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Felipe II: Personajes famosos del Camino de Santiago

Here are som some curiosities of Philip II of Spain, one of the most influential figures in the history of the Camino de Santiago.

Felipe II

Felipe II

In the history of the Camino de Santiago there are many known historical figures that have been an essential part of its future, among them, Philip II of Spain, also known as Philip  "the prudent." Philip II (1527-1598) was king of Spain from 1556 to 1598 and, in the years that his reign in Spain lasted, he was one of the great promoters of the Camino de Santiago.

Philip II is known for his large amount of titles; In addition to being King of Spain, it was also from Naples, England and Ireland, Sicily, The Indes, Portugal, Sovereign of the Netherlands, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Milan, Burgundy and Brabant... And we left titles along the way... It was his marriage to Mary I of England that started his story with the Camino de Santiago.

In 1554, two years before becoming king and before marrying Mary I, the future monarch made a pilgrimage to Santiago on his trip to England. It is said that he asked to be treated as a simple pilgrim, although while he stayed in the Galician city of Santiago he was treated as an important member of the royal family, being presented with great gifts. After praying in the tomb of the Apostle, at 8 days he left for A Coruña and heading towards England where he married.

Protected pilgrims of the Camino de Santiago

Already as king, in 1590, Philip II introduced some rules on the Camino de Santiago to protect pilgrims, especially those who came from foreign countries and could be harmed by bad habits. Because the Camino was popular with many Catholic pilgrims at the time, thieves took advantage and steal them frequently. They knew that they were fairly easy prey and that, at many points, they could easily be frightened in a lonely area.

The thieves used to be dressed in pilgrim clothes, to be confused and mixed with each other, not being easily detected. In this way they could assault other walkers by surprise. Philip II ordered that only the pilgrims who arrived from beyond the Pyrenees could wear these clothes, complicating the thing to the thieves.

On the other hand it also hardened punishments for people who took advantage of pilgrims in shelters and other premises. Many people in charge of inns and lodges used to put food of worse quality to the pilgrims or, even, to charge them more in their services, taking advantage of their ignorance of the country. The authorities strongly sanctioned these behaviors.

Peregrinos

Peregrinos

Measures against French spies

Unfortunately for Philip II, his measures, in addition to hindering the work of thieves, also damaged the image of the Camino de Santiago outside of Spain. The prestige and security of the Camino outside our borders was damaged, and the number of foreign pilgrims was declining.

Also for establishing some rules for foreign pilgrims that limited their rights. For example, they should bring with them signed resignations to justify their pilgrimage and, once they arrived in Spain, present themselves before our justice to obtain the pilgrim's license. Why this measure? It was thought that some French spies took advantage of the Camino de Santiago to enter Spain and inform or even spread Lutheran theories.

Hiding apostolic relics

At some point in his reign Philip II went to war against England, a country he was prepared to invade in 1589. But the English privateer Francis Drake stepped forward and defeated the naval forces of Spain in Cadiz. But the reign feared that Francis Drake would attack and take the city of A Coruña, arriving in a few days to Santiago de Compostela.

For this reason in the sixteenth century the apostolic relics were hidden, for fear of being stolen or destroyed by Drake. For some reason the place of the relics was forgotten for hundreds of years, until they were rediscovered between 1879 and 1884. All the skeletal remains and certain objects that would have belonged to the Apostle Santiago and his disciples, Theodore and Athanasius, are considered apostolic relics .

Although in other European countries it is assured that they have some relics belonging to Santiago, but the truth is that the only ones authenticated by the Church (in 1884) are in Santiago de Compostela and Pistoia.

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