Escaladieu Abbey, Cistercian monastery in Bonnemazon, France.
Escaladieu Abbey is a Cistercian monastery in Bonnemazon, in the Gascony region, built where the Arros and Luz rivers meet. It consists of a church, a cloister, and living quarters arranged around a central courtyard, following the plain architectural style typical of Cistercian buildings.
The abbey was founded in 1142 as a daughter house of Morimond Abbey. Over the following centuries, it went on to establish eight monasteries in Spain and two in the Gascony region.
The name comes from the Latin Scala Dei, meaning ladder to God. The cloister and church still show the plain stone spaces where monks gathered for prayer and shared daily work.
The site is in a rural area and easy to walk around, since all the buildings are close to each other. It is generally open from spring through autumn, and those seasons also offer the most comfortable conditions for an outdoor visit.
The monastery was continuously occupied by Cistercian monks from the 12th century until 1830, without interruption. After that long chapter ended, the property passed into private hands and took on a completely different role.
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