Sète

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Administrative division in Occitania, France

title: "Sète" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["communes-of-hérault", "seaside-resorts-in-france", "languedoc"] description: "Administrative division in Occitania, France" topic_path: "geography/france" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sète" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Administrative division in Occitania, France ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox French commune"]

FieldValue
nameSète
commune statusCommune
image
captionClockwise from top: The Royal Canal, the Mont Saint-Clair lighthouse, the Sète naval cemetery, and the Molière theatre.
image coat of armsBlason ville fr Sète (Hérault).svg
arrondissementMontpellier
cantonSète
INSEE34301
postal code34200
demonymSétois
mayorFrançois Commeinhes
partyDVD
term2020–2026
intercommunalityCA Sète Agglopôle Méditerranée
coordinates
elevation m4
elevation min m0
elevation max m176
area km224.21
population
population date
population footnotes
::

|name = Sète |commune status = Commune |image = |caption = Clockwise from top: The Royal Canal, the Mont Saint-Clair lighthouse, the Sète naval cemetery, and the Molière theatre. |image coat of arms = Blason ville fr Sète (Hérault).svg |arrondissement = Montpellier |canton = Sète |INSEE = 34301 |postal code = 34200 |demonym = Sétois |mayor = François Commeinhes |party = DVD |term = 2020–2026 |intercommunality = CA Sète Agglopôle Méditerranée |coordinates = |elevation m = 4 |elevation min m = 0 |elevation max m = 176 |area km2 = 24.21 |population = |population date = |population footnotes =

Sète (; , ), also historically spelled Cette (official until 1928) and Sette, is a resort town and commune in the Hérault department, in the region of Occitania, southern France. Its inhabitants are called Sétois (male) and Sétoises (female) in French, "Setòris" and "Setòria" in Occitan.

Known as the Venice of Languedoc and the singular island (in Paul Valéry's words), it is a port and a seaside resort on the Mediterranean with its own very strong cultural identity, traditions, cuisine and dialect. It is the hometown of such artists as Paul Valéry, Maurice Elie Sarthou, Jean Vilar, Georges Brassens, Hervé Di Rosa, Manitas de Plata, and Robert Combas. Since 2001, François Commeinhes is the mayor of the city.

Geography

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Virla_Bridge,_Sète,_Hérault_01.jpg" caption="Virla Bridge"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Ile_de_Thau,_Sète,_Hérault_01.jpg" caption="Southwestern part of the Île de Thau neighbourhood and the Étang de Thau"] ::

Built upon and around Mont St Clair, Sète is situated on the south-eastern end of the Étang de Thau, an enclosed salt water lake used primarily for oyster and mussel fields. To its other side lies the Mediterranean, and the town has a network of canals which are links between the Étang de Thau and the Mediterranean Sea.

