The Battle of Bouin took place on 6 December 1793 during the War in the Vendée. It occurred on the island of Bouin and opposed Republican troops of the Army of the West to Vendéan forces commanded by François de Charette.
The engagement formed part of a Republican offensive launched in November from Nantes and Les Sables-d'Olonne, with the objective of retaking the island of Noirmoutier, which had been captured by the Vendéans in October. Following several defeats inflicted by the columns of Generals Haxo and , Charette attempted to withdraw to Noirmoutier but was unable to do so and became encircled on the island of Bouin.
The assault was launched on the morning of 6 December 1793 by three Republican columns, which breached the Royalist defenses and secured control of the island within a few hours. During the operation, several hundred Patriot prisoners were freed, and the insurgentsâ artillery and horses were captured. Despite sustaining significant losses, the forces commanded by François de Charette avoided destruction and withdrew across the marshes. A few days later, they resumed operations in the bocage. On 12 December, Charette was elected generalissimo of the .
On 12 October 1793, the Vendéan forces commanded by François de Charette captured the island of Noirmoutier after crossing the Passage du Gois. The small Republican garrison offered limited resistance and subsequently capitulated. Charette established a Royalist administration on the island, left a portion of his troops there, and departed after three days. Republican prisoners were transferred to Bouin, where, on 17 and 18 October, several hundred were killed under the authority of the local Vendéan leader .
In Paris, news of the capture of Noirmoutier caused concern within the Committee of Public Safety, which feared that control of the island might enable the Vendéans to obtain support from the British. On 18 October, the received a decree signed by Bertrand Barère, Claude-Antoine Prieur-Duvernois (known as Prieur de la Côte-dâÂÂOr), Jean-Marie Collot d'Herbois, Jacques-Nicolas Billaud-Varenne, Maximilien Robespierre, and Marie-Jean Hérault de Séchelles. The decree instructed that âÂÂall necessary measuresâ be taken to attack the island of Noirmoutier as soon as possible, expel the insurgents, and secure it for the Republic.
On 2 November 1793, the war council of the Army of the West instructed Nicolas Haxo, brigadier general, to assemble a force of 5,000 to 6,000 men to retake the island of Noirmoutier. He was ordered to attack and defeat François de Charette âÂÂwherever he may be encountered,â pursuing him even onto Noirmoutier if necessary. After preparing a campaign plan, Haxo began operations, dividing his troops into two columns. The first, commanded by Adjutant-General , departed from Nantes on 21 November. The second, led by Haxo himself, left on 22 November and advanced toward Machecoul, which it occupied on 26 November. Meanwhile, JordyâÂÂs column, numbering approximately 3,000 men, advanced on Port-Saint-Père, which it captured from the forces of on 26 November after five days of fighting and artillery exchanges. Jordy then proceeded to take Sainte-Pazanne and Bourgneuf-en-Retz before joining General Haxo at Legé on 28 November.
On the opposite side of the insurgent-held territory, Brigadier General Louis Marie Turreau, known as , departed from Les Sables-d'Olonne on 21 November. On 22 and 23 November, his forces occupied La Roche-sur-Yon, Aizenay, Le Poiré-sur-Vie, and Palluau, before advancing to Legé. He subsequently joined Haxo at Machecoul.
Meanwhile, François de Charette left his refuge at Touvois and joined his forces with those of and . On 27 November, the combined forces advanced to attack Machecoul, but they were surprised near La Garnache by a column commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Aubertin, an officer serving under . Charette withdrew to Saint-Gervais and then to Beauvoir-sur-Mer, intending to seek refuge on the island of Noirmoutier. This plan was opposed by Joly and Savin, who separated from Charette and returned with their forces to the bocage region. Charette was unable to cross the Passage du Gois to Noirmoutier due to high tide and the arrival of AubertinâÂÂs column. He consequently withdrew to the island of Bouin, where he was soon surrounded.
Located in the Bay of Bourgneuf, the island of Bouin had a population of approximately 2,000 to 2,500 inhabitants at the time. It was separated from the mainland by a watercourse known as the Dain, which was heavily silted and could be crossed on foot at low tide. The only bridge providing access to the island was the wooden Claie bridge, connecting the town of Bouin to Bois-de-Céné. The island was traversed by numerous tidal channels, sluices, canals, and dikes. Movement across these ditches was generally facilitated by wooden planks, which Charette had removed in order to impede the advance of Republican forces. The Vendéan troops constructed several entrenchments along the Dain, as well as two or three amphitheater-shaped artillery batteries, including positions at the Jaunay mill and the Pentecôterie mill. They also possessed substantial provisions.
