Patronages of the Immaculate Conception the Immaculate Conception is also one of the nine national and public holidays and a holy day of obligation. The patronage settles the dispute between a heated religious debate during the mid 1600s, when followers of the mythical figure Saint James Matamoros wished to impose him as the national patron saint versus the followers of Saint Teresa of Avila. On 11 September 1759, the elected members of the Spanish Cortes petitioned King Charles III of Spain to request from the pope the "universal patronage of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in all the Kingdoms of Spain and the Indies".
Columba of Spain deny it, or after refusing the sexual advances of men. She became the patron saint of witches in Galicia, acting both as an intercessor on behalf of witches and as an intercessor against witches. At Coimbra, according to one 19th century travel guide, there was a small chapel that was said to mark the spot where Comba suffered martyrdom, and that "towards the close of the spring, the young girls of Coimbra deck her shrine with wreaths of roses in remembrance of the rosy crown of martyrdom they believe she won." Columba of Spain Saint Columba of Spain, or "Columba