The Alhpyn, a heraldic creature.

Alphyn comes from the Germanic word meaning “chaser” or “wolf”. It is described as a sort of lion figure, much like a heraldic tiger, and has eagle claws in the front and patches of hair all over the body. Sometimes the front claws are depicted as hooves from a goat instead or are all claws of a lion. It is commonly seen with longer erect ears, a thick mane and a long slender tongue. In many artworks depicting the creature, the tongue is commonly seen sticking out in front of him. It has a very long curved and knotted tail which is a popular design element in Celtic lore. It may be related to a griffin. Alphyn’s were usually used as a heraldic badge in battles. This rare symbol also appears on the Milleflour Tapestry, as a symbol on a flag held by a knight.

The Beast of Gevaudan reigned terror on France for 3 years in the 18th century until it was killed.

Introduction

The Beast of Gevaudan was a mysterious creature that struck terror into the heart of Gevaudan, France in the 18th century. There was an estimate of 210 attacks, which resulted in 113 deaths, 49 injuries July 1764 to June 1767. Up to 98 of the slain victims were partly eaten, while the rest of the slain were mutilated beyond recognization. Some people believed it to be two smaller wolves, while others believed it was a liger (tiger and lion offspring) or a hyena. But others claimed that the beast was a gigantic wolf. It was described as having reddish fur, as big as a donkey, having a massive jaw, and a furry tail.

The Attacks

The first attack occurred on June 1st 1764, when a woman saw the Beast come out of the forest. Just as fast as she spotted it, it began to charge at her. She narrowly escaped and she provided the first description of the creature. The first death caused by the creature occurred on June 30. A woman named Jeanne Boulet was found in a field. The scariest thing was the fact that the beast seemed to go after people more than the farm animals. For example, in many circumstances, a person would be found dead and partially eaten in a field full of livestock, all of which were untouched.

The beast was thought to be MUCH larger than the average wolf.

The continued attacks began to create fear in the hearts of many French people. No one in rural areas would go outside alone. Eventually, the widespread panic got the attention of King Louis XV. He sent out professional wolf hunters numbering over 20,000 to hunt down all the wolves in France. They tried many different methods, from metal trapping to poisoning and old fashioned hunting. Thousands upon thousands of wolves were slain, but it didn’t seem to stop the pandemic.

The Escalating Attacks

After the wolf massacre occurred, the attacks continued and eventually they became fiercer than ever. In one week alone the Beast killed and ate four people. A woman, and eight-year old child, a 15-year old girl, and another unidentified person were all found tore to shreds. The bodies of these people were so badly eaten that some of the pieces found were too small for burial. One victim almost went completely unidentified, but they managed to identify her by her eyes. Most of the victims were children. In the rare occasions that it was an adult, it was most likely a woman.

Conclusion

The peasants were beginning to think that the Beast was a werewolf sorcerer and would never be killed,until eventually, the killings ceased. Two possible suspects for the beast of Gevaudan were two large wolves. On September 21, 1766, a large male wolf was killed, and in June 1767, a very large female wolf was killed. The wolves had very unusual markings and coloration. Even though the wolf attacks stopped in Gevaudan after the slaying of the two large wolves, other wolf attacks have been reported in France up until 1954.

The beast of Bray Road kneeling by a creek.

The Beast of Bray Road was thought to be a werewolf seen in Wisconsin and Michigan from 1989-1992. It was named after its first sighting, which was on Bray Road, an isolated country road near Elkhorn, in southeastern Wisconsin. Occurring in a small town of 6,500 people, the sightings attracted a lot of media and the beast was a popular urban legend among teenagers.

Description of the Beast

Mostly everyone who has claimed to see the Beast described it as a massive wolf that walks on its hind legs. They estimate it to be 6 ft. tall, but perhaps it spanned as tall as 8 feet. It had human-like hands and body, but it was completely covered with fur and had the snout of a wolf. It stares at people with a smirk, has sharp eyes, and carries an awful odor. It caused no harm to date, but eyewitnesses claim it to be demonic. The beast is most often seen at night, but has been seen during the day as well. He chased a few people and was spotted by the side of the road eating animal carcasses. Some believe it to be a dogman-like creature that has survived prehistoric times and somehow it now wanders the countryside of Wisconsin.

The Beast of Bray Road, a wolf-like creature that walks on two feet.

One of the earliest accounts took place in 1936 by a night watchman at St. Colleta, a Catholic convent near Jefferson, Wisconsin. Mark Schackelman claims to have seen the beast two separate times, both around midnight. He spotted the Beast clawing on top a Native American Indian burial mound. He went after the “wolf” and the Beast fled.

During the second night of Schackelman’s watch, he approached the beast at the mound again, this time the Beast stood up on his hind legs and faced him. To his astonishment the creature was over 6 feet tall and was covered in dark hair, fangs, pointed ears, he described it as having awful smell, like rotting meat. The Beast growled, Schackelman,scared out of his mind, repeatedly prayed to God that he would be safe. After snarling at him, he said the creature walked away.

Another sighting happened in 1989 when Lorianne Endrizzi, a 24-year old, was driving down Bray Road at around 1:30 A.M. She thought she saw a person hunched over on the side of the road, so she slowed down to see if the “person” needed help. When she looked over at the figure, she saw that the person was actually a half man, half wolf abomination. It had a long snout, yellow eyes, fangs, and was covered in grayish-brown hair. The Beast was holding roadkill with its human-like hands with claws, and as she was watching, it continued to devour the animal. The beast continued to stare at her, eating the animal, until she drove away. The Beast of Bray Road has also been described as being bear-like or baboon-like. It has a resemblance to the Dogman of Michigan, Lobizon of South American, and Snarly Yow. Some say that it could also be related to Bigfoot.