Climate

Sète has a mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification Csa). The average annual temperature in Sète is 15.4 C. The average annual rainfall is 560.7 mm with October as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 23.9 C, and lowest in January, at around 8.0 C. The highest temperature ever recorded in Sète was 41.0 C on 12 August 1923; the coldest temperature ever recorded was -12.0 C on 10 February 1956. |width = 75% |location = Sète (1981–2010 averages, extremes 1920−present) |metric first = Y |single line = Y |Jan record high C = 20.2 |Feb record high C = 21.8 |Mar record high C = 27.1 |Apr record high C = 31.0 |May record high C = 34.6 |Jun record high C = 40.3 |Jul record high C = 37.8 |Aug record high C = 41.0 |Sep record high C = 34.2 |Oct record high C = 32.1 |Nov record high C = 25.4 |Dec record high C = 20.4 |year record high C = 41.0 |Jan high C = 10.8 |Feb high C = 11.6 |Mar high C = 14.6 |Apr high C = 16.9 |May high C = 20.6 |Jun high C = 24.9 |Jul high C = 27.8 |Aug high C = 27.4 |Sep high C = 23.7 |Oct high C = 19.3 |Nov high C = 14.3 |Dec high C = 11.4 |year high C = 18.6 |Jan mean C = 8.0 |Feb mean C = 8.6 |Mar mean C = 11.3 |Apr mean C = 13.5 |May mean C = 17.2 |Jun mean C = 21.2 |Jul mean C = 23.9 |Aug mean C = 23.7 |Sep mean C = 20.3 |Oct mean C = 16.5 |Nov mean C = 11.6 |Dec mean C = 8.8 |year mean C = 15.4 |Jan low C = 5.3 |Feb low C = 5.5 |Mar low C = 7.9 |Apr low C = 10.1 |May low C = 13.8 |Jun low C = 17.4 |Jul low C = 20.0 |Aug low C = 19.9 |Sep low C = 16.8 |Oct low C = 13.6 |Nov low C = 9.0 |Dec low C = 6.2 |year low C = 12.2 |Jan record low C = -11.0 |Feb record low C = -12.0 |Mar record low C = -6.2 |Apr record low C = 1.2 |May record low C = 4.2 |Jun record low C = 6.5 |Jul record low C = 12.0 |Aug record low C = 11.0 |Sep record low C = 6.0 |Oct record low C = 2.4 |Nov record low C = -1.8 |Dec record low C = -7.2 |year record low C = -12.0 |precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation mm = 51.4 |Feb precipitation mm = 51.8 |Mar precipitation mm = 39.7 |Apr precipitation mm = 48.3 |May precipitation mm = 42.3 |Jun precipitation mm = 25.2 |Jul precipitation mm = 11.5 |Aug precipitation mm = 26.4 |Sep precipitation mm = 56.7 |Oct precipitation mm = 90.9 |Nov precipitation mm = 65.2 |Dec precipitation mm = 51.3 |year precipitation mm = 560.7 |unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm |Jan precipitation days = 5.2 |Feb precipitation days = 4.4 |Mar precipitation days = 4.5 |Apr precipitation days = 5.5 |May precipitation days = 5.0 |Jun precipitation days = 3.4 |Jul precipitation days = 2.0 |Aug precipitation days = 3.1 |Sep precipitation days = 4.0 |Oct precipitation days = 5.9 |Nov precipitation days = 5.3 |Dec precipitation days = 5.0 |year precipitation days = 53.5 |Jan humidity = 76 |Feb humidity = 74 |Mar humidity = 70 |Apr humidity = 70 |May humidity = 72 |Jun humidity = 69 |Jul humidity = 66 |Aug humidity = 68 |Sep humidity = 74 |Oct humidity = 76 |Nov humidity = 75 |Dec humidity = 76 |year humidity = 72.2 |source 1= Météo France{{cite web | url = https://donneespubliques.meteofrance.fr/FichesClim/FICHECLIM_34301002.pdf | title=climate of Sète 1981-2010 | language = fr | publisher = Météo-France | access-date = June 4, 2022}} |source 2 = Infoclimat.fr (humidity and snowy days, 1961–1990){{cite web | url = http://www.infoclimat.fr/climatologie-07641-sete.html | title = Normes et records 1961-1990: Sète (34) - altitude 80m | language = fr | publisher = Infoclimat | access-date = 7 January 2016}}

History

The name first appeared in Ptolemy (Geography II.10.2.): Σήτιον ὄρος, later in Avienius' (Ora Maritima): Setius... mons and on the maps of Aniane: fiscum..qui nuncupatur Sita

During the 11th century Catharism appeared in the Languedoc region.

1600–1900

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Sete_hotel_de_ville.JPG" caption="Hôtel de Ville"] ::

On 29 July 1666, the first stone was officially set on the Saint-Louis pier. The Canal du Midi was completed in 1681 and Vauban visited the port in 1684. Saint-Louis church was consecrated in 1703. From 24 to 26 July 1710, during the War of the Spanish Succession the British attacked Sète, soon fought back by the Adrien Maurice de Noailles Duke of Noailles. Between 1710 and 1711, Saint-Pierre and Butte-Ronde forts were built.

