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13-634: The Villa Blanche is a historic townhouse in Les Sables-d'Olonne , Vendée , France. It was built in 1913, and designed by architect Maurice Durand . It was a tearoom until 1914, when it was used by an estate agent named Fraud. It became a private residence in 1925. This article about a French building or structure is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Les Sables-d%27Olonne Les Sables-d'Olonne ( French pronunciation: [le sabl dɔlɔn] ; French meaning: "The Sands of Olonne"; Poitevin : Lés Sablles d'Oloune )

26-683: A base port for American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. Germany occupied Les Sables d'Olonne during World War II and, upon evacuation of that army at war's end, the German army made an effort to destroy the port, and mined the harbor. 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. The Vendée Globe yacht race, which takes place every four years, starts and ends at Les Sables-d'Olonne. The Vendée Air Show has been held on

39-523: 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. Its history is tied to the ocean for which it has served as a port and point of maritime commerce. Louis XI separated Les Sables d'Olonne from the town of Olonne in 1472. It became the largest cod-fishing port in France, with 14,000 inhabitants, in

52-638: 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. Les Sables-d'Olonne ( pronounced [le sabl dolɔn] )

65-521: 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. Les Sables-d'Olonne is a seaside town in western France, on the Atlantic Ocean. It

78-520: Is at the level of administrative division in the French Republic of a commune and is a sub-prefecture of the Department of Vendée . 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

91-487: 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). Les Sables-d'Olonne station has rail connections to Paris, La Roche-sur-Yon and Nantes. It

104-545: The viscounts of Thouars and comprised, in the tenth century, the three parishes of Notre Dame (Our Lady), St John and St Nicholas. The parish of St Nicholas, which has since disappeared, was located within the walls of the castle and belonged to the Abbey of Saint-Jouin-de-Marnes . Among the disasters suffered at various times by the town, its capture from the English and subsequent pillage by French troops under du Guesclin in 1370

117-602: The 17th century. During the French Revolution , unlike the surrounding Vendée , the city supported the Republic, and so was often besieged—unsuccessfully, because of its port. 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 ; express service to and from Paris would arrive in 1971. The city's port served as

130-399: The beach "La Grande Plage" on three occasions, first in 2017, then in 2019, and most recently in 2022. 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. It includes works of Gaston Chaissac (1910–1964) and Victor Brauner (1903–1966). Les Sables-d'Olonne is

143-469: The castle, built by the lords of Beaumont, vassals of the viscount of Thouars . The latter is now in ruins, and a portion of the site is occupied by a modern château, but an inner and outer line of fortifications are still to be seen. The whole forms the finest assemblage of feudal ruins in Poitou. The name "Bressuire" comes from two elements, being Berg (hill) and Durum (fortress). These two are linked in

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156-513: The name "Berzoriacum" recorded in 1029, and "Bercorium" from the start of the crusading era in 1095. The name Bressuire thereby defines a fortress on a hill. Bressuire dates back to Celtic times, and was at the meeting point of roads during the Gallo-Roman period. The earliest surviving evidence of the town's existence, around the chapel of Saint Cyprien, dates back to the eleventh century. Medieval Bressuire ("Castrum Berzoriacum") belonged to

169-459: The setting for 1948 novel Les Vacances de Maigret  [ fr ] , by Georges Simenon . The town is the birthplace of pirate François l'Olonnais . Les Sables-d'Olonne is twinned with: Bressuire Bressuire has two buildings of interest: the church of Notre-Dame, which, dating chiefly from the 12th and 15th centuries, has an imposing tower of the Renaissance period; and

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