The Chouans of the north of the Loire who joined the Vendéens during the Virée de Galerne were named Catholic and Royal Army of Bas-Anjou and of Haute-Bretagne.

The only units with a quasi-permanent existence and organization are the "compagnies de paroisse" which grouped together members of the rural community who elected their captains.

The flaws of this army were its few health services and its lack of permanent fighters, even considering their reinforcements of republican deserters, gabelous, Germans or Swiss.

Priests who opposed the revolution did not have a direct role in the war; a few held a seat in the royalist counsels and mainly took care of correspondences.

Hence the Vendéens were incapable of keeping conquered towns like Angers, Saumur, Thouars and Fontenay-le-Comte, which were progressively abandoned and retaken by the republicans without difficulty.

To fix this disadvantage, regular troops were recruited among republican deserters and insurgents exterior to Vendée, especially Angevins from northern Maine-et-Loire and Bretons from the Loire-Atlantique.

A few future Chouan officers served with these troops, including Georges Cadoudal, Pierre-Mathurin Mercier, Scépeaux, Jean Terrien, Joseph-Juste Coquereau and Louis Courtillé.

From the Breton association of La Rouërie, this army was created by Joseph de Puisaye to unify the different chouans divisions.

After René Augustin de Chalus commanded for a short while, then the Count of Artois chose Marigny to succeed him but he refused.