Abbey of Saint-Roman

The Abbey of Saint-Roman (Abbaye de Saint-Roman), is a cave monastery located in the communes of Beaucaire and Comps, in the Gard département of France. The site, which includes the ruins of a castle, the château de Saint-Roman-d'Aiguille, has been protected by the French Ministry of Culture as a monument historique since 1990 and includes a chapel, cloisters, terrace, tombs and walls. It was constructed in the 9th, 10th, 12th and 15th centuries. The abbey is reached by a signposted path from Beaucaire which leads past a vast chamber and the monks? cells to the chapel carved out of the rock which contains the tomb of St Roman. From the terrace, there is a fine view over the Rhône, Avignon and the Mont Ventoux area with Tarascon in the foreground. The Michelin Guide describes it "a site of captivating simplicity". Less