Saint James the Greater, called Greater because he was larger in size than Saint James the Less, was the brother of Saint John the Evangelist and the son of Saint Mary Salome. He was the first Apostle to die. He was beheaded by the Jews in Jerusalem. He was the great Apostle of Spain. Our Lady appeared to him there on a pillar in the year 36, in the town of Saragossa, holding her Divine Child in her arms, and letting Saint James know what a great country for the Catholic Faith Spain would one day be. It was on a visit to Jerusalem that Saint James was martyred. After his death, his body was carried back to Spain. It was buried there, at Compostella, where it still remains. Saint James is the patron saint of Spain. The story of his beheading is told in Chapter 12 of the Acts of the Apostles.
Saint James as the Moor-killer by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, source)
