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 Saint George is one of the Patron Saints of Locorotondo, Genoa, Milan, as well as the patron saint of Ferrara, Reggio Calabria and Cellatica in Brescia. Saint George is also the patron saint of San Giorgio La Molara, a small "commune" in southern Italy (20 km from Benevento). The historical bank that was the backbone of the Republic of Genoa, "Repubblica Marinara di Genova", was dedicated to St George, "Banco di San Giorgio". The power of the "Repubblica" passing from commerce to banking, Genoa lent money to all the European countries and sovereigns, so the power of the "Repubblica" was