Belle Île

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White dot: Location of Belle Île in France.


Administratively, the island is divided into four communes:

Belle-Île formed a canton until 2015 when it was merged into Quiberon as part of a general overhaul.


Belle Ile seen by Spot satellite





Climate data for Belle Île (1981–2010)
Record high °C (°F) 14.5
Average high °C (°F) 9.7
Average low °C (°F) 6.0
Record low °C (°F) −10.0
Average precipitation mm (inches) 82.0
Average precipitation days 12.9 9.7 10.0 9.4 9.1 6.6 6.7 5.9 7.8 12.4 13.4 13.5 117.4
Source: Meteo France[1][2]


At the 2009 census, the population of Belle Île was 4,920. However, in summer the population may increase to 25,000, with a peak af 35,000 between 15 July and 15 August due to tourist activity.

Evolution of Belle Île population between 1793 and 2008[3][4]


Le Palais
Côte sauvage
Claude Monet's Port Coton

Belle Île was separated from the mainland about 6000 BC, earlier than the neighbouring islands of Houat and Hœdic. Archaeological finds from the Bronze Age suggest that the island enjoyed a large increase in population in this time, probably due to improvements in seafaring. It was then naval base for the Veneti (Gaul).


Seven Years War[edit]


The attacks on Belle Île and siege of Belle Île have been described by Olaudah Equiano (ca. 1745-ca. 1797) in his autobiography, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African, 1789, June 1792.[6] In 1761 Equiano was still a slave. His book was a bestseller in his own time. He became a central figure in the British abolitionist movement, as a forceful lecturer, exposing the barbarism and cruelties of slavery. Equiano gives a detailed eyewitness report of the attacks and siege.










The island is the setting for portions of the novel The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later, Alexandre Dumas, père's second sequel to The Three Musketeers. Dumas has his character Aramis fortify the island (in place of Vauban, historically) and Porthos dies there, in the caves of Locmaria.


  1. ^ "Données climatiques de la station de Paris" (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved December 9, 2014. 
  2. ^ "Climat Bretagne". Meteo France. Retrieved December 9, 2014. 
  3. ^ (French) Population before 1962 Census
  4. ^ INSEE Legal polulations in 2008
  5. ^ a b  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Belle-Île-en-Mer". Encyclopædia Britannica 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 697. 
  6. ^ Dover Thrift Editions, Dover 0-486-40661-X, Chapter IV
  9. ^ Art Gallery of New South Wales: Belle Île
  12. ^ The Unknown Matisse..., ABC Radio National, 8 June 2005


External links[edit]
