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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Carmelite Convent of Narbonne is a religious complex founded in the 17th century, after the Carmelites' arrival in the city in 1620. In 1637 Archbishop Claude de Rebé offered them the chapel Saint-Sébastien, marking the beginning of their sustainable settlement. The buildings, spread over two islets separated by the present Garibaldi Street, initially included a cloister, outbuildings and adjacent houses, whose exact organization remains difficult to reconstruct due to the 19th century urban transformations.

The building of the convent was based in part on materials from the demolition of the Moresque Tower, authorized by Louis XIII. An inventory of 1793 lists several properties attached to the convent, including four houses south of the church and a house near the garden. However, some major buildings, such as the cloister, are not included in this inventory, although they appear on pre-revolution plans. These disparities reflect the successive changes in the site, notably after the opening of Garibaldi Street.

The Conventual ensemble, now privately owned, was classified as a Historic Monument in 1946. Its history illustrates the architectural and urban adaptations suffered by religious buildings as a result of political and social upheavals, from the Ancien Régime to the contemporary era. The current location, 7 rue Michelet, corresponds to the address referenced in the Merimée base, although geographical accuracy remains limited (level 5/10).

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