The source of the town's original name of Narbo is lost in antiquity, and it may have referred to ahillfort from theIron Age close to the location of the current settlement or its occupants.[7] The earliest known record of the area comes from theAncient Greek historian and geographerHecataeus of Miletus in the 5th century BCE, who identified it as aCeltic harbor and marketplace at that time, and called its inhabitantsΝαρβαῖοι. In ancient inscriptions the name is sometimes rendered inLatin and sometimes translated into Iberian asNedhena.[citation needed]
Narbonne was established inGaul by theRoman Republic in 118 BCE, asColonia Narbo Martius, colloquiallyNarbo, and made into the capital of the newly establishedRoman province ofGallia Transalpina (modern-daysoutheastern France).[8] It was located on theVia Domitia, the firstRoman road in Gaul, built at the time of the foundation of the colony, and connectingItaly toSpain. Geographically, Narbonne was therefore located at a very important crossroads because it was situated where the Via Domitia connected to theVia Aquitania, which led toward theAtlantic through the cities ofTolosa andBurdigala.
Politically, Narbonne gained importance as a competitor toMassilia (todayMarseille).Julius Caesar settled veterans from his10th Legion there and attempted to develop its port while Marseille was supportingPompey. Among the products of Narbonne, itsrosemary-flowerhoney was famous among Romans.[9] Later, theRoman province ofGallia Transalpina was renamedGallia Narbonensis after the city, which became its capital. Seat of a powerful administration, the city enjoyed economic and architectural expansion. At that point, the city is thought to have had 30,000–50,000 inhabitants, and may have had as many as 100,000.[10]
According toHydatius, in 462 AD the city was handed over to theVisigoths by a local military leader in exchange for support; as a result Roman rule ended inmedieval France. It was subsequently the capital of theVisigothic Kingdom ofSeptimania, the only territory from Gaul to fend off the attacks of theChristianFranks after theBattle of Vouille (507). In 531, theFrankish kingChildebert I invaded Septimania and defeated the Visigothic king,Amalaric, near Narbonne and occupied the city. However, after Childebert's continued invasion toCatalonia failed, Amalaric's successorTheudis was able to reclaim the rich province of Septimania, including Narbonne, to the Visigothic Kingdom.[11]
In the 11th and 12th centuries, Narbonne was home to an importantJewish exegetical school,[15] which played a pivotal role in the growth and development of theZarphatic (Judæo-French) andShuadit (Judæo-Provençal) languages inmedieval France.[16][17] Jews had settled in Narbonne from about the 5th century CE, with a community that numbered about 2,000 people in the 12th century. At this time, Narbonne was frequently mentioned inmedieval Talmudic works in connection with its scholars. One source,Abraham ibn Daud ofToledo, gives them an importance similar to theJewish exilarchs of Babylon.[18] In the 12th and 13th centuries, the community went through a series of ups and downs before settling into extended decline.
Narbonne itself fell into a slow decline in the 14th century, for a variety of reasons. One was due to a change in the course of theriver Aude, which caused increased silting of the navigational access. The river, known as the Atax in ancient times, had always had two main courses which split close to Salelles; one fork going south through Narbonne and then to the sea close to the Clappe Massif, the other heading east to the etang at Vendres close to the current mouth of the river well to the east of the city. The Romans had improved the navigability of the river by building a dam near Salelles and also by canalising the river as it passed through its marshy delta to the sea (then as now the canal was known as the Robine.) A major flood in 1320 swept the dam away. The Aude river had a long history of overflowing its banks. When it was a bustling port, the distance from the coast was approximately 5 to 10 km (3 to 6 mi), but at that time the access to the sea was deep enough only when the river was in full spate which made communication between port and city unreliable.[19]
However, goods could easily be transported by land and in shallow barges from the ports (there were several: a main port and forward ports for larger vessels; indeed the navigability from the sea into theétang and then into the river had been a perennial problem). The changes to the long seashore which resulted from the silting up of the series ofgraus or openings which were interspersed between the islands which made up the shoreline (St. Martin; St. Lucie) had a more serious impact than the change in course of the river. Other causes of decline were the plague and the raid ofEdward, the Black Prince, which caused much devastation. The growth of other ports was also a factor.
