This note regards Alexandre Dumas, père, the father of Alexandre Dumas, fils (son). For the son, see Alexandre Dumas fils.
Alexandre Dumas père, born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was a towering figure of 19th-century French literature whose historical novels and adventure tales earned global renown. Best known for The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo, and other swashbuckling epics, Dumas crafted stories filled with daring heroes, dramatic twists, and vivid historical backdrops. His works, often serialized and immensely popular with the public, helped shape the modern adventure genre and remain enduring staples of world literature. Dumas was the son of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, a celebrated general in Revolutionary France and the highest-ranking man of African descent in a European army at the time. His father’s early death left the family in poverty, but Dumas’s upbringing was nonetheless marked by strong personal ambition and a deep admiration for his father’s achievements. He moved to Paris as a young man and began his literary career writing for the theatre, quickly rising to prominence in the Romantic movement with successful plays like Henri III et sa cour and Antony. In the 1840s, Dumas turned increasingly toward prose fiction, particularly serialized novels, which reached vast audiences through French newspapers. His collaboration with Auguste Maquet, a skilled plotter and historian, proved fruitful. While Maquet drafted outlines and conducted research, Dumas infused the narratives with flair, dialogue, and color. The result was a string of literary triumphs, including The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, both published in 1844. These novels exemplified Dumas’s flair for suspenseful pacing, memorable characters, and grand themes of justice, loyalty, and revenge. The D’Artagnan Romances—The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, and The Vicomte of Bragelonne—cemented his fame. They follow the adventures of the titular Gascon hero and his comrades Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, blending historical fact and fiction into richly imagined narratives. The Count of Monte Cristo offered a darker, more introspective tale of betrayal and retribution, with intricate plotting and a deeply philosophical core. Dumas was also active in journalism and theater. He founded the Théâtre Historique in Paris, which staged dramatizations of his own novels. A prolific and energetic writer, he is estimated to have written or co-written over 100,000 pages of fiction, plays, memoirs, travel books, and essays. He also had a strong interest in food and published a massive culinary encyclopedia, Le Grand Dictionnaire de cuisine, filled with recipes, anecdotes, and reflections on gastronomy. Despite his enormous success, Dumas was frequently plagued by financial troubles. He led a lavish lifestyle, building the ornate Château de Monte-Cristo near Paris, employing large staffs, and supporting many friends and relatives. His generosity and appetite for life often outpaced his income, leading to mounting debts. Still, his creative drive rarely waned. Dumas’s mixed-race background was a source of both pride and tension in his life. He was outspoken about his heritage and used his platform to address race and injustice. In his novel Georges, he explored issues of colonialism and identity through a Creole protagonist. Though he encountered racism, he refused to be silenced, famously replying to a racial insult by pointing to his ancestry and achievements with dignity and wit. Later in life, Dumas continued writing and traveling, spending time in Belgium, Italy, and Russia. He supported nationalist causes, particularly Italian unification, and even founded a newspaper to advocate for Giuseppe Garibaldi. Though his popularity waned somewhat in his final years, his literary legacy grew steadily. He wrote in a style that was accessible, entertaining, and emotionally reso
On the whole though this was an okay read. The war stuff bogs me down but the character stuff makes me smile, and frown, and laugh out loud, and gasp out loud. More epic work from Dumas.
From what you would come to expect from Dumas, this book was beautifully written. This is the second part of ‘The Two Diana’s’. In part, although there was more to this story than the first part, more drama, suspense, intrigue, love; it never fully it the mark.
The chapters revolving Calais were good, but, what works like The Three Musketeers, The 45 Guardsmen and The Queens Necklace have is more in-depth story line. You are following the characters, you feel like you were there. Here, it was quick, short, a lack of emotion, just narrative.
As the book went along, nearing its end, it felt like a quick summary and it was over.
I am glad I have read these works, enjoy, but, not his best.
"În lupta cu lancea, acesta va atinge Fruntea regelui. Şi o rană sângerândă va face în Fruntea regelui. Fie că vrea sau nu, mereu va răni Fruntea regelui, În sfârșit îl va iubi, apoi îl va ucide Doamna regelui." Oh, câtă dreptate a avut Nostradamus! Bietul Gabriel şi biata Diana, sortiți să afle adevărul pe care îl căutaseră atât când era deja prea târziu. Ce făpturi josnice au fost Diana de Poitiers şi Caterina de Medicis. Nu ar fi meritat niciun strop de milă. Iar sfârşitul lui Gabriel este atât de nedrept...
I loved this 2 volume novel. Very good historical context at time of Mary and Elizabeth in England. Mary queen of scots has arrived dauphin Francois much in love. Her uncles are the de guises as her mother was Mary de guise. Hero based on a real person fought for Le balafre, loved illegitimate daughter of king Henri iI and Diane de Poitiers who had also been mistress of Francois 1. I didn't know it was during Mary's reign they regained Calais. Diane de Poitiers is more evil than Milady. Cruelly treated Herod father imprisoned and tricked him - Gabriel de Montgomery. She was also in league with montmorency. As always similar names. Protestant uprisings quelled. Full of action deception treachery, storming and defending cities. Excellent and I learned about continental history of the time, although very complicated.
Mi-a plăcut mai mult ca primul volum. Intriga a fost mai intensă și mai concentrată. Am terminat cartea în câteva ore :) Finalul este unul trist, dar nu cred ca se potrivea altul. Cum am precizat și la primul volum, nu este o carte ușor de înțeles pentru generația actuală. Este însă o lectura frumoasă, mai ales pentru pasionații genului capa și spadă.
If The Two Dianas is supposed to be some sort of classic, it shouldn't be. It's inane twaddle. I found it literally unreadable, with indistinct characters and no discernible plot, and gave up after about 80 pages. If you want to read about the court of Henri II, you're better off with non-fiction than this terrible novel.