The Complete Idiot's Guide to Werewolves

by Brown Robert

  Only days after Captain Duhamel marched his men out of Gevaudan, the killings resumed. The beast had returned and continued its killing spree with renewed fervor. By the summer of 1765, the beast wrought terror upon the children of Gevaudan. This time, it was not bodies that were found but scattered pieces. Strewn about arms and legs soon became almost a commonplace sight, according to some sources.

  Captain Duhamel was shamed by the beast’s return. The resumption of the killings made him appear either a fool or a liar. Needless to say, King Louis relieved Duhamel of his position and sought out the greatest known wolf hunters in all of France—the d’Enneval clan. The hunt would now be led by the father-son team of Jean-Charles and Jean-Francois d’Enneval.

  The Beast Hunters

  While the d’Enneval team had many close encounters with the beast and managed to wound it on several occasions, they never succeeded in capturing or killing it. Jean-Charles was the first to despair and returned home. The younger Jean-Francois remained, however, but to no avail. By early June 1767, near the three-year anniversary of the beast’s first known attack, Jean-Francois d’Enneval was forced to abandon the hunt and return home.

  King Louis now replaced d’Enneval with his chief gunner, a man named Antoine de Beauterne (who had learned much about hunting from his friends, the d’Enneval family). Beauterne very quickly succeeded in killing a gigantic wolf that was recorded as being over 6 feet long. Much like Duhamel, Beauterne returned to Versailles and reported that he had killed the Beast of Gevaudan. Also like Duhamel, however, it proved not to be the case. The wolf he killed, while abnormally large, was not the beast he sought. The killings continued.

  Some locals now believed that only God could save them, and many made pilgrimages to the holy site of Notre-Dame. One such person was local hermit Jean Chastel, who took with him to the cathedral a rifle and three bullets. According to the legend, while there he had these armaments properly blessed.

  Bringing Down the Beast

  Enraged at having been made to look foolish, Beauterne now took drastic measures. He recruited some of the best hunters of France and returned to Gevaudan, where they were joined by scores of local hunters. In total, it is recorded that the hunting party consisted of approximately 300 men. The enormous group now relentlessly combed the countryside for the beast.

  On June 19, 1767, as the sun descended into the horizon, the beast charged toward a group of hunters. Among these men was Jean Chastel, with his blessed rifle and bullets. He took aim at the beast and fired. The beast went down and stayed down. Apparently, Jean later told people that the bullets were more than just blessed—they were made of silver.

  In order to confirm that this was the beast, Beauterne had the animal’s belly cut open. Human remains were found inside of it. This was the man-eating terror known as the Beast of Gevaudan. The reign of terror had ended. This time, the killings did not resume.

  In the end, the beast took the lives of 60 people and wounded countless others. The hunt for the creature had cost the French government a small fortune. So perhaps it is not surprising that the beast’s corpse was hung up at night and paraded through the streets during the day. When it began to give off the stench of decomposition, however, it was buried.

  Bark vs. Bite

  There is no doubt that the Beast of Gevaudan existed. But what was it? Descriptions make it seem unlikely that it was really a regular wolf. Some have theorized that it was a species of prehistoric wolf (fossils of which have been found in China, Russia, Alaska, and California) forced to encounter humans, possibly due to a shrinking habitat. Had it actually been a pack of these giant wolves (some species were the size of small bears), it would explain why the beast seemed never to die even when mortally wounded. The beast that was shot when the killings ceased may have just been the last surviving member of his pack. Sadly, the hunt may mark the forced extinction of a giant wolf species.

  Burgot and Verdun: Peasant Werewolves

  On a dark and stormy night in 1502, French peasant Pierre Burgot was desperately trying to corral his loose sheep. They were frightened by the lightning and thunder, making Burgot’s job even more difficult. Suddenly, Burgot looked up to see three dark figures on horseback, each cloaked in black. The lead horseman addressed Burgot and told him that he would be happy to offer the poor man a guarantee of future protection for his sheep. The man also offered Burgot a handful of shiny coins, a considerable sum at the time (especially to Burgot, a man of meager means).

  Burgot asked what he must do in order to receive these gifts. The dark horseman said that, for the moment, all Burgot would be required to do was worship him as a god. Then the horseman explained that he would come to Burgot soon, and they would then discuss the rest of the deal. Soon the man came to Burgot as promised. He now explained that, in order to continue receiving these blessings of protection, Burgot would have to denounce all aspects of Christianity (basically, he would have to sacrifice his soul). Not the sharpest tool in the shed, Burgot happily agreed and immediately fulfilled these terms of the deal.

  Months passed, and Burgot began to feel like he’d gotten a raw deal. After all, he’d given up his immortal soul. And for what? Some safe sheep and a handful of coins? Burgot began to consider going back to the church and forgetting about this deal altogether. Then a visitor came calling—Michel Verdun.

  Verdun, a man from the same area, explained to Burgot that he was a servant of the dark master with whom Burgot had made his pact. He brought Burgot to the woods for a witch’s Sabbath and told him to take off his clothes. Burgot did so, and Verdun applied a magic salve to his skin. As he did so, Burgot’s shape changed into that of a wolf. He looked up to see that Verdun had also turned into a wolf. The pair then took a wild run through the woods and committed the most horrifying of crimes together.

