Virée de Galerne

Virée de Galerne
	Part of the War in the Vendée
	; The wounded General Lescure crosses the Loire at Saint-Florent
Date	From 18 October to 23 December 1793
Location	Maine, Brittany, Normandy
Result	French Republican victory
Belligerents
French Republic	French Royalists; Chouans
Commanders and leaders
Jean-Baptiste Kléber ; F.-J. Westermann ; François Marceau ; Jean Léchelle †; Bouin de Marigny †; Michel de Beaupuy; Jean Rossignol; Louis Thévenet; Simon Canuel	Henri du Vergier ; Prince de Talmont †; Marquis de Lescure †; Jean-Nicolas Stofflet; Jacques Fleuriot; Bernard de Marigny; Charles Royrand †; Lyrot de la Patouillère †
Units involved
French Revolutionary Army Army of the West;	Catholic and Royal Army Armée catholique et royale d'Anjou;
Strength
50,000–100,000	60,000 to 100,000 people of which:; 20,000–30,000 Vendéens ; 6,000–10,000 Chouans ; 30,000–60,000 non-combatants ; (old people, wounded, women and children)
Casualties and losses
~ 10,000 dead	50,000–70,000 dead

The Virée de Galerne was a military operation of the War in the Vendée during the French Revolutionary Wars across Brittany and Normandy. It takes its name from French virée (turn) and Breton gwalarn (northwest wind).

It concerns the Vendean army's crossing of the river Loire after their defeat in the Battle of Cholet on 17 October 1793 and its march to Granville in the hope of finding reinforcements there from England. Unable to take Granville on 14 November 1793, it fell back towards Savenay (23 December 1793) where it was completely destroyed by Republican troops under Kléber. The battle of Savenay marked the end of what would come to be called the First War in the Vendée.