Which Catholic saint founded the Society of Jesus in 1540?

Ignatius of Loyola founded the Society of Jesus in 1540, becoming its first Superior General.

Born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola in 1491, Ignatius was a Basque nobleman and soldier. After being wounded at the Battle of Pamplona in 1521, he experienced a religious conversion and began studying theology.

Ignatius and six companions, including Francis Xavier, made religious vows in Paris in 1534. They later offered their services to Pope Paul III, who formally approved the Society of Jesus in 1540. The order became widely known as the Jesuits.

Ignatius wrote the Spiritual Exercises, a structured guide for prayer and discernment. He is sometimes confused with Francis Xavier, another early Jesuit who became a major missionary in Asia. Ignatius died in Rome in 1556 and was canonized in 1622.