Which saint founded the Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuits?

Saint Ignatius of Loyola founded the Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuits.

Ignatius was born Íñigo López de Loyola in the Basque region of Spain in 1491. He began as a soldier, but a severe wound received at the 1521 Battle of Pamplona led to a long recovery and a profound religious change. During this period he developed ideas that became the Spiritual Exercises.

Ignatius studied at universities in Paris, where he gathered companions including Francis Xavier and Peter Faber. The group made vows and eventually sought formal recognition as a religious order. Pope Paul III approved the Society of Jesus in 1540, with Ignatius as its first superior general.

The Jesuits became prominent in education, missionary work, scholarship, and the Catholic Reformation. Ignatius directed the order from Rome until his death in 1556. Pope Gregory XV canonized him in 1622, the same year as several other major Catholic saints, including Teresa of Ávila and Francis Xavier.