoners.

In other words, they were
made to think that they
were even below

Nazi criminals.

[narrator] It isn't known
how many political prisoners
were killed by the Soviets,

but their intention was clear.

They wanted to completely
rewrite the story

of the Second World War
in Poland.

[Dr. Richie] Mention of
the heroic stance

of the Polish Home Army
against the Nazis

was completely forbidden.

There was, under Stalinism,
no Holocaust.

Everybody who was killed
in the Second World War

was simply a victim
of Fascism.

[narrator] When Wladyslaw
was released in 1954,

he defied
the Communist authorities

by dedicating himself
to keeping the story
of the Home Army alive.

He wrote books about
what had happened
during the war.

Many of the things he wrote
were either censored heavily
or not published at all.

[narrator] This facility
continued to house perceived
enemies of the regime

until Communism
collapsed in 1989.

[Dr. Richie] Finally, people
were free to actually talk
about these things,

and go into archives
and interview survivors,
for example,

and actually put together
a story that, in a way,
had been frozen

by the Soviet system
since 1945.

[narrator]
After the Democratic Republic
of Poland

was established in 1990,

Mokotow Prison
continued to operate.

In 2016, it closed for good.

Wladyslaw spent
his final years

building a brighter future
for Poland

as part of the newly
Democratic government.

[Dr. Richie] So, he had
an incredible career.
I mean, going from

a young man
in Soviet prison,

and then ending up in
a free Poland
as Foreign Minister

and a minister of high office
until the day he died.

So, it was
an extraordinary life.

[narrator] In Italy,
the town of Ivrea hides
pockets of revolutionary zeal.

[Martin]
It looks like any other
normal Italian town,

that is until you notice
the modern architecture
that's in the middle of it.

[Hadley] Miles of glass
dot the landscape,

and there's this mismatch
of buildings spread
throughout the town.

[Martin] One of the structures
looks like a typewriter.

Who would build a building
to look like a typewriter?

You can tell that
a lot of work went on
right here,

but you can't really tell
what it was.

[narrator] Below the surface,
rumors still swirl
of ruthless espionage...

and a death under
mysterious circumstances.

What's strange is that
an autopsy

was never requested
or carried out.

Some people think that the CIA
was involved.

[narrator] What was it about
this sleepy country town

that might've been worth
killing for?

[dramatic music playing]

[soft music playing]

Matteo Olivetti
is part of
the centuries-old family

that transformed
the northwest Italian town
of Ivrea.

I came here in 1972
and all these buildings

when I was small,
they were full of people.

[narrator] It's all part of
a utopian community
created by Matteo's ancestors.

[Martin]
The Olivetti family
is a corporate dynasty

that is associated
with the development
of cutting-edge technologies,

reaching all the way back
to the era of innovation
in the mid-19th century.

[narrator] Back then,
Matteo's great grandfather

was a visionary
electrical engineer.

Camillo Olivetti saw
great potential in typewriters

and decided
to capitalize on it.

Everything starts here
in Ivrea,

and in 1908, Camillo puts up
the Olivetti factory
of typewriters.

Camillo Olivetti designed
the first Olivetti typewriter.

It was known for the fact
that it was composed of
over 3,000 parts,

and yet it weighed
only 40 pounds.

[narrator] In 1933, Camilo
brought in his son, Adriano,
to manage the firm.

[Martin]
Under his leadership, when he
took over the company,

the company's
productivity soared.

And by 1933,
Olivetti was producing
half of Italy's typewriters.

[Hadley] But the rise
of a brutal dictator

threatened to destroy
everything he had built.

[narrator] As the
Second World War loomed,

Benito Mussolini ruled Italy
with an iron fist.

[Martin]
The Olivetti family was
in a precarious position

under the Fascist dictatorship
of Benito Mussolini.

And that's because
they were Jewish,

and the dictatorship
was anti-Semitic.

But typewriters
were as important then
as computers are today.

And Olivetti offered
Mussolini's government
an Italian-made typewriter,

and they needed them
in large quantities.

[narrator] The Olivetti
factory produced typewriters
throughout the war.

But by 1944, Adriano
had fallen out of favor
with Mussolini,

who imprisoned him.

Adriano had to do
a daring escape
from jail to Switzerland.

[narrator] He stayed
in neutral Switzerland
'til the end of the war,

returning to Italy in 1945.

[Hadley]
When he came back, he decided
to transform his company,

and he really put in place
democratic ideals

and used that as a way
to change how his workers
lived and operated and worked.

[Martin] He commissions some
of the brightest architectural
minds in Europe

to design a city
for his company.

