Joseph Calasanz

Saint Joseph Calasanz SchP
Portrait by Francisco Jover y Casanova, currently held in the Museo del Prado
Born	11 September 1557 Peralta de la Sal, Kingdom of Aragon, Crown of Aragon
Died	25 August 1648 (aged 90) Rome, Papal States
Venerated in	Catholic Church
Beatified	7 August 1748, Rome, Papal States by Pope Benedict XIV
Canonized	16 July 1767, Rome, Papal States by Pope Clement XIII
Major shrine	San Pantaleo, Rome
Feast	August 25 August 27 (Pre-1969 General Roman Calendar)

Joseph Calasanz Sch.P. (Spanish: José de Calasanz; Italian: Giuseppe Calasanzio), (September 11, 1557 – August 25, 1648), also known as Joseph Calasanctius and Iosephus 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 was a close friend of the renowned astronomer Galileo Galilei. Joseph is honored as a saint by the Catholic Church, following his 1767 papal canonization.