Abbey of Santa Maria de Riudaura church

The count of Besalú is thought to have built a monastery in Riudaura in the 9th century. It was dedicated to Saint Mary and it was a Benedictine monastery which, from 937 was accountable to the Occitan monastery of Santa Maria de la Grassa. This is why at that time, in the first half of the 10th century, the count Sunyer thought it was best to connect the two monasteries, since the one in Riudaura was very small. Five centuries later, the priors tried to separate from the other monastery but failed and had to wait until 1592.