Original subtitles

(wind blowing)

(upbeat music)

- Our journey begins in the exclusive

seaside town of Biarritz,

a meeting place for European aristocracy

and modern celebrities.

Heading into the mountains,

we follow in the footsteps of pilgrims

to reach the extraordinary city of Lourdes,

one of the holiest places in Catholicism.

Entering the Midi-Pyrenees region,

we find an area with its own unique culture,

customs, and traditions.

Where the mysterious medieval religious group,

the Cathars sheltered

from the Catholic Crusade against them.

(light music)

Moving higher into the mountains,

we reach the Odeilo Solar Complex,

built to research energy from the sun.

(light music)

Finally, we reach the Mediterranean

and the extraordinary Fort de Salses,

a once vital strategic base

built by the greatest military engineer of his age.

(seagulls chirping)

On the Bay of Biscay,

on the Atlantic coast of the Pyrenees,

is the seaside town of Biarritz.

Today, this is a holiday destination,

but it began life as a whaling port.

Its sloping beaches allowed Basque whalers

to float their catches onto land

before slicing and selling them for food and oil.

(gentle music)

It didn't become popular with tourists

until Napoleon III visited in the 19th century

with his Spanish wife, Empress Eugenie.

They built many of Biarritz's landmarks

including this, the Hotel du Palais.

Since then, this town has played host to many celebrities,

from Queen Victoria to Frank Sinatra.

(gentle music)

Built in 1834, Biarritz's white-washed lighthouse

is over 73 meters tall.

It's still the town's highest point.

It marks the boundary between the sandy beaches of Landes

and the rocky shores of the Basque country.

For energetic visitors willing to brave its 258 steps,

the lighthouse offers sweeping views of the coast.

Nearby, the famous Roche Ronde is a local landmark.

(gentle music)

No matter how tempting it might be for swimmers,

climbing the Roche Ronde even in calmer waters than this

is strictly forbidden.

It's been designated a marine bird sanctuary.

(gentle music)

This is the Rocher de la Vierge,

the Rock of the Virgin.

(gentle music)

From here, visitors get panoramic views across the bay

to the Spanish Pyrenees.

On the top of the rock is a statue of the Virgin Mary.

This was placed by whalers

who said they were saved from being shipwrecked

by a miraculous dazzling light that shone from the rock.

(gentle music)

The bridge that spans from the shoreline

is said to been engineered by Gustave Eiffel.

(gentle music)

Continuing along the coastline,

we find the rolling waves that are the key

to this area's most recent success, surfing.

Biarritz is the birthplace of the sport.

This all started when a famous Californian surfer

visited in 1956 and was astonished

by the quality of the waves.

The swell is due to the funnel shape of the Bay of Biscay,

this channels the breakers rolling in from the Atlantic

to lift the boards of eager surfers.

We head inland now

and discover the green foothills of the Pyrenees.

(light piano music)

And in these foothills reside one of the regions

most ominous inhabitants.

The griffon vulture.

(vultures screeching)

These magnificent birds,

with a wingspan of up to three meters,

have lived in the area for millennia.

But recent years have seen a threat to their populations

and popularity.

In a grizzly incident in 2013,

the vultures attacked the body of a hiker

who'd fallen to her death in a ravine.

They have since been dubbed the devil bird.

(vultures screeching)

But nearby salvation is at hand in the town of Lourdes.

This is one of the most important sites

in the Catholic faith.

(ethereal music)

Each year, more than five million pilgrims

arrive from around the world to offer prayers

and drink Lourdes holy water,

said to have magical powers of healing.

The town is in a valley overlooked by three peaks.

This one, with its three crosses is the Petit Jer.

(ethereal music)

Until the 19th century,

Lourdes was an ordinary market town.

But in 1858, Bernadette Soubirous,

a 14 year old village girl,

began to see apparitions of the Virgin Mary

in a nearby cave.

(ethereal music)

During one of them, an underground spring

with healing powers was revealed.

It's on this site that the Sanctuary of Our Lady is built,

and it's to here that all pilgrims head on their journey.

(ethereal music)

Today, the Sanctuary holds 22 places of worship

and occupies 52 hectares of land.

It also provides accommodation for sick pilgrims

and their carers.

(plane roaring)

Many of whom land here at the Tarbes Asson Lourdes Airport.

(plane roaring)

Although only a small regional airfield,

it has a runway long enough to handle most modern aircraft,

including international passenger jets

like the Boeing 747.

