Original subtitles

Narrator: THE REMOTE PACIFIC SITE WHERE A STRANGE COLLECTION OF STRUCTURES

CAUGHT AMERICAN FORCES UNAWARE...

THE JAPANESE MILITARY FORTIFIED EVERYTHING THEY COULD --

CAVE SYSTEMS, TUNNEL SYSTEMS,

SO THAT WHEN THE ALLIED FORCES FINALLY LANDED,

THEY WOULD BE ENTERING INTO A MEAT GRINDER.

Narrator: ...THE DERELICT IRISH PRISON

WHERE THE INMATES STRUGGLED TO BREAK IN, AS WELL AS OUT...

A LOT OF VERY HIGH RISK INMATES ARRIVE,

A LOT OF VERY HIGH RISK INMATES ARRIVE,

AND THIS PLACE SIMPLY ISN'T DESIGNED TO HOLD THEM.

A MASSIVE COMPLEX IN FRANCE WITH AN EXPLOSIVE PAST.

NO ONE KNOWS WHAT HAPPENED FOR SURE.

EVERYTHING DISAPPEARED IN ONE HUGE BANG.

WAS IT DELIBERATE? WAS IT ACCIDENTAL?

WAS IT SABOTAGE?

Narrator: ...AND THE SPANISH GHOST TOWN WHERE U.S. FREEDOM FIGHTERS

FOUGHT TO THE DEATH FOR A BETTER WORLD.

FOUGHT TO THE DEATH FOR A BETTER WORLD.

Wawro: WE SEE A LOT OF GRAFFITI,

WHICH ITSELF HAS SOME REAL SIGNIFICANCE

IN SOLVING THIS MYSTERY.

Narrator: DECAYING RELICS,

RUINS OF LOST WORLDS,

FORGED THROUGH YEARS OF TOIL,

NOW HAUNTED BY THE PAST,

THEIR SECRETS WAITING TO BE REVEALED.

*

*

-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

Narrator: IN THE WESTERN PACIFIC, FOREBODING RUINS

SCATTERED ACROSS THE JAPANESE ISLAND OF IE JIMA

MAKE FOR A CONFOUNDING SITE.

THIS ISLAND IS SO UNUSUAL LOOKING,

IT'S ALMOST ENTIRELY FLAT,

BUT THEN YOU HAVE THIS BULGING MOUNTAIN

STANDING RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF IT.

STANDING RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF IT.

LOOKING DOWN ON IT, IT LOOKS ALMOST LIKE AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER.

Narrator: SOMEONE HAS BUILT THREE RUNWAYS HERE.

Meigs: YOU'LL SEE SOME OLD AIRFIELDS, WITH WEEDS GROWING UP,

YOU KNOW, THROUGH CRACKS IN THE PAVEMENT.

Narrator: IT'S NOT IMMEDIATELY CLEAR

WHO WAS FLYING IN OR OUT OF THIS PLACE.

THE MODERN-DAY TOWN HIDES THE FIRST CLUE.

Mitchell: THERE'S A BUILDING THAT LOOKS COMPLETELY OUT OF PLACE

IN A 21st CENTURY CONTEXT.

IN A 21st CENTURY CONTEXT.

IT LOOKS BATTLE SCARRED, IT'S GOT GAPING HOLES IN IT.

Narrator: STRUCTURES HIDDEN BELOW GROUND ARE NO LESS INTRIGUING.

AND IT HAS A LOT OF NATURALLY OCCURRING CAVES,

SOME OF WHICH COULD BE ENGINEERED

INTO EXCELLENT DEFENSIVE POSITIONS.

THEY'RE PRETTY WELL SHELTERED. FROM THE OUTSIDE,

YOU HAVE NO IDEA OF WHAT A LARGE COMPLEX EXISTS

BEHIND THOSE ENTRANCES.

BEHIND THOSE ENTRANCES.

Narrator: WHAT LINKS THE DISUSED RUNWAY TO THE BLOWN OUT BUILDING

AND THE FORTIFIED CAVES THAT LIE BELOW THIS PLACE?

*

A TORN OUT CONCRETE SHELL,

HIDING IN THE MODERN DAY TOWN OF IE

IS THE ONLY BUILDING ON THE ISLAND

THAT SURVIVED THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

LOCAL GUIDE, TAMRE TAKAMICHI KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT

THIS PLACE ONCE WAS.

Takamichi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Takamichi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: THIS BUILDING IS THE REMAINS OF THE MUNICIPAL PAWN SHOP.

IT WAS BUILT BEFORE THE WAR AND MADE OUT OF CONCRETE.

THE ONE OLD CONCRETE BUILDING LEFT ON THIS ISLAND

FROM THE OLD DAYS IS THE PAWN SHOP.

THE PAWN SHOP IS PRETTY MUCH THE LOCAL BANK,

AND THAT MEANS THAT IT'S GOT TO BE A STRONG, SAFE PLACE.

IT HAS BEEN TORN TO PIECES,

IT HAS BEEN TORN TO PIECES,

IT HAS CLEARLY BEEN IN A FIGHT.

Takamichi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: THE BIG HOLES ARE DAMAGE FROM ARTILLERY.

AND THE SMALL ONES, THESE ARE FROM RIFLE FIRE.

Narrator: 1,000 MILES FROM TOKYO,

IE JIMA IS PART OF THE JAPANESE ARCHIPELAGO.

Wawro: SINCE WE'RE HERE IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN,

A VERY CONTESTED SPACE NEAR THE HOME ISLANDS OF JAPAN,

THIS PLACE OBVIOUSLY HAD MILITARY SIGNIFICANCE.

THIS PLACE OBVIOUSLY HAD MILITARY SIGNIFICANCE.

IE JIMA HAS GOT SOME NICE LONG RUNWAYS

THAT GO STRAIGHT OUT OVER THE PACIFIC OCEAN.

THAT MEANS IT'S EASY TO TAKE OFF,

IT'S EASY TO LAND, IT'S A BIG SAFE AIRPORT.

Narrator: DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR,

THESE OVERGROWN AIRFIELDS WERE AMONG THE LARGEST IN ASIA.

THE JAPANESE HAD BUILT THEM

TO AID THEIR EXPANSION IN THE PACIFIC.

TO AID THEIR EXPANSION IN THE PACIFIC.

BUT BY 1944, THEY'D BEEN FORCED TO CHANGE THEIR TACTICS.

Meigs: THE JAPANESE HAD LEARNED THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE RESOURCES

TO STOP THE AMERICANS ANYMORE.

SO INSTEAD OF GOING OUT TO MEET IN BATTLE OUT OVER THE OCEAN,

THEY DUG IN, THEY WENT TO GROUND.

Narrator: MEANWHILE, FROM ACROSS THE PACIFIC,

THE AMERICANS ENVIED IE JIMA'S AIRFIELDS.

THE AIRSTRIP, WHICH IS STILL CLEARLY NOW ABANDONED,

OVERGROWN WITH WEEDS.

BUT THIS WAS ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL, KEY,

AND AN INTEGRAL PART OF THEIR OWN NATIONAL DEFENSE.

IF YOU DON'T HAVE IE JIMA, THEN YOU DON'T HAVE THAT CLEAR PATH

THAT TAKES YOU FROM THE AMERICAN MAINLAND TO HAWAII

AND STEP BY STEP ACROSS THE PACIFIC TO TAKE JAPAN.

Narrator: IE JIMA IS THE IDEAL PLACE TO LAND HEAVY MILITARY EQUIPMENT.

Narrator: IE JIMA IS THE IDEAL PLACE TO LAND HEAVY MILITARY EQUIPMENT.

THE ISLAND ITSELF HAS GOT SOME NICE NEATLY SHELVING BEACHES

AROUND ITS PERIMETER. -THEN, AROUND THE ISLAND,

YOU CAN SEE A WHOLE BUNCH OF ENTRANCES TO LITTLE CAVES.

