In 18th-century France, a diabolic carnivore terrorized the old southern province of Gevaudan, killing more than 80 men, women and children and triggering mass hysteria.

The attacks lasted between 1764 and 1767 and coincided with an economic slump the nation was experiencing on the heels of the Seven Years’ War, which lost France many of its colonies and burdened the country with heavy debts.

Breathless coverage by newspapers and widespread rumors of the Beast of Gevaudan, as the thing was called, elevated the creature to mythical proportions and gave poor rural peasants a common enemy to rally around.