Les Sables-d'Olonne
Subprefecture and commune in Pays de la Loire, France From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Les Sables-d'Olonne (French pronunciation: [le sabl dɔlɔn] ; French meaning: "The Sands of Olonne"; Poitevin: Lés Sablles d'Oloune) is a seaside resort and port on the Atlantic coast of western France. A subprefecture of the department of Vendée, Pays de la Loire, it has the administrative level of commune. On 1 January 2019, the municipalities of Olonne-sur-Mer, Château-d'Olonne and Les Sables-d'Olonne merged, retaining the latter name.[3]
 | You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in French. (April 2020) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
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Les Sables-d'Olonne | |
|---|---|
Subprefecture and commune | |
.JPG) View of Les Sables-d'Olonne | |
 Coat of arms | |
| Motto(s): Advocata nostra, ora pro nobis | |
Location of Les Sables-d'Olonne  | |
  Les Sables-d'Olonne  Les Sables-d'Olonne | |
| Coordinates: 46°29′50″N 1°47′00″W | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Pays de la Loire |
| Department | Vendée |
| Arrondissement | Les Sables-d'Olonne |
| Canton | Les Sables-d'Olonne |
| Intercommunality | Les Sables d'Olonne Agglomération |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2020–2026) | Yannick Moreau[1] |
| Area 1 | 86.07 km2 (33.23 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[2] | 48,402 |
| • Density | 560/km2 (1,500/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 85194 /85100, 85340, 85180 |
| Elevation | 0–59 m (0–194 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
![[icon]](#/media/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion with: sources of current information, and information expanding on its physical and political geography. You can help by adding to it. (November 2016) |
Les Sables-d'Olonne is a seaside town in western France, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is situated on the coast between La Rochelle and Saint-Nazaire, near the coastal terminus of the A87 that connects it and nearby communities to La Roche-sur-Yon, Cholet, and Angers to the northeast. The nearest major metropolitan center of France, to Les Sables-d'Olonne, is Nantes, to the north (approximately 105 km, by road).[4] Les Sables-d'Olonne station has rail connections to Paris, La Roche-sur-Yon and Nantes.
It is at the level of administrative division in the French Republic of a commune and is a sub-prefecture of the Department of Vendée.[5][6]
Climate
Les Sables-d'Olonne has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb) closely bordering on a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb). The average annual temperature in Les Sables-d'Olonne is 13.2 °C (55.8 °F). The average annual rainfall is 746.7 mm (29.40 in) with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 19.8 °C (67.6 °F), and lowest in January, at around 7.0 °C (44.6 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in Les Sables-d'Olonne was 40.5 °C (104.9 °F) on 18 July 2022; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −8.3 °C (17.1 °F) on 12 February 2012.
