At an imprecise moment in the 820-830 decade, the tomb of Santiago the Elder was discovered. Alfonso II reigned in the north west of the Peninsula (the Kingdom of Asturias). He was the first great patron. He had been brought up in the Monastery of Samos and received the news from the Bishop of Iria, Teodomiro, enthusiastically.
The golden age of the pilgrimages occurred in these centuries: France, Italy, central and eastern Europe, England, Germany, including Iceland, and, of course, all of Hispania. They arrived on foot, on horseback, on ships, etc
The Romanic, the Gothic cathedrals, the medieval lyrical poetry of the “cantigas” and the epic poetry of the “chanson de geste”. has played a key role in the development of the cultures which make up the European identity.
The creation of the Holy Year in Santiago goes back to the XV century. It is believed that the first one in history could have been the Jubilee Year of 1428, or perhaps 1434, both convened by Archbishop Lope de Mendoza. The next will be in 2021.