Vendée in the historical memory and political culture of France
Introduction. The purpose of the article is the study of Vendée in the historical memory and political culture of France. The chronological framework covers the period from the War of Vendée 1793-1796 and up to modern France. Methods. The author follows the classical methodology. The article analyzes the discussions taking place in French historical science regarding the events in Vendee. Conclusion. The author draws conclusions that since the war of 1793-1796 “Vendée” turned into the antithesis of the French Revolution. This bloody civil war had a huge impact on collective consciousness, being in opposition to the principles and spirit of the French Revolution. For Vendée itself the war became a system-forming event, and the region still lives on memories about it, building itsidentity on this basis. It is also concluded that Vendée at the beginning of the 21st century remains the subject of serious scientific and political debates. For French society it was a hard task to recognize that it was a bloody and dramatic civil war. However, to recognize the events in Vendee as a genocide, after R. Séchet, means to cast doubt on the French Revolution itself, which is the matrix of modern France. Despite the fact that researchers over two centuries have deeply studied issues related to the history of Vendée, many of them remain incompletely resolved. This applies to the issue of the number of victims of the Vendee war, its nature, and the idea of Vendee as a single bloc. A number of researchers speak not only about the Franco-French war, but also of the Vendo-Vendee war, noting that in Vendee itself there was a division into“whites” and “blues”. In addition, the question of whether Vendée still opposes the rest of France is still discussed.