Observants

Observers in the Catholic Church are people who prefer a monastic lifestyle. Initially, observers were considered individuals from among the monks who differed in a particularly strict way of life. later observants stood out in a special class in the monasteries. In this sense, the name "observants" was first mentioned at the Council of Constance . ^[one]

In 1350, there were about 12 observatory monasteries in the Franciscan order . During the discord between ordinary monks and observants, the latter were granted the right to have a special chief in the monastery - minister generalis. ^[one]