COMPANY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. — In 1664 in Manila, in the Philippine Islands, near the residence of the Jesuits, a house of pious women, called the Devout (Beatas) of the C., was opened under the guidance of Ignazia dello Spirito Santo, a 22-year-old mestiza. They lived on manual labor. In 1872 the Jesuit missionaries founded two orphanages on the island of Mindanao, entrusting their direction to the Devout of Manila. Other houses and schools were opened later, which led to the need to group them into a religious congregation under a superior general and with their own constitutions, since previously each house had been independent. After that of the apostolic delegate, came the approval of the Holy See, and today the C. has 33 houses with more than 250 sisters.
Enciclopedia Cattolica