1557
Joseph Calasanz, Spanish priest and founder of Piarists (died 1648)
Joseph Calasanz, Spanish priest and founder of Piarists (died 1648)
Joseph Calasanz, Spanish priest and founder of Piarists (died 1648)
Joseph Calasanz
Spanish priest, educator, founder of the Piarists, & saint (1557–1648)
- Born
- 1557
Joseph Calasanz, also known as Joseph Calasanctius and Josephus a Matre Dei, was a Spanish Catholic priest, educator and the founder of the Pious Schools, which provided free education to poor boys. For this purpose he founded the religious order that ran them, commonly known as the Piarists. He became a close friend of the renowned astronomer Galileo Galilei. Joseph is honored as a saint by the Catholic Church, following his 1767 papal canonisation.