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.