Trappists

Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance

Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae
Logo of the Trappists.
Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Rancé, the founder of the Trappists
Abbreviation	OCSO
Formation	1664; 360 years ago (1664)
Founder	Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Rancé
Founded at	La Trappe Abbey
Type	Catholic religious order
Headquarters	Viale Africa, 33 Rome, Italy
Abbot General	Bernardus Peeters
Parent organization	Catholic Church
Website	www.ocso.org

The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (Latin: Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe,^[1] are a Catholic religious order of cloistered monastics that branched off from the Cistercians. They follow the Rule of Saint Benedict and have communities of both monks and nuns that are known as Trappists and Trappistines, respectively. They are named after La Trappe Abbey, the monastery from which the movement and religious order originated. The movement first began with the reforms that Abbot Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Rancé introduced in 1664, later leading to the creation of Trappist congregations, and eventually the formal constitution as a separate religious order in 1892.