It has a single terminal through which passes each year

over 400 thousand passengers and pilgrims.

(gentle music)

We continue now on our own pilgrimage into the mountains,

reaching the medieval village of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges

and at its focal point, the Cathedral of the Pyrenees.

(gentle music)

This imposing building was begun in the 11th century

by Bertrand, a local knight who fought in the Crusades.

Returning home, he took holy orders

and began work on its construction.

After his death, he was proclaimed a Saint.

Oddly, the Cathedral contains a stuffed crocodile.

Legend has it that Saint Bertrand killed the animal

with the power of his prayers.

It's believed now to have been brought back from Egypt

by a knight or pilgrim.

Today, it hangs on a wall warding off evil spirits.

Our journey continues higher into the Pyrenees

and close to the border with Spain.

Older than the Alps, these mountains stretch between

the Atlantic and the Mediterranean,

creating a natural border between France and Spain.

(triumphant music)

Yet the people of these mountains

long held their own customs and spoke their own languages.

Catalan, Basque, Occitan, and Aragonese.

As modern Europe took shape in the Middle Ages,

many of these people were persecuted

and their cultures driven underground.

This was a battlefront for France and Spain

as they vied for power.

(triumphant music)

It was not until the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1692

that the border was finally settled.

We now approach the magnificent town of Foix.

Throughout the Middle Ages,

this was an important regional capital.

Built on the Ariege River, Foix often had to defend itself.

And today, it's still dominated by its Medieval Castle,

which sits high over the town on a rocky spur.

Built in the beginning of the 11th century,

the fortress has vast 30 meter towers,

giving panoramic views to visitors.

It was here that the Cathars,

an 11th century Christian group,

sought refuge during the Crusade

of the Catholic Church against them.

The leader of the Crusaders, Simon de Montfort,

besieged this castle, saying,

I shall melt the rock like fat and grill its master in it.

But there was an old saying about Foix.

The castle is so strong, it can defend itself without men.

(gentle music)

(crows cawing)

We now head deeper into the Pyrenees,

towards a military fort from the 17th century,

which is still active.

(intense music)

The Citadel of Mont-Louis.

At 1600 meters above sea level,

this is the highest fortified town in France.

It was built in the 17th century by Vauban,

the most brilliant military engineer of his day.

King Louis XIV had ordered its construction

to protect France's new borders after the 1692 Treaty.

Its thick, fortified walls and dry moat

create a star shape to defend in all directions.

It's considered a triumph of military engineering.

Throughout its history, Mont-Louis has remained

in active service and it's still home to the French Army.

(intense music)

Here, commanders make modern use

of this 17th century building.

We follow one of them as he trains on the assault course.

(intense music)

Leaving behind the military might of the Citadel,

we find another kind of power.

(gentle music)

This is the Odeillo Solar Complex,

built in 1969 to research energy from the sun.

The Pyrenean Mountains are amongst

the sunniest places on the planet,

making this the perfect place to test the potential

of new technologies.

The complex is made from 10,000 individual mirrors

covering an area of around 2,000 square meters.

(gentle music)

The mirrors are angled to reflect and focus sunlight

to this giant parabolic mirror

as tall as the Arc de Triomphe.

The sun's rays can heat an area the size of a football

to 3,500 degrees celsius,

about half the temperature of the Earth's core.

(gentle music)

The site is used to study the behavior

of materials at high temperatures.

Nearby, the Themis Power Station was designed

to harness the sun's energy to generate electricity.

(gentle music)

It has 201 separate mirrors called heliostats.

These could be pointed to reflect sunlight

towards a 105 meter high tower.

(gentle music)

Built in 1979, it is currently disused.

But there are plans to redevelop the site

as a center for solar research and development.

(gentle music)

We continue on our journey along the Pyrenees

as the landscape grows wilder.

And perched near the top of the highest peak in the area

is the extraordinary Château de Queribus.

(triumphant music)

Built in the 10th century,

Queribus is one of five castles

placed strategically to defend

the French border against Spain

and known as the Five Sons of Carcassonne.

When the border was moved in 1659, it fell into disrepair.

Here again, we find the footprints of the Cathars,

many of whom fled here.

And it's also known as one of their castles.

(triumphant music)

The Cathars believed in pacifism,

equality for women, and religious tolerance.

