Saint Paul’s Basilica

Welcome to Saint Paul’s Basilica—one of the oldest churches in southern France, and the very first Gothic church built in Narbonne. It was constructed starting in the 12th century on the site of a much older church that dated back to the 5th century. Inside, you’ll even find a paleochristian cemetery from the 3rd or 4th century, including the tomb of Saint Paul himself, the first bishop of Narbonne. Over the centuries, the basilica has seen a few changes—its choir was rebuilt in the 13th century and its vaults in the 14th—but the original layout has been remarkably well preserved, blending Romanesque and Gothic styles. Inside, you’ll see large paintings by Jacques Gamelin, beautiful Aubusson tapestries, and a curious feature known as Saint Paul’s frog—at the center of many local legends. You’ll find it carved in white marble inside the holy water font, embedded in the right-hand pillar of the church. According to legend, Saint Paul went to preach by the Bages lagoon, where fishermen refused to listen to him and mocked him. To prove himself, he carved a boat from a block of marble—but once inside, he couldn’t get it to move. Just as the crowd laughed at him, a frog leapt into the boat and miraculously guided him across the water. In gratitude, Saint Paul immortalized the frog here, in the font. Another story claims the frog was actually drawn to the sound of worship and came into the church to join in—but when its croaking interrupted the congregation, people thought it was the devil in disguise. According to the tale, Saint Paul turned it to stone to silence it. Not very kind, perhaps—it was just a frog, after all! Whatever the truth behind these stories, they’ve added to the rich character and mystery of this ancient basilica, making it one of the most storied churches in all of Narbonne.