the english way

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The English WayThe Pilgrims Ways to Santiagoin Galicia


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Texts Francisco Singul

EditingAna B. FreireRosa Garca

Ducumentation:pilgrimshostels and services Pilar CuaRosa FernndezAna B. FreireRosa GarcaCoroni Rubio

Photography Archives of S.A. de Xestindo Plan Xacobeo

Xenaro Martnez CastroTono Arias

Technical adviceDepartment of Architecture ofS.A. de Xestin do Plan Xacobeo

RevisionDori AbunCarla Fernndez-RefoxoCarmo IglesiasAlfonso Salgueiro

TranslationInterlingua TraduccinsClaire Teed Olson

Revision and updatingCarraig Linguistic Services

Design and Lay-out Permuy Asociados

PrintingLITONOR

D.L.: C 2650-20093 Engl ish Way

The pilgrimage way to Compostela enjoyed widespreadfame throughout medieval Europe. Land and sea alikewere furrowed with routes rich in spirituality leading toSantiago de Compostela. The maritime routes drewpilgrims from Scandinavia, Flanders, England, Scotlandand Ireland on their way to destinations such asRibadeo, Viveiro, Ferrol and A Corua. Blessed by an

exceptionally strategic location, the latter twocoastal enclaves are the starting points forthe two alternative itineraries that make upthe English Way. The route from A Coruato Santiago covers a distanceof 74 km, while the stretch linkingFerrol-Santiago is 118 km long.

The pilgrimages from Scandinavia andthe British Isles began in the 12th century.One of the most noteworthy episodesoccurred in 1147 with the arrival of asquadron of crusaders on their way to theHoly Land. This squadron took part in theconquest of Lisbon, aiding the first king of Portugal in his struggle against theMuslims. Before the fighting commenced,the crusaders from England, Germany and

Flanders visited the tomb of Saint James.

The English Way

The kFamily C


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One of the most significant buildings as far as the pilgrimagesare concerned is the Hospital de la Caridad today the

Torrente Ballester Cultural Centre which was erected in 1780to aid and shelter the sick, the poor and the pilgrims. The mostimportant church is theConcathedral of San Julin designed in1763 by Snchez Bort, and laid out in a Greek cross around adome. The faade boasts a balanced design of walls andopenings. In the interior the architectural elements stand outover the decorative features.

Ra Real leads on toAmboage Square, where the Church of the

Virgen de los Dolores stands. Continuing along the same street,we find thePraza de Armas and the City Hall built in 1953. TheWay continues as far as the Praza da Constitucin and Cantnde Molns, eventually coming to theChurch of As Angustias,another of the Neoclassical churches to be found in Ferrol.

From here the Way heads out towards the suburbs of Recemil andCaranza. The A Gndara industrial park tells us that we are

Charity Hospital. Ferrol

Concathedral of San Xulin. Ferrol

Amboage Square. Ferrol

approachingNarn. The Waycontinues along theAvenida del Mar, which runsparallel to the ra (inlet) and turns off towards Neda. In Ra da Pena stands themonastery ofSan Martio de Xubia (O Couto),

founded in the late 8th century and rebuilt in the 12th century,when it was a priory belonging to the Cluny Abbey (Burgundy).

The church was built around the year 1132 with a ground plan of three naves, separated by pillars and semicircular arches.The head of the church holds three apses covered by barrelledvaulting and a quarter sphere dome. The corbels on the exteriorbear extraordinary sculptures depicting heads of monsters,

Mills on the

Apse of Sa

Armas Square and Town Hall. Ferrol


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In Hermanos Garca Naveira Square, in addition to thefountain of Diana, stands a monument erected inhomage to these benefactors, who are portrayed in thissculpture. Betanzos boasts some magnificent buildings,such as the Church of San Domingos (17th century)

and its Baroque bell tower constructed between 1700-1714 by Fernando de Casas Novoa, the Archives of theKingdom of Galicia, dating back to the times of CharlesIII (1775), and the Municipal Library (17th century).