Narrator: THESE COASTAL CAVES LIE BELOW THE FLAT STONE PLATEAU

THAT COVERS THIS PLACE,

PUNCTUATED ONLY ONCE, BY MOUNT GUSUKU,

THE SPECTACULAR PEAK AT ITS HEART.

THE SPECTACULAR PEAK AT ITS HEART.

Nusbacher: THE ISLAND ITSELF IS PRETTY NATURAL AS A DEFENSIVE POSITION

BECAUSE THE PINNACLE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ISLAND

ENABLE AN ALL-AROUND DEFENSE.

Narrator: ON HOME TURF, THE JAPANESE KNEW

JUST HOW TO DEFEND THIS PECULIAR PLACE.

WHAT THE JAPANESE WANTED TO DO, IDEALLY,

WHAT THE JAPANESE WANTED TO DO, IDEALLY,

WAS TO MAKE IT DIFFICULT FOR THE AMERICANS TO LAND

BY USING ARTILLERY AND DEFEND THE ISLAND IN DEPTH

USING INFANTRY WHO WERE COMPARATIVELY POORLY PREPARED.

Narrator: THE JAPANESE SMASH THE AIRFIELDS,

BUILT PILLBOX POSITIONS, AND LAID MINES.

BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, THEY MADE FULL USE OF MOUNT GUSUKU.

BELOW GROUND, THIS LIMESTONE PEAK

BELOW GROUND, THIS LIMESTONE PEAK

IS RIDDLED WITH TUNNELS AND CAVES,

WHICH THE JAPANESE PLAN TO USE TO MOVE AROUND UNDETECTED.

THEY SECURED THE TUNNEL ENTRANCES,

BUILT MACHINE GUN POSITIONS, AND FORTIFIED CAVES,

SOME, THREE STORIES HIGH, WITH LOOKOUTS ACROSS THE ISLAND.

Meigs: THEY FORTIFIED EVERYTHING THEY COULD,

FROM CAVE SYSTEMS, TUNNEL SYSTEMS,

SO THAT WHEN THE ALLIED FORCES FINALLY LANDED,

THEY WOULD BE ENTERING INTO A MEAT GRINDER.

THEY WOULD BE ENTERING INTO A MEAT GRINDER.

Narrator: IE JIMA'S CIVILIAN POPULATION TOOK REFUGE IN THE CAVES

AROUND THE COAST.

LOCAL RESIDENTS,

LIKE TAMRE TAKAMICHI STILL REVERE THIS PLACE.

Takamichi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: IT'S A SACRED PLACE ON IE JIMA AND DURING THE WAR,

MANY PEOPLE SOUGHT REFUGE HERE.

THIS PLACE RECEIVED MANY MORTAR SHELL ATTACKS FROM THE SEA,

SO PEOPLE CAME HERE BECAUSE IT WAS SAFE.

SO PEOPLE CAME HERE BECAUSE IT WAS SAFE.

*

Narrator: WITH NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING ON UNDERGROUND,

WHEN THE AMERICAN FORCES FINALLY ARRIVED,

THEY WEREN'T PREPARED FOR AN UNSEEN AND DEADLY FOE.

*

Narrator: IN 1944, THE PACIFIC ISLAND OF IE JIMA

WAS A FLASH POINT OF CONFLICT,

AS THE JAPANESE AND THE AMERICANS

GEARED UP FOR A FACE OFF ACROSS THE PACIFIC.

APRIL 16, 1945, THE U.S. ARMY INVADES IE JIMA.

THE AMERICANS HAD SPENT THE WHOLE SECOND WORLD WAR

THE AMERICANS HAD SPENT THE WHOLE SECOND WORLD WAR

LEARNING HOW TO CONDUCT AMPHIBIOUS OPERATIONS.

Narrator: BUT THE THOUSANDS OF JAPANESE SOLDIERS

INSTALLED IN MOUNT GUSUKU COULD SEE THEIR EVERY MOVE.

THE AMERICANS ADVANCE TO THE TOWN OF IE

WAS UNDER CONSTANT AMBUSH.

AND THEY COULDN'T TELL CIVILIANS AND JAPANESE SOLDIERS APART.

Takamichi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: DURING THE BATTLE FOR IE JIMA, CIVILIANS ALSO TOOK UP ARMS.

Translator: DURING THE BATTLE FOR IE JIMA, CIVILIANS ALSO TOOK UP ARMS.

SOME CIVILIANS WERE TOLD BY THE JAPANESE ARMY

TO FIGHT WITH GUNS, BUT THEY MAINLY USED GRENADES.

Narrator: SLOW PROGRESS AND THE UNEXPECTED LOSS OF HUNDREDS OF MEN

MEANT THE AMERICANS HAD TO TAKE THE HIGH GROUND OF MOUNT GUSUKU,

WHICH LAY BEYOND THE TOWN OF IE.

THE GRUELING CONFLICT WAS WITNESSED

BY THE FAMOUS US WAR REPORTER, ERNIE PYLE.

BY THE FAMOUS US WAR REPORTER, ERNIE PYLE.

ERNIE PYLE WAS AN AMERICAN NEWSPAPER COLUMNIST,

WHO WAS BELOVED FOR HIS DEVOTION TO THE TROOPS,

WHAT HE CALLED THE DOGFACE GI'S.

THE REGULAR GUYS WHO DID THE BRUNT OF THE FIGHTING

AND THE DYING IN THE WAR.

HE WAS THEIR VOICE.

HE WAS THEIR CHAMPION.

HE WAS ONE OF THESE WAR CORRESPONDENTS

WITH A HUMAN TOUCH. HE REALLY KNEW THE G.I.s.

HE KNEW THE MARINES.

HE BECAME VERY CLOSE TO THEM.

HE BECAME VERY CLOSE TO THEM.

HE KNEW THEIR SLANG.

HE INTEGRATED INTO ALL HIS PIECES.

HE SHARED THE DANGERS OF THE FRONT WITH THEM.

PYLE WAS TRAVELING WITH THE TROOPS NEAR

THE TOWN OF E WHEN THEY CAME UNDER FIRE.

A SNIPER HIT HIM IN THE HEAD

PYLE WAS KILLED INSTANTLY.

TRUE TO HIS NATURE, HE WAS PRESSING RIGHT UP CLOSE

TO BE NEAR THE ACTION WHEN HE WAS KILLED ON IE JIMA.

Narrator: WITH PYLE GONE,

THE AMERICANS WERE DETERMINED TO GET THE JOB DONE.

BEYOND PYLE'S MEMORIAL,

THERE'S ONE OTHER REMNANT OF THE BITTER BATTLE THAT PLAYED OUT --

THE SHELL OF THE CONCRETE PAWN SHOP.

Mitchell: THIS BUILDING DID NOT NECESSARILY SERVE

ANY STRATEGIC PURPOSE FOR THE UNITED STATES,

BUT IT WAS CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE.

THEY PULVERIZED THIS PAWN SHOP

ON THE WAY TO PULVERIZING THE JAPANESE HEADQUARTERS.

Narrator: THE AMERICANS EVENTUALLY TOOK MOUNT GUSUKU,

Narrator: THE AMERICANS EVENTUALLY TOOK MOUNT GUSUKU,

BUT TRACES STILL LIE BELOW THIS PLACE

THAT SUGGEST FOR THE PEOPLE OF IE,

THE FULL HORROR OF THE WAR WAS NOT YET OVER.

Meigs: THE JAPANESE MILITARY CONVINCED THE POPULATION

THAT THE AMERICAN FORCES WOULD BE LIKE WILD ANIMALS,

AND NO ONE WOULD SURVIVE THEIR ONSLAUGHT.

ON IE ISLAND, THEY ACTUALLY ISSUED PEOPLE HAND GRENADES.

IF ALL ELSE FAILS, THEY WERE TO KILL THEMSELVES,

RATHER THAN SUFFER THE DISGRACE OF SURRENDER.

RATHER THAN SUFFER THE DISGRACE OF SURRENDER.

Narrator: IN IE JIMA'S COASTAL CAVES,

HUNDREDS OF CIVILIANS TOOK THEIR OWN LIVES.

