Writings on the Beast of Gévaudan
After much blood had been spilled, the Beast of the Gevaudan has and will certainly spill a lot of ink. More than 1500 writings have been listed on the issue since 1767.
The documents at this time
One can find most of them in public records and libraries. All of them are not known, especially those, if they exist, belonging to private records. Maybe they will, one day, increase our understanding of this news item out of the common. They can be seen under two formats:
Manuscripts :
Letters – parish registers – minutes – memoirs – Expense invoices
Printed matters :
Orders – Circular letters - posters – press coverage (gazette de France and courrier d'Avignon in particular)
Gravures - Poems, laments – Summoning of the bishop of Mende)
Bounties given to hunters.
The writings since the death of the Beast
We cannot quote them all because the Beast has aroused a lot of passion and therefore lots of books and articles have been published after its death. Some are historic studies, others scientific studies, novels, plays, comic books…
These numerous works, with broaden content, often discomfit people who discover this story. To make sure we are clear and concise, we will only mention the main books (by chronological order) and not the press coverage.
Comics
Many authors have embarked on the more or less romanticized story of the Beast of Gévaudan in comics.
Those who wrote novels
Novels are welcome but must be reported as such. History cannot be distorted! In our opinion, the reader must be informed upfront that what he is about to read is a fiction. The novels on the Beast have contributed to create a legend, fuzziness on this case.
In particular, the three following books:
- 1858 - Élie Berthet : « La bête du Gévaudan ». He publishes the first novel on the case. His Bête du Gévaudan achieved immediate success.
- 1936 - Abel Chevalley : « La bête du Gévaudan ». First book to allocate to Antoine Chastel the title of zoo keeper.
- 1946 - Henri Pourrat : « Histoire fidèle de la Bête du Gévaudan » (Faithful story of the Beast of Gévaudan). The famous novelist is taking up the argument of Chevalley about Antoine Chastel. One finds well portrayed characters: Antoine Chastel , the son of Jean, has gone to Africa and was captured by the « barbaresques ». He would have been trained into a zookeeper, would have been emasculated to make him a harem keeper (Guy Crouzet has shown in his book he had had 6 children). This legend is not supported by any historical fact but has been taken up by a lot of authors!
Other novels on the Beast are regularly written, proving the commercial interest of some people. Some of the most recent:
- 2004 - Jean-Paul Malaval : « Le carnaval des loups » (the wolf carnival)
- 2005 - Jean-Christophe Macquet : « Werewolf »
- 2006 - Philippe Mignaval : « Gévaudan »
- 2008 - Patrick Bard : « Le chien de Dieu » (God's Dog), a novel that mixes Gévaudan and the Vatican.
- 2009 - Monique Le Dantec : « Les loups de Marvejols » (Wolves of Marvejols), a novel that takes place near Marvejols and the Parc Les loups du Gévaudan.
- 2013 - Gilles Bordes : « Les secrets de la forêt » (The secrets of the forest), a novel which uses the fear of the other in the shadow of the Beast of Gévaudan.
- 2014 - Catherine Hermary-Vieille : « La Bête » (The beast), a novel that revisits the legend of the Beast of Gévaudan.
- 2014 - Jean Lidon : « La Bête ne meurt jamais » (The Beast never dies), a novel which resuscitates the Beast but in a "modern" version.
- 2014 - Gilles Vincent : « Gévaudan, le retour de la Bête » (Gévaudan, the return of the Beast), an investigation of the Beast in our time, rather for young people.
- 2021 - Florence Metge : « Meurtres en Gévaudan » (Murders in Gevaudan), the author revisits the case of the Beast of Gevaudan today.
- 2022 - Florence Metge : « Du Gévaudan à Versailles » (From Gévaudan to Versailles), a historical thriller.
- 2022 - Dominique farigoux : « Mille jours en Gévaudan » (A thousand days in Gévaudan), the author lets the Beast speak.
Books
A lot of the above-mentioned books are not available anymore. Some have been republished. One can find some of them on the second-hand market. Below you will find a list, certainly incomplete, still available to their publisher:
- 1901 - L'abbé François Fabre de Saugues : « la Bête du Gévaudan en Auvergne ». (The beast of Gévaudan in Auvergne) He mentions new documents discovered in particular in Clermont-Ferrand.
- 1930 - L'abbé François Fabre wrote another publication « La bête du Gévaudan ». Very beautiful book more complete than the first, illustrated in color.
- 1962 - Mme Aribaud-Farrere writes a small booklet « La bête du Gévaudan identifiée » (The beast of Gévaudan identified) published in Béziers. For her, he was a sadistic madman.
- 1968 - L’abbé Xavier Pic : « La bête qui mangeait le monde en pays de Gévaudan et d'Auvergne » (The beast that ate the world in the land of Gévaudan and Auvergne) Another major writing on the subject which synthesizes the books of Pourcher as well as Fabre.