On 1 December, Nicolas Haxo and Louis Marie Turreau (known as Dutruy) were at La Garnache, from where they wrote to the Minister of War: âÂÂWe are at this moment between Challans and Beauvoir; all posts are occupied; the enemy has only eight leagues of marshland left, where we have surrounded him.â The following day, however, Jean-Antoine Rossignol, commander-in-chief of the Army of the West, ordered Haxo to proceed toward Beaupréau with part of his forces in order to support Generals Desmares and Chabot, who were encountering difficulties against the Angevin insurgents led by La Bouëre and Pierre Cathelineau. Haxo complied with the order and conducted an expedition into the department of Maine-et-Loire for three days.
François de Charette took advantage of this temporary respite to embark by night for the island of Noirmoutier, where his presence is attested on 4 December. He entrusted his aide-de-camp, Joseph Hervouët de La Robrie, with the mission of traveling to England to request assistance. The order was also signed by Maurice d'Elbée, former generalissimo of the Catholic and Royal Army, who had taken refuge on Noirmoutier after being severely wounded at the Battle of Cholet. La Robrie embarked aboard a 60-ton schooner, Le Dauphin, commanded by Louis François Lefebvre. Owing to unfavorable winds or the presence of Republican vessels, however, the ship was unable to depart until the night of 23âÂÂ24 December.
Charette returned to Bouin during the night of 4âÂÂ5 December. Finding his troops short of ammunition, he ordered , JosephâÂÂs brother, to sail to Noirmoutier to obtain supplies. On his return, however, access to Bouin was blocked by Republican forces, which had meanwhile resumed their offensive.
On 3 December, after searching the the previous day, the column of Adjutant-General Jordy reached Bois-de-Céné and Châteauneuf. The column then divided to begin the encirclement of the island: Jordy remained at Bois-de-Céné, while Adjutant-General Villemin advanced to Bourgneuf-en-Retz. General occupied Beauvoir-sur-Mer, and General Haxo reached Challans on 5 December. During the night of 5âÂÂ6 December, at midnight, orders were issued for the three Republican columns to advance and attack Bouin, with the column from Beauvoir departing at daybreak.
Although the Vendéans were aware of the presence of Republican forces, they spent the night before the battle engaging in feasting and dancing. The royalist officer recorded this in his memoirs: âÂÂRefugees in Bouin, we were surrounded on all sides: the night was not calm. However, as provisions were plentiful and many women had taken refuge on the Island, some began to dance, others to drink; the least resolute slipped away during the night.âÂÂ
The strength of the Vendéan forces is estimated between 1,500 and 2,400 men, depending on the source. Adjutant-General Jordy estimated it at 1,800, while General , in a letter dated 14 December to General , placed it at 2,400. An anonymous military administratorâÂÂs memoirs mention 1,500 combatants. The royalist author Bittard des Portes reports the same figure, whereas Pierre-François Mourain, vice-president of the district of Les Sables-dâÂÂOlonne, gives 2,500. cites 3,000 Vendéens facing 6,500 Republican troops, though historian Lionel Dumarcet considers these figures likely to be overestimated.
At the northern end of the island of Bouin, a road known as the âÂÂsouthern passage,â leading toward Bourgneuf-en-Retz, was defended by approximately 250 men under , reportedly positioned at Les Corbets. To the east, commanded around 400 men guarding the road to Bois-de-Céné and holding the redoubt of the Jaunay mill, located south of the Claie bridge. Charette deployed the main body of forces at the village of LâÂÂEpois to the south, along the road to Beauvoir-sur-Mer, occupying positions at the Poirocq bridge and the La Pentecôterie mill. Additional forces were held in reserve within the town of Bouin. , commander of the Bouin division, was also present, although contemporary accounts do not detail his role during the engagement.
The Republican forces mobilized approximately 5,000 men for the operation, although not all participated directly in the combat. These forces were organized into three columns. To the north of Bouin, the column led by Adjutant-General Villemin positioned itself at Bourgneuf-en-Retz. To the east, the column under Adjutant-General advanced along the road to Bois-de-Céné. To the south, the column commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel approached via the road from Beauvoir-sur-Mer. Artillery was deployed only with the northern and southern columns. Gunboats patrolled the surrounding waters to prevent any potential escape by sea.
