Île d'Yeu

L'Île-d'Yeu

A satellite image of the island

Coat of arms
L'Île-d'Yeu

Coordinates: 46°43′30″N 2°20′49″W / 46.725°N 2.347°W / 46.725; -2.347Coordinates: 46°43′30″N 2°20′49″W / 46.725°N 2.347°W / 46.725; -2.347
Country France
Region Pays de la Loire
Department Vendée
Arrondissement Les Sables-d'Olonne
Canton L'Île-d'Yeu
Area1 23.32 km2 (9.00 sq mi)
Population (2006)2 5,001
 • Density 210/km2 (560/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code 85113 / 85350
Elevation 0–32 m (0–105 ft)
(avg. 20 m or 66 ft)

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.
L'île d'Yeu - Port de la Meule
Port de la Meule

Île d'Yeu (French pronunciation: ​[il djø]) is an island and commune just off the Vendée coast of western France. The island's two harbours, Port-Joinville in the north and Port de la Meule, located in a rocky inlet of the southern granite coast, are famous for the fishing of tuna and lobster.

Administratively, the commune of L'Île-d'Yeu (with that spelling) forms part of the Vendée department and the Pays de la Loire region of France.

The island is reached by ferry from Fromentine or Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie. Air transportation is available at Île d'Yeu Aerodrome (IATA: IDY, ICAO: LFEY), with commercial service from Nantes Airport.

History

An aerial view of Port de la Meule

Neolithic markings in the native stone and an unusual concentration of megalithic dolmens and menhirs attest to the island's early sanctity.[1] Irish monks from Bangor, County Down, dedicated their monastery on the Île d'Yeu to Hilaire; Saint Amand, from Poitou received early training there, but it was destroyed by Viking raiders in the ninth century.

During the tenth century, monks from Marmoutier near Tours and monks of Saint-Cyprien at Poitiers built a new monastery and dedicated it to Saint Stephen. The castle built on an islet linked to the coast by a bridge is first mentioned in 1356.

Since the nineteenth century Île d'Yeu has attracted many artists. Jean Rigaud (1912–1999), official painter to the French Navy, had a house there, as did Maurice Boitel (1919–2007). Jean Dufy (1888-1964) l made about twenty paintings of l'Ile d'Yeu during several summer stays between 1926 and 1930.

The proclaimed hero of Verdun and the leader of France's wartime collaborationist Vichy régime, Philippe Pétain, died in prison on the island in 1951 and is buried there.

The poet Marc-Adolphe Guégan, an early French exponent of haiku, lived on the island until his death in 1959.

The island's seaweeds have been the subject of studies by the French marine biologist Françoise Ardré.

Climate

Climate data for Île d'Yeu (1981–2010 averages)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 15.4
(59.7)		 16.4
(61.5)		 23.1
(73.6)		 26.3
(79.3)		 30.6
(87.1)		 35.2
(95.4)		 34.8
(94.6)		 35.1
(95.2)		 32.9
(91.2)		 26.0
(78.8)		 20.1
(68.2)		 16.8
(62.2)		 35.2
(95.4)
Average high °C (°F) 9.7
(49.5)		 9.9
(49.8)		 12.2
(54)		 14.4
(57.9)		 17.6
(63.7)		 20.5
(68.9)		 22.6
(72.7)		 22.9
(73.2)		 20.9
(69.6)		 17.2
(63)		 13.2
(55.8)		 10.4
(50.7)		 16.0
(60.8)
Average low °C (°F) 5.3
(41.5)		 4.8
(40.6)		 6.5
(43.7)		 8.0
(46.4)		 11.1
(52)		 13.7
(56.7)		 15.5
(59.9)		 15.6
(60.1)		 13.9
(57)		 11.8
(53.2)		 8.4
(47.1)		 6.0
(42.8)		 10.1
(50.2)
Record low °C (°F) −9.8
(14.4)		 −9.4
(15.1)		 −7.1
(19.2)		 0.2
(32.4)		 2.8
(37)		 5.4
(41.7)		 9.1
(48.4)		 10.0
(50)		 5.5
(41.9)		 1.8
(35.2)		 −3.5
(25.7)		 −7.9
(17.8)		 −9.8
(14.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 83.7
(3.295)		 62.3
(2.453)		 57.9
(2.28)		 57.8
(2.276)		 57.7
(2.272)		 40.0
(1.575)		 38.0
(1.496)		 36.9
(1.453)		 61.9
(2.437)		 91.9
(3.618)		 91.6
(3.606)		 90.1
(3.547)		 769.8
(30.307)
Average precipitation days 13.2 10.3 10.4 10.1 9.4 6.7 7.3 6.2 8.1 12.3 13.5 13.9 121.3
Average relative humidity (%) 88 87 84 83 84 82 81 82 83 86 86 88 84.5
Source #1: Meteo France[2][3]
Source #2: Infoclimat.fr (humidity, 1961–1990)[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ History of Île d'Yeu
  2. ↑ "Données climatiques de la station de Beaucouzé" (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Climat Pays de la Loire" (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Normes et records 1961-1990: Ile d'Yeu - St Sauveur (85) - altitude 32m" (in French). Infoclimat. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
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