Porquerolles

Porquerolles
Topographic map of Porquerolles

Coordinates: 43°00′N 6°13′E / 43.000°N 6.217°E / 43.000; 6.217 Porquerolles (French pronunciation: ​[pɔʁkəʁɔl]), also known as the Île de Porquerolles, is an island in the Îles d'Hyères, Var, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. Its land area is 1,254 hectares (12.54 km2; 4.84 sq mi) and in 2004 its population was about 200.

Porquerolles is the largest, most westerly of the three Îles d'Hyères. It is about 7 km (4.3 miles) long by 3 km (1.9 miles) wide, with five small ranges of hills. The south coast is lined with cliffs, and on the north coast are the port and the beaches of Notre Dame, La Courtade, and Plage d'Argent.

The island's village was established in 1820, with its lighthouse constructed in 1837 and church in 1850. The entire island was purchased in 1912 by François Joseph Fournier, apparently as a wedding present for his wife; he planted 200 hectares (500 acres) of vineyards which produced a wine that was among the first to be classified as vin des Côtes de Provence.

In 1971 the state bought 80 percent of the island to preserve it from development. Much of the island is now part of a national park (the Port-Cros Parc National) and nature conservation area (Conservatoire botanique national méditerranéen de Porquerolles).

It is the setting for the 1949 novel Mon Ami Maigret (My Friend Maigret) by Georges Simenon and the 1964 novel Valparaiso by Nicolas Freeling.

Since 2010, the island also hosts a jazz festival each summer ("Jazz à Porquerolles").

On December 28, 2016 Var Martin reported that residents were considering blockading the port to protest the closure of the post office and the police station.

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