ALEXANDRE DUMAS

“Life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes.” from

The Count of Monte Cristo

A L E XA N D R E D U M A S WA S B O R N I N 1 8 0 2 I N T H E V I L L A G E O F V I L L E R S - C O T T E R Ê T S,

F I F T Y M I L E S N O RT H E A S T O F PA R I S.  

DUMAS’ BIRTHPLACE, THEN & NOW

PHOTOS OF OF VILLERS -COTTERÊTS

PARENTS OF ALEXANDRE DUMAS

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Marie-Louise Élisabeth Labouret

THOMAS-ALEXANDRE DUMAS

• father of Alexandre Dumas

• born in Saint-Domingue (which is now Haiti)

• son of a French nobleman and a mixed-race slave.

TIES TO NAPOLEON

Thomas-Alexandre had been a

general under Napoleon, though in 1799 the two

men had a falling out and never reconciled. 

DUMAS LEGENDS

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas’ courage and strength became legendary and by 1793 he was a general at 31. Following a successful campaign with Napoleon in Egypt, Dumas

seemed set for a brilliant future, but because of his involvement in a republican plot, he was sent to France, captured during the journey and imprisoned. Freed after 20 months, he was lame, deaf in one ear,

partly paralyzed and penniless.

Freed after 20 months, he was lame, deaf in one ear, partly paralyzed and penniless. At

the age of 35 he retired to Villers-Cotterêts, a quiet village near Paris where he had

married Marie-Louise Elizabeth Labouret in 1792. Alexandre was born on 24 July 1802.

Marie-Louise’s husband died of stomach cancer in 1806, when Alexandre was only 4, leaving her to raise him by

herself. The family was poor and she was unable to provide

her son with a good education, but she told him

many stories about his father's brave exploits during the war. He would eventually use these as the basis for the

adventures in his novel

"The Three Musketeers." 

Madame Dumas now lived with her parents in their hôtel, and the young Dumas spent his time wandering out of doors in the woods, catching birds, hunting, and exploring the neighborhood.

“NEVER FEAR QUARRELS, BUT SEEK HAZARDOUS ADVENTURES.”  f rom  The Three Muske teers

He learned fencing from the local fencing-master, and at

10 years old harangued adults with complete

assurance. Around this time his mother decided to send him to the local seminary to train for the priesthood, but Dumas ran away and lived in the woods until his mother

gave up the idea.

At the age of 15 Dumas’ only useful skill was his beautiful handwriting, which allowed him to enter the office of the local notary as his third clerk.

“ I h a v e a l w a y s h a d m o r e d r e a d o f a p e n , a b o t t l e o f i n k ,

a n d a s h e e t o f p a p e r t h a n o f a s w o r d o r p i s t o l . ”  f r o m T h e C o u n t o f M o n t e C r i s t o

“ I t i s r a r e t h a t o n e c a n s e e i n a l i t t l e b o y t h e p r o m i s e o f a m a n , b u t o n e c a n a l m o s t a l w a y s s e e i n a l i t t l e g i r l t h e t h r e a t o f a

w o m a n . ”

Dumas continued to prefer the outdoor life, but the notary was a liberal in his politics, and Dumas

had the opportunity to begin reading liberal and revolutionary literature. His good looks fostered

his vanity. He seduced a young woman in the town, and he was

promoted to second clerk.

He was establishing himself well, but temptation suddenly appeared in the form of young nobleman, Adolphe de Leuven, who visited

“ I c a m e t o Pa r i s w i t h f o u r é c u s i n m y p o c k e t , a n d I ’ d h a v e f o u g h t w i t h a n y b o d y w h o t o l d

m e I w a s i n n o c o n d i t i o n t o b u y t h e L o u v r e . ”   f r o m T h e T h r e e M u s k e t e e r s

Villers-Cotterêts, befriended Dumas, and took him on his first trip to the Paris theatre in November 1822.

DETERMINED TO SUCCEED

Returning home, Dumas began searching novels for suitable subjects to turn into plays, and plotted his escape from his stable, banal existence. This turned out to be simple…

…a small fortune, enough for a coach to Paris and to keep him there while he found

his feet. Almost without delay, Dumas said goodbye to his

childhood and set out to conquer Paris.

One of h is ta lents was at bi l l iards, and one evening he

won 90 francs…

In May 1923 Dumas had in h i s pocket severa l l e t te r s o f

in t roduc t ion to o ld f r i ends o f h i s f a ther, wr i t ten by h i s mother. I t had

been a l l she cou ld g i ve h im.

Making the most of his connections…

Dumas approached General Foy, administrator of the Duc d’Orléans’ office and an old friend of his father’s. The

general exclaimed over his beautiful handwriting and got

him a post as a junior clerk with

the Duc d’Orléans.

