{{Short description|French island in the Mediterranean}} {{Infobox islands | image_name = Île du Levant. Vue aerienne.jpg | image_caption = Aeiral view of the island, seen from the southeast |pushpin_map= France | pushpin_map_caption = Location within France | native_name = Île du Levant | native_name_link = | nickname = | location = Ligurian Sea | coordinates = | archipelago = Îles d'Hyères | total_islands = | major_islands = | area_km2 = 10 | length_km = | width_km = | coastline_km = | highest_mount = Réserve des Arbousiers | elevation_m = 138 | country = France | country_admin_divisions_title = Region | country_admin_divisions = Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur | country_admin_divisions_title_1 = Department | country_admin_divisions_1 = Var | country_admin_divisions_title_2 = Commune | country_admin_divisions_2 = Hyères | population = 87 | population_as_of = 2018 | density_km2 = 8,68 | ethnic_groups = }}
'''Île du Levant''' ({{IPA|fr|il dy ləvɑ̃|pron}}), sometimes referred to as '''Le Levant''', is a French island in the Mediterranean off the coast of the Riviera, near Toulon. It is one of the four that constitute the Îles d'Hyères. Part of the island is occupied by the naturist resort of Heliopolis and the rest is under military control.
== History == ===Ancient history=== In the early Bronze Age the deposits at Petit Avis attest to the intermittent passage of man. Then in the Iron Age, in Liserot Cove, in the 7th century BC the occupation remains transient. It becomes permanent there only from the sixth to the fifth century BC. Then, after a long period of abandonment, it was inhabited again in the 1st century BC; Greek and Ligurian dishes were found on the island.
===Modern history=== Monks lived on the island beginning in the 15th century; the ruins of their monastery still exist on the island. From 1861 until 1878, the island was a penitentiary for young offenders and orphans, of whom 89 died here. A plaque (located on the military part of the island) commemorates them.
In 1931, Gaston and André Durville, both doctors, established Héliopolis, Europe's first naturist village, on the island. As the doctors Durville said in 1931 {{quote|Heliopolis should not be a city or village, not an agglomeration of houses or luxury villas with garages, casinos, theaters, factories, business houses, but a simple rustic city where air and sunlight lovers come in the quiet of a beautiful nature, rest from the fatigue of artificial civilisation of cities, and enjoy simple and healthy holiday, with the only luxury of high ideals and the only concern for a more robust health.<ref name="iled_Heli" />}}
== Geography ==
The island is {{convert|8|by|2|km}}, and located in the Gulf of Lion. About 90% of the island is reserved for a military missile test centre (the Centre d'Essais de Lancement de Missiles) which has launched numerous research and testing rockets since its establishment in 1948. The remaining 10% is open to civilians.
The village was built on hillsides and is dominated by Fort Napoleon. The village has a post office, a village hall, a chapel and a police station as well as a grocery, a bakery, and two galleries. The port area houses the office of the Capitaine du Port, a clothing store and small general store. In between there is a bazaar (Le Bazar d'Héliopolis) offering food, hardware, a tabac and a cafe bar. There are a number of hotels and bed-and-breakfasts, and eight restaurants (Le Gecko, La Fourmi, La Palmeraie, La Gambaro, Héliotel, Le Minimum, La Pomme d'Adam, La Bohème), all catering for naturists. thumbnail|right|The military zone is shown in red on the map of the island.
thumb|Plage des Grottes at Île du levant ===Climate=== Île du Levant has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification ''Csa''). The average annual temperature in Île du Levant is {{cvt|16.5|C}}. The average annual rainfall is {{cvt|621.5|mm}} with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around {{cvt|24.5|C}}, and lowest in February, at around {{cvt|10.2|C}}. The highest temperature ever recorded in Île du Levant was {{cvt|38.3|C}} on 7 August 2003; the coldest temperature ever recorded was {{cvt|-8.2|C}} on 10 February 1986.
