Royal Order of Saint George for the Defense of the Immaculate Conception Saint George, which by decision of the Holy See in 1701 was recognized as pertaining to the Italian Farnese dynasty. The tradition of loyalty to the patron saint of chivalry, Saint George, was long established in Germany, and various Bavarian Princes who in the fifteenth century had made pilgrimages to the Holy Sepulcher and were there invested as knights had each made a promise to Saint George. Maximilian's son, the Elector Karl-Albrecht, gave the new Order its title of Order of the Holy Knight and Martyr Saint George and the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary and established its
The Vision of Saint Eustace the fact that Pisanello painted Saint Eustace in Sant'Anastasia. Saint Hubert’s depiction in Italian art during this period is also unlikely. Saint Eustace is portrayed as a huntsman dressed in the height of court fashion, wearing a golden tunic and blue headdress. The patron was therefore given the opportunity to appreciate the work as a devotional piece in addition to identifying with the aristocratic pastime of hunting and chivalric ideology. The patron for whom the work was painted is, however, unknown. Suggested patrons include the Gonzaga and Filippo Maria Visconti. Leonello or Borso d’Este, keen huntsmen, have also been proposed.