THOSE IN THE NYATIYA CAVE DIDN'T BELIEVE THE PROPAGANDA

AND CHOSE NOT TO.

Takamichi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: MANY DIED INSIDE THESE CAVES.

HOWEVER, AT THIS PARTICULAR CAVE,

THAT TRAGEDY DIDN'T HAPPEN.

Narrator: AFTER A GRUELING SIX-DAY BATTLE, THE AMERICANS TOOK IE JIMA.

IN TOTAL, ALMOST 5,000 JAPANESE

AND MORE THAN A 1,000 AMERICAN SOLDIERS

LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE FIGHT FOR IE JIMA.

SOME CLAIM THAT JAPAN'S RESOLUTE DEFENSE OF THIS TINY ISLAND

LED THE U.S. TO DROP THE ATOMIC BOMBS

THAT ENDED THE WAR IN THIS REGION.

IE JIMA STILL HAD ONE MORE ROLE TO PLAY.

IE JIMA STILL HAD ONE MORE ROLE TO PLAY.

[ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: AT THE END OF THE WAR,

THE JAPANESE WENT TO THE PHILIPPINES VIA HERE.

Narrator: AFTER TAKING OFF FROM IE JIMA,

THE DELEGATION AGREED PEACE TERMS IN MANILA,

BEFORE SUBMITTING TO A PUBLIC DISPLAY.

Meigs: WE'VE ALL HEARD ABOUT THE JAPANESE

SURRENDERING TO GENERAL MacARTHUR

ON THE U.S.S. MISSOURI IN TOKYO BAY.

GENERAL MACARTHUR, WHO LOVED HIS MILITARY POMP

GENERAL MACARTHUR, WHO LOVED HIS MILITARY POMP

AND CIRCUMSTANCES WOULD NEVER HAVE SETTLED

FOR NOT BEING THE CENTER OF ATTENTION IN THE PROCESS,

OPTED FOR A MUCH MORE PUBLIC

AND CEREMONIAL PROCESS

THAT WAS DOCUMENTED FOR HISTORY

ON THE DECK OF THE USS MISSOURI.

BUT IN FACT, THE INITIAL SURRENDER HAPPENED HERE

AT ONE OF THESE AIR STRIPS.

THIS IS AN ALMOST FORGOTTEN PART OF THE HISTORY OF THE WAR.

THIS IS AN ALMOST FORGOTTEN PART OF THE HISTORY OF THE WAR.

Narrator: TODAY, LITTLE REMAINS OF THE BLOODY BATTLE FOR IE JIMA.

BUT THE MEMORY OF THE THOUSANDS

OF JAPANESE SOLDIERS AND CIVILIANS

WHO DIED HERE LIVES ON.

[ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

THIS PLACE IS ONE OF THE FEW PLACES LEFT FROM THE WAR.

NOT ONLY FOR IE JIMA, BUT ALSO FOR OKINAWA,

SO WE'RE PRESERVING IT CAREFULLY.

AND FROM THOSE WHO CAME TO FAITHFULLY REPORT

AND FROM THOSE WHO CAME TO FAITHFULLY REPORT

ON THE WAR TO THE AMERICAN PUBLIC,

PYLE'S DEATH IS ONE OF THOSE IRONIES

THAT HAPPENS IN WAR.

THE WAR WAS ALMOST OVER.

THIS WAS REALLY A MOPPING UP OPERATION AT THIS POINT.

TO THE U. S. TROOPS WHO FOUGHT AND DIED HERE.

THE AMERICAN CITIZEN SOLDIER WENT TO THESE PLACES

THEY'D NEVER HEARD OF BEFORE,

AND THEY FOUGHT AND THEY BLED AND THEY DIED

TO RAISE UP A FLAG ON THESE ISLANDS.

TO RAISE UP A FLAG ON THESE ISLANDS.

WHICH SIGNALED THE PROGRESS OF FREEDOM

AGAINST THE AXIS POWERS WHO WERE

SET TO THROW DARKNESS OVER THE WORLD.

THEIR BRAVERY AND SACRIFICE SHALL BE REMEMBERED.

*

Narrator: MAROONED IN THE CHILLY WATERS OF THE CELTIC SEA,

A CLUSTER OF STRUCTURES GUARDS IRELAND'S BIGGEST HARBOR.

A CLUSTER OF STRUCTURES GUARDS IRELAND'S BIGGEST HARBOR.

THIS ISLAND UNAMBIGUOUSLY HAS PRIDE OF PLACE.

QUITE DRAMATICALLY,

IT'S RIGHT IN LINE WITH THE MAIN

OPENING OF THE HARBOR INTO THE SEA.

IT'S EXPOSED. IT'S WINDY, IT'S ISOLATED.

THERE ARE DITCHES, FENCES AND WALLS.

THIS SAYS "SECURITY AND STRENGTH."

IT'S REALLY QUITE CLEAR THAT THIS PLACE WAS A FORT,

IT'S REALLY QUITE CLEAR THAT THIS PLACE WAS A FORT,

BUT IT'S ALSO A SENSE THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING ELSE

HAPPENING HERE.

THERE'S A WHOLE ABANDONED VILLAGE ON ONE SIDE

OF THE ISLAND,

RIGHT DOWN BY THE WATER

ALL BOARDED UP AND FENCED OFF.

Narrator: THE STRANGE COMBINATION OF BUILDINGS THAT CLUTTER

THIS SITE PAINT A CONFUSING PICTURE.

THIS PART IS DARK, IT'S QUIET, THERE ARE BARS ON THE WINDOWS,

THIS PART IS DARK, IT'S QUIET, THERE ARE BARS ON THE WINDOWS,

THERE'S A SORT OF OPPRESSIVE FEELING.

AND THE DARKNESS JUST SWALLOWS YOU UP

THE FURTHER YOU GO INSIDE.

Selwood: IT FEELS LIKE SOMETHING OF A TIME MACHINE.

THERE ARE PARTS THAT ARE QUITE OBVIOUSLY SEVERAL CENTURIES OLD

AND OTHER BITS THAT ONLY SEEM LIKE 20 YEARS OLD.

Narrator: AT THE HEART OF THE COMPLEX IS A LONG BUILDING

THAT APPEARS TO OFFER UP SOME CLUES.

THERE'S CLEARLY EVIDENCE OF FIRE

HAVING SWEPT THROUGH THIS PLACE AT SOME POINT.

HAVING SWEPT THROUGH THIS PLACE AT SOME POINT.

IT FEELS LIKE SOMETHING ACTUALLY QUITE VIOLENT HAPPENED HERE.

Bell: IT'S THOSE BURNT OUT RUINS THAT REALLY DRAW YOU IN

AND MAKE YOU WONDER, "WHAT HAPPENED HERE?"

*

Narrator: THIS IS SPIKE ISLAND.

TODAY, IT SITS IN IRISH WATERS, YET THESE DEFENSIVE STRUCTURES

WERE BUILT BY THE BRITISH MORE THAN 200 YEARS AGO.

LOCAL HISTORIAN, TOM O'NEILL ONCE WORKED HERE.

LOCAL HISTORIAN, TOM O'NEILL ONCE WORKED HERE.

O'NEILL: THE FORT HERE WAS BUILT BY THE BRITISH

BECAUSE THEY WERE ALWAYS AFRAID THAT AN ENEMY OF THEIRS

WOULD INVADE IRELAND AND USE IRELAND

THEN AS THE BASE THROUGH WHICH TO ATTACK THE MAINLAND U.K.

Narrator: BUILDING THIS STRATEGICALLY VITAL FORT

COST ALMOST $100 MILLION IN TODAY'S MONEY.

Selwood: THIS WAS A REALLY SIGNIFICANT PROJECT.

THEY STARTED IN 1806, AND IT TOOK 60 YEARS TO BUILD,

THEY STARTED IN 1806, AND IT TOOK 60 YEARS TO BUILD,

ACROSS A 24-ACRE SITE.

