Abbaye de Gourdon

Gourdon Abbey (L'Abbaye Nouvelle; Ste-Marie-de-Gourdon) is a former Cistercian abbey in the commune of Léobard in the Lot department, Midi-Pyrénées region, in France.

The complex is located about 8 km southwest of the town of Gourdon, on a slope on the south side of the Céou river, near the village of L'Abbaye, on a limestone spur called Pech-Gisbert (similar to Le Thoronet Abbey).

The monastery was founded only in 1242 as a daughter monastery of Obazine Abbey, from the filiation of Cîteaux Abbey, based on a donation by Guillaume de Gourdon, the lord of Salviac, who was accused of belonging to the Cathars. An earlier attempt at foundation is said to have taken place around 1150 in St-Martin-le-Désarnat. The first abbot was Odo of Ventadour. He had the enclosing wall built, the southern section of which is still almost perfectly preserved. The abbey, which was damaged in the Hundred Years' War, never gained great importance and counted only one monk in 1477 and never more than two monks thereafter, was largely in ruins by the 17th century, is said to have been finally abandoned during this time, was sold after the Revolution in 1790 and then served as a quarry until recent times. Since 1978, a society of friends has been looking after it. The complex has been classified as a Monument historique since 1991. Restoration work has been ongoing since 2001.