Gargouille
The gargouille was a dragon and a legendary creature originating from France.
The story
The gargouille (known as Garguiem), not to be confused with gargoyle, was allegedly a dragon with four legs and wings. This water-spouting dragon (more like a serpent dragon, because of its long snake like body) appeared in the Seine River in France. It was said to terrorize boats and flood the land. In the legend, Saint Romain, the archbishop of Rouen, lured the monster to shore using a convict, and then made a cross with his fingers to tame the monster. He then led it into town where it was slaughtered. Some accounts said it was burned. The accounts of burning said that neither the monster's head or neck would burn, so they were mounted on the town's cathedral to display God's power.
The creature was then said to have been carved onto buildings to be used as a water drainage, therefore creating the modern gargoyle. It is similarly accounted that they have no relation other than their water-spouting abilities, leading to the words' similarities (the word gargouille is used for both in French, though).
The taming and destruction of the creature is similar to that of the Tarasque.
References
- Karl Shuker (1995). Dragons: A Natural History. Simon & Schuster, New York. ISBN 0-684-81443-9.