AND IT'S CUTTING EDGE MILITARY TECHNOLOGY.

FROM HERE, WE CAN ACTUALLY GET A PERFECT IDEA

OF HOW CLEVER THE DESIGN WAS,

TO MAKE THIS FORT AS STRONG AS POSSIBLE.

Narrator: DEEP TRENCHES SURROUND THE FORT,

WHICH IS BUILT IN A DISTINCTIVE STAR SHAPE

TO PROTECT IT FROM EVERY DIRECTION.

THE DESIGN WORKED.

NO ENEMY EVER ATTACKED THE FORT.

BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN IT'S GOING TO ESCAPE VIOLENCE ALTOGETHER.

MUCH LATER IN ITS LIFE,

IT'S GOING TO BE ATTACKED FROM WITHIN.

Narrator: SO, WHO MANAGED TO PENETRATE

SPIKE ISLAND'S MIGHTY STAR SHAPED FORT?

*

Narrator: IN THE EARLY 19th CENTURY,

THE BRITISH BEGAN BUILDING A COMMANDING FORT

IN THE SOUTHWEST OF IRELAND.

IT HAD BEEN DESIGNED TO DEFEND AGAINST THE FRENCH.

BUT WITH NAPOLEON DEFEATED IN 1815,

THE UNFINISHED FORT WAS NO LONGER NEEDED.

Bell: THE DEFENSIVE ROLE

WASN'T THE ONLY THING THIS PLACE WAS USED FOR.

THERE'S MORE THAN ONE STORY TO TELL ABOUT THIS PLACE.

THERE'S MORE THAN ONE STORY TO TELL ABOUT THIS PLACE.

Narrator: BARS ON WINDOWS, SECURITY SPIKES,

AND REINFORCED GATES SHOW

HOW THE BRITISH RETOOLED THEIR PRIZED BASTION

TO CONTROL THE IRISH INSTEAD.

Selwood: BEING ON AN ISLAND WITH FORTIFIED HIGH WALLS

AND EXCELLENT OBSERVATION AND LOOKOUT POSITIONS,

THAT ALSO MADE THIS SITE IDEAL TO BE A PRISON.

IN 1845 THE GREAT FAMINE HIT IRELAND,

IN 1845 THE GREAT FAMINE HIT IRELAND,

AND THIS IMPERIOUS, STAR-SHAPED FORT BECAME

A PAUPERS PRISON.

PEOPLE BECAME MORE DESPERATE,

AND SOME WERE EVEN WILLING TO BE ARRESTED AND IMPRISONED

JUST TO GET SOME FOOD.

THE SITUATION WAS SO DIRE THAT THESE

FORTIFIED WALLS SOON HELD THOUSANDS OF PRISONERS.

ADDITIONALLY, WITH THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT USING SPIKE ISLAND

AS A STOPOVER FOR CONVICTS ON ROUTE TO CRIMINAL COLONIES,

THE POPULATION SWELLED EVEN FURTHER.

AND THE NUMBERS KEPT ON RAISING BECAUSE OF THE NUMBERS

BEING ARRESTED AND IN PRISON UNTIL EVENTUALLY

WE HAD TWO AND A HALF THOUSAND HERE.

AND THAT TWO AND A HALF THOUSAND MADE IT ONE OF

THE LARGEST PRISONS IN THE WORLD AT THE TIME.

Narrator: BUT SOME SENT HERE WERE GUILTY OF MORE SERIOUS CRIMES.

SOON AN INFAMOUS PUNISHMENT BLOCK

WAS CONSTRUCTED FOR THE ISLAND'S MOST DANGEROUS PRISONERS.

YOU WERE SHACKLED BY YOURSELF,

AND YOU EVEN HAD A HOOD PULLED OVER YOUR FACE

AND YOU EVEN HAD A HOOD PULLED OVER YOUR FACE

WITH ONLY YOUR EYES TO SEE OUT,

AND THESE CONDITIONS WERE DESCRIBED AS HELL ON EARTH.

EVENTUALLY THE FAMINE PASSED AND THE PRISON CLOSED IN 1883.

BUT THIS WOULD NOT LAST FOR LONG.

IN 1916, WHEN THE IRISH REPUBLICANS

REBELLED AGAINST BRITAIN'S OPPRESSIVE MILITARY RULE,

THE FORT AGAIN PROVED INVALUABLE.

DURING THE IRISH WAR OF INDEPENDENCE,

DURING THE IRISH WAR OF INDEPENDENCE,

THIS SITE WAS BROUGHT BACK INTO USE AGAIN AS A PRISON.

AND SOME OF THE ROOMS HAVE CHANGED VERY LITTLE SINCE THEN.

THIS WAS WHERE THE CONVICTED REPUBLICANS WERE HELD.

THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN THEIR LIVING QUARTERS,

THEIR SLEEPING QUARTERS, THEIR DINING QUARTERS,

THEIR RECREATION QUARTERS.

WITH BRITISH SOLDIERS KNOWN AS CROWN FORCES

GUARDING REPUBLICAN INTERNEES.

HOSTILITY BETWEEN THEM WAS INEVITABLE.

Auerbach: AND THERE WAS SOME PRETTY SERIOUS TENSION

Auerbach: AND THERE WAS SOME PRETTY SERIOUS TENSION

BETWEEN THESE PRISONERS WHO HAD FOUGHT ON ONE SIDE

AND THE GUARDS WHO WERE THEIR ENEMIES.

OBVIOUSLY, THERE WAS FRICTION, THESE WERE THE INDIVIDUALS

THAT HAD BEEN ATTEMPTING TO KILL CROWN FORCES ANYWAY.

ALTHOUGH THIS WAS A HARSH PLACE TO SERVE TIME,

THE PRISONERS HAD SOME ADVANTAGES OVER THE GUARDS.

PRISONERS WERE ALLOWED THE RECEIVE FOOD PASSES

FROM HOME,

WHICH IN THE END THEN MEANT THEY WERE PROBABLY

EATING BETTER THAN

EATING BETTER THAN

THE BRITISH SOLDIERS THAT WERE GUARDING THEM.

Narrator: THE FAMOUS REVOLUTIONARIES WHO CAME THROUGH THIS PLACE

RAN RINGS AROUND THE BRITISH.

THERE WAS ONE PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT INDIVIDUAL HERE

WITH THE PRISONERS AND HIS REAL NAME WAS TOM MALONE,

HE MADE A NAME FOR HIMSELF ATTACKING

AND DESTROYING R.I.C. BARRACKS.

HE WAS FAIRLY NEAR THE TOP OF THE CROWN FORCE'S

MOST WANTED LIST, AND HE WAS ARRESTED AND CAUGHT

SAFELY ON CHRISTMAS MORNING, 1920.

SAFELY ON CHRISTMAS MORNING, 1920.

Narrator: MALONE WAS A COMMANDER IN THE REPUBLICAN ARMY.

HE WAS ONCE DESCRIBED AS IRELAND'S HOUDINI

WHEN HE ESCAPED THIS FORTRESS JAIL,

HELPED BY THE PRISON'S CATHOLIC CHAPLAIN.

HIS COMRADES HAD TO REMAIN INSIDE

UNTIL IRISH INDEPENDENCE IN 1921.

BUT MODERN CELL DOORS, LOCKS, AND PARTITIONS

SUGGEST SPIKE ISLAND'S ROLE AS A PRISON WASN'T YET OVER.

SUGGEST SPIKE ISLAND'S ROLE AS A PRISON WASN'T YET OVER.

IN 1985, THE FORT WAS AGAIN USED AS A PRISON,

BUT A CIVILIAN PRISON THIS TIME.

THERE HAD BEEN A SPATE OF INCREASED CRIME

AND SO SPIKE ISLAND WAS OPENED AGAIN

TO ABSORB SOME OF THESE EXTRA INMATES.

Narrator: THIS TIME, IT WAS THE IRISH THEMSELVES

WHO PUT THE PRISON FORT TO USE.

THIS AREA WAS CONVERTED INTO MODERN CELLS IN 1985.