[Hadley]
He wanted to make it
a wonderful place to be,

a wonderful place to work,
a wonderful place to be
a member of a community.

[Prof. Michele] Employees were
promised flexible working
hours, free child care,

cultural activities, perks,
and bonuses.

Who wouldn't wanna work here?

[narrator] This complex
is Adriano Olivetti's vision
for a new way of life.

Matteo remembers Ivrea's
social services building,

the beating heart
of his uncle's utopia.

We needed a real space
for all the welfare of all
the people that worked for us,

for the factory.

This building was the epitome
of Adriano's philosophy.

It housed a library,
a nursery, healthcare centers
and an auditorium.

There was the infermiera,
and I remember when we knew
all the doctors.

This was the library,
and I remember when I was
a little kid,

I would come here
and get books.

[narrator] To fund
his utopian vision,

Adriano continued
to push the boundaries
of technological invention.

He decides that computers
are the future.

[Prof. Michele]
He ventured into electronics,

collaborating with
Chinese-Italian chief
engineer, Mario Tchou.

[narrator] Olivetti was soon
outstripping the competition.

In 1959, Adriano unveiled
one of the world's first
mainframe computers.

With all revolutionary
brilliant ideas,

there's always someone
out there who wants
to steal them.

[Matteo] There was a lot
of Communists in Italy,

and so this was a big problem.

[narrator] With Cold War
tensions growing,

there were some global powers
that felt threatened
by Olivetti.

[Martin] The United States
is already concerned

that Italy might ultimately
go Communist.

And that concern reaches
a higher level of escalation

when they realize that
the Olivettis have this
high-end computer technology.

[Prof. Michele] In February
1960, Adriano boarded
a train to Switzerland,

but he would never make it
to his destination, for he
died suddenly en route.

What's strange is that
an autopsy is never requested
or carried out.

His official cause of death
is a stroke.

[narrator] Yet, many believed
there was more
to Adriano Olivetti's death

than meets the eye.

[dramatic music playing]

In 1960s Italy, during the
depths of the Cold War,

the untimely death
of computer industrialist
Adriano Olivetti

was met with suspicion.

It doesn't seem to me
to be an absurd stretch
of possibility

that the CIA
may have carried out
a pointed assassination

against Adriano Olivetti,

over this issue of
this critical technology

becoming something
that provides an advantage
for the Communists.

[narrator]
But the sinister occurrences
were far from over.

A year later, Mario Tchou,
his chief engineer
dies in a tragic car accident.

It came out that somebody
said that there was smell
of alcohol in the car,

but he didn't drink.

And then, a lot
of little things
that make you think,

"Hmm, maybe
something happened

more than
just a car accident."

[Martin] There's no proof.

But, when you look closely
at the circumstances
of that accident,

it certainly
does look suspicious.

[narrator] The double tragedy
marked a turning point
for the Olivetti family.

In 1963,
a financial crisis hit Italy,

and a year later,

the Olivettis sold off
their computer division
to General Electric.

The next year, the company
reveals a world-changing
invention

that it had heretofore
kept secret.

[Hadley] In 1965, at the
New York World's Fair,

the Programma 101
made its debut.

Programma 101 is considered
by many to be the first
desktop computer.

[Prof. Michele] Forty thousand
of these P-101s were sold.

And it was even used
in the Apollo 11 mission
of NASA.

[Martin] But, by the 1980s,
as computer technology
ultimately takes over,

people need typewriters less.

The company eventually
stops manufacturing them
altogether.

In 1978, we were more or less
90,000 people in the world.

And now it's 500.

[woman]
Ivrea's abandoned by 2003.

But its name
has been immortalized
by its pioneering design

and its visionary family.

[narrator] Today,
Matteo is determined

to keep his family's
unique experiment alive.

I try to keep up
this history of the family.
That's the important thing.

[Martin] It's one of the
most successful commercial
industrial towns in the world,

and that becomes, eventually,
a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

[narrator]
In northeast Africa,

in the Tunisian town
of El Jem,

a colossal building
bears witness
to ancient rivalries.

Right in the middle of town,
we have a massive
Roman structure.

[Luke] You pass through
these outer walls
and enter this vast oval floor

surrounded by stadium seating.
This was a place
to put on a show.

And what entertainment
did the Romans enjoy more
than gladiatorial games?

[narrator] But this was
much more than an arena
for savage Roman spectacle.

Its remarkable size hints
at its intended purpose.

This is one of the biggest,
grandest amphitheaters
in the entire Roman world.