The Hôtel de Ville was acquired in 1723 and the Richelieu citadel and the Castellas tower were built in 1744.

19th century

Between 1807 and 1809 the British tried to burn the town. On 21 May 1821, the first stone of the breakwater was set (finished in 1869). On 9 June 1839 the Montpellier–Sète railway was opened. On 6 May 1872 the chamber of commerce was established. Between 1882 and 1888 construction works on the port took place. On 24 June 1894 Sante Geronimo Caserio, an Italian anarchist from Lombardy and apprentice baker in Sète stabbed to death president Sadi Carnot in Lyon. In 1895, the boys' high school, later renamed the Lycée Paul Valéry, was opened.

20th century

In 1901 an electric tramway network was built (used until 1935). In 1902, the Nelson family opened Chateau Nelson. On 20 January 1928, the name of the town changed from Cette to Sète. In 1934, FC Sète 34 won the Ligue 1 and Coupe de France and became the first football club to win both the same year. On 23 May 1939: the SS Sinaia left the port with Spanish Republicans seeking asylum in Lázaro Cárdenas's Mexico. On 12 November 1942: the town was occupied by the German troops of the Wehrmacht. On 25 June 1944 Sète railway station, Balaruc-les-Bains's and Frontignan's oil refineries were bombarded by the American 15th Air Force. On 20 August 1944 Sète was liberated. On 11 July 1947, the packet steamship SS President Warfield leaves for Palestine with 4,530 Jews who survived the Shoah. The port official M. Leboutet had authorised captain Ike Aronowicz to sail to Colombia and, after five days on the Atlantic Ocean, the ship took the name SS Exodus and changed direction towards Palestine. 27 km from the coast, they were stopped by five British torpedo boats. 75 passengers accepted asylum in France, while the others were brought to Hamburg via Gibraltar. In 1960, the Théâtre de la Mer was built. In 1962, the technical college Joliot-Curie was opened. In 1966–1978 major construction works on the port took place. In 1970, the Museum Paul Valéry was opened. From 1981 to 1984, a new public hospital was built. On 31 October 1991, the espace Georges Brassens, a museum dedicated to the singer, opened.

21st century

In 2004, a plan to preserve the Lido and prevent further coastal damage was made. In 2005 a new neighbourhood called Villeroy was created. In 2006 the "espace Georges Brassens" was renovated. In January 2007, the Languedoc-Roussillon manages the port of Sète. In 2014, une ville humanitaire, saw the creation of "les Anges de la Rue". In 2016, a great wine spill occurred at the Nelson Château.

Population

| align = none | cols = 2 | percentages = pagr | source = EHESS and INSEE (1968-2017) | graph-pos = bottom |1793 |8031 |1800 |6984 |1806 |8438 |1821 |9061 |1831 |10638 |1836 |11648 |1841 |13413 |1846 |19041 |1851 |19124 |1856 |21064 |1861 |22438 |1866 |24177 |1872 |25826 |1876 |28690 |1881 |35517 |1886 |37058 |1891 |36541 |1896 |32729 |1901 |33246 |1906 |33892 |1911 |33049 |1921 |36503 |1926 |37005 |1931 |36953 |1936 |37324 |1946 |31203 |1954 |33454 |1962 |36301 |1968 |40476 |1975 |39258 |1982 |39545 |1990 |41510 |1999 |39542 |2007 |42972 |2012 |44558 |2017 |43229

Patron saint

In 1703, when the Saint-Louis church was consecrated, Louis IX, patron of the port, also became the patron saint of the town. He has been celebrated every year on 25 August, with canal jousting competitions, music and fireworks, except during wartime.