THIS AREA WAS CONVERTED INTO MODERN CELLS IN 1985.

THERE WERE 25 FOUR-MAN CELLS IN TOTAL

AND BACK THEN, GAVE THE CIVIL PRISON A CAPACITY OF 102.

Narrator: OTHER BLOCKS WERE LESS WELL SECURED.

THE PLAN WAS TO SEND FAIRLY LOW RISK INMATES TO SPIKE ISLAND,

AND IF THAT HAD BEEN FOLLOWED THROUGH,

THERE WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN A PROBLEM.

O'Neill: BUT WHEN PRISON GOVERNORS GOT THE OPPORTUNITY

TO GET RID OF SOME PRISONERS, WELL, NATURALLY ENOUGH,

THEY GOT RID OF THEIR TROUBLEMAKERS

IF THEY POSSIBLY COULD.

IF THEY POSSIBLY COULD.

A LOT OF VERY HIGH RISK INMATES ARRIVE,

AND THIS PLACE SIMPLY ISN'T DESIGNED TO HOLD THEM.

Narrator: DAMAGE FOUND AT ONE PART OF THE MAKESHIFT JAIL

POINTS TO THE CONSEQUENCES.

Auerbach: AS YOU LOOK CLOSER AND YOU SEE THE DAMAGE,

YOU SEE THE FIRE DAMAGE, THE CHARRED WINDOWS,

YOU REALIZE THAT THERE WAS SOME FINAL DRAMATIC EVENT

THAT WAS THE LAST CHAPTER OF THIS SITE.

THIS WAS ONE OF THE DORMITORIES WHERE PRISONERS

WERE HELD IN 1985.

WERE HELD IN 1985.

ON THE NIGHT OF THE 31st OF AUGUST,

JUST BEFORE MIDNIGHT, THE RIOT STARTED,

THE PRISONERS SIMPLY BROKE UP THE WOODEN FLOOR

AND SET FIRE TO IT.

AND WHEN THE FIRE WAS ON,

THEY SIMPLY KICKED DOWN THE WOODEN DOORS AND ESCAPED.

Selwood: THEY EVEN MANAGED TO GET AS FAR AS THE PIER,

BUT THEY COULDN'T GET ANY FURTHER,

AND THAT'S WHY YOU BUILD A PRISON ON AN ISLAND.

Auerbach: THEY CAN'T GET OFF,

SO THEY DECIDE TO DO THE NEXT BEST THING,

SO THEY DECIDE TO DO THE NEXT BEST THING,

THEY DECIDE TO BREAK THAT INTO THE PRISON

AND DESTROY ALL THE RECORDS THERE.

Narrator: BUT THE FULLY BASTIONED BRITISH-BUILT FORT

ISN'T THAT EASY TO BREAK INTO.

THE PRISONERS HAD TO USE AN EXCAVATOR

TO BREAK DOWN THE DOORS.

TOM O'NEILL WAS A GUARD HERE AT THE TIME.

HE WITNESSED THE CHAOS THAT ENSUED.

O'NEILL: THE RIOT WAS JUST A SIMPLE WANTON DESTRUCTION.

O'NEILL: THE RIOT WAS JUST A SIMPLE WANTON DESTRUCTION.

PHOTOCOPIERS TURNED UPSIDE DOWN AND SMACKED OFF THE GROUND.

TINS OF PAINT OPENED AND SCATTERED ALL OVER,

IT WAS JUST THE WANTON DESTRUCTION OF IT REALLY.

Narrator: THE RIOT WAS EVENTUALLY CONTAINED.

SPIKE ISLAND WAS USED AS A PRISON FOR ANOTHER 20 YEARS.

THE PRISON WAS REMODELED AND MADE MUCH MORE SECURE.

THEY'D LEARNED THEIR LESSON.

O'NEILL: EVENTUALLY IT CLOSED FULLY IN 2004,

PRIMARILY BECAUSE OF THE COST OF KEEPING PRISONERS HERE.

PRIMARILY BECAUSE OF THE COST OF KEEPING PRISONERS HERE.

*

HAVING SPENT NEARLY 200 YEARS OFF LIMITS TO CIVILIANS,

SPIKE ISLAND IS NOW OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

THIS YEAR, NOW WE'LL BE TOUCHING ON 80,000 VISITORS.

IT IS NOW A HERITAGE SITE.

THE ISLAND IS ALSO A NATIONAL MONUMENT.

IT'S COLORFUL HISTORY PRESERVED FOR GENERATIONS TO COME.

IN MORE RECENT TIMES,

PEOPLE HAVE REFERRED TO THIS SITE AS IRELAND'S ALCATRAZ,

PEOPLE HAVE REFERRED TO THIS SITE AS IRELAND'S ALCATRAZ,

BUT ACTUALLY THERE'S CLEARLY A LOT MORE TO THIS PLACE THAN

JUST A PRISON.

*

BUT WHAT WE REALLY HAVE HERE

IS A PLACE THAT PROVIDES SNAPSHOTS OF IRELAND'S HISTORY

AT CRUCIAL MOMENTS

AND THE CONFLICT THAT COULD CHARACTERIZE THAT HISTORY

AND THE VIOLENCE THAT WAS THERE AS WELL.

Narrator: IN SPAIN, THE REMAINS OF A HILLTOP GHOST TOWN

Narrator: IN SPAIN, THE REMAINS OF A HILLTOP GHOST TOWN

REVEAL THAT THIS SITE IS STEEPED IN RELIGION.

*

Wawro: THIS PLACE HAS BEEN INHABITED FOR CENTURIES,

AT LEAST SINCE THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR IN THE MIDDLE AGES.

Nusbacher: THESE LITTLE TOWNS IN THE SPANISH HILLS

WERE ALWAYS ON THE VERY EDGE OF SURVIVAL.

Narrator: THE MOST PROMINENT BUILDING IS THE CHURCH.

IT WAS CLEARLY THE CENTER OF THIS COMMUNITY.

IT WAS CLEARLY THE CENTER OF THIS COMMUNITY.

BUT AS YOU GET A LITTLE CLOSER, YOU CAN SEE IT'S IN RUINS.

Nusbacher: THIS IS A PLACE THAT HAS BEEN TORN TO PIECES AND HERE,

WE'VE GOT BUILDINGS THAT LOOK LIKE THEY'VE BEEN

SCORCHED AND CRUMBLED.

A LOT OF THESE STRUCTURES HAVE BEEN LEVELED BY ARTILLERY.

WE SEE THE STONEWORK POCKMARKED WITH SHELL FRAGMENTS,

BULLET HOLES, THAT SORT OF THING.

Narrator: SOME TRACES HINT AT WHO WAS AT WAR IN THIS PLACE.

Narrator: SOME TRACES HINT AT WHO WAS AT WAR IN THIS PLACE.

Wawro: WE SEE A LOT OF GRAFFITI,

WHICH ITSELF HAS SOME REAL SIGNIFICANCE

IN SOLVING THIS MYSTERY.

THEN IF WE POKE AROUND A LITTLE MORE,

WE COME ACROSS THIS PLAQUE TO ROBERT HALE MERRIMAN.

Nusbacher: THAT DOES NOT SOUND SPANISH, AND WHEN I READ FURTHER

AND I SEE THE NAME, ABRAHAM LINCOLN,

I KNOW THAT AMERICANS HAVE DONE SOMETHING SIGNIFICANT HERE.

I KNOW THAT AMERICANS HAVE DONE SOMETHING SIGNIFICANT HERE.

Narrator: A BAND OF FREEDOM FIGHTERS ONCE CAME TO THIS DESOLATE SITE

AND LEFT THEIR IDEALISM SMASHED IN THESE RUINS.

*

Narrator: THIS TOWN IS CORBERA D'EBRE.

TODAY, THERE'S LITTLE LEFT OF THE THRIVING COMMUNITY

WHERE JOAN MONTAñA'S FATHER WAS BORN IN THE 1920s.

[ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: WE ARE IN ONE OF THE MAIN STREETS OF THE OLD TOWN.

Translator: WE ARE IN ONE OF THE MAIN STREETS OF THE OLD TOWN.

YOU HAVE TO IMAGINE, IT WAS ALL HOUSES HERE.

YOU CAN EVEN SEE THE REMAINS OF THE ORIGINAL COBBLED STREET.

AND THESE ARE THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE HOUSE

WHERE MY FATHER WAS BORN.

Narrator: BACK THEN, THE RESIDENTS OF CORBERA

LIVED AS THEY HAD DONE FOR CENTURIES --

THE CHURCH AND THE LANDOWNERS HELD ALL THE POWER.

[ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THE MAIN CHURCH WAS BUILT HERE BACK IN THE 13th CENTURY.

Translator: THE MAIN CHURCH WAS BUILT HERE BACK IN THE 13th CENTURY.

AND THE NERVE CENTER OF THIS RURAL COMMUNITY

WAS THE CHURCH SQUARE.

ONCE UPON A TIME, THIS LITTLE SPANISH VILLAGE MIGHT HAVE BEEN

FILLED WITH POOR PEOPLE, BUT THEY WERE POOR PEOPLE

WHO WERE STRONG IN THEIR CHRISTIAN FAITH

AND THEY UNDERSTOOD THEMSELVES AS SUBJECTS

OF A CATHOLIC MONARCHY.

Narrator: YET, THE DAMAGED ROT ON THIS CHURCH

Narrator: YET, THE DAMAGED ROT ON THIS CHURCH

SUGGESTS SOMETHING CHANGED.

IN 1931,

A NEW LEFT WING GOVERNMENT SOUGHT TO WREST CONTROL

FROM THE CATHOLIC LANDOWNERS WHO RULED SPAIN,

BUT IT FACED STRONG OPPOSITION.

THERE WAS AN EXTREME RIGHT WING MILITARY CLIQUE,

WHO FELT THAT THEY HAD A CHANCE TO SAVE SPAIN.

YOU HAVE SENIOR ARMY OFFICERS,

YOU HAVE SENIOR ARMY OFFICERS,

YOU'VE GOT SOME VERY WEALTHY PEOPLE,

AND YOU'VE GOT THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

AND THAT IS THE NATIONALIST PARTY.

Narrator: IN 1936, LED BY THE FASCIST GENERAL FRANCISCO FRANCO,

THE NATIONALISTS STAGED A COUP AND A BITTER

CIVIL WAR BREAKS OUT.

THE RUBBLE OF CORBERA REVEALS

THE RUBBLE OF CORBERA REVEALS

HOW THE CONFLICT SOON REACHED THE TOWN.

[ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: HERE WE CAN MAKE OUT THE TRACES OF A SERIES OF HISTORICAL MARKS.

THIS GRAFFITI FROM THE TIME READS, "SEIZED C.N.T."

THE C.N.T., IT'S THE SPANISH ACRONYM

FOR THE NATIONAL LABOR CONFEDERATION.

WHAT THAT MEANT IN THAT PLACE IN THAT TIME

WHAT THAT MEANT IN THAT PLACE IN THAT TIME

WAS THAT THESE GUYS WERE ANARCHISTS.

Narrator: THE ANARCHISTS HAD TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THE CONFLICT.

ONE ARMED FACTION SWEPT INTO CORBERA.

Nusbacher: WHEN THE C.N.T. ANARCHISTS OCCUPIED THIS VILLAGE,

THEY SAW THE VILLAGE PRIEST AS PART OF THE NATIONALISTS,

THE FASCISTS, THE ENEMY.

AND SO, THEY DID THEM IN.

Narrator: THE ANARCHISTS KILLED CORBERA'S PRIEST AND HIS ASSISTANTS.

BUT WHEN THEY LEFT, THE TOWN ITSELF WAS STILL STANDING.

MEANWHILE, THE REST OF SPAIN WAS SWEPT UP IN THE UNEVEN FIGHT

BETWEEN THE FASCIST NATIONALISTS AND THE LEFT WING REPUBLICANS.

Wawro: THE REPUBLICANS, THE GOVERNMENT SIDE OF THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR,

HAVE TO FIGHT THROUGHOUT WITH ONE HAND TIED BEHIND THEIR BACK.

THEY HAVE NO AMERICAN AID, NO BRITISH AID,

AGAINST THIS BIG ORGANIZED NATIONALIST ARMY,

AGAINST THIS BIG ORGANIZED NATIONALIST ARMY,

COMPLETELY FUNDED AND SUPPLIED BY FASCIST ITALY

AND NAZI GERMANY.

Narrator: IN THE 1930s, THERE WERE PLENTY OF YOUNG IDEALISTS

WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY.

2,800 AMERICANS VOLUNTEERED

TO FIGHT ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE IN THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR,

AND THEY CAME TO BE KNOWN AS THE LINCOLN BRIGADE.

Meigs: SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT WRITERS

AND THINKERS OF THE DAY WANTED TO GO SIGN UP TO FIGHT.

AND THINKERS OF THE DAY WANTED TO GO SIGN UP TO FIGHT.

ERNEST HEMINGWAY COVERED THE WAR AS A NEWSPAPER CORRESPONDENT

AND GEORGE ORWELL SPENT TIME FIGHTING WITH THE REPUBLICANS.

Narrator: THE CAUSE ATTRACTED LESSER KNOWN FREEDOM FIGHTERS, TOO.

Wawro: ROBERT HALE MERRIMAN,

THE COMMANDER OF THE LINCOLN BRIGADE,

HE GIVES UP HIS STUDIES TO GO OVER

AND LEAD THIS BRIGADE IN THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR.

Narrator: SO, WHAT HAPPENED ON THE ANCIENT STREETS OF CORBERA

Narrator: SO, WHAT HAPPENED ON THE ANCIENT STREETS OF CORBERA

TO STOP THESE YOUNG IDEALISTS IN THEIR TRACKS?

*

Narrator: BY THE START OF 1938,

THE HILLTOP TOWN OF CORBERA HAD SO FAR ESCAPED

THE CARNAGE OF SPAIN'S VISCOUS CIVIL WAR.

BUT POCKMARKED HOUSES AND SWATHES OF DERELICT GROUND

SUGGEST THAT WOULD SOON CHANGE.

CORBERA'S PROXIMITY TO THE EBRO RIVER

MEANT THE CONFLICT WAS FAST APPROACHING.

MEANT THE CONFLICT WAS FAST APPROACHING.

Wawro: IF THE NATIONALISTS CAN TAKE THE EBRO RIVER AND PUSH TO THE SEA,

THEY'RE THEN GOING TO DRIVE A WEDGE

BETWEEN THE REPUBLICAN STRONGHOLD,

SO IT'S VITAL FOR THE NATIONALISTS TO WIN THERE,

AND IT'S VITAL FOR THE REPUBLICANS TO HOLD THERE.

Narrator: ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF CORBERA, U.S. FREEDOM FIGHTER,

ROBERT MERRIMAN AND THE EXHAUSTED LINCOLN BRIGADE

DUG IN WITH THE REPUBLICANS.

Montaña: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: BY MARCH, 1938, WE KNOW SOLDIERS WERE CAMPED HERE

Translator: BY MARCH, 1938, WE KNOW SOLDIERS WERE CAMPED HERE

VERY CLOSE TO CORBERA.

THESE SOLDIERS WERE MEMBERS OF THE INTERNATIONAL BRIGADE,

AND THEY WERE SUFFERING A LOT.

THEY WERE BEING DEFEATED,

AND THEY'D COME TO THE VICINITY OF CORBERA TO REGROUP.

Narrator: MERRIMAN BELIEVED IF HE COULD JUST REACH

THE REPUBLICAN HELD TOWN, HE AND HIS MEN WOULD BE SAFE.

THE REPUBLICAN HELD TOWN, HE AND HIS MEN WOULD BE SAFE.

