St Ignatius of Loyola, 16th century Spanish soldier and founder of the Jesuits, 1617-1618. Artist: Peter Paul Rubens

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St Ignatius of Loyola, 16th century Spanish soldier and founder of the Jesuits, 1617-1618. Inigo Lopez de Loyola (1491-1556) founded the Society of Jesus together with 6 others at St Mary's Church, Montmartre, Paris, in 1534. The society, which came to be known as the Jesuits, was established with the mission to enter upon hospital and missionary work in Jerusalem, or to go without questioning wherever the pope might direct. The Society of Jesus gained papal approval in 1540, and went on to become a highly organised teaching and missionary society which was at the forefront of the Counter-Reformation. St Ignatius was canonised in 1622. From the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

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Photo credit: © Ann Ronan Picture Library/Heritage-Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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