Drownings at Nantes

Q: What were the Drownings at Nantes?

The Drownings at Nantes were a series of mass drownings that took place on the Loire River during the Reign of Terror and the French Revolution. Victims were primarily captured rebels, Catholic priests and nuns, and counter-revolutionary suspects.

Q: Who was Carrier in the French Revolution?

Jean-Baptiste Carrier was a Jacobin representative-on-mission who executed thousands of prisoners in the city of Nantes, primarily by drowning them, between November 1793 and February 1794. His actions horrified even the leaders of the Reign of Terror, and he was executed for his crimes in December 1794.

Q: What role did Nantes play in the French Revolution?

Nantes was the site of the Battle of Nantes, on 29 June 1793, when Vendean rebels tried and failed to capture the city. It was also the site of the Drownings at Nantes, in which thousands of counter-revolutionary prisoners were drowned in the nearby Loire River.

Harrison W. Mark

Drownings at Nantes

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Definition

The Drownings at Nantes were a series of mass killings that took place in Nantes, France from November 1793 to February 1794 during the Reign of Terror. Overseen by Jean-Baptiste Carrier, the representative-on-mission from Paris, thousands of “counter-revolutionary” prisoners were taken out on barges to the middle of the Loire River where they were sunk.

More about: Drownings at Nantes

Timeline

Nov 1793 - Feb 1794
The drownings at Nantes occur on the Loire River; between 1,800 and 10,000 clergy, counter-revolutionary suspects and Vendean rebels are killed.

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