BUT UNBEKNOWN TO HIM,

THE FASCIST NATIONALISTS HAD SEIZED CORBERA.

MERRIMAN WAS NOW TRAPPED BEHIND ENEMY LINES.

AND IN APRIL, 1938, JUST OUTSIDE CORBERA,

HE UNWITTINGLY WALKED INTO A NATIONALIST CAMP.

Nusbacher: AND MERRIMAN AND HIS SECOND IN COMMAND

ARE CAPTURED BY THEIR ENEMIES, AND SO FAR AS WE CAN TELL,

THEY WERE PROBABLY PUT UP AGAINST A WALL AND SHOT

RIGHT THERE ON THE SPOT.

RIGHT THERE ON THE SPOT.

Narrator: THE REPUBLICANS FOUGHT ON,

EVENTUALLY THEY RECAPTURED CORBERA,

BUT THIS BARE HILL ONCE COVERED IN HOUSES,

TOOK THE BRUNT OF THE FASCIST REVENGE.

Montaña: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THE VERY DAY THE REPUBLICANS RECONQUERED CORBERA,

THE BOMBING STARTED AND CONTINUED ALMOST DAILY.

MUSSOLINI SENDS TROOPS TO AID THE NATIONALISTS

LED BY GENERAL FRANCO.

THE GERMANS SEND THE CONDOR LEGION,

THIS ADVANCED AIR FORCE.

THIS ADVANCED AIR FORCE.

FRANCO SAYS, "I'M GOING TO DESTROY THE REPUBLICANS

IN A BATTLE OF ATTRITION, AND THAT BATTLE IS FOCUSED

ON THIS VILLAGE OF CORBERA."

Montaña: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THIS PLACE WAS PROTECTED FROM ARTILLERY FIRE,

SO SOME SOLDIERS MADE MAKESHIFT SHELTERS HERE.

THEY DUG IN AND TOOK ADVANTAGE OF THE HOUSE WALL.

AND AFTER THE BOMBING STOPPED, THE STRAFING STARTED.

WE CAN STILL SEE THE IMPACT ON THIS WALL.

WE CAN STILL SEE THE IMPACT ON THIS WALL.

Narrator: WHEN THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER EBRO FINALLY ENDED,

MOST OF CORBERA HAD BEEN DESTROYED.

Montaña: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THEY CALL CORBERA THE ETERNAL FLAME.

NAILS AND OTHER METALLIC THINGS ARE MELTED AND FOSSILIZED HERE.

WE CAN EVEN SEE THE KEY

THAT WAS USED TO OPEN A TIN OF SARDINES.

Wawro: JUST A GLANCE AT THE VILLAGE OF CORBERA

Wawro: JUST A GLANCE AT THE VILLAGE OF CORBERA

AND THE DESTRUCTION THERE,

IT POINTS AGAIN TO THE SAVAGERY OF THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR.

Narrator: GENERAL FRANCO'S NATIONALIST PARTY

TOOK CONTROL OF SPAIN IN 1939,

AND RAN IT AS A DICTATORSHIP FOR ALMOST 40 YEARS.

WHEN SPAIN WAS AGAIN PEACEFUL BUT A DICTATORSHIP,

VILLAGERS CAME BACK

AND THE PLACE HAD BEEN POUNDED TO SMITHEREENS.

THEY REBUILT THEIR VILLAGE DOWN BY THE ROAD.

TODAY, CORBERA REMEMBERS

THOSE WHO FOUGHT TO THE DEATH FOR A BETTER WORLD.

Nusbacher: THEY CAME TO STOP THE KIND OF FASCISM

THAT WAS GOING TO BE THE RUIN OF EUROPE IN THE YEARS TO COME.

THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO WERE KILLING NAZIS

AT A TIME WHEN GOVERNMENTS WEREN'T READY FOR THAT YET.

AT A TIME WHEN GOVERNMENTS WEREN'T READY FOR THAT YET.

THE FIRST PEOPLE TO DO THAT

ARE THESE IDEALISTIC VOLUNTEERS IN SPAIN.

MANY HISTORIANS HAVE ARGUED THAT HAD THE WESTERN

DEMOCRACIES INTERVENED MORE

FORCEFULLY ON THE SIDE OF THE REPUBLIC,

FRANCO WOULD HAVE BEEN DEFEATED.

SPAIN WOULD HAVE REMAINED A REPUBLIC,

WOULD HAVE REMAINED PART OF THE WESTERN DEMOCRACIES.

INSTEAD, THEY FALL INTO THIS NATIONALIST FASCIST

REGIME OF FRANCO UNTIL THE 19 SEVENTIES,

Narrator: NEAR THE BORDER BETWEEN GERMANY AND FRANCE

IN THE LONG DISPUTED REGION OF ALSACE

LIES A MYSTERIOUS COMPLEX, WITH AN EXPLOSIVE PAST.

*

Wawro: THERE'S A BIG CENTRAL BUILDING

WHERE ALL THE GLASS HAS BEEN SHATTERED,

BLOWN OUT. SOMETHING VIOLENT HAPPENED HERE.

BLOWN OUT. SOMETHING VIOLENT HAPPENED HERE.

Barratt: WHEN YOU LOOK UP, YOU'VE GOT THESE CRAZY STRUCTURES

JUST PERCHED HIGH UP THERE ABOVE,

LOOKING DOWN ON EVERYTHING.

Narrator: WHATEVER'S BEING MADE HERE,

SOMEONE WENT TO GREAT EFFORTS TO MOVE IT OUT OF THIS PLACE.

Bell: IT HAS A TRAIN LINE RUNNING THROUGH

THAT'S COMPLETELY OVERGROWN.

IT'S CLEARLY NOT BEEN USED IN DECADES.

AND THERE ON THE TRACKS IS A TRAIN THAT'S JUST BEEN LEFT.

Narrator: THIS INCONGRUOUS COLLECTION OF DERELICT BUILDINGS

Narrator: THIS INCONGRUOUS COLLECTION OF DERELICT BUILDINGS

SEEMS TO MAKE LITTLE SENSE.

Barratt: THERE'S SOMETHING HERE THAT PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO KILL OVER.

IT'S THAT PRECIOUS AND THAT ESSENTIAL.

Narrator: IT'S A MIS-SHAPEN FACTORY

BUILT TO PRODUCE SOMETHING IMPORTANT, BUT WHAT?

*

Narrator: AN INDUSTRIAL SITE IN FRANCE IS A PERPLEXING VISION --

A WAREHOUSE WITHOUT WALLS, A SHED TEETERING ON STILTS,

AND A TRAIN TRACK GOING NOWHERE.

THE FIRST CLUE TO WHAT'S GOING ON HERE

LIES HALF A MILE UNDERGROUND.

THEY WERE DIGGING FOR SOME VALUABLE COMMODITY HERE,

THEY WERE DIGGING FOR SOME VALUABLE COMMODITY HERE,

BUT IT WASN'T GOLD, IT WASN'T DIAMONDS, IT WASN'T SILVER.

Narrator: THIS SPRAWLING PLANT IS CARREAU RODOLPHE.

IT WAS BUILT TO EXTRACT A PRECIOUS MINERAL

FROM DEEP UNDERGROUND.

JEAN MISIANO ONCE WORKED HERE.

Misiano: [ SPEAKING FRENCH ]

Translator: I SPENT 30 YEARS WORKING FOR THIS ENTERPRISE

WHILE WORKING CONDITIONS WERE INCREDIBLY TOUGH.

THIS IS THE ELEVATOR THAT CARRIED

THE MINERS BOTH UP AND DOWN.

WE WERE AT THE TOP OF THE RODOLPHE 1 SHAFT,

WHICH WENT DOWN 750 METERS.

Bell: IT WAS NASTY WORK DOWN IN THE MINES.

IT WAS HOT AND CRAMPED, AND IF YOU HIT A POCKET OF GAS,

IT COULD TRIGGER A DEADLY EXPLOSION.

Misiano: [SPEAKING FRENCH ]

Translator: IT'S VERY DANGEROUS HERE

AND EXPENSIVE TRYING TO GET THIS MINERAL OUT.

