Louis Chuck

Louis Mandrin , born the February 11th 1725 with Saint-Etienne-of-Saint-Geoirs and dead the May 26th 1755 with Valence is famous “a brigand” from the Dauphine of the Ancien Mode.

Biography

Wire of François-Antoine Mandrin, commercial of Saint-Etienne-of-Saint-Geoirs, and elder trader of nine children, he becomes household head at 17 years, with died of his father. He is resulting from a formerly rich established family but on the decline.

Its first contact with the general Ferme (if one excludes the ordinary and obligatory tax relations) is in 1748, a contract to supply with " 100 mules less 3" the army of France in Italy. However, it loses of it the greatest part in the crossing of the Alps and on its return to Saint-Etienne-of-Saint-Geoirs there remain to him only 17 animals in a deplorable state, the general Farm refuses to pay it.

July 27th, 1753, following a brawl mortal, Louis Chuck and his friend Benoît Brissaud are condemned to death. Chuck is in escape, but Brissaud is hung on the place of Breuil, in Grenoble. The same day Pierre Chuck, his brother, is hung for Faux-monnayage. He then declares the war with the collectors of tax of the general Farm.

The farmers general are then honnis by the population. They take the taxation of the goods (most known is the Gabelle, the tax on salt, but of other goods, as the Tabac are heavily taxed). The system of leasing of the collection of the taxes involves enormous abuses. The farmers general accumulate incredible wealths of transferring with the King only the agreed amount, sometimes the quarter of the taxes which they take.

Chuck enters in particular a band which makes Contrebande, of tobacco, between the cantons Suisses, Geneva, France and the States of Savoy, then sovereigns. He quickly becomes the chief about it. He has 300 people under his orders and organizes his band like a true military regiment. It is in Savoy (duchy forming part, at the time, of the Kingdom of Sardinia) which it has its deposits of weapons and goods, thus thinking out of reach of the French. In the year 1754 it organizes six campaigns. Attacking only the unpopular farmers general, it receives the support of the population quickly.

It buys in Switzerland goods (fabrics, skins, tobacco, fabrics and spices), which it sells in the French cities without they being subjected to the taxes of the farmers general. The population is magic. Well quickly a prohibition is made buy its smuggled goods. But with Rodez, it causes the farmers general while obliging, under the threat of the weapons, their own employees to buy its goods.

The general Farm, exasperated by this “gangster” who becomes increasingly more popular, request the contest of the army of the King to stop it, of which the hunters of Fischer. But he still manages to take refuge in Savoy close to the two towns of Pont-de-Beauvoisin. The farmers general then decide to penetrate illegally in the territory of the Duchy by disguising 500 men as peasants. They stop Mandrin with the castle of Rochefort-in-Novalaise thanks to the treason of two as of his. When the King Charles-Emmanuel III of Sardinia learns this intrusion on his territory, it requires the restitution of the prisoner with Louis XV which is carried out. But the farmers general, in a hurry to finish some with Chuck, accelerate its lawsuit and its execution. He is judged the May 24th 1755, then coiled sharp with Valence the May 26th, in front of 6000 curious, without the torment not tearing off a cry to him. At the end of 8 minutes, it is strangled in order to shorten its sufferings.

The man died, but it is then the beginning of the legend of the retributive gangster who fought against the iniquity of the taxes of the Ancien Mode. It is carried in all the country by a song, the Complainte of Chuck , whose one does not know the authors.

Very popular of alive sound, Mandrin remains, today still, very famous in Dauphiné, Savoy, and to a lesser extent in the remainder of France.

Six campaigns

Together forwardings on the fields of the farm of France

The lament of Chuck

This song, going back to 1755, is resulting from the opera of Jean-Philippe Rameau which it composed in 1733: Hippolyte and Aricie . It was then taken again anonymously in 1755 pennies the title which one knows today. The text was also published in postface of the book Précis of the life of Louis Mandrin .

We were twenty or thirty,
Brigands in a band,
All equipped with white,
With the mode of… the
You hear me?
All equipped with blanc
With the mode of the marchands.

The first volerie
That I made in my vie
It is pinto have pinned,
The purse of one…
You hear me?
It is to have goupillé
The purse of a curé.

I entered inside his chambre
My God, who it was large!
I found there thousand ecus,
I put the hand…
You hear me?
I found there thousand ecus,
I put the hand dessus.
I entered inside another,
My God, who it was high!
Dresses and of manteaux
I charged three with them…
You hear me?
Dresses and coats,
I charged three with them chariots.

I carried them for vendre
With the fair in Hollande.
I sold them cheap,
They had me nothing…
You hear me?
I sold them cheap,
They had me nothing coûté.

These Sirs de Grenoble
With their long dresses,
And their doctor's caps,
Had me soon…
You hear me?
And their bonnets carrés
Had me soon jugé.
They judged me to hang,
Ah! it is hard to hear!
To hang and strangle,
On the place of… the
You hear me?
To hang and strangle,
On the place of Marché.

Gone up on the potence
I looked at France,
I live there my companions,
In the shade of one…
You hear me?
I live there my companions,
In the shade of a buisson.

Companions in suffering,
Say to my mother,
That it will not re-examine me any more,
I am a child…
You hear me?
That it will not re-examine me any more,
I am a lost child!

