Jacques Cathelineau
Jacques Cathelineau | |
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Catholic and Royal Army | |
Battles/wars | War in the Vendée |
Generalissimo Jacques Cathelineau (French pronunciation:
He was a well known peddler in Anjou. When the Kingdom of France was abolished and the French First Republic was established, the revolutionaries committed atrocities against the civilians of the Vendée during the Reign of Terror. Cathelineau rallied an army of peasants loyal to the monarchy and the Church and waged an uprising against the revolutionaries, capturing several villages and castles, leading more volunteers to follow him.
As the War in the Vendée grew in success, Cathelineau joined forces with other counterrevolutionary leaders and was made
Life
Early life
Born at
In the first years of the Revolution, Cathelineau joined the numbers of Vendean peasants disgusted by the
Rebellion
As the war developed, the Vendeans became incensed by the massacres and atrocities committed by the revolutionaries on both Catholic clergy and their fellow Vendeans. On 10 March 1793, young people from the district of Saint-Florent-le-Vieil rebelled against the National Convention and beat and dispersed the local armed force. After learning of these events, Cathelineau left his cottage, gathered his neighbors, and convinced them that the only way to end the Reign of Terror was to openly take up arms and attack the Republicans. He took the initiative to gather all able-bodied men from his village to confront the Republicans. On 12 March, twenty-seven young men followed him, arming themselves in haste with any weapon they could find, and marched on Jallais, sounding the alarm and recruiting a crowd of peasants.
Arriving at Jallais on 13 March, defended by 80 Republicans and a cannon, he captured the château and seized the cannon— known to the Vendéans as "The Missionary".[2] Soon the town Chemillé was also captured on 14 March, and many more volunteers came to reinforce the troops of Cathelineau. By 14 March he already had 3,000 men under arms, and with the help of Jean-Nicolas Stofflet marched on Cholet where he was again victorious. Afterwards they joined force with the other Vendéan leaders Charles de Bonchamps and Maurice d'Elbée. Cathelineau continued to have a huge influence on the peasants as the Royalists captured Vihiers and Chalonnes. The campaign was then interrupted, as insurgents returned home to celebrate Easter.
On 9 April his bands were again under arms, but he had to evacuate Chemillé and withdraw to Tiffauges. With 3,000 men, he joined Stofflet and took Cholet, Vihiers, and Chalonnes.[3] He seized Beaupréau on 23 April and won the Battle of Thouars on 5 May. Having been pushed back to La Châtaigneraie on 14 May, the Vendéens were defeated in Fontenay-le-Comte by General Alexis Chalbos on 16 May. Cathelineau retaliated by defeating the Republicans at Montreuil-Bellay and Saumur on 9 June 1793.
After the
Death
After passing
Numerous relatives of Cathelineau also perished in the war of Vendée and the reprisals that followed.[3] The remainder of his family was ennobled under the Bourbon Restoration. His son Jacques-Joseph Cathelineau was knighted after the Restoration and his grandson Henry Cathelineau was an officer during the Franco-Prussian War.
Canonization
This article is part of Conservatism in France |
Given the great piety and courage Cathelineau showed in defense of the Catholic faith, his beatification was proposed at the end of the 19th century. Documents of the diocesan process were lost in 1944 when an aerial bombardment destroyed the bishopric archives of Angers. He remains venerated as a holy man, even though he is not recognized as such by the Catholic Church.[citation needed]
References
- ISBN 0520221362.
- ^ a b Anchel 1911, p. 523.
- ^ a b c Anchel 1911, p. 524.
- ^ « Cathelineau (Jacques) » dans Jean Tulard, Jean-François Fayard, Alfred Fierro, Histoire et dictionnaire de la Révolution française, Paris, Robert Laffont, 1987, p. 627-628.
- ^ Base Mérimée: Chapelle Cathelineau, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French).
Bibliography
- public domain: Anchel, Robert (1911). "Cathelineau, Jacques". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 523–524. In turn, it cites as references:
- Jacques Cretineau-Joly, Histoire de la Vendée militaire
- Célestin Port, Vie de J. Calhelineau (1882); La Légende de Cathelineau in the review La Révolution française, vol. xxiv; Les Origines de la Vendée (Paris, 1888, 2 vols.); Dictionnaire Historique, Géographique et Biographique de Maine-et-Loire (1874–1878, 3 vols.)
- Théodore Muret, Vie populaire de Cathelineau (1845)
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