Saint James Matamoros the Americas as a rival force to the indigenous gods, and protector of Spaniards from the indigenous peoples of the Americas. He was depicted as a conquistador. The Order of Santiago, a Spanish order of knighthood, originates from St. James' supposed involvement at the Battle of Clavijo. A wide number of Mexican settlements were named Matamoros by Spanish settlers in honour of their patron saint. Matamoros can also be found as a Hispanic family name, for instance Miguel Matamoros. In the 1620s Spain debated who should be the country's patron—James, the current patron, or a combination of him and the
Patronages of Saint George of Aragon, the territory of four current autonomous communities of Spain: Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands. Nowadays Saint George is the patron saint of both Aragon and Catalonia, as well as the patron saint of Barcelona (see Flag of Barcelona) and other historically important Spanish towns such as Cáceres or Alcoi (Spanish language: "San Jorge", Catalan language: "Sant Jordi", Aragonese language: "San Chorche"). His feast date, 23 April, is one of the most important holidays in Catalonia, where it is traditional to give a present to the loved one; red roses for women and books for men. In