JordyâÂÂs column is estimated to have numbered between 674 and 2,500 people. At its center was the 10th Battalion of Volunteers of the Meurthe, commanded by his brother and composed of troops formerly from the Army of Mainz. This battalion was supported by a detachment from the . The left flank was held by a detachment from the 77th Infantry Regiment, and the right flank by a detachment from the 57th Infantry Regiment.
AubertinâÂÂs column, estimated at 1,000 to 1,100 people with one cannon, included 455 people from the 11th Battalion of Volunteers of the Orléans formation, detachments from the 109th and 110th Infantry Regiments, several other units, and artillery personnel from the 1st Battalion of the Bas-Rhin.
The course of the fighting is documented in several letters and reports by General Haxo, General , and the Committee of Public Safety. Accounts from participants are limited: Adjutant-General , Lieutenant-Colonel Aubertin, and the Vendéan leader provided descriptions of the events in their memoirs. Additionally, the royalist left an account; he had taken refuge at Bouin in November, where he may have encountered Charette, but was at Noirmoutier during the battle.
According to the planned operation, the three Republican columns were scheduled to converge below Bouin at 11:00 a.m. However, at the designated time, only JordyâÂÂs column had arrived. In the north, VilleminâÂÂs column was delayed by the marshes and a shortage of boats and did not participate in the fighting. In the south, AubertinâÂÂs column was also slowed by canals measuring 15 to 18 feet wide and 4 feet deep. All bridges were found to have been cut, requiring reconstruction by a company of sappers from Loire-Inférieure under the engineer officer Fachot, which involved transporting twenty wagons loaded with wood and other materials.
The engagement began with artillery exchanges. Prior to the battle, Charette addressed his troops, urging those unwilling to fight to withdraw and assuring that he would protect those who remained to follow him.
According to memoirs, after a bridge was restored by the sappers, his column captured an initial battery consisting of a 16-pounder cannon mounted on a naval carriage. The column then rebuilt seven or eight additional bridges and engaged CharetteâÂÂs forces approximately half a league from Bouin. The Republicans encountered a fortified position with two cannon embrasures and a trench defended by a substantial post, situated at the base of a windmill near the coast. The position was taken by assault, resulting in the Vendéens abandoning two 4-pounder cannons and leaving several dead and wounded.
Jordy, after crossing multiple partially frozen ditches, came under fire from the Jaunay battery but proceeded with the assault. His troops crossed the Dain and the Claie bridge with minimal resistance, overcame the Vendéan entrenchments using bayonet charges, and captured a cannon with the 10th Battalion of the Meurthe. forces retreated toward the town, while troops were pushed back onto CharetteâÂÂs main body.
In his memoirs, the Vendéan leader provides a brief description of the engagement, noting that âÂÂwe fought for a long time with cannon fire: several times on both sides we appeared to prepare for a charge, when the column advancing from Châteauneuf, which we had not considered threatening due to its small size, broke through the limited number of soldiers stationed on that side, placing us between two lines of fire.âÂÂ
Charette withdrew to the town of Bouin, where he regrouped a portion of his forces. joined him after holding a position at La Casse, near the courtyard of the local hospital. With the sea to his rear and no clear line of retreat, Charette prepared to attempt a breakout using a bayonet charge. At this stage, a resident of Bouin offered to guide him through the network of tidal channels and marshes that traversed the island.
The Republican forces advanced slowly and cautiously, anticipating potential ambushes. Upon entering the town, they expected to find Vendéan fighters entrenched in the church, but only women were present, sheltering in the turret of the bell tower staircase. Some isolated Vendéan combatants, either wounded or ill, were found in houses and were killed. Certain inhabitants of Bouin were also killed. The majority of the Vendéan forces, however, had already withdrawn from the town without leaving a trace.
The exact route taken by Charette and his forces to escape is not known with certainty. Based on local oral tradition, researchers such as Simone Loidreau and Lionel Dumarcet suggest that the Vendéans may have crossed the Poirocq bridge, followed the cart track of La Billarderie, crossed the Guérineau bridge, passed the farm of La Culgoiserie, and reached the small port of Les Billarderies, which was used for loading salt cargoes. At that time, the port, located on the bank of the Dain, was silted and no longer navigable by boats. The fugitives may then have crossed the Dain on foot during low tide, proceeding either via the Sartières and Boisseau Island or by Le Fresne, La Guitelle, and Les Petits Fresnes, before arriving at La Croix-Rouge. They reportedly reached the town of Châteauneuf around 3 p.m., which had been abandoned the previous day by JordyâÂÂs troops.
