On what date was the University of Santo Tomas in Manila founded?

The University of Santo Tomas in Manila was founded on April 28, 1611.

The institution was established by Miguel de Benavides, a Spanish Dominican friar and the third Archbishop of Manila. Its original name was Colegio de Nuestra Señora del Santísimo Rosario, and it was created to provide higher education in the Philippines.

The college was renamed Colegio de Santo Tomás in 1617, honoring the Dominican theologian Thomas Aquinas. Pope Innocent X elevated it to university status in 1645, several decades after its foundation.

UST is generally recognized as the oldest existing university in the Philippines and holds the oldest extant university charter in Asia. Its age is sometimes confused with the later date when it formally received university status, but the foundation date remains April 28, 1611.