The Abbey of Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a Benedictine monastery on a rocky hill about 130 kilometres (80 mi) southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley. Located on the site of the ancient Roman town of Casinum, it is the first house of the Benedictine Order, having been established by Benedict of Nursia himself around 529. It was for the community of Monte Cassino that the Rule of Saint Benedict was composed.