After leaving this square behind, the route continuesalong O Rollo Street until it reaches the old bridge of As Cascas, spanning the Mandeo River. Leaving thetown centre behind it, the route passes through the

villages of Coto, Campoeiro and Xanrozo, and headsinto the town ofAbegondo. The pilgrim then travelsthrough Limin, crossing over the bridge, past theChurch of San Esteban de Cos, taking the roadleading to the village of Meangos. The Way winds

Church of Santa Mara de Azougue. Betanzos

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Close up of the exterior of Santa Mara de Azoug

Church of San DominAs Cascas old bridgeand coat of arms. Betanzos

past houses and the nearby Church of Santiago de Meangos until it reachesPresedo bridge. After crossing this bridgethe pilgrim arrives at the Church of Presedo.The Way continues through woodlands past

the village of Leiro.The English Way now heads in the directionof Francos, bringing pilgrims to Boucello, Villardel, site of the ancient and nowabandoned Hermitage of San Paio, beforecontinuing on to the Church of Santo Tomde Vilacoba. Not far from here lies the villageof Monte, where the Way takes travellers

through the woods before coming toFontela, Vizoo and A Malata. Eventually thepilgrims reach the spot marked as kilometre42.702, where the two routes from Ferrol andthe city of A Corua converge.


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From the Chapel of Bruma the route leads to the municipality of Ordes, passing through Seixo, Cabeza de Lobo, and crosses theparish of Ardemil to proceed to the villages of Carreira, Mmoas andCarballeira. After a stretch through the woodlands, the route reachesthe village of A Ra with itsChurch of San Paio de Buscs.

The pilgrim leaves the mill of Trabe behind and crosses the bridgeof O Cubo and continues on to Outeiro de Abaixo. A tree-linedpath brings the pilgrim to theChurch of San Xiao de Poulo inOuteiro de Arriba.

The pilgrim travels through Senra and Calle, where there is amodest 16th century house that bears a plaque commemorating

the visit of Philip II in 1554. The Way continues on to Carballo andthe village of Casanova.

ArdemilBuscs

Poulo Sigeiro

A BarcielaCastrelos

Mesndo Vento

MerelleOrdes

As Casillas

Guindib

Pereira

Santa Cruzde Montaos

A SobreiraTrasmonte

DeixebreValverde

Oroso

Gndara

VilanovaA Sionllade Abaixo

A Enfesta

Formars

San Marcos

Vista AlegreSan Lzaro

San Caetano

Santiago deCompostela

Os CarballosBruma

C . F

r a n c s A Calle

Bruma Santiago de Compostela

Bruma pilgrims hostel. Mesa

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The Way crosses the bridge of PontePereira, possibly of medieval origin,and penetrates into the woods leadingto the village of Carrs. Along thisstretch there are meadows with a myriadof springs, which, at times, render theroute impassable. It then travels past thevillage of Baxoia to reachSigeiro,a town of medieval origin (12th century)and capital of the municipality of Oroso.Here the pilgrim must take the Calle Realto the bridge also of medieval originover the Tambre River.

BRiver Ta

The River Tamits way


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1 Cathedral-Holy Door- Xelmrez Palace2 Raxoi Palace3 Reis Catlicos Hotel4 College of San Xerome

5 Church of San Fructuoso6 Fonseca College7 Cabildo House8 Conga House9 Parra House

10 Convent of San Paio de Antealtares11 Monastery of San Martio Pinario12 Church of San Martio Pinario13 The Deans House. Pilgrims Office14 Vaamonde Palace15 Bendaa Palace16 Church of Santa Mara Salom17 Convent of San Francisco18 Convent of Carme19 Convent of Santa Clara20 Church and former hospital of San Roque21 Gothic House. Pilgrimage Museum

22 San Domingos de Bonaval.Museum of the Galician People23 Galician Centre of Modern Art24 Faculty of History and Geography25 University Church26 Church of San Fiz de Solovio27 Convent and

Church of the Mercedarian Mothers28 School of As Orfas

29 Church of San Miguel dos Agros30 Church of Santa Mara do Camio31 Church of San Bieito do Campo32 Convent of Santo Agostio33 San Clemente College34 General Chapel of nimas35 Chapel of Santiago36 Church of El Pilar37 The Collegiate Church of

Santa Mara a Real de SarCamio Ingls

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Map of Santiagos historic centre


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The discovery of the Tomb of the ApostleSaint James the Greater at the beginning ofthe 9th century soon brought about a streamof travellers making the pilgrimage to the site,which is today the Galician city of Santiagode Compostela. This vast influx of pilgrims

from all over Europe led to the creationof a network of itineraries, known collectivelyas the Camino de Santiago or the Pilgrims Wayto Santiago.

