Noirmoutier was the location of an early Viking raid in 799, when raiders attacked the monastery of Saint Philibert of Jumièges.

[3] On 4 July 1674, during the Franco-Dutch War, the island was briefly captured by Dutch forces under the command of Cornelis Tromp.

Noirmoutier was the site of several campaigns in the War of the Vendée, as well as a massacre [4] and the place of execution of the Royalist Generalissimo Maurice D'Elbée, who faced the firing squad seated in a chair due to wounds accumulated from an earlier battle.

The communes are: The island has been a site of uninterrupted human habitation since prehistoric times, and is a popular tourist destination.

Every year, an international foot race, the Foulées du Gois, is held across it, starting at the onset of the high tide.

There is considerably more precipitation in winter compared to summer.The climate is classified as cool dry summer Mediterranean type (Csb), with 3 months with Tm*2>=P.