Chuck with the museum

With the Museum from the Dauphine of Grenoble, an exposure " Louis Chuck, criminal or gangster in the large heart? " took place from May 13rd, 2005 to March 27th, 2006 ** some of the exposed objects (supposed to be those) of Chuck (gun, false horseshoe) were lent by the Pontois Museum of the 2 towns of Pont-de-Beauvoisin.

Chuck in the popular culture

Chuck with the cinema

1948 : Chuck, 1st time: The liberator realized by Claude Dolbert.
1948: Chuck, 2nd time: The one century tragedy realized by Claude Dolbert.
1962 : Chuck, gangster gentleman carried out by Jean-Paul Chanois according to the work of Arthur Bernède.

Chuck on television

1971 : Televised series in 6 episodes: Chuck, gangster of honor

Beers Chuck

In 2002, " celebrates it; brigand" give its name to a Grenoble-native beer with nuts. Today, the artisanal Brasserie of Dauphine the proposes six different beers.

References

Selective bibliography

Shortened life of Louis Chuck: chief of the smugglers in France, with the newspaper of its excursions and the account of its catch and of the execution of its judgment with Valence into Dauphine . - Paris: Editions Combined, 1991. - 145 p., 22 cm. - ISBN 2-904235-35-3. - The bibliographic record of precise BNF: allotted to Claude-Joseph Burrow of Cléron (1697-1765) or to the Régley abbot and this work in a subject " catalogs; Works before 1800". - A choice of documents Contains.
Henri Mussel bed, Chuck in Burgundy, December 1754, according to a new report . - Paris: A. Picardy, 1881. - In-8°, 32 p.
Antoine Vernière, Races of Chuck in Auvergne, Velay and Drill it (1754) . - Clermont-Ferrand: G. Mount-Louis printer, 1890. - In-8°, 98 p. - Initially published in the Re-examined ″ of Auvergne ″, T. VI, 1889.
Frantz Funck-Brentano, Chuck, general captain of the smugglers of France, according to new documents . - Paris: Hatchet, 1908. - In-8°, XII-574 p.
Arthur Bernède, Chuck . - Paris: Jules Tallandier, coll “Cloak and dagger novels. New series” n° 16, 1938. - In-16, 255 p. - Republication, under the title “ Chuck: the beloved gangster ”: Paris: Tallandier, coll “Tallandier adventures. Cloak and dagger novels”, 1998. - 298 p., 19 cm. - ISBN 2-235-00873-9.
Francoise d' Eaubonne, Beautiful Mood or Veracious History of Chuck . - Paris: Amiot-Dumont, 1957. - 203 p., 21 cm.
Georges Bordonove: Chuck . - Paris: Hatchet, 1971. - 255 p., 19 cm.
Arthur Bernède, Chuck, the beloved gangster, a popular hero at the time of Louis XV, 1754-1755 . - Paris: L. Rombaldi, 1972. - 367 p., 21 cm. - In appendix, choice of texts of various authors, by Bruno Tavernier. - to determine if this work is a parallel edition of those of Tallandier or not.
Erwan Bergot, Chuck or the False Legend . - Paris: Editions France-Empire, 1972. - 315 p., 19 cm.
Marguerite Segard-Ilieff, Chuck in Rodez . - Rodez: Subervie, 1976. - 193 p. - F. of pl., 19 cm.
Chantal Villepontoux-Chastel, Beautiful mood: memories of Louis Chuck, general captain of the smugglers of France . - Paris: Londreys, coll “Trade winds”, 1988. - 314 p., 24 cm. - ISBN 2-904184-72-4.
Guy Peillon, the Judgment of Chuck through the history . - Lyon: Mr. Chomarat, 1998. - 175 p., 22 cm. - ISBN 2-908185-38-5.
Marie Brantôme, Chuck, gangster of the Lights . - Paris: Flammarion, 1999. - 350 p., 24 cm. - ISBN 2-08-067779-9.
Philippe Bonifay (scenario) and Fabien Lacaf (drawings), Chuck . - Grenoble: Glénat, 2005. - 42 p., 30 cm. - ISBN 2-7234-5092-9. - of mandin in [[cartoon]].
Marie-Helene Rumeau-Dieudonné, Chuck: brigand or hero? . - Veurey: Editions the Dauphine one released, coll “Inheritances”, 2005. - 51 p., 21 cm. - ISBN 2-911739-72-8.
Louis Chuck, criminal or gangster in the large heart? : exposure, Museum from the Dauphine, Grenoble, May 12th, 2005 - March 27th, 2006 , catalogs coordinated by Valerie Huss. - Grenoble: General advice of Isere, 2005. - 144 p., 25 cm. - ISBN 2-905375-74-4.
Guy Peillon, On the traces of Louis Chuck . - Lyon: Ram, 2005. - 351 p., 21 cm. - ISBN 2-84631-129-3.
Corinne Townley, True story of Chuck (foreword of Jean Nicolas; preface of Jean-Pierre Vial). - Montmélian: the Fountain of SILOE, coll “Files of Savoy”, 2005. - 374 p. - p. of pl., 23 cm. - ISBN 2-84206-294-9.
Studies drômoises - the review of the inheritance of Drome - n° 23 - October 2005

External bonds

http://www.mandrin.org

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