A pious woman, Eleanor made donations to and visited several convents. In 1547, Juan Polanco, sent by Ignatius de Loyola to preach in Pistoia, approached the Duchess and asked for her patronage to founding a Jesuit college. She refused Polanco's petition, but later undertook negotiations with Diego Laínez that eventually led to the first Jesuit school in Florence. Laínez eventually gained her affection, to the point that she became a constant intercessor to Cosimo on the order's behalf and founded many new churches in the city. However, she didn't completely embraced the entire Jesuit society nor their devotion.