Pipe of the Month June 2026
The Count of La Rochejaquelin, by Gambier
The War in the Vendée (1793–1796) was a bloody counter-revolutionary uprising during the French Revolution. The region south of the Loire rose against the revolutionary government in Paris. The conflict was marked by extreme brutality, with an estimated death toll ranging from 117,000 to 450,000 out of a population of approximately 800,000 people. Because part of the civilian population was systematically massacred, the war is often described as a genocide.
The immediate cause of the uprising was the forced conscription of 300,000 men decreed by the Convention (the legislative assembly) in February 1793 to fight in the War of the First Coalition. In addition, the Vendée was a deeply devout Catholic region. The ‘Constitution civile du clergé’ (1790), which compelled priests to swear allegiance to the state rather than to the Pope, caused widespread resentment. The execution of Louis XVI in January 1793 also provoked great outrage in the region.
The insurgents formed the ‘Catholic and Royal Army’ (armée catholique et royale), led by nobles such as Charette and Stofflet. Paris responded harshly and sent the Bleus (Republican soldiers) to suppress the rebellion. In 1794, Republican troops under General Turreau carried out the so-called ‘colonnes infernales’ (infernal columns), during which villages were burned to the ground and inhabitants, including women and children, were massacred. The war ended in 1796. After the fall of Robespierre, leader of the Jacobins, in 1794, a more moderate policy was adopted and an amnesty proclaimed. Important rebel leaders such as Charette and Stofflet were captured and executed in 1796.
Henri du Vergier, Count de La Rochejaquelein, born into a noble family, was the youngest general of the ‘Catholic and Royal Army’ of the Vendée. At only twenty-one years of age, he successfully led the uprising. Prior to this he had served, among other roles, in the Constitutional Guard of King Louis XVI and took part in the defence of the Tuileries Palace. He became renowned for his inspirational leadership. A famous saying attributed to this exceptionally courageous general was: ‘If I advance, follow me; if I retreat, kill me; if I die, avenge me’.
He died in battle in 1794, only twenty-one years old, after being shot by a Republican soldier at the Battle of Nuaillé on 28 January 1794.
The French firm Gambier produced a splendid portrait pipe depicting this leader of the Vendée uprising. This striking portrait, based on the painting by Pierre Narcisse Guérin, is regarded as one of the finest pipes produced by the firm. On the pipe he wears the medal of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, while the underside bears the French fleur-de-lis. The pipe was first produced during the period 1840–1847 but remained in production until the early twentieth century.
Gambier. Pipe with the portrait of La Rochejaquelein and the French fleur-de-lis on the underside. The shank bears the inscription LA ROCHE JAQUELIN and his motto: DIEU ET LE ROI. Catalogue number 401.