  When they came upon a boy of only seven, they fell upon the lad, tore him limb from limb, and devoured his flesh. They later did the same to a local woman. Another time, they snatched a four-year-old little boy and stole him away to the woods, where they strangled him and ate his f lesh.

  When Pierre Burgot was eventually caught and brought before the church court, he told them all of the aforementioned details. Michel Verdun was then arrested and convicted alongside Burgot. The two were sentenced to death and executed. After their executions, a reproduction was commissioned and hung on the wall of the local church as a warning to churchgoers of the evils that men do when they give in to the devil’s charms.

  Bark vs. Bite

  Did the events that Pierre Burgot testified to actually occur? In a sense, they quite possibly could have. Some might theorize that, seeing as how Burgot was of a simple nature and appeared to be of below average intelligence, he may have been the subject of a practical joke that went too far. In fact, Michel Verdun and some friends were likely the “dark riders” Burgot first encountered. The salve could easily have been some form of hallucinogenic substance. Unable to reason through what he saw, Burgot may have believed that he’d really made a pact with the devil and become a wolf. Then again … maybe he did.

  The Werewolf Tailor of Chalons

  Most historians agree with the claim that this story is true. However, the many details of what occurred are hard to nail down. Little is known about the identity of the man now referred to as the “Demon Tailor of Chalons” or as the “Werewolf of Chalons.” The details of his murders were so horribly gruesome that the presiding officials ordered all records of his crimes burnt to ashes. They wanted to make certain that no one would ever be able to reproduce his terrible deeds. This may have been for the best. However, the tale of his crimes lived on in the local lore, much of which was later written down.

  This loup-garou was a tailor in the Chalons district of Paris, France. He had been brought to the court on December 14, 1598, after the skeletal remains of his many young victims were discovered in a number of barrels in the back room of his shop. The details of his crimes are forever lost to the fire. However, survi
ving accounts state that he would lure children into his shop. He would then torture them (often sexually) before slitting their throats. Once his victims were dead, he would then butcher their flesh as one would butcher an animal for meat. He then kept the flesh in freezers to cook and eat for his meals.

  Unlike many who were tried for lycanthropy, the Demon Tailor never once confessed to anything. However, he never seemed disturbed or showed so much as a hint of sadness at his trial. Throughout the trial, most surviving accounts claim that his face remained a blank slate. However, some accounts also claim that he was prone to fits of rage that he would sometimes display even in the courtroom. It would seem that he refused to fear the courts, something that became even more evident during his execution.

  On the day of the Demon Tailor’s execution by fire, it is said that he screamed a flurry of perverse insults and blasphemies at the spectators until the flames finally claimed the last of his breath. Most accounts insist that this display of profanity was the final evidence that this monster of a man had entered into a pact with the devil and thereby become a loup-garou. The fires of Earth now sent him to face the fires of hell.

  The Werewolf of Caude

  In 1598, a group of hunters came upon what they first thought was an animal. Upon closer inspection, however, they were horrified to discover that it was in fact a man. The rambling man, who identified himself by the name Jacques Roulet, was half-naked and covered in blood. His hair was matted with dirt and leaves, and he held in his hand what appeared to be a large piece of raw meat. The meat was soon discovered to be the flesh of a 15-year-old boy whom Roulet had murdered and mostly devoured. The hunters were convinced that they had discovered a loup-garou, and they immediately dragged Roulet before the courts. News of the case spread, and Roulet was soon dubbed the “Werewolf of Caude.”

  Upon questioning, Roulet claimed that he’d been a traveling vagabond for years. However, he’d at some point in the past become obsessed with the idea of eating human flesh. He explained that his recent teenage victim was not his first, and he offered a number of gruesome details regarding many of the murders he’d committed in the past. Many of his victims had been state officials, and he seemed to have had a taste for lawyers and court bailiffs.

  Based on his confession, Roulet was convicted of murder, lycanthropy, and cannibalism. Initially, he was sentenced to death (mostly likely an execution by burning). However, when a number of well-known scientific and medical authorities passionately testified that Roulet was not a werewolf but a madman (a condition they claimed to be able to cure), this sentence was changed. He was sentenced instead to rehabilitation at a sanitarium. After only two years of treatment, Jacques Roulet, the “Werewolf of Caude,” was deemed cured of his insanity and released.

  What became of him after he left the sanitarium remains a mystery.

  Bark vs. Bite

  Roulet more than likely suffered from advanced schizophrenia or some similar brain disease that caused his odd and violent behavior. His case is unique among such werewolf trials, as he was at least identified as mentally ill. This small but important detail marks a significant turning point in accepted social perceptions of human actions.

  Francois Bertrand, Werewolf of Paris

  Francois Bertrand is referred to by some as the “Werewolf of Paris.” The name is well deserved. During the mid-nineteenth century, Francois Bertrand had spent much of his adult life as a sergeant in the French military. He was first brought before the courts when he was caught vandalizing a number of tombs in a Paris cemetery. An examination of the scene led investigators to believe that it was not the tombs that Bertrand was after … but the dead bodies held inside.