- 1970 - Jacques Delperrie de Bayac : « Du sang dans la montagne » (Blood on the mountain) It presents the opinion of a wolf breeder in a fictionalized story.
- 1976 - Gérard Menatory : « La Bête du Gévaudan » (The Beast of Gévaudan) it is a hyena led by Antoine Chastel.
- 1978 - Alain Decaux tells « The Beast of Gévaudan » and also evokes a sadistic madman.
- 1983 - René De Chantal : « La Bête du Gévaudan la fin d'une énigme » (The Beast of Gévaudan the end of an enigma) because for him it is a tigron.
- 1985 - Henri Pourrat : « Histoire fidèle de la bête en Gévaudan » (Faithful history of the beast in Gévaudan) - Édition Jeanne Laffite Marseille.
- 1985 - Jean-Jacques Barloy : « Les survivants de l'ombre » (The survivors of the shadows) where the case of the beast of Gévaudan is submitted to the computer.
- 1985 - Guy Crouzet : « Quand sonnait le glas au pays de la bête » (When the death knell sounded in the land of the beast). A very serious, well-documented study. The author has taken all the historical documents from their sources and even discovered new ones. In particular, he made the family tree of the Chastels there.
- 1987 - Félix Buffières : « La bête du Gévaudan » (The Beast of Gévaudan) with numerous illustrations.
- 1988 - Raymond Francis Dubois : « La Bête du Gévaudan » (The Beast of Gevaudan). He is an armored war dog who accomplishes his deeds on behalf of a local lord.
- 1990 - Serge Colin : « Autour de la bête du Gévaudan » (Around the beast of Gévaudan). The author places the history of the beast in its local and national historical context. Very serious historically!
- 1992 - Michel Louis : « La Bête du Gévaudan l'innocence des loups » (The Beast of Gévaudan the innocence of wolves). He is also a wolf / armored dog hybrid, and acting under the orders of a nobleman with the complicity of the Chastels. (Reissued in 1997, 2000)
- 1992 - Guy Crouzet writes "Requiem en Gévaudan" which takes up with some new discoveries, the work of 1985.
- 1993 - Alex Marques, for him, "The Beast which ate the world" becomes a glutton (lost in Gévaudan since prehistoric times).
- 1995 - Pierre Cubizolles : « Loups garous en Gévaudan le martyre des innocents » (Werewolves in Gévaudan the martyrdom of the innocents) - Edition Watel Brioude.
- 1995 - José Feron Romano : « La Bête du Gévaudan »
- 1999 - François Fabre Reissue of his book "The beast of Gévaudan in Auvergne" Completed by Jean Richard: one of the "best seller" on the subject!
- 2001 - Laurent Fournier : « La petite histoire des grands ravages d'une méchante bête » (The story of the great ravages of a wicked beast) - PSR éditions.
- 2001 - Guy Crouzet : « La grande peur du Gévaudan » (The great fear of Gévaudan) He reveals the result of his latest research: guilty wolves and perhaps in addition a hyena which would have prowled in Gévaudan, thus sowing confusion in the spirits.
- 2003 - Roger Lagrave : « Les dits de la Bête » (Sayings of the Beast) - Édition Gévaudan Cévennes.
- 2004 - Pascal Cazottes : « La bête du Gévaudan enfin démasquée » (The beast of Gévaudan finally unmasked) He sees in the beast a hemicyon, an animal survivor of prehistory which was half dog, half bear ....
- 2004 - Hervé Boyac : « La bête du Gévaudan plaidoyer pour le loup » (The Beast of Gévaudan plea for the wolf) - Author's account.
- 2004 - André Aubazac : « Drôles de bêtes en Gévaudan » (Funny animals in Gévaudan) - Chaumeil repro Clermont Ferrand.
- 2005 - Corinne Dalle : « Au loup !! la bête du Gévaudan et autres loups… » (Wolf !! the beast of Gévaudan and other wolves) - CG Archives Puy de Dôme.
- 2005 - Roger Lagrave : « Autres dits de la bête » (Other sayings of the beast) - Éditions Gévaudan Cévennes.
- 2006 - L’abbé Pierre Pourcher : « Histoire de la bête du Gévaudan » (History of the beast of Gévaudan) - Édition Jeanne Laffite Marseille.
- 2006 - François Fabre - Jean Richard : « La bête du Gévaudan » - Édition De Borée Clermont-Ferrand.
- 2007 - Hervé Boyac : « La bête du Gévaudan, le loup acquitté enfin ! » (The beast of Gévaudan, the wolf acquitted at last!)
- 2007 - Roger Lagrave : « Le poil de la Bête » (The hair of the beast) - Édition Gévaudan Cévennes.
