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Origin and history

The Abbey of Saint-Roman is a former troglodytic abbey dug in a limestone massif overlooking the confluence of the Gardon and the Rhône, on the commune of Beaucaire (Gard, Occitanie). The site was occupied by hunters from the prehistory and later houses a monastic community whose first written mention dates back to the will of the bishop of Arles Manassès around 963. Although speculations evoke paleo-Christian origin, no archaeological evidence prior to the ninth century has been confirmed to date by recent excavations (2018-2022). The natural caves were built in chapels, monastic cells, necropolis and silos, forming an atypical religious ensemble.

In 1008 the abbey was named in the cartular of the abbey of Psalmody, then in 1099 among its properties. On 29 March 1102, the archbishop of Arles Gibelin of Sabran the officially infeoded at Psalmody, reducing Saint-Roman to the status of priory while retaining an autonomous administration of his possessions. In the 12th century, tensions with Psalmody persisted, with the monks of Saint-Roman seeking to free themselves from his authority. In 1203, the Count of Toulouse Raymond VI granted the prior judicial rights on the site, while in 1268 a conflict between the abbey and the inhabitants of Beaucaire for grazing rights, resolved in favour of the prior.

At the end of the 13th century, the monks were driven out for undetermined reasons, before being resettled in 1310 by order of Philip IV the Bel. The abbey was then fortified (fossed, walls), becoming a castrum mentioned in 1230. In 1363, Pope Urban V founded a studium, a free school for future clergymen or talented young people, active for about fifty years. The secularization of Psalmody in 1537 led to that of Saint-Roman: the monks left the site, sold in 1538 to Franc de Conseil, which built a castle with the stones of the Abbey. The site then declined, serving as an occasional refuge (as during the 1722 plague) before gradually being dismantled.

The remains, rediscovered in the 20th century, include rock graves, a chapel decorated with traces of 9th century paintings, monastic cells, and 14th century fortifications. Ranked a Historic Monument in 1990 (after a first partial registration in 1935), the site is now owned by the commune of Beaucaire and managed by the Communauté de Communes Beaucaire Terre d'Argence. A collective research program (2018-2022) has strengthened archaeological knowledge, while events such as the "aperios panorama" combine cultural visits and tastings to enhance the place.

The history of Saint-Roman illustrates the mutations of a medieval religious site, from a troglodytic hermitage to a dependent priory, then to a secular fortress. Recent excavations have ruled out the hypothesis of a foundation prior to the 9th century, while revealing the ingenuity of rock developments (tanks, silos, necropolis) and their subsequent reuse. The term Saint Roman has long been confusing, in turn evoking Roman Condat or Roman of Rome, without certainty. Today, the site offers a rare testimony of troglodytic monastic architecture in Occitanie.

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