Place d'Armes

The Place d'Armes in Saint-Florent-le-Vieil is considered to be the starting point of the Vendée Wars.

On 12 March 1793, the Place d'Armes, the starting point of the Vendée conflict, saw between 5,000 and 6,000 inhabitants of the Mauges area gather to refuse the drawing of lots for the draft decreed by the Convention, the ruling power of the day.

Wishing to defend the borders, the Convention wanted to reinforce the armies, until then made up of professional soldiers and volunteers, with 300,000 additional men. It was therefore decided to draw lots from unmarried men in each district capital to carry out the mass levy.

This refusal of conscription (military service) and the riot that followed marked the start of the Vendée Wars. The population was incensed by the anti-religious measures taken by the revolutionary authorities and did not accept the bourgeoisie's exemption from conscription.