I remember the first time I came near to the fabled Rock of Gibraltar. It was on a voyage between Marseilles in France and Manila in the Philippines in July and August of 1945. My regiment had completed its tasks in Europe and we found ourselves on a troopship heading toward Japan to participate in the planned invasion. We were excited at getting a good look at the Rock that had helped win the war, but were frustrated because we sailed past in the dark.

The next time was eleven years later when my wife and I were on a freighter heading for Colombo in Sri Lanka. Once again, as our ship entered the Mediterranean, it was dark and we didn’t get a chance to photograph the bastion much less see it. It was the autumn of 1956 and we were headed to the Suez Canal to pass into the Red Sea. The Middle East was once again in turmoil and the Canal was damaged and blocked by sunken ships. Our cargo ship had to turn around to leave the Mediterranean and sail around Africa to reach Sri Lanka. Once again we passed by Gibraltar and this time we had to wake early in the morning to see it. In an album I have a fuzzy black and white photo of the Rock that I took on that occasion. I began to think I was fated never to get a really good look at, much less land on Gibraltar.

In the spring of 2004 we were on a cruise ship heading for Europe from Miami. We had encountered heavy seas on the Atlantic and the ship was running low on fuel. The captain announced that the ship would be heading to Gibraltar to take on oil and that we would have to skip our scheduled visit to Madeira. We greeted the words with mixed emotions, disappointment at missing Madeira, and anticipation for an unexpected visit to Gibraltar. Alas, there would not be enough time for us to see everything on this brief visit. We would have to leave the caves, fortifications, and so-called Barbary Apes for a possible future visit.

There was still plenty of daylight remaining as our ship tied up to the dock. We walked down the gangway and found ourselves in the pleasant cruise ship terminal. On the way out we encountered two policemen dressed in the classic uniforms of London bobbies, tall round helmets and all. This was our first indication that we were in a very British place, here between Spain and Africa.

A short taxi ride brought us to the edge of the town of Gibraltar. We were dropped at one end of Main Street, which has been “pedestrianised” and no longer permits vehicles. Traffic is not allowed on many of the adjoining side streets and it seemed that most of the nearly 30,000 inhabitants of the town were out enjoying a pleasant afternoon. Very Spanish looking mothers were pushing their English prams full of little Spanish children. Of the various groups living in Gibraltar the Spanish are the most numerous, followed in order by Italians, English, Maltese, and Portuguese. Gibraltar is an overseas territory of the United Kingdom, but it is in the Mediterranean after all.

English is the official language and is used in the schools, commerce, and government, but Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese are spoken in the majority of homes. Knowing the ethnic composition of the population. it should come as no surprise that 76.9 percent of them are Roman Catholic. The next largest religious group is Church of England, some 6.9 percent. That is also exactly the size of the Muslim population. Jews represent 2.3 percent and the remaining 7 percent is classified as “other”.
In spite of the overwhelming Mediterranean composition of the population the majority of Gibraltarians feel intensely British. We know this because of their votes in two referendums held within the past 37 years. In 1967, in response to pressure from Spain, Gibraltarians voted to retain their British connection and not become part of Spain. Again in 2002 Britain and Spain, as members of the European Union, agreed to talk about the status of the Rock, and this time the vote was 99 percent in favor of retaining their British nationality. After the 1967 referendum Spain closed the land border with Gibraltar from 1969 to 1985 and generally made life difficult for the inhabitants of the Rock. People from Spain could not cross the border and vice versa. Telephone service was also terminated. Members of extended families living on both sides of the border could communicate with each other by shouting across the line. Either that or they could take a ferry across the Strait to Morocco to meet their relatives, who came by ferry, from Spain. After the 2002 referendum the Spanish reaction was low key. The border is open but Spain persists in its long- standing attitude of non- recognition and will probably continue to do so until it rules.

Ever since Gibraltar fell in 1704 it has been in British hands. Over the years the large British garrison was the basis for the town’s economy until troop numbers were reduced in recent years. These days the economy is based on tourism, offshore banking, and shipping. In general, the standard of living is higher on the Rock than in nearby parts of Spain. Gibraltarians expressed their British connection by enthusiastically celebrating the year 2004 as the 300th anniversary of British rule over this 2.25 square mile territory.

The story of Gibraltar illustrates the role of location in evaluating the importance of a place. Anywhere else on the Spanish coast it would be just another hill. However, it sits at the eastern end of a 40- mile long strait between Europe and Africa that is no wider than 14 miles. Its location is further enhanced by the fact that throughout history, until the 19th century when the Suez Canal was dug, it was the only sea connection between the Mediterranean and the other oceans of the world. The ancient civilizations around the Mediterranean all encountered Gibraltar sooner or later. They understood that it marked the point where their sea joined one that was larger and wilder, the Atlantic. A great mythology grew up about the hill of Gibraltar and its counterpart Mt. Acha at the opposite point in Africa. These hills came to be known as the Pillars of Hercules, and have always been a landmark for the ancient sea going civilizations of the Mediterranean Basin. For modern sailors the myths about this place are no longer believed, but seeing Gibraltar still indicates a change about to take place whether sailing from east to west or vice versa.

These days the military importance of the Rock is much diminished and it serves as a living museum of siege warfare from the 18th to the 20th centuries. The human community living there, with its strong attachment to Britain, is alive and vibrant in its desire to maintain a status quo that was 300 years in the making. To my way of thinking, having a closer look at this population is at least as interesting as the military aspects of Gibraltar. You might enjoy going there to have a look for yourself. I know we’ll be back.