Rock of Gibraltar (Civ5)/Civilopedia

Gibraltar is a peninsula containing a remarkable rock formation at the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea. Captured from Spain by the English and Dutch in 1704 and ceded to England in 1713, Gibraltar has been a British possession ever since (much to the annoyance of Spain, which wants it back). Commanding the entrance to the Atlantic from the Mediterranean, Gibraltar has been a major British naval base for three hundred years.
Most of Gibraltar is covered by the "Rock," a huge formation of shale, sandstone and limestone thrust up by the unimaginable power of plate tectonics. The Rock stands some 1400 feet in height. At one time Gibraltar was a massive fortification allowing Britain to dominate the narrow Mediterranean-Atlantic passage, but today the peninsula is more of a nature preserve and tourist destination than it is a military base.