Abstract
Oleron is the vastest French metropolitan islands after Corsica (35 km in length, 12 km in its biggest width, 34 metres in its highlight (in saint Trojan's dune), 90 km of coasts, a surface of 175 km2, 19 000 permanent inhabitants). From XIXth century, connections between the island and continent were assured by steamers. From the middle of XXth century, tubs made the transport of the passengers and the vehicles, until the starting of the bridge in 1966, after two years of construction. Oleron's bridge was the first of this kind in Charente-Maritime. This long road bridge of 3027 meters is free since 1991. When Oleron was not an island, people of the Palaeolithic lived on lands which were not buried underwater. But in ice age, Oleron was separated from the continent. Thanks to the discovery of sites to St Denis and to St Georges, we can date the first occupation of the island in the Neolithic period. Several megaliths, like the most important of Ors: “La Pierre Levée”, testify of this environment.
