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 Dutruy, 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 insurgents’ 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 Catholic and Royal Army of Lower Poitou.
Context
Beginning of the Republican offensive
On 12 October 1793, the Vendéan forces commanded by François de Charette captured the island of Noirmoutier after crossing the submersible 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 François Pajot.
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 executive council received a decree signed by Bertrand Barère, Claude-Antoine Prieur-Duvernois (known as Prieur de la Côte-d’Or), Jean-Marie Collot d'Herbois, Jacques-Nicolas Billaud-Varenne, Maximilien Robespierre, and Marie-Jean Hérault de Séchelles. The decree instructed that “all necessary measures” 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 “wherever he may be encountered,” 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 Jordy, 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, Jordy’s column, numbering approximately 3,000 men, advanced on Port-Saint-Père, which it captured from the forces of La Cathelinière 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 Dutruy, 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 Jean-Baptiste Joly and Jean Savin. 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 Dutruy. 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 Aubertin’s column. He consequently withdrew to the island of Bouin, where he was soon surrounded.
Retreat of the Vendéans to the islands of Bouin and Noirmoutier
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: “We 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.” 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 23–24 December.
Charette returned to Bouin during the night of 4–5 December. Finding his troops short of ammunition, he ordered Hyacinthe Hervouët de La Robrie, Joseph’s 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.
Prelude
On 3 December, after searching the forest of Princé 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 Dutruy occupied Beauvoir-sur-Mer, and General Haxo reached Challans on 5 December. During the night of 5–6 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 Pierre-Suzanne Lucas de La Championnière recorded this in his memoirs: “Refugees 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.”
Forces
Vendéan Army
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 Bard, in a letter dated 14 December to General Duval, placed it at 2,400. An anonymous military administrator’s 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-d’Olonne, gives 2,500. Le Bouvier-Desmortiers 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 “southern passage,” leading toward Bourgneuf-en-Retz, was defended by approximately 250 men under Louis Guérin, reportedly positioned at Les Corbets. To the east, Jean-Baptiste de Couëtus 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 L’Epois 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. François Pajot, commander of the Bouin division, was also present, although contemporary accounts do not detail his role during the engagement.
Republican Army
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 Nicolas Louis Jordy advanced along the road to Bois-de-Céné. To the south, the column commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Aubertin 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.
Jordy’s 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 109th Infantry Regiment. 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.
Aubertin’s 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.
Course of events
Sources
The course of the fighting is documented in several letters and reports by General Haxo, General Vimeux, and the Committee of Public Safety. Accounts from participants are limited: Adjutant-General Jordy, Lieutenant-Colonel Aubertin, and the Vendéan leader Pierre-Suzanne Lucas de La Championnière provided descriptions of the events in their memoirs. Additionally, the royalist Urbain-René-Thomas Le Bouvier-Desmortiers left an account; he had taken refuge at Bouin in November, where he may have encountered Charette, but was at Noirmoutier during the battle.
Capture of the entrenchments and redoubts by the Republicans
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 Jordy’s column had arrived. In the north, Villemin’s column was delayed by the marshes and a shortage of boats and did not participate in the fighting. In the south, Aubertin’s 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 Aubertin’s 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 Charette’s 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.