The
former island of Sète was developed as a colony and
a port by the ancient
Greeks. At that time it was an island in the Mediterranean
Sea, just off-shore.
Today
it is located on the mainland, in the Hérault
département at the end of the Canal
du Midi - to which the town owes its development since
the seventeenth century. At that time it was known as Cette
- the name you will find on old maps. The spelling was changed
to Sète in 1927.
the
town lies to the south-east of the Bassin de Thau, an enclosed
salt water lake (locally called an Étang) now used
for farming oysters and mussels.
Sète is one of the Languedoc towns famous for sea jousting tournaments (Joutes Nautiques). They are exactly what you might expect from the name, medieval style joustes but conducted from boats rather than horses. They take place from April to September each year.
Sète lies on the Canal Rhône-Sète, an extension to the Canal du Midi, built by Pierre-Paul Riquet a notable Languedoc resident. The Canal is popular for boating holidays and through France's extensive canal network provides a way to get to the Languedoc from the Atlantic Ocean, Northern France and Mediterranean Sea.
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