- 2008 - Jean-Marc Moriceau : « La bête du Gévaudan » - Édition Larousse.
- 2009 - Roger Oulion : « La Bête du Gévaudan, Nouvelles révélations sur un crime organisé au XVII siècle en Gévaudan » (The Beast of Gévaudan, New revelations on an organized crime in the 17th century in Gévaudan) Updated version of 2006 - He sees a vast plot of nobles assisted by the Chastels throwing hybrids trained on the shepherdesses of the area.
- 2010 - André Aubazac : « La Bête du Gévaudan 2 » (The Beast of Gévaudan 2), men are the only and unique culprits.
- 2010 - Guy Crouzet : « Bêtes en Gévaudan » (Beasts in Gévaudan) - Édition Guy Crouzet.
- 2010 - Patrice Esnoux : « Les mystères de la bête du Gévaudan » (The mysteries of the beast of Gévaudan)
- 2010 - Jean-Claude Bourret - Julien Grycan : « Le secret de la bête du Gévaudan » (The secret of the beast of Gévaudan)
- 2011 - Bernard Soulier : « Sur les traces de la bête du Gévaudan et de ses victimes » (In the footsteps of the beast of Gévaudan and its victims) - Édition du Cygne.
- 2011 - Jay M. SMITH « Monsters of the Gevaudan. The Making of a Beast » - Harvard University Press.
- 2013 - Hervé Boyac : « La Bête du Gévaudan - Le loup réhabilité » (The Beast of Gévaudan - The rehabilitated wolf)
- 2013 - Jean Richard - Lucien Gires : « La Bête du Gévaudan dans tous ses états » (The Beast of Gévaudan in all its forms)
- 2013 - P. Eymard - D. Bernard : « La Bête du Gévaudan Du mystère à la légende ... De la légende à la lumière » (The Beast of Gévaudan From mystery to legend ... From legend to light)
- 2014 - Guy Crouzet : « Et en Gévaudan s'installa "Une bête féroce inconnue dans nos climats… » (And in Gévaudan settled down "A ferocious beast unknown in our climates … ») Limited to 250 copies.
- 2015 - P.Benoist - B.Soulier : « Du sang dans la vallée, quand la Bête du gévaudan rôdait entre Saugues et Langeac » (Blood in the valley, when the Beast of Gévaudan prowled between Saugues and Langeac) - Édition de l'Arzalie.
- 2015 - Jean-Marc Moriceau : « La Bête du Gévaudan, la fin de l’énigme » (The Beast of Gévaudan, the end of the enigma) - Édition Ouest-France.
- 2016 - Jean-Claude Bourret : « La Bête du Gévaudan et autres histoires vraies » (The Beast of Gévaudan and other true stories) - Édition Archipel.
- 2016 - Marc Saint-Val : « Dans la peau de la Bête » (In the skin of the Beast) - Édition Amazon.
- 2017 - Pierric Guittaut : « La dévoreuse » (The devourer) - Édition De Borée.
- 2017 - G. Lenotres : « La Bête du Gévaudan » - Édition Comêtes et Banquises - Réédition de 1933.
- 2018 - B. Baud’huin - A. Bonnet : « Gévaudan, petites histoires de la grande bête » (Gévaudan, little stories of the great beast) - Édition Ex Aequo.
- 2018 - Jean-Paul Chabrol : « La Bête des Cévennes et la Bête du Gévaudan en 50 questions » (The Beast of the Cévennes and the Beast of Gévaudan in 50 questions) - Édition Alcide.
- 2020 - J.P. Chabrol - F. Cartier-Lange : Sur les traces de la Bête du Gévaudan, (In the footsteps of the Beast of Gevaudan) The story told through illustrations. For the youngest.
- 2021 - Marc Saint-Val : « TOUT sur les dessous de l’affaire DES Bêtes du Gévaudan ! » (EVERYTHING about the behind the scenes of the Beasts of Gévaudan affair!)
- 2022 - Clémentine V. Baron : « La Bête du Gévaudan, terreur dans les campagnes » (The Beast of Gévaudan, terror in the countryside) Imaged and rather intended for children.
- 2022 - Xavier Paul : « La Bête du Gévaudan, histoire et énigme » (The Beast of Gévaudan, history and enigma) Very interesting work.
- 2022 - Lionel Camy : « La Bête du Gévaudan, une énigme irrésolue » (The Beast of Gevaudan, an unsolved enigma)
- 2022 - Pierre Antoine Courouble : Le jugement de la Bête (The judgment of the beast)
- 2022 - Pierre Antoine Courouble : Le procès de la Bête du Gévaudan (The Trial of the Beast of Gevaudan)
- 2022 - Pierre Daniel de Losada Martì : Héraldique et Bête du Gévaudan (Heraldry and Beast of Gevaudan)