Narbonne Cathedral, dedicated toSaints Justus and Pastor, provides stark evidence of Narbonne's sudden and dramatic change of fortunes when one sees at the rear of the structure the enormously ambitious building programme frozen in time, for the cathedral—still one of the tallest in France—was never finished. The reasons are many, but the most important is that the completed cathedral would have required demolishing the city wall. The 14th century also brought the plague and a host of reasons for retaining the 5th-century (pre-Visigothic) walls.
Yet the choir, side chapels, sacristy, and courtyard remain intact, and the cathedral, although no longer the seat of a bishop or archbishop, remains the primary place of worship for the Roman Catholic population of the city, and is a major tourist attraction.
The Canal de la Robine in 2003. (Taken from the "Passerelle entre Deux Villes" pedestrian bridge, facing northwest, away from the heart of the city.)
From the sixteenth century, eager to maintain a link to important trade, the people of Narbonne began costly work to the vestiges of the riverAude's access to the sea so that it would remain navigable to a limited draft vessel and also serve as a link with the Royal Canal. This major undertaking resulted in the construction of the Canal de la Robine, which was finally linked with theCanal du Midi (then known as the Royal Canal) via theCanal de Jonction in 1776.
In the 19th century, the canal system in the south of France had to compete with an expanding rail network, which could ship goods more quickly. The canals kept some importance as they were used to support the flourishing wine trade. Despite its decline from Roman times, Narbonne held on to its vital but limited importance as a trading route. This has continued in more recent centuries.
Narbonne is linked to the nearbyCanal du Midi and the riverAude by theCanal de la Robine, which runs through the centre of town. It is very close to the A9 motorway, which connects Montpellier and Nîmes to Perpignan and, across the border, to Barcelona in Spain. There is also a recently renovatedtrain station which serves the TGV to Spain, Paris and Calais, which in turn connects to the Eurostar. Narbonne is only 10 km from Narbonne Plage (beach), but it is only 2 km from the nearest open water, at La Nautique, although there is no sand, rather pebbles.
Musée Archeologique, an archaeological museum in the town centre (currently closed - November 2019, most sections will be moved to new museum Narbo Via which is planned to open in September 2020)
Clos de la Lombarde, an archaeological site presenting the vestiges of Roman townhouses, bath houses, workshops from the 1st century BC to the 3rd century AD and the first Christian basilica in Narbonne (3rd/4th century AD).[26]
The RomanHorreum, a former grain warehouse, built underground as acryptoporticus
Narbonne is home to therugby union teamRC Narbonne founded in 1907. It is a historic team in France, Narbonne have twice won the French first division title and reached a European final in 2001. They play at theParc des Sports Et de l'Amitié (capacity 12,000). They wear orange and black.
TheGare de Narbonne railway station offers direct connections to Paris, Barcelona, Toulouse, Marseille and many regional destinations. An extensive local system of buses and routes operated byCitibus.fr allow for easy public transport within Narbonne and surrounding communities.
Milestone ofGnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus, founder of the Roman colony Narbo Martius. The marker is one of the earliest Latin inscriptions found in France c.118 BC.
A Jewish Princedom in Feudal France, a book presenting a thesis that there was a Jewish vassal princedom based in Narbonne in the 8th to 10th centuries AD.
^Collin Bouffier, Sophie (2009). "Marseille et la Gaule méditerranéenne avant la conquête romaine".Pallas (80: Marseille et la Gaule Méditerranéenne avant la Conquête Romaine):51–52.JSTOR43606588.
^Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat (Anthea Bell, tr.)The History of Food, 2nd ed. 2009:23.
Michel Gayraud,Narbonne antique des origines à la fin du IIIe siècle. Paris: De Boccard, Revue archéologique de Narbonnaise, Supplément 8, 1981, 591 p.
Histoire de Narbonne, Jacques Michaud and André Cabanis, eds, Toulouse: Privat, 2004.
L’Aude de la préhistoire à nos jours (under the direction of Jacques Crémadeilis), Saint-Jean-d’Angély, 1989.
Les Audois : dictionnaire biographique, Rémy Cazals et Daniel Fabre, eds., Carcassonne, Association des Amis des Archives de l’Aude, Société d’Études Scientifiques de l’Aude, 1990.
