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James the Greater July 25 (October 9 in the East) + 44. The son of Zebedee and brother of St John the Evangelist, he was one of the Twelve and the first to be martyred (Acts 12, 2) under King Herod Agrippa. By tradition he travelled as far as Spain and certainly relics of the Apostle were later enshrined in Compostella. Owing to this apostolic link, it became the most important places of pilgrimage in the West after Rome. St James is the patron-saint of Spain.

Probus Jan 12 + c 59. Bishop of Verona in Italy

Clateus June 4 + c 64. One of the earliest bishops of Brescia in Italy, martyred under Nero.

Peter the Apostle June 29 + c 64. Simon, son of Jonah, was a married fisherman who lived in Bethsaida. He was a disciple of St John the Baptist before he was called, after his elder brother Andrew, to be a disciple of Christ. He was called 'Rock' (Cephas, Petros, Petra, Peter) because of his confession of Christ as the Son of God. Peter was a witness of many important events such as the Transfiguration and the Agony in the Garden. After Christ's Ascension he founded the Church in Antioch and visited the Church in Rome founded by the Apostle Paul. Here he was martyred, head downwards in the circus of Nero, and was buried on the Vatican Hill. He is commemorated together with the Apostle Paul on 29 June and his relics are enshrined beneath the altar of St Peter's in Rome to this day.

First Martyrs of Rome June 30 + 64. Protomartyrs of Rome. They were falsely charged by Nero with burning down the city and were ordered to undergo various cruel deaths; some were covered with the skins of wild beasts and thrown to wild dogs to be torn apart; others were crucified and when daylight failed were used as human torches. They were all disciples of the Apostles and the first fruits of the martyrs whom the Church of Rome sent to the Lord.

Torpes Apr 29 + c 65. A martyr in Pisa in Italy under Nero.

Paul the Apostle June 29 c 3-65? Born in Tarsus in Cilicia, a Pharisee, a Roman citizen and a tentmaker by trade, he was originally called Saul and was educated in the Law of the Jews in Jerusalem. After taking part in the stoning of the first Orthodox martyr, St Stephen, he was miraculously converted on the road to Damascus and received his mission to enlighten the Gentiles. He did so in at least four Apostolic journeys, extending perhaps as far as Spain, establishing churches everywhere and surrounded by dangers of all sorts. Nevertheless he was always zealous for Christ. His thirteen letters, addressed mostly to the Churches which he had founded, belong to divine revelation. According to a very old tradition, he was beheaded in Rome, which Church he had founded, near the Ostian Way.

Evellius May 11 + c 66. An advisor of Nero, converted to Christ on witnessing the patience of the martyrs and himself martyred in Pisa in Italy.

Hermagoras and Fortunatus July 12 + c 66. According to tradition, St Hermagoras was a disciple of the Apostle Mark and was consecrated first Bishop of Aquileia in Italy. After a fruitful apostolate he and his deacon Fortunatus were beheaded under Nero.

Priscus Sept 1 + c 66. The first Bishop of Capua in Italy, where he was sent by the Apostle Peter. By tradition he was martyred under Nero.

Plautilla May 20 + c 67. The mother of Flavia Domitilla. By tradition she was baptised by the Apostle Peter and was present at the martyrdom of the Apostle Paul.

Ursicinus June 19 + c 67. A doctor in Ravenna in Italy. Sentenced to death for being a Christian, he wavered but was encouraged by the soldier St Vitalis and accepted martyrdom.

Paulinus of Antioch and Companions July 12 c 67. Venerated as the first bishop and patron-saint of Lucca in Tuscany in Italy. By tradition he was born in Antioch and sent to Lucca by the Apostle Peter where he was martyred with others.

Anastasia and Basilissa (Vasilissa) Apr 15 + c 68. Noble Roman ladies, disciples of the Apostles Peter and Paul, whose bodies they buried. They were martyred under Nero.

Rome (Martyrs of) July 2 c 68. Three soldiers who were converted at the martyrdom of the Apostle Paul in Rome and then were themselves martyred.