| Climate data for Les Sables-d'Olonne (Château-d'Olonne,[7] 1991−2020 normals, extremes 2004−present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 14.8 (58.6) |
19.8 (67.6) |
24.0 (75.2) |
26.8 (80.2) |
29.7 (85.5) |
39.0 (102.2) |
40.5 (104.9) |
36.1 (97.0) |
33.6 (92.5) |
27.7 (81.9) |
21.1 (70.0) |
16.2 (61.2) |
40.5 (104.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 9.6 (49.3) |
10.2 (50.4) |
12.7 (54.9) |
16.0 (60.8) |
18.7 (65.7) |
22.2 (72.0) |
23.8 (74.8) |
23.4 (74.1) |
22.0 (71.6) |
18.1 (64.6) |
13.7 (56.7) |
10.6 (51.1) |
16.8 (62.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 7.0 (44.6) |
7.1 (44.8) |
9.2 (48.6) |
12.0 (53.6) |
14.8 (58.6) |
18.2 (64.8) |
19.8 (67.6) |
19.3 (66.7) |
17.6 (63.7) |
14.6 (58.3) |
10.7 (51.3) |
7.8 (46.0) |
13.2 (55.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 4.4 (39.9) |
4.1 (39.4) |
5.7 (42.3) |
8.0 (46.4) |
10.9 (51.6) |
14.1 (57.4) |
15.8 (60.4) |
15.3 (59.5) |
13.3 (55.9) |
11.1 (52.0) |
7.8 (46.0) |
4.9 (40.8) |
9.6 (49.3) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −7.7 (18.1) |
−8.3 (17.1) |
−7.3 (18.9) |
−0.6 (30.9) |
2.1 (35.8) |
6.0 (42.8) |
9.0 (48.2) |
7.6 (45.7) |
5.2 (41.4) |
0.5 (32.9) |
−3.6 (25.5) |
−5.4 (22.3) |
−8.3 (17.1) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 86.5 (3.41) |
62.1 (2.44) |
62.0 (2.44) |
52.0 (2.05) |
48.8 (1.92) |
38.4 (1.51) |
33.8 (1.33) |
46.4 (1.83) |
50.8 (2.00) |
80.7 (3.18) |
100.7 (3.96) |
84.5 (3.33) |
746.7 (29.40) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 13.9 | 11.1 | 10.7 | 8.5 | 7.9 | 7.1 | 6.0 | 7.8 | 6.4 | 11.1 | 13.1 | 12.8 | 116.4 |
| Source: Météo-France[8] | |||||||||||||
| This section needs expansion with: sources of current information, and supplemental information from 1945 to present. You can help by adding to it. (November 2016) |
Les Sables-d'Olonne (pronounced [le sabl dolɔn]) is French for "the sands of Olonne". It was founded in 1218 from Havre d'Olonne by Savary I de Mauléon, the Lord of Mauléon, Sénéchal of Poitou and prince of Talmont.[citation needed] Its history is tied to the ocean for which it has served as a port and point of maritime commerce.[citation needed] Louis XI separated Les Sables d'Olonne from the town of Olonne in 1472.[citation needed] It became the largest cod-fishing port in France, with 14,000 inhabitants, in the 17th century.[citation needed] During the French Revolution, unlike the surrounding Vendée, the city supported the Republic, and so was often besieged—unsuccessfully, because of its port.[citation needed] The current local tourism industry traces its roots to bathing establishments, first begun in 1825. Rail service reached Les Sables on 29 December 1866, via the line from La Roche-sur-Yon, Bressuire, Saumur, and Tours;[citation needed] express service to and from Paris would arrive in 1971.[citation needed] The city's port served as a base port for American Expeditionary Forces during World War I.[9] Germany occupied Les Sables d'Olonne during World War II[citation needed] and, upon evacuation of that army at war's end, the German army made an effort to destroy the port, and mined the harbor.[citation needed]
The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of Les Sables-d'Olonne proper, in its geography at the given years. The populations of Olonne-sur-Mer and Château-d'Olonne, absorbed in 2019, are not included.
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| Source: EHESS[10] and INSEE (2007-2017)[11][12] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Vendée Globe yacht race, which takes place every four years, starts and ends at Les Sables-d'Olonne.[citation needed]
The Vendée Air Show has been held on the beach "La Grande Plage" on three occasions, first in 2017, then in 2019, and most recently in 2022.[13]
The Musée de l'Abbaye Sainte-Croix is a municipal museum situated in a 17th-century building that is devoted to modern and contemporary art, and that has "Musée de France" status.[citation needed] It includes works of Gaston Chaissac (1910–1964) and Victor Brauner (1903–1966).[citation needed][why?]
Les Sables-d'Olonne is the setting for 1948 novel Les Vacances de Maigret, by Georges Simenon.[citation needed]
The town is the birthplace of pirate François l'Olonnais.[citation needed][why?]
The channel, view from the tower St-Clair
The channel, from the west dock
Promenade de l'Amiral Lafargue
The priory St-Nicolas
The tower St-Clair
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