  The Savage Truth

  The story of Francois Bertrand would later become the basis for legendary fantasy writer Guy Endore’s widely popular horror novel The Werewolf of Paris. While the novel ignores many of the facts surrounding the real life of Bertrand, it takes advantage of the more fantastic elements of the case for the sake of interesting fiction. For more on Guy Endore’s werewolf writings, see Chapter 10.

  Under questioning by the courts, Bertrand explained that he had long harbored a compulsion to tear apart the corpses of dead women and young girls. He is said to have done so with nothing but his teeth and fingernails. Some of his experiences in doing these ghastly acts led to bouts of necrophilia. Other times, after tearing apart a corpse, he would devour some of its flesh.

  Beastly Words

  Necrophilia is a condition in which a person becomes unhealthily obsessed with corpses. This strange condition often leads to unusual behaviors such as stealing corpses and frequenting graveyards. It can also manifest in sexual ways.

  Bertrand’s actions caused him to be labeled by people as a loup-garou. His confession, however, led to his conviction. Unlike in many of the werewolf trials of past centuries, Bertrand was not burned or even executed. He wasn’t even charged by the courts with being a werewolf (though the people of the area certainly considered him to be one). Instead of being executed, Bertrand was sentenced to a long prison sentence. He is believed to have died while incarcerated, though sources vary on this detail.

  The Unique Lycanthropy Case of Jean Grenier

  The record of Jean Grenier begins on a sunny afternoon in 1603 with a group of young girls watching over their family’s herd of sheep. As the girls made small talk, some of the sheep suddenly became noticeably restless. A group of them had wandered into a nearby depression in the ground, only to come rushing back out to rejoin the main herd as if something had startled them. The girls, fearing that some predator might be lurking somewhere unseen, ventured over together to investigate what was scaring their flock. As the girls approached, huddled closely together, their trusty work dog sensed something was wrong and began growling and baring his fangs.

  The girls reached the edge of the depression, expecting to see an animal. They were shocked to instead see a teenage boy sitting on a fallen log. The boy was 13-year-old Jean Grenier, and his unusual appearance frightened the girls. His dirty and matted red hair fell about his shoulders and face in long, wild, and unkempt clumps. He was wearing ragged clothes, and much of his body could be seen through the many tears and rips of his shirt and pants. He was very emaciated, as if from prolonged starvation. His skin was dark tan, and his eyes hollow. According to the record, his canine teeth were unusually long, and they often protruded from his mouth even when it was closed.

  The girls said nothing to him at first, and for a few moments it seemed as if Grenier did not even notice their presence. The savage-looking boy just sat there stone-faced as the girls stood before him in a state of shocked bewilderment. They were finally pulled from this trance when Grenier turned his pale-blue eyes toward them and spoke with a beastly tone of voice. He asked the girls to decide which among them was the prettiest. The oldest girl demanded to know why Grenier wished them to decide such a thing. He replied that he was going to marry whichever girl proved to be the prettiest. They thought he was joking. After all, how could they marry someone they did not know?

  The girls had never seen this strange boy before, and now demanded that he introduce himself. Grenier claimed to be the son of a priest. The truth of his answer seemed questionable to the girls, and they now asked him if the reason for him being so dirty-skinned and dressed in such tattered rags was because of the scandal regarding his conception (obviously, since priests were celibate and unmarried, this meant he was illegitimate).

  The Curse

  One might assume that, especially considering Grenier’s shabby and dirty appearance, after running away from home the young boy was living and sleeping in the surrounding forests of Antoine de Pizon. Some speculate that, as a result of the horrors and hardships the young boy endured, the experience drove Grenier to the point of madness. Others point the blame at Grenier’s father, and think that his behavior may have been caused by brain damage he suffered from being beaten by his father. In many modern cases of clinical lycanthropy
(see Chapter 18), the condition has been linked to emotional trauma and brain damage.

  Grenier told the girls that his skin was dark and dirty because he often wore a wolf-skin instead of clothes. When the girls asked where he got the wolf-skin, Grenier said it had been given to him by a man named Pierre Labourant. The girls had never heard of any man by that name living in the area. When they said this to Grenier, he let out a long and howling row of laughter that further added to the girls’ fear of him. He stood and whirled around as if overcome with joy. The girls took a few steps back. Horrified, the oldest of them now began to suspect that this boy was either overcome by madness or possessed by demons.

  Grenier suddenly stopped his fit of joy and explained to the girls that Pierre Labourant lived in chains, “in a place of gloom and fire.” It did not take the girls long to figure out what he meant. Grenier was saying that Pierre Labourant, the man he claimed had given him a wolf-skin, was the devil. The girls were now petrified in terror.

  The Curse

  Grenier may have been having a little fun with the girls by using the name “Pierre Labourant.” Literally translated, this would mean something like “stone laborer.” His use of Pierre could also be seen as meaning “Mr. Laborer.” Some have interpreted this as Grenier’s way of saying that the life of a poor laborer (specifically, life in the social lower class in which he grew up) was a living hell.