Les Sables-d'Olonne

Subprefecture and commune in Pays de la Loire, France

Advocata nostra, ora pro nobis

(2020–2026) Yannick Moreau^[1]Area86.07 km² (33.23 sq mi)Population48,402 • Density560/km² (1,500/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal codeElevation0–59 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.

Les Sables-d'Olonne (French pronunciation: [le sabl dɔlɔn] ^ⓘ; French meaning: "The Sands of Olonne"; Poitevin: Lés Sablles d'Oloune) is a seaside town 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]

Location and geography

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 a 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.

History

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]}

Population

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.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 5,039 —     1800 5,168 +0.36% 1806 5,723 +1.71% 1821 4,698 −1.31% 1831 4,906 +0.43% 1836 4,778 −0.53% 1841 5,076 +1.22% 1846 6,280 +4.35% 1851 5,983 −0.96% 1856 6,464 +1.56% 1861 6,996 +1.59% 1866 7,352 +1.00% 1872 8,292 +2.03% 1876 9,347 +3.04% 1881 10,420 +2.20% 1886 11,070 +1.22% 1891 11,557 +0.86% 1896 11,826 +0.46%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 12,244 +0.70% 1906 12,673 +0.69% 1911 14,005 +2.02% 1921 13,387 −0.45% 1926 13,627 +0.36% 1931 13,660 +0.05% 1936 14,536 +1.25% 1946 17,650 +1.96% 1954 17,761 +0.08% 1962 18,401 +0.44% 1968 18,093 −0.28% 1975 17,463 −0.51% 1982 16,100 −1.15% 1990 15,830 −0.21% 1999 15,532 −0.21% 2007 15,433 −0.08% 2012 14,271 −1.55% 2017 14,545 +0.38%
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.
Source: EHESS[10] and INSEE (2007-2017)[11][12]

Interests and events

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 [fr], by Georges Simenon.^{[citation needed]}

The town is the birthplace of pirate François l'Olonnais.^{[citation needed][why?]}

Twin towns – sister cities

Les Sables-d'Olonne is twinned with:^[14]

Gallery

• 
  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

See also

• Communes of the Vendée department

References

External links