Nazarius and Celsus July 28 + c ? 68. Martyrs in Milan in Italy under Nero.

Candida the Elder Sept 4 + c 78. An aged woman who welcomed the Apostle Peter in Naples and was miraculously healed by him. In her turn she converted St Aspren who became the first Bishop of Naples.

Linus Sept 23 (In the East Jan 4 and Nov 5) + c 79. The first Pope of Rome. A disciple of the Apostle Paul, he was one of the Seventy and is mentioned in 2 Timothy 4,21. He was Pope for twelve years (67-79) and is venerated as a martyr.

Perpetua Aug 4 + c 80. A matron from Rome baptised by the Apostle Peter who converted her husband and her son, St Nazarius. Her relics are enshrined in Milan and Cremona in Italy.

Onesimus Feb 16 + c 90. The slave who ran away from his master Philemon, was converted by St Paul in Rome and was the occasion of the Apostle's letter to Philemon.

Birillus March 21 + c 90. By tradition he was consecrated first Bishop of Catania in Sicily by the Apostle Peter, with whom he had travelled from Antioch. He reposed in extreme old age.

Romulus and Companions July 6 + c 90. By tradition ordained by the Apostle Peter as first pastor of Fiesole, he was martyred with several companions under Domitian.

Nicomedes Sept 15 + c 90. By tradition he was a priest martyred in Rome, perhaps under Domitian.

Rufus of Rome Nov 21 + c 90. The disciple whom St Paul greets in Romans 16, 13.

Mark of Galilee Apr 28 + 92. By tradition, a Galilean and the first bishop, and also martyr, of the Abruzzi in Italy.

Flavius Clemens June 22 + c 96. Brother of the Emperor Vespasian and uncle of Titus and Domitian, whose niece, Flavia Domitilla, he married. In the year 95 he held consular office together with Domitian. The following year Domitian had him beheaded for the Orthodox Faith.

Maro, Eutyches and Victorinus Apr 15 + c 99. They belonged to the circle of Flavia Domitilla, whom they accompanied in exile to the island of Ponza. Eventually they returned to Rome and were martyred under Trajan.

Nereus and Achilleus May 12 + c 100. Pretorian soldiers, baptised by tradition by the Apostle Peter, and exiled with Flavia Domitilla to Pontia and later to Terracina in Italy where they were beheaded.

Geruntius of Italica Aug 25 + c 100. A missionary in Spain in the Apostolic age, Bishop of Talco (Italica, near Seville) and martyr.

Prosdocimus Nov 7 + c 100. First Bishop of Padua in Italy.

Priscilla Jan 16 1st cent. The wife of Manius Acilius Glabrio and mother of the senator Pudens. The tradition is that she was the hostess in Rome of the Apostle Peter. His headquarters were at her villa near the Roman catacombs which to this day bear her name.

Caesarius Jan 29 1st cent. A deacon in Angouleme in France under its first bishop St Ausonius.

Juventius of Pavia Feb 8 and Sept 12 1st cent. (?). The tradition is that St Hermagoras, Bishop of Aquileia and disciple of the Apostle Mark, sent Sts Syrus and Juventius to preach the Gospel in Pavia in Italy where the latter became the first bishop.

Aristobulus March 15 1st cent. Traditionally one of the Seventy, he is the Aristobulus mentioned by St Paul (Romans 16,11). Britain was given to him as the place of his preaching and martyrdom.

Epaphroditus March 22 1st cent. By tradition the first Bishop of Terracina in Italy. He may have been one of the Seventy Apostles and mentioned by the Apostle Paul in Philippians 2,25).

Pancras (Pancratius) Apr 3 1st cent. Born in Antioch, he was consecrated by the Apostle Peter and sent to Taormina in Sicily where he was stoned to death.

Valeria Apr 28 ? 1st cent. An early martyr in Milan in Italy.

