Belleperche Abbey
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Belleperche Abbey (bella pertica) is a former Cistercian abbey in Tarn-et-Garonne, Occitanie, in France, about 7 kilometres south of Castelsarrasin and 20 kilometres west of Montauban, situated on the Garonne.
The monastery was founded between 1130 and 1140 by the d'Argombat family at a location about 10 kilometres from the later site. In 1143 it affiliated itself as a daughter house of the Cistercian primary Clairvaux Abbey. At this point it was transferred to an allod on the bank of the Garonne, where it carried out viniculture, horse-breeding, and cattle-breeding. Belleperche became one of the largest monasteries in southern France, with eight granges, including Angeville, and 60-80 monks in its heyday. The original building was already replaced by 1230 with a new construction on enlarged foundations on the riverbank. In 1563 a new Abbot's lodge was erected.
The abbey's decline began with the Hundred Years' War, and further damages were caused in 1572, during the Huguenot Wars. The monastery was restored (1604-1614), but was dissolved in 1791 as a result of the French Revolution. The abbey was converted into a castle, agricultural estates, and domestic residences, and unused buildings were demolished or fell into ruin.
A restoration was begun in 1993.
