The church of San Paolino is a religious building located in via Sant’Andrea 221 in Viareggio, in the province of Lucca.
In April 1958, Pope Pius XII elevated the church to the dignity of a minor basilica.
It was built in 1896 and expanded in 1936-1948 as the city expanded and is located in today’s downtown. The consecration took place on August 15, 1921. The bell tower was finished in 1921 but, destroyed during the Second World War, was rebuilt in 1954.
The interior is made up of three naves and takes up the layout of the early Christian basilicas, with an apse, triumphal arch and apsidal basin decorated with a gold background mosaic with San Paolino and angels.
The bell tower hosts one of the heaviest bell concerts in all of Versilia. In total there are six bells (the four bells and the two bells, which serve exclusively as a reminder), cast by the historic Lorenzo Lera foundry in Borgo Giannotti (Lucca) after the Second World War. On the roof of the church there is also a small bell gable with two small unused bells.
A general restoration took place in 1990, while the facade, with a large mosaic with a gold background, was cleaned up in 2006. The 1960 Costamagna organ was overhauled in 2005.
In 1996 the oratory, “I Pretini” was restored for the people of Viareggio.