Estimates of Republican losses during the battle were relatively low. Pierre-François Mourain, vice-president of the district of Les Sables-dâÂÂOlonne, reported in a letter to the town of Fontenay-le-Comte on 18 Frimaire (8 December) that two soldiers had been killed and 20 wounded. In contrast, Adjutant-General recorded 19 killed and 83 wounded, including eight seriously.
Estimates of Vendéan losses vary. Jordy reported that 1,000 were killed and only 800 managed to escape, while Generals Haxo and Mourain indicated around 200 fatalities. According to Lieutenant-Colonel , 1,200 Vendéans fled. Royalist accounts, such as that of , suggest that about a quarter of the forcesâÂÂapproximately 700 menâÂÂwere killed or wounded. Historian gives a total of 200 killed. The number of sick and wounded executed in Bouin is uncertain; 25 victims, all local residents, have been identified. On 20 January, over thirty men were also reportedly executed near the port of La Claie.
The Vendéans lost between five and thirteen cannons, depending on the source: five according to General , six according to Haxo, Mourain, and , and thirteen according to . They also lost a number of horses, with estimates ranging from 16 according to Haxo, 70 according to Aubertin, 200 according to Dutruy, and 500 according to Mourain.
Many women who had taken refuge in the church of Bouin were captured, though the exact number is uncertain. According to Lionel Dumarcet, the traditionally accepted figure is 300, while the municipality of Beauvoir-sur-Mer reports the arrest of 83 individuals, approximately thirty of whom were from Bouin, including 62 women, 45 of whom were not residents of the commune. The 62 women whose identities are known were sent to prisons in Nantes, including and , or to the port of Les Sables-dâÂÂOlonne, from which some were later transferred to the island of Noirmoutier. Several of the women were executed in Nantes, shot at Noirmoutier, or died in prison. Among the captives were Madame de , born Marie Gabrielle du Chilleau, wife of General Couëtus, and her two daughters, Sophie and Céleste. Madame de Couëtus was imprisoned in Nantes and subsequently executed by guillotine on 1 February 1794. Her daughters were released on 19 December 1794 by order of a representative on mission.
Following the capture of Bouin, Republican forces also freed several hundred prisoners held by the Vendéens. Estimates of their number vary: Jordy reported 900, which is considered an overestimate by Lionel Dumarcet and Simone Loidreau. Dutruy mentions 700 prisoners freed, while the anonymous Mémoires de lâÂÂadministrateur militaire indicate between 200 and 300. This latter estimate is accepted by Loidreau, whereas historian considers the number of prisoners freed to have been 127.
The Republican forces gained control of the island of Bouin, resulting in a victory, although Charette escaped with part of his troops. Subsequently, he encountered a small Republican convoy between Châteauneuf and Bois-de-Céné and withdrew into the bocage region, regrouping at Saint-ÃÂtienne-de-Mer-Morte. On 7 December, the force held a Mass and a Te Deum at Touvois, followed by an unsuccessful attempt to retake Legé. On 8 December, CharetteâÂÂs troops joined the army of at Les Lucs-sur-Boulogne. The royalist leaders of Bas-Poitou and part of the Pays de Retz then spent three days reorganizing their forces. On 11 December, the Vendéens defeated the garrison at the camp of LâÂÂOie. On the morning of 12 December, at Les Herbiers, Charette was elected commander-in-chief of the .
In his Historical Clarifications, published during the Restoration, criticizes what he describes as âÂÂhesitation, uncertainty, and absence of any fixed planâ on CharetteâÂÂs part in the days preceding the Battle of Bouin. Auvynet argued that by engaging between La Garnache and Machecoul âÂÂon unfavorable ground,â Charette exposed his troops to âÂÂonly the prospect of total destruction.â He characterized the subsequent defeat at Bouin as a âÂÂprecipitate rout, accompanied by the greatest disorder,â which he suggested could have negatively affected the morale of the garrison on the island of Noirmoutier.
In 1998, historian Lionel Dumarcet similarly concluded that âÂÂCharette nevertheless had the possibility of avoiding the meshes of the Republican net. A few days earlier, and had succeeded in doing so.â He noted that CharetteâÂÂs retreat to the island of Bouin and certain strategic decisions âÂÂcould have led the chevalier and his men to annihilation,â but that chance ultimately prevented this outcome.