Torquatus, Ctesiphon, Secundus, Indaletius, Caecilius, Hesychius and Euphrasius May 15 1st cent. According to tradition, they were disciples of the Apostles sent to enlighten Spain. They worked chiefly in the South, as follows: Torquatus in Guadix near Granada; Ctesiphon in Verga; Secundus in Avila; Indaletius in Urci near Almeria; Caecilius in Granada; Hesychius in Gibraltar; Euphrasius in Andujar. Most of them suffered martyrdom. The Mozarabic liturgy had a common feast for all seven.

Fort May 16 ? 1st cent. The first Bishop of Bordeaux in France, venerated as a martyr.

Pudens May 19 1st cent ? A Roman senator baptised by the Apostles. He is identified by many with the Pudens mentioned by the Apostle Paul (2 Tim 4,21).

Epitacius and Basileus May 23 1st cent. By tradition the former was the first Bishop of Tuy in Galicia in Spain and the latter the first Bishop of Braga in Portugal .

Petronilla May 31 1st cent. (?). A virgin in Rome venerated from the earliest times.

Maximinus of Aix June 8 1st cent. (?) Venerated as the first Bishop of Aix in Provence in France.

Crispulus and Restitutus June 10 1st cent. Martyrs under Nero, either in Rome or else in Spain.

Acestes July 2 1st cent. According to tradition, he was one of the three soldiers who led St Paul to execution in Rome. Converted by him, they were beheaded.

Stephen of Reggio July 5 1st cent. By tradition he was consecrated first Bishop of Reggio in Italy by the Apostle Paul and martyred under Nero. He is the main patron of Reggio.

Aquila and Priscilla July 8 1st cent. Husband and wife, belonging to the Jewish diaspora, who worked as tentmakers at Rome and were exiled from there with all the other Jews under Claudius. They settled in Corinth, where they received the Apostle Paul into their house (Acts 18,3). Under Nero they returned to Rome and Paul sent greetings to them. A tradition in Rome says that they were martyred there.

Apollinaris July 23 1st cent. The first Bishop of Ravenna in Italy, he was tortured for the Orthodox Faith and died. The exact date is not known. His shrine is at the monastery of Classe in Ravenna.

Aspren (Aspronas) Aug 3 1st cent. The tradition concerning this saint, dating from time immemorial, was recorded as follows: 'In Naples in Campania, the repose of St Aspren the bishop, who was healed of infirmity by St Peter the Apostle and was then baptised and consecrated bishop there'.

Euprepius Aug 21 1st cent. First Bishop of Verona in the north of Italy.

Ptolemy Aug 24 1st cent. By tradition a disciple of the Apostle Peter, he became Bishop of Nepi in Tuscany in Italy, where he was martyred.

Romanus of Nepi Aug 24 1st cent. A Bishop and martyr of Nepi in Tuscany in Italy, by tradition a disciple of St Ptolemy.

Euphemia, Dorothy, Thecla and Erasma Sept 3 ? 1st cent. A group of virgin-martyrs in Aquileia in Italy, venerated in Venice and Ravenna.

Barypsabas Sept 10 1st cent. A hermit from the East, he was martyred in Dalmatia. A tradition relates that Barypsabas took to Rome a vessel containing some of the precious blood which flowed from the side of our Lord when He was on the cross.

Felix and Constantia Sept 19 1st cent. Martyrs under Nero in Nocera near Naples in Italy.

Anathalon Sept 24 1st cent. The first Bishop of Milan in Italy, he was sent there by the Apostle Barnabas whose disciple he was. As first Bishop of Milan he preached Christ to the surrounding area, including Brescia, where he reposed.

Gaius of Milan Sept 27 1st cent. By tradition he was the first Bishop of Milan in Italy. Bishop for twenty-four years, he baptised the future martyr St Vitalis and his sons Sts Gervase and Protase.

Philologus and Patrobas Nov 4 1st cent. An Orthodox in Rome greeted by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans (16:14-18).

Felix and Eusebius Nov 5 ? 1st cent. Martyrs in Terracina, between Rome and Naples in Italy.

Eucharius Dec 8 1st cent. First Bishop of Trier in Germany.