ABSTRACT

The ancient pilgrimage sanctuaries of Santiago de Compostela and San Salvador in Oviedo have been and continue to be the central focus of the efforts and contributions of specialist historians analysing the phenomenon of pilgrimage in the northwestern corner of Spain during the medieval centuries, eclipsing other pilgrimages to major centres outside the Iberian Peninsula, such as Jerusalem. Socio-economic diversity continues to be a feature of palmers from the northwestern corner of the Iberian Peninsula. It is important to emphasize the wide-ranging socio-economic diversity present within the palmer movement, whose existence - even though it contravened the provisions implemented by various ecclesiastical and secular authorities - can be detected in the northwestern corner of the Iberian Peninsula following the crusaders' conquest of Jerusalem. A sanctuary have been built in a specific position because, according to tradition, that was where the Apostle James, Son of Zebedee was martyred.