Click for eerie music:
The Beast of Gévaudan was extremely resilient to attacks
Survived a spear attack in 1765 from Marie-Jeanne Valet, a servant (Dubey, 2022)
Escaped from numerous elite wolf hunters from King Louis XV
Also survived multiple shots from soldiers of La Chaumette in 1764 (Smith 193-194)
Later succumbed to a bullet in 1767 from a hunter named Jean Chastel (Williams, 2020)
The tale of the Beast of Gévaudan was a real phenomenon in France. On June 30, 1764, the first known victim was a 14-year-old girl named Jeanne Boulet, who was slaughtered by the Beast of Gévaudan. Following her death, a series of continuous attacks occurred, causing mass panic in France. Around late 1764, hunters shot at the creature at Chateau de la Baume (or La Chaumette), but the creature shook it off and was able to escape. In January 1765, Jacques Portefaix, a 10-year-old child, was able to defend himself from the beast along with seven children by throwing sticks at it, which inspired others for his bravery. Upon hearing this, King Louis XV (who was still dealing with losing the Seven Years War) hired hunters to kill the creature, placing a bounty. One of the famous tales of bravery was in August 1765, when a girl named Marie-Jeanne Valet defended herself using a spear. The incident gave her the legendary name “Maid of Gévaudan”. In September 1765, Francois Antoine, a gunbearer, spotted a large wolf and shot at it, seemingly ending the creature’s reign. However, attacks returned at full force around December, Eventually, the creature (or a wolf) met its end in 1767 from getting shot by Jean Chastel, a hunter (William, 2020).
The Beast of Gévaudan is usually compared to a werewolf, despite its unknown identity of what it actually was. It was extremely aggressive
Mostly terrorized woman and children (Dubey, 2022)
Rips off the victim’s heads and drinks their blood (Dubey, 2022)
At least 16 victims decapitated and about 100 people were attacked (Williams, 2020)
Throughout the Enlightenment era, people have speculated about the Beast of Gévaudan’s true appearance. Some people claimed the beast resembled a hyena, a panther (Smith 34), or a lion (Smith 50). However, most describe the creature as huge and wolf-like. According to witnesses, the beast possessed reddish gray fur, red eyes, a black stripe going along its back, and a long tail. The beast also showed strange humanoid features, such as the ability to walk on its back legs (Dubey, 2022). Consequently, its paws have six talons each and a muzzle the size of a pig, which points down (Smith 102).