The English Way  

Strategically situated, Ferrol and A Coruña are the starting points of the two alternatives of the English way. The first maritime itinerary to be known was written between 1154 and 1159 by an Icelandic monk named Nicolás Bergsson, and it describes the journey from Iceland to Denmark, and then on foot to Rome. This maritime route was the one chosen by the Icelandic and Scandinavian pilgrims on their way towards Santiago.

During the 14th century and the first third of the 15th, the British used the ship to come to Santiago. Their presence has been thoroughly proved by the ceramic pieces and the English numismatic of that period that were found during the excavations at the cathedral in Compostela.

The offerings to the Apostle are yet another sign of the existence of maritime pilgrimages, the most celebrated one being the portable altarpiece made of alabaster which was donated in 1456 by the priest John Goodyear, or the Cross of pearls donated by the king Jacob IV of Scotland (1475-1513).

The pilgrims were able to use the hospitals of the Franciscan Order of Sancti Spiritus, under the auspices of noble Fernán Pérez de Andrade, “El Bueno” (Kind). Along the Ferrol section, they could use their services in Ferrol, Neda, Miño, Paderne and Betanzos. Along the route that strats from A Coruña, they had hospitals in the town and further on, in Sigrás and O Poulo. The records from these hospitals register the deaths of English, Nordic, German, French and Italian people, what is an important fact which shows the magnitude of the pilgrimages along this route.

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Ferrol - Santiago (5 stages)
A Coruña - Santiago (3 stages)