They were brutally suppressed by Pope Innocent III

in the Albigensian Crusade.

Lasting two generations, this holy campaign

is thought to have killed up to a million people.

At this castle in 1255, the Cathars made their last stand.

(triumphant music)

Nearby, we find the ruins

of another famous castle, Padern.

Built on top of a limestone outcrop,

this ancient fortification is first mentioned in 1026.

(triumphant music)

It was owned by a local nobleman

before passing into the hands of the Catholic Church,

and it remained with them until the end

of the 18th century.

(triumphant music)

Today, it's in ruins,

and unprotected, falls each year into further neglect.

This is the small village of Cucugnan.

(idyllic music)

It's considered one of the most beautiful

and picturesque in all of France.

Omer's Windmill dates back to 1692,

and in 2003, was restored to full working order.

(idyllic music)

Now it's possible to once again buy bread and cakes

at the village bakery next to the windmill

made from Omer's freshly ground flour.

(idyllic music)

Not far away is the Chateau de Peyrepertuse

another of the Five Sons of Carcassonne.

It was built in the 11th century

and as the largest and best maintained of them all,

it's called the Celestial Carcassonne.

(uplifting music)

The building is in four sections.

The lower courtyard, the old keep, the main courtyard,

and the newer Saint Jordi keep.

It's considered the most important

medieval military engineering in the Pyrenees.

Recent archeological digs have shown

that this site has been occupied since Roman times.

Today, up to a hundred thousand visitors come each year

to Peyrepertuse and take in its extraordinary views.

(uplifting music)

The castle also hosts displays of falconry

and each year, a two day medieval festival

complete with knights in armor.

We continue to another of the Five Sons of Carcassonne,

Termes Castle.

In 1201, it sheltered local Cathars

and was besieged by Simon de Montfort.

It held out for months until after a dry summer,

the castle ran out of water

and they indicated their surrender.

But that night, their water tanks were filled

by a heavy storm.

So when the Crusaders advanced to take control

of the castle, as planned,

the defenders drove them away beneath a hail of arrows.

(triumphant music)

We continue on to the beautiful village

of Villerouge-Termenes, which is dominated by its castle.

An irregular pentagon in shape,

it has round towers at four corners

and a hidden gate for escape on the fifth.

The castle belonged to the local bishops

until it was occupied by Simon de Montfort

and given to one of his Crusaders in 1210.

This was not one of the Cathar castles,

but it's here that the last known Cathar holy man,

Guillaume Belibaste, was burned alive for heresy.

Today, Chateau de Villerouge-Termenes is open to the public

and in the summer, hosts medieval banquets for visitors.

Nearby, we find grape pickers

working in the celebrated vineyards of Corbieres.

(peaceful music)

Many of these rows were first planted

by Benedictine monks in need of wine for Mass.

(peaceful music)

The Pyrenees has rich varied soils of clay and limestone

which give the wines here their unique flavor.

They are celebrated the world over.

And overlooking some of these vineyards

is the last of the Five Sons of Carcassonne on our journey,

the Chateau d'Aguilar.

(gentle music)

Its name means eagle in Latin

and it sits high over the plain of Tuchan.

(gentle music)

It has two rings of defensive walls,

both roughly hexagonal in shape.

The inner keep once held two rooms, one above the other.

The castle keepers residence above

and the guards room below.

It was owned by Raymond de Termes,

the feudal ruler of a vast part of this region.

In 1201, it was invaded by Simon de Montfort,

who locked Raymond de Termes in a dungeon.

The castle was later owned by the King of France.

Today, it's open to the public

and can be visited by guided tours by foot,

mountain bike, or for the brave, horseback.

This is our final destination,

the magnificent Fort de Salses.

Having crossed the Pyrenees,

we have reached the Mediterranean.

This fortress was built by the people of this region,

the Catalans, at the end of the 15th century

to guard against France.

Its layout is a good example of the time

when medieval castles began to resemble modern fortresses.

Its massive walls, up to nine meters thick,

are built to withstand metal cannonballs.

It could house a garrison of 1500 men and 300 horses.

(triumphant music)

The Fort was captured by France in 1642

and has remained French ever since.

Today, this listed monument receives

over a hundred thousand visitors each year.

(triumphant music)

And so, this fortress which sees medieval architecture

overtaken by modern engineering,

and where France and Spanish influences mingle,

is the perfect place to end our journey.

(upbeat music)

(logo whooshing)