Les Sables-d'Olonne

Template:Use British English Template:Expand French Template:Infobox French commune

Les Sables-d'Olonne ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}; 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.<ref>Arrêté préfectoral 17 August 2018 Template:In lang</ref>

Location and geographyEdit

Template:Expand section 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).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Commune des Sables-d'Olonne (85194), INSEE.</ref>

ClimateEdit

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 Template:Cvt. The average annual rainfall is Template:Cvt with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around Template:Cvt, and lowest in January, at around Template:Cvt. The highest temperature ever recorded in Les Sables-d'Olonne was Template:Cvt on 18 July 2022; the coldest temperature ever recorded was Template:Cvt on 12 February 2012.

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HistoryEdit

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Les Sables-d'Olonne ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}) 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.Template:Citation needed Its history is tied to the ocean for which it has served as a port and point of maritime commerce.Template:Citation needed Louis XI separated Les Sables d'Olonne from the town of Olonne in 1472.Template:Citation needed It became the largest cod-fishing port in France, with 14,000 inhabitants, in the 17th century.Template: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.Template: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;Template:Citation needed express service to and from Paris would arrive in 1971.Template:Citation needed The city's port served as a base port for American Expeditionary Forces during World War I.<ref name="SoS">Template:Cite book</ref> Germany occupied Les Sables d'Olonne during World War IITemplate: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.Template:Citation needed

PopulationEdit

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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Interests and eventsEdit

The Vendée Globe yacht race, which takes place every four years, starts and ends at Les Sables-d'Olonne.Template: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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

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.Template:Citation needed It includes works of Gaston Chaissac (1910–1964) and Victor Brauner (1903–1966).Template:Citation needed Template:Why

Les Sables-d'Olonne is the setting for 1948 novel Template:Interlanguage link, by Georges Simenon.Template:Citation needed

The town is the birthplace of pirate François l'Olonnais.Template:Citation needed Template:Why