Transport

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Étang_de_Thau,_Sète,_Hérault_02.jpg" caption="Sète and the Étang de Thau"] ::

Sète is the eastern starting point of the Canal du Midi, and the ending point of the Canal du Rhône à Sète. Its train station Gare de Sète is approximately 20 minutes by train from Montpellier, and is also served by long-distance trains to Bordeaux, Toulouse, Marseille and Paris. Car ferries sail between Sète and Morocco.

Culture

Sète is a centre of water jousting, and hosts a major tournament during the town festival, the St-Louis.

Paul Valéry's poem Le Cimetière Marin, depicts the graveyard above Sète's harbour. Valéry is buried in the graveyard, and the nearby Paul Valéry Museum contains a collection of his drawings and manuscripts.

Espace Georges-Brassens is a museum dedicated to the Sétois singer-songwriter.

Agnès Varda's first film, La Pointe Courte, was filmed in the environs of Sète.

Director Abdellatif Kechiche set his 2007 film The Secret of the Grain, Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno (2017) and Mektoub, My Love: Intermezzo (2019) in Sète.

The 2010 French romantic comedy film Beautiful Lies, directed by Pierre Salvadori and starring Audrey Tautou, was mostly shot in Sète.

Notable people

Sète was the birthplace of:

Other famous inhabitants include:

International relations

Sète is twinned with:

Gallery

File:Phare du Mont-Saint-Clair, Sète, Hérault 05.jpg|Lighthouse of the Mount Saint-Clair File:Théatre de la Mer à Sète.jpg|Théatre de la Mer. File:Fort Richelieu, Sète, Hérault 03.jpg|Fort Richelieu. File:Quai Maréchal de Lattre de Tassigny, Sète 02.jpg|Maréchal de Lattre de Tassigny Embankment. File:Dawn on Sète and the Étang de Thau.jpg|Sète and the Étang de Thau. File:Pont du Tivoli, Sète, Hérault 16.jpg|Tivoli Bridge over one of the canals of the town. File:Crique de l'Anau, Sète, Hérault 01.jpg|Crique de l'Anau, a cove in the Mediterranean Sea. File:Canal de la Peyrade, Sète, Hérault 01.jpg|Canal de la Peyrade File:Virla bridge 04.jpg File:Tournoi joutes 05.jpg File:Tournoi joutes 03.jpg File:Tournoi joutes 04.jpg File:Tournoi joutes 01.jpg File:Tournoi joutes.jpg File:Rond point Paul Valéry 01.jpg File:Rond point Paul Valéry 02.jpg File:Rond point Paul Valéry.jpg File:L’église décanale Saint-Louis.jpg File:Place public.jpg File:Escalier à séte.jpg File:Parc Simone Veil.jpg File:Fontain de poulpe.jpg File:Virla bridge 01.jpg File:Place Aristide Briand.jpg File:Place Aristide Briand 01.jpg File:Virla Bridge.jpg File:Théâtre Molière Sète.jpg File:Art urbain Sète France 01.jpg File:Art urbain Sète France.jpg

References

References

  1. (13 September 2022). "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises.
  2. Le Roy Ladurie, Emmanuel. (1990). "Montaillou: Cathars and Catholics in a French Village". Penguin.
  3. "Ailleurs: Eglise décanale Saint Louis de Sète, plus ancienne église de la ville, consacrée au saint patron de l'Île Singulière". Paris La Douce.
  4. Robitaille, Louis-Bernard. (2011). "Sète la singulière". Au Fil du Temps Editions.
  5. Sagnes, Jean. (1987). "Histoire de Sète".
  6. {{Cassini-Ehess. 7580. Sète
  7. [https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/4515315?geo=COM-34301#ancre-POP_T1 Population en historique depuis 1968], INSEE
  8. {{usurped
  9. "''Le cimetière marin''".
  10. Pourrageau, Vincent. (23 December 2019). "Retro 2010–2020 : retour sur le tournage à Sète de "De vrais mensonges"". [[Ici (radio network).
  11. "Le jumelage". Sète.

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