…at his unfashionable clothes and mocked his kinky hair, which stood out all over his

head

like a mane.

HIS FELLOW CLERKS LAUGHED…

FIRST APARTMENTDumas struck up a friendship

with Catherine Lebay, who lived on the same landing. She was separated from her husband,

owned a linen shop, and had two rooms. Living together expanded their living space and now Dumas

had an apartment, his first in Paris.

HOW LITTLE HE KNEW.

Courageously, he began educating himself, reading at the office, and at home. He took lessons in physics, chemistry and biology at a nearby hospital.

W O R K I N G F O R T H E D U C D ’ O R L E A N S TA U G H T D U M A S O N E I M P O RTA N T

T H I N G :

DURING THIS TIME, ALEXANDRE JR. WAS BORN

to Catherine…

…& Dumas’ mother moved to be closer to her son.. Dumas rented her

apartment, but didn’t have enough money to support

two households. He decided to write his way

out of trouble.

…which was performed with mild success. At this point he discovered the history of an assassination involving Queen Christina of Sweden & decided that he would write the story as a melodrama, with terrible overpowering emotions and ignoring the rules of classic French drama.

HE WROTE A VAUDEVILLE SKETCH WITH TWO OTHERS…

IN TH IS WAY, H ARDLY KNOWING ANYTH ING AB O UT THE TRAD IT IO NS

HE WAS CO NF RO NT ING…

…Dumas found the formula for a new age of popular

French drama. His superiors pressured him to stay with classic literature, but Dumas declared firmly that he would write his way

or not at all.

…he then met most of the writers

and artists who would be his friends and

enemies for the rest of his life.

JUST AS DUMAS BEGAN TO DEFINE HIMSELF AS AN ARTIST…

DUMAS CONTINUED WRITING, & EVENTUALLY THE DUC

(HIS EMPLOYER) TOLD HIM…

…he would need to choose between his job & writing.

Dumas chose writing. Dumas took out loans to stage his productions, & The Duc

d’Orléans, soon to be King Louis-Philippe, was in the audience with his family,

honoring his former employee.

…but the young romantics hailed him as their leader, and in

the wake of his success, the Duc

employed him again, as librarian: a

sinecure with a larger salary.

CLASSICAL CRITICS DENOUNCED THE PLAY…

NOW DUMAS WAS EATING “WITH ALL THE TEETH OF

GLORY”…

He lived in a new house in the Square d'Orléans in the Rue

Saint-Lazaire. He wore flamboyant waistcoats,

green as the sea, purple cloaks, and

massive golden chains.

From his window in the Rue Saint-Lazaire,

Alexander saw a daily convoy of 50 or 60

ammunition wagons loaded with coffins going

towards Montmartre.

AT THE BEGINNING OF 1832, CHOLERA WAS RAGING IN

PARIS.

Dumas fell ill with the disease in April.

ON HIS RECOVERY, DUMAS FOUND PARIS AGITATED AND UNEASY.

The struggle of the republicans against Louis-Philippe continued and insurrection was imminent. Dumas joined the opposition, & a story appeared in the

newspaper that he’d been shot. Although he hadn’t, Dumas knew that he was marked by the police & decided to take the advice of his doctor & seek a change of scenery, so he headed to Switzerland.

IN THE RHONE VAL LE Y HE WE NT TR OUT-F ISHING ; HE ATE A BE AR WHICH HAD

KILL ED AND E ATEN A HU NTE R…

…He climbed the crags of Mont Blanc. He visited the famous

author and guru of Romanticism, Châteaubriand, and paid his respects to Queen Hortense.

Dumas was never bored. Then, when he began to note down his impressions in his scrapbook, he

began to discover “a natural liveliness in narration”.

CHÂTEAUBRIAND

…the celebrities of journalism, literature and dandyism met, drunk with

lyric poetry and art. Dumas was in the center of the fashionable crowd,

and his costume ball made the carnival of 1833 in

Paris a great event.

DUMAS RETURNED TO PARIS…AT THE CAFÉ DE PARIS, ON THE

BOULEVARD…

DUMAS SET OUT ON A NEW ROUND OF TRAVELS TO THE

SOUTH.

He discovered the wine of Saint-Péray; slept at Avignon; and made a

bargain with the municipality of Cavaillon to supply him with melons in exchange for his works. Next came Marseilles,

Toulon and Genoa, where he was asked to leave.

…featuring a trained horse which he hoped would be a star, but the play failed and the horse was hissed. On the boulevards it became the fashion to say “you caligulate me” instead of “you make me tired”.