Why do we have this here
in Africa?

[narrator] The answer may lie
in one of the most violent
periods of Roman history.

It became known as
The Year of the Six Emperors.

There was murder,
there was ruin,

and it was all happening
right here in El Jem.

[narrator]
Archeologist Rached Hamdi
decodes this site

to piece together
what was happening
almost 2,000 years ago

[Rached speaking own language]

[interpreter]
At the start
of the 3rd century,

a decision was made
to build a stadium,

one like the great Colosseum
in Rome.

Today, it's still
a shining example

of Roman creativity
and engineering.

[Luke in English] It had
three levels of galleries,

which could fit
35,000 people.

[narrator] It's thought
the mighty structure

was adorned with statues
of Roman Gods,

had 64 arches,

120-foot high
red limestone walls,

and might even have had sails
for a roof.

The town it towers over
offers a clue as to why
this iconic structure is here.

Today, it's known as El Jem.
But under the Romans,
it was known as Thysdrus.

This was one of the wealthiest
and most thriving parts
of the empire.

[narrator] El Jem
sat in the province
the Romans called Africa.

It allowed vital access
to the strategically important
Mediterranean coast.

[Rached speaking own language]

[interpreter] This building
reveals the significance
of this city.

and the power of its influence
back in the senate in Rome.

[narrator] At the time
of El Jem's construction,

treacherous rivalries
were sending shockwaves
across the Roman empire.

Emperors were overthrown.
New emperors were appointed.

There was conflict
in the Roman empire.

[narrator] In Tunisia,
El Jem's coliseum

dates back to a time
of bitter infighting
in the Roman empire.

This amphitheater was built
in the year 238 CE.

This was a very important
and dangerous year
for the Roman empire.

[narrator] When the emperor
in Rome decided to fund
his warring campaigns

by taxing the people
of El Jem, they rebelled

and demanded their governor,
Gordian I, be put
on the Imperial throne.

At 80 years old,
he reluctantly agreed,

but only on the condition
that his son would rule
alongside him.

[narrator] But when his son
was killed in battle,
Gordian took his own life.

[Dominic] Gordian hanged
himself with a belt
just 22 days into his reign.

The shortest reign
in Roman history.

This was one of six changes
in rule that year.

[narrator] From the ashes
of this chaos,

Gordian's grandson rose
to take the throne.

It's thought by some

that Gordian III
may have constructed
the mammoth amphitheater

to immortalize his family.

It wasn't until the turn
of the 20th century
that archeologists discovered

the true extent
of the dynastic monument.

[Rached speaking own language]

[interpreter]
Below the tons of dirt
that covered the site

and the floor
of the fighting arena,

they found a huge
underground area.

[in English]
What they found was
an intact basement level

that covered the entire
footprint of the arena.

[narrator] Nearby,
ancient mosaics

suggest why this basement
was so big.

In Gordian's time, El Jem
was at the center of
a highly-lucrative

and well-organized trade
in wild animals

that professional
animal hunters

caught in the interior
of Africa.

Many thousands of leopards,
elephants and other
African animals

would have passed through
the subterranean corridors
of El Jem.

You came here to watch
gladiators and wild animals
killing each other.

[narrator] The basement
was designed to ensure

that games ran
with chilling efficiency.

[Rached speaking own language]

[interpreter] Down here,
it was a hive of activity,

where the prisoners
and gladiators waited
to meet their fate.

[Dr. Lynette in English]
We have all of the hidden
chambers necessary to create

the very best
in Roman spectacle.

[narrator]
Below the arena floor,

Rached Hamdi finds evidence
of how it worked.

[Rached speaking own language]

[interpreter] The stone blocks
in this room were probably
used to stabilize the cages

of vicious and predatory
wild animals.

Then, more cages lifted
the animals up to the arena
from here.

They carried them up
to the spectacular events

taking place
in the stadium above,

where the audience loved
watching gladiators
fighting wild animals.

[narrator]
The Gordian amphitheater
stamped the family's mark

on the city
until the Romans lost power,
two centuries later.

By the Middle Ages,
Rome's influence
in north Africa had ceased,

and the empire had fallen.

Once this was no longer
a provincial capital,
it was abandoned.

[narrator]
Over the coming centuries,
the people of El Jem

plundered the stones
of the mighty coliseum,
leaving it to crumble.

Today, the residents of El Jem
make full use
of the ancient monument.

[Rached speaking own language]

[interpreter]
It's an iconic structure,

both in the city of El Jem
and in Africa as a whole.

and it's an important symbol
of modern-day Tunisia.