Narrator: MORE THAN 600 PEOPLE LOST THEIR LIVES AT THIS SITE

DURING A CENTURY OF OPERATION.

DURING A CENTURY OF OPERATION.

WHAT PRECIOUS MINERAL WAS WORTH THIS LEVEL OF RISK?

Misiano: [ SPEAKING FRENCH ]

Translator: CARREAU RODOLPHE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 20th CENTURY

WAS A STRATEGIC PLACE FOR THE PRODUCTION

OF A MINERAL CALLED POTASH.

POTASH IS ONE OF THE BEST FERTILIZERS GOING,

AND CARREAU RODOLPHE WAS SITTING ON TOP OF THE MOTHER LOAD.

Narrator: THE FIRST MINE OPENED HERE IN 1913,

Narrator: THE FIRST MINE OPENED HERE IN 1913,

TO EXTRACT THE MINERAL THE WHOLE WORLD WANTED.

AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 20th CENTURY,

YOU HAVE A BIG EXPLOSION IN POPULATION.

WE NEED TO VERY QUICKLY GROW MORE CROPS AND BETTER CROPS,

AND FOR THAT YOU NEED FERTILIZER.

AND A MAJOR PART OF FERTILIZER IS POTASSIUM.

AND HERE, THE POTASH BURIED UNDERGROUND

CONTAINS THAT MAGIC INGREDIENT.

Narrator: THIS SITE LIES IN ALSACE,

A REGION THAT FRANCE AND GERMANY HAD LONG FOUGHT OVER.

A REGION THAT FRANCE AND GERMANY HAD LONG FOUGHT OVER.

THE OPENING OF THIS PLACE MADE IT EVEN MORE DESIRABLE.

CARREAU RODOLPHE WAS ONE OF THE ONLY POTASH MINES

IN THE WORLD OUTSIDE OF GERMANY,

BUT THAT PUT A HUGE TARGET ON ITS BACK.

WHEN WORLD WAR I BREAKS OUT IN AUGUST 1914,

IN THAT INITIAL GERMAN RUSH INTO FRANCE,

THEY OVERRUN THE CARREAU RODOLPHE,

AND THEY TAKE THIS MOTHER LOAD OF POTASH.

AND THEY TAKE THIS MOTHER LOAD OF POTASH.

EVEN MORE WORRYING IS THAT POTASH IS A KEY INGREDIENT

IN GUNPOWDER.

Narrator: THIS OVERGROWN RAILROAD

ONCE HEADED TOWARD THE BATTLE TRENCHES OF WORLD WAR I,

AND IT WASN'T ONLY CARRYING THE INGREDIENTS FOR GUNPOWDER.

INTELLIGENCE REPORTS SUGGESTED THAT AMMUNITION WAS SEEN

LEAVING THIS INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX.

Misiano: [SPEAKING FRENCH ]

Translator: FROM 1914 TO 1915,

THE GERMANS INSTALLED A NARROW GAUGE RAILWAY

STARTING HERE AT CARREAU RODOLPHE.

STARTING HERE AT CARREAU RODOLPHE.

THE MUNITIONS WERE TRANSPORTED TO THE FRONT BY TRAIN.

Narrator: NOW THAT IT WAS KEY TO THE GERMAN WAR EFFORT,

BOTH THE BRITISH AND MANY FRENCH LOCALS

WANTED TO DESTROY THIS PLACE.

SO WHO GOT HERE FIRST?

Wawro: NEW YEAR'S EVE, THE LAST DAY OF 1915,

THIS WHOLE POTASH FACILITY IS JUST RIPPED APART

BY A TREMENDOUS EXPLOSION.

Narrator: THE ENTIRE COMPLEX WAS REDUCED TO RUBBLE.

THE MUNITIONS SECRETLY STORED AT THE FACTORY

ONLY ADDED TO THE BLAST.

IT SHOOK HOUSES AND RATTLED WINDOWS

20 MILES AWAY FROM THE SITE.

BUT THE MYSTERY PERSISTS, WHO DID IT?

Bell: IT WOULD MAKE SENSE IF IT WAS

AN ALLIED AERIAL BOMBING ATTACK ON THE MINE,

BUT IF YOU ASK THE LOCALS, THEY DIDN'T BELIEVE IT.

BUT IF YOU ASK THE LOCALS, THEY DIDN'T BELIEVE IT.

Misiano: [ SPEAKING FRENCH ]

Translator: ATTACKING ON THE 31st OF DECEMBER IS SYMBOLIC,

SINCE IT'S NEW YEAR'S EVE AND EVERYBODY CELEBRATES THEN.

SO THEY MIGHT HAVE CELEBRATED THIS VICTORY, TOO.

Barratt: IT'S AN INTERESTING DATE TO HAVE AN INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT.

YOU'D NORMALLY EXPECT THAT TO HAPPEN

WHEN EVERYTHING WAS IN FULL FLOW.

WE'LL NEVER KNOW.

Narrator: WHATEVER CAUSED IT, THE BLAST MEANT THE MINE WAS OUT OF ACTION

UNTIL LONG AFTER THE FIRST WORLD WAR ENDED.

UNTIL LONG AFTER THE FIRST WORLD WAR ENDED.

BY WHICH TIME, CARREAU RODOLPHE WAS BACK UNDER FRENCH CONTROL.

Barratt: IT DIDN'T ACTUALLY OPEN AGAIN UNTIL 1929.

BUT THEN, IT WAS INTO FULL FLOW

BECAUSE THE WORLD STILL NEEDED POTASH.

Narrator: THE CRAZED COLLECTION OF STRUCTURES

THAT LITTER THIS PLACE

WERE ALL BUILT TO SUPPLY THIS PRESSING NEED.

Barratt: THE THING THAT FASCINATES ME MOST ABOUT THIS SITE,

IS OF COURSE, THE HEADSTOCKS,

THESE HUGE SHEDS THAT YOU SEE UP IN THE SKY.

THESE HUGE SHEDS THAT YOU SEE UP IN THE SKY.

THE MINE RELIED ON LIFTING HUNDREDS OF TONS OF RUBBLE

OUT OF THE GROUND.

IT WAS BROUGHT TO THE SURFACE ON A CABLE SYSTEM,

WHICH RAN THROUGH ENORMOUS PULLEY WHEELS

ATTACHED TO THE STRUCTURES.

POT ASH HERE IS LOCATED BETWEEN 500 AND 2,000 METERS DEEP,

SO YOU NEED TO DIG DEEP VERTICAL SHAFTS TO GO DOWN

AND EXTRACT THE ORE.

Narrator: OVER THE COMING DECADES,

500 MILLION TONS OF POTASH WERE MINED HERE.

500 MILLION TONS OF POTASH WERE MINED HERE.

BUT AS THEY DUG DEEPER, THE COST OF EXTRACTION GREW.

EVENTUALLY, IN 2003, THE LAST MINESHAFT HERE CLOSED.

*

TODAY, THE DORMANT MINE STANDS EMPTY.

IT MAY HAVE SEEN OUT TWO WORLD WARS,

BUT THE HULK OF THE MACHINERY AND WHAT'S LEFT BEHIND

BUT THE HULK OF THE MACHINERY AND WHAT'S LEFT BEHIND

TELLS THE STORY OF THE ACTUAL PEOPLE THAT WORKED HERE.

*

Misiano: [ SPEAKING FRENCH ]

Translator: ME, I'VE LIVED HERE FOR 30 YEARS,

AN EXTRAORDINARY EXPERIENCE.

AND THIS STORY, THIS MINING ADVENTURE,

WHICH IS NOT ONLY A TECHNICAL,

INDUSTRIAL, AND ECONOMICAL ONE,

BUT ALSO A HUMAN AND CULTURAL ADVENTURE.

I'M ONLY AN ACTOR, A GUARDIAN PASSING BY WHO WANTS TO PASS

THIS HERITAGE ONTO THE NEXT GENERATION.