BACK IN PARIS HE PUT ON A NEW DRAMA, CALIGULA…

ROMANTICISM WAS FALLING INTO A DECLINE, AND DUMAS WAS ACQUIRING NEW ENEMIES.

One day the novelist Balzac, in Dumas’ hearing, said, “When

I'm used up, I shall write plays”. “Better begin at once,

then”, retorted Alexandre. Such gibes fed his insecurity, though, and he started to be obsessed

with official recognition.

…Ida Ferrier. Ida’s guardian had bought up 200,000 francs worth of Dumas’ debts for 40,000 francs and, accompanied by the sheriff’s officers,

ordered the great man to marry or go to debtors’

prison.

AFTER HIS NEXT TRIP ABROAD, TO GERMANY, HE THOUGHT AB OUT

SET TLING DOWN AND MARRYING HIS CURRENT MISTRESS…

“ I k n o w t h a t t h e w o r l d i s a d r a w i n g - r o o m f r o m w h i c h o n e m u s t r e t i r e p o l i t e l y a n d

h o n o r a b l y, t h a t i s t o s a y, w i t h a b o w, a f t e r p a y i n g o n e ’ s g a m i n g d e b t s . ”  

f r o m T h e C o u n t o f M o n t e C r i s t o

Dumas was plagued by debt, because he spent his money as fast as he could earn it, and he

repeatedly paid out six or seven times the amount

that owed.

…He brought Dumas one of them with an interesting plot and a dull

narrative. Alexandre took the manuscript, sped it up and made

it lighter, and the tale appeared in the journal Le Siècle. Maquet's name did not appear, but he got 1200 francs as his share. THIS

WAS THE START OF SOMETHING BIG.

D U M A S O N E D AY WA S V I S I T E D B Y A U G U S T E M A Q U E T, A TA L L , W E L L - C O M P O S E D M A N. H E H A D B E E N A P R O F E S S O R , A N D N O W W R O T E

H I S T O R I C A L R O M A N C E S …

MAQUET KNEW HISTORY AND HAD IDEAS, BUT HE WASN’T A WRITER

IN DUMAS’ CLASS

A collaboration seemed inevitable and its first product was The Three Musketeers. Many of D’Artagnan’s exploits

were based on his father’s experiences.

D’Artagnan of The Three Musketeers

…a few years before. It was called Monte Cristo. The two collaborators set

to work again, and in 1843 The Count of Monte Cristo started to be serialised in Le Journal des Débats.

AFTER THE SUCCESS OF THE THREE MUSKETEERS DUMAS RECALLED AN ISLAND HE HAD GLIMPSED IN THE

MEDITERRANEAN

DUMAS WAS NOW NO LONGER RE -INVENTING HISTORY, HE WAS CREATING IT. DUMAS’ ACTIVITY WAS INDUSTRIAL .

He described himself as a blacksmith “who threw

himself into literature as his father had thrown

himself upon the enemy”, who did not always test

the metal which he used, but let the feeble warm themselves at his fire.

you will find the savage. He lunches on potatoes taken burning hot from the ashes of the hearth and devours them without removing the skins - a Negro! He runs after honors - a marquis!”

AT THE MOMENT OF HIS TRIUMPH THE ISSUE OF HIS ORIGINS RETURNED

WITH A VENGEANCE.

A journalist named Jacquot had written to Dumas and failed to get a reply. The result was a bitter attack on the “fiction factory”. The diatribe were frankly racist – “Scratch M. Dumas’ hide and

“ S I N C E H E N E E D S 2 0 0 , 0 0 0 F R A N C S A Y E A R … H E H I R E S I N T E L L E C T UA L

D E S E RT E R S A N D T R A N S L AT O R S AT WA G E S T H AT D E G R A D E T H E M …

Subsequently Jacqout was sentenced to six months in prison for

libel.

…TO THE CONDITION OF NEGROES WORKING UNDER THE LASH OF A MULATTO! NONE OF HIS DRAMAS OR HIS

ROMANCES IS REALLY HIS OWN.”

…"My father was a mulatto, my grandfather was a Negro, and his father was a monkey”, he replied, “My ancestry begins where yours ends”.

IN THE BOULEVARD SOMEONE HISSED AT HIM “MULATTO”…

HE SHOWED NO ANGER - HE STILL TOOK HIS WALK ON THE BOULEVARD,

TEASED HIS ENEMIES…

…and then would depart, saying: “Good! Have I amused you with wit of good quality? Tomorrow they'll be saying that I had collaborators!”

But the Chamber of Deputies was upset by the expense of the junket and an indignant debate took place. Everyone

was talking about Dumas, and to support his new eminence

he built an extravagant chateau near Saint-Germain which the locals immediately

dubbed “Monte Cristo”.