The heyday of the pilgrimages took placebetween the 11th, 12th and 13th centurieswith the granting of specific spiritualindulgences. This trend, however,has endured to a greater or lesser extentover the course of the centuries.Since the mid 20th century the PilgrimsWay to Santiago has been experiencingan international rebirth, which combinesits spiritual and socio-cultural traditionwith its tourist appeal, and once againit has become a melting pot for all typesof peoples and cultures.

Traditionally the Pilgrims Ways are at theirbusiest during the Holy Years, held at intervalsof 6, 5, 6, and 11 years, but any time is idealfor following the Way towards its ultimate goal:

the city of Santiago de Compostela.

The PilgrimsWays to Santiago

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Bergen

OsloHelsinki


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LausanneA Corua

Ourense

Muxa

Lugo

BragaPorto

Pontevedra

Santiago deCompostela

Lisboa

Coimbra

LagosFaro

Sevilla

MadridToledo

Santander

Salamanca

Burgos

Oviedo

Len

Zaragoza

Puente la Reina

Roncesvalles

Somport

Barcelona

Montpellier

Paris

Caen

AngersNantes

Orlans

Dublin

PlymouthBristol

London

BoulogneDunkerque

Dover

Amsterdam

Reims

Limoges

Luxembourg

Bruxelles

Bremen

Utrecht

KlnBonn

Hannover

Hamburg

Stockholm

Riga

LundOdense

Praha

Leipzig

Berlin

Dresden

LyonGenve

Strasbourg

Mnchen

Stuttgart

Liechtenstein

Milano

MarseilleAvignon Gnova

Verona Venzia

Bologna

Roma

Npoli

Beograd

Zagreb

Budapest

Atenas

Adrianopel

Istanbul

Throughout its twelve hundred year history, the Pilgrims Way to Santiagohas given rise to an extraordinary spiritual, cultural and social vitality.Thanks to the existence of the Way, the first network of assistance inEurope came into being and monasteries, cathedrals and new urbancentres were founded.

A new culture was born from the convergence of peoples of diversebackgrounds, based on the free exchange of ideas, artistic and socialtrends, in addition to a socio-economic driving force which boostedthe development of a number of areas in Europe, especially during theMiddle Ages. The mark left by the Way and by the pilgrims on the cityof Santiago de Compostela can be clearly seen from an endless numberof public and private testimonies, in the different art forms, and also,

for example, in the publication of over one thousand books worldwide,which in recent decades have extolled the virtues of this Way,a work of art and the heritage of all Europeans.

The main routes of the Pilgrims Way to Santiago were declared theFirst European Cultural Itinerary (1987) by the Council of Europe and aWorld Heritage Site by UNESCO in the stretches travelling across Spain

and France (1993 and 1998, respectively). In 2004 it also receivedthe Prince of Asturias Award for Harmony

from the Prince of AsturiasFoundation.

The Pilgrims Way in Europe

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They are the Original and North Ways,of great importance in the early pilgrimagedays, with two major routes that enterGalicia via Asturias, from the BasqueCountry and Cantabria; theEnglish Way,followed particularly by pilgrims,who from northern Europe and the BritishIsles arrived at ports such as A Coruaand Ferrol; the Portuguese Way, whichwas used by pilgrims travelling fromPortugal up through Galicias south-western region; and the Southeast Way,used by pilgrims who, on their wayto Santiago from the south and centreof the Peninsula, followed the popular Va de la Plata, between Mrida andAstorga, continuing on into the territoryof Ourense to Santiago de Compostela.

O Cebreiro. The French Way Oseira. The South East Way The Silver Way

Compostela and credential A Corua. English Way

There are two other routes whosesymbolism is believed to be closelylinked to the Pilgrims Way to Santiago:the Fisterra-Muxa Way, used by anumber of medieval pilgrims, who afterworshipping at the tomb of the apostle,were enticed to undertake the journeyto Cape Finisterre, the westernmostpoint on earth known at the time;and the route known as the Route ofthe Sea of Arousa and the River Ulla,recalling the itinerary, which accordingto tradition, was taken by the boatbearing the mortal remains of theApostle to Galicia (1st century).

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the english way

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