Dear Mr Cornwell,
The family had a get together in Portugal this year. You’ll be pleased to hear that my sons and I are avid readers of your Sharpe series and so took the opportunity to visit Badojoz. The city is pretty much as you describe in the historical notes and Evora is better preserved and gives a better impression of the fortifications of the time. We also visited the fort San Cristobal across the river from Badojoz and found that it is in the process of being completely renovated (with EU money and using tower cranes and heavy machinery).  It looks like it will become a heritage site and tourist attraction.  The fort is substantially complete and it was amazing to see the structures as they would have appeared 200 years ago.
Regards,
Ian McWilliam.