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".
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