{{Weather box |location = Île du Levant (1991–2020 averages, extremes 1968–present) |metric first = Y |single line = Y |Jan record high C = 20.7 |Feb record high C = 22.3 |Mar record high C = 23.3 |Apr record high C = 25.1 |May record high C = 30.5 |Jun record high C = 35.8 |Jul record high C = 35.6 |Aug record high C = 38.3 |Sep record high C = 31.2 |Oct record high C = 27.0 |Nov record high C = 23.1 |Dec record high C = 20.0 |year record high C = 38.3 |Jan high C = 12.5 |Feb high C = 12.9 |Mar high C = 15.0 |Apr high C = 17.2 |May high C = 20.8 |Jun high C = 25.0 |Jul high C = 27.9 |Aug high C = 28.4 |Sep high C = 24.5 |Oct high C = 20.3 |Nov high C = 16.1 |Dec high C = 13.2 |year high C = 19.5 |Jan mean C = 10.2 |Feb mean C = 10.2 |Mar mean C = 12.1 |Apr mean C = 14.1 |May mean C = 17.5 |Jun mean C = 21.3 |Jul mean C = 24.1 |Aug mean C = 24.5 |Sep mean C = 21.3 |Oct mean C = 17.7 |Nov mean C = 13.8 |Dec mean C = 11.1 |year mean C = 16.5 |Jan low C = 8.0 |Feb low C = 7.5 |Mar low C = 9.2 |Apr low C = 10.9 |May low C = 14.2 |Jun low C = 17.7 |Jul low C = 20.2 |Aug low C = 20.7 |Sep low C = 18.0 |Oct low C = 15.2 |Nov low C = 11.5 |Dec low C = 9.0 |year low C = 13.5 |Jan record low C = -6.2 |Feb record low C = -8.2 |Mar record low C = 0.8 |Apr record low C = 2.9 |May record low C = 7.0 |Jun record low C = 10.0 |Jul record low C = 13.3 |Aug record low C = 12.7 |Sep record low C = 9.9 |Oct record low C = 4.6 |Nov record low C = 1.1 |Dec record low C = -1.0 |year record low C = -8.2 |precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation mm = 63.9 |Feb precipitation mm = 51.2 |Mar precipitation mm = 48.4 |Apr precipitation mm = 56.0 |May precipitation mm = 36.6 |Jun precipitation mm = 22.2 |Jul precipitation mm = 7.0 |Aug precipitation mm = 14.0 |Sep precipitation mm = 58.6 |Oct precipitation mm = 86.3 |Nov precipitation mm = 103.8 |Dec precipitation mm = 73.5 |year precipitation mm = 621.5 |unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm |Jan precipitation days = 5.9 |Feb precipitation days = 5.4 |Mar precipitation days = 4.6 |Apr precipitation days = 5.8 |May precipitation days = 4.3 |Jun precipitation days = 2.3 |Jul precipitation days = 0.8 |Aug precipitation days = 1.5 |Sep precipitation days = 4.2 |Oct precipitation days = 6.5 |Nov precipitation days = 8.1 |Dec precipitation days = 6.4 |year precipitation days = 55.7 |Jan sun = 147.5 |Feb sun = 163.4 |Mar sun = n/a |Apr sun = 245.0 |May sun = 289.8 |Jun sun = 339.6 |Jul sun = 366.9 |Aug sun = n/a |Sep sun = 268.4 |Oct sun = 189.3 |Nov sun = 142.6 |Dec sun = n/a |year sun = n/a |source 1 = Meteo France<ref>{{cite web | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180405180322/https://donneespubliques.meteofrance.fr/FichesClim/FICHECLIM_83069003.pdf | archive-date = 5 April 2018 | url = https://donneespubliques.meteofrance.fr/FichesClim/FICHECLIM_83069003.pdf | title = Ile du Levant (83) | work = Fiche Climatologique: Statistiques 1991–2020 et records | publisher = Meteo France | language = fr | access-date = 5 April 2018}}</ref> }}
== Culture == 220px|right|thumb|Sign at the trail to the beach 220px|left|thumb|alt=B&W advertising drawing. The first years of naturism, then the sea and an island in the background.|Illustration of an advertisement from the newspaper ''Naturisme'' Nudity place in English, 1931. The Bain de Diane and the Plage des Grottes (a nude beach) are reserved for naturists; nudity is formally obligatory there. Being nude is allowed (and expected) everywhere on the public area of the island, except in the immediate vicinity of the harbour.<ref>Arrêté Municipal Hyères N° 25, 14 March 1978 (http://www.aln.fr/html/documents/Arr%EAt%E9_1978_03_14_Mairie_Hy%E8res_Naturisme_au_Levant.pdf); modified 20 April 2005 (http://www.aln.fr/html/documents/Arr%EAt%E9_2005_04_28_modif-arr%EAt%E9-1978-naturisme-Levant.pdf). In August 2015, the Mayor of Hyeres informed the French Naturist Association that simply traversing, but not stopping on, the Village Square and its surroundings nude will henceforth be tolerated. ({{cite web |url=http://www.ile-du-levant.net/blog-naturiste/traverser-nu-la-place-du-village.html |title=Traverser nu la place du village - Ile du Levant |access-date=2016-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160327165910/http://ile-du-levant.net/blog-naturiste/traverser-nu-la-place-du-village.html |archive-date=2016-03-27 }}).</ref> In the harbour, it is formally necessary to wear what the French jokingly call {{langx|fr|le minimum||The minimum}},{{efn|''Le minimum'' is the term used by naturists on the island, for the tiny coverage required by regulations on a few locations. Near the harbour the genitals have to be covered. As a good-humoured protest against this regulation, some naturists wear in these locations a tiny string, a transparent pareo or a loincloth that fulfils the legal requirement but does little to preserve modesty.}}<ref name="WSJ" /> often a pareo or a string. In conformance with the relaxed atmosphere of the island, this rule is not really enforced, but generally well observed. Inside restaurants outside the village centre, some clothing, although often flimsy, is often worn but toplessness (for women and men) is quite accepted there and ''le minimum'' considered sufficient attire; on the outside terraces, nudity is common, especially at lunchtime. At least two restaurants, La Fourmi and Heliotel, actively encourage customers to be nude, even at dinner.
The island sees a number of scuba divers; they generally do not take part in the nudist lifestyle.
The non-military part of the island is private property. The owners form the ''Association Syndicale Libre des Propriétaires à l'Île du Levant''.
Outside Héliopolis naturist village the main tourist attraction is the Domaine des Arbousiers, a voluntary natural reserve of {{convert|19|ha}}, established on 3 December 1993.<ref>Décision du Préfecture du Var, 3 December 1993.</ref>
The island can be reached by boat from Hyères and from Le Lavandou. As no cars are allowed on the island (except for some four utility cars), these ferries do not take cars.
==In popular culture==
A 1956 film by Werner Kunz was called ''Isle of Levant'' and featured so-called "nudist camp" footage.
The island is used as a setting in the Robert A. Heinlein novel ''Glory Road'' and in the Mario Reading novel ''The Music Makers''.
The island was mentioned in ''Are You Being Served?'' episode "Hoorah for the Holidays" as a presumed destination for Captain Peacock's annual vacation. Miss Brahms calls it "a nudist colony" but Captain Peacock insists it's a "nature camp".
The island, and a nod to its nudist history, was also featured in the French film ''Nos Futurs'' (Our Futures).
It was also the setting for a short story, ''The Reluctant Nudist'', featuring Leslie Charteris' character The Saint. ''The Reluctant Nudist'' appeared in the collection published as ''The Saint Around the World''
"The Incompleat Guide to the Île du Levant", Henry N. Manney III and Russell Brockbank (illustrator), ''Road & Track'', March 1964.<ref name="simanaitis">{{cite web |last=Simanaitis |first=Dennis |date=15 January 2016 |url=https://simanaitissays.com/2016/01/15/remembering-henry-n-manney-iii/ |title=Remembering Henry N. Manney III |website=simanaitissays.com }}</ref>
== See also == {{portal|France|Nudity}} {{see also|Naturism}} * Cap d'Agde * Euronat (naturist resort) * CHM Montalivet * Naturism in France * List of French naturist beaches (In French) * List of social nudity places in France, Europe * Platais Island * Naturism * Wreck of Rochelongue
== Notes == {{notelist}} <references> <ref name="WSJ">{{Cite web | title = On French Island, Nudists Rebuff Clothing Rules | last = Bisserbe | first = Noemie | work = Wall Street Journal | date = 10 March 2016 | access-date = 2016-06-18 | url = https://www.wsj.com/article_email/on-french-island-nudists-rebuff-clothing-rules-1457630341-lMyQjAxMTA2MTExNDUxNjQ3Wj }}</ref> <ref name="iled_Heli">{{Cite web | title = Heliopolis Naturist Resort History - Ile du Levant | work = iledulevant.com.fr | access-date = 2016-06-18 | url = http://www.iledulevant.com.fr/en/history.html }}</ref> </references>
==Further reading== *{{cite journal|last1=Bauberot|first1=Arnaud|title=De la nudité thérapeutique au nudisme, les naturistes français|journal=Rives Méditerranéennes|issue=30|year=2008|pages=101–116|issn=2103-4001|doi=10.4000/rives.2403|doi-access=free}} *{{Cite journal | title = Du projet utopique à la réalité: La création d'Héliopolis Première commune naturiste de France (1930-1939) | last = Villaret | first = Sylvain | journal= Histoire Urbaine| volume = 41|issn= 1628-0482|issue=3|year= 2014|pages= 121–136 | access-date = 2016-06-18 | url = https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=4990597 | language = fr | doi = 10.3917/rhu.041.0121| doi-access = free}}
== External links == {{Wikivoyage}} * [https://www.iledulevant.com.fr/en/heliopolis/a-little-bit-of-history/ Levant Island tourism] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220129150355/https://www.iledulevant.com.fr/en/heliopolis/a-little-bit-of-history/ |date=2022-01-29 }} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20160609165846/http://www.hyeres-tourisme.com/hyeres/les-iles-dor/ile-du-levant Ile du Levant official tourist informations] * https://web.archive.org/web/20151222173256/http://www.iledulevant.com.fr/en/ * [http://heliopolis.sitego.fr/ Ile du Levant] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20031031091815/http://astronautix.com/sites/ileevant.htm Ile du Levant Chronology and Launch Log] * [http://www.ile-du-levant.net/ Ile du Levant Naturist Web Site] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20051102010916/http://www.ot-hyeres.fr/images/levantcarte.jpg Map of the island] in JPEG format, from the Hyères Office of Tourism
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ile Du Levant}} Category:Islands of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Category:Landforms of Var (department) Category:Naturist resorts Category:Nude beaches Levant Category:Naturism in France