IN 1846 DUMAS TRAVELLED TO NORTH AFRICA AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE

FRENCH GOVERNMENT.

In the same year Dumas was granted a license to build a new theatre and in the following year the Théâtre Historique opened to great acclaim.

A F T E R T H E R E V O LU T I O N O F 1 8 4 8 H E D E T E R M I N E D T O E N T E R T H E N AT I O N A L

A S S E M B LY. H E F O U N D E D A M A G A Z I N E L E M O I S , B U T H I S P O L I T I C A L V I E W S W E R E C O N T R A D I C T O RY O R C O N F U S E D,

and in spite of his popularity he found it

impossible to persuade any district to adopt him. At one meeting he was greeted by cries of "O ho! the marquis! the

aristocrat! the Negro! Orléans’ secretary!”

…and pointing to his hair he added: “This

would be a representative's

brevet… but perhaps I shall send them a lock

of my hair by mail.”

“ I F I H A D H A D E N O U G H M O N E Y ” , H E O N C E R E M A R K E D T O A F R I E N D “ I S H O U L D H AV E

G O N E T O M A RT I N I Q U E T O B E E L E C T E D F R O M T H E R E ” …

D R A M AT I C A RT WA S N O T I N FAVO R W I T H T H E N E W R E VO LU T I O N, A N D I N T H E

F O L L O W I N G Y E A R T H E T H É ÂT R E H I S T O R I Q U E FA I L E D.

Dumas’ creditors began to circle like a pack of wolves. Next was the turn of Monte Cristo. At the end of 1851

imperial order was resumed in France. The republican Victor Hugo (author of Les Miserables) was exiled, and

Dumas left for Brussels.

 DUMAS MOVED ON TO RUSSIA AB OUT 1859 , WHERE FRENCH WAS THE

SECOND LANGUAGE OF THE ELITE…

…and his writings were enormously

popular. Dumas spent two years in Russia,

before leaving to seek different adventure. He published travel books about Russia.

His purse full, he set out to join Garibaldi, leader of the movement to unify Italy, Garibaldi appointed

him director of Fine Arts, and Dumas threw himself into the

science of excavation and preservation. His status didn’t last long. The Neapolitans, resentful of

the foreigner in their midst, organized a demonstration against him, and he was soon on his way

back to France.

HE SET OUT AGAIN ON HIS TRAVELS, AND WHEN HE RETURNED TO PARIS HIS

PLAYS WERE ONCE MORE IN FAVOR.

Giuseppe Garibaldi

THE BOHEMIAN LIFE BEGAN AGAIN ON A SMALLER SCALE, WITH LESS LUXURY AND FEWER SERVANTS…

…it was Monte Cristo over again. Dumas was surrounded by sycophants who fleeced him for

all they could get.

H E T R I E D T O H I D E H I S WAY O F L I F E F R O M H I S S O N A L E XA N D R E , W H O WA S O N H I S WAY

T O B E C O M I N G A W R I T E R A L M O S T A S FA M O U S A S H I S FAT H E R …

…but eventually the young Dumas gave up and refused to go near the apartment. Now Dumas was truly a forgotten

man reduced to applauding at performances of his son’s plays.

His next novel, about the sacking of Frankfurt in 1866 by

the Prussians, failed.

Alexandre Dumas fils

His extensive travels and his sampling of the food in

various countries stood him in good stead. His

reputation spread, but his debts were increasing and he was losing control of all

the rights to exploit his books and plays.

SUDDENLY DUMAS FOUND HIMSELF A NEW CAREER AS A COOK.

AT THE PARIS EXPOSITION IN

1867 HE MET HIS LAST LOVE…

…the American circus rider Adah Menken. Within a

few months, however, she

suffered a fall and died. Dumas was now truly alone.

…pawning valuable objects at the Mont-de-Piété, and when he could no longer pay the tradesmen, sending for his

son. In July 1870 he returned to Paris, and his son decided

to take him to his villa at Puys, near Dieppe.

NOW HE L IVED FROM DAY TO DAY, B ORROWING FROM EDITORS AND HIS

DRAMATIC AGENT…

NO W DUMAS, WH O H AD NEVER C O UNTED ANYTH ING,

WAS O BSESSED WITH TH E F EAR O F BEING WITH O UT MO NEY…

…and the family took care to fill his drawer with cash. His other

preoccupation was with his literary legacy. One day he asked Alexandre whether he thought his

work would live. The younger Dumas explained his conviction that the work would last forever

and the old man’s face lit up.

The next day Dumas died. That evening the Germans occupied Dieppe. He was buried temporarily in the

little cemetery of Neuville; then, when the enemy had

evacuated Villers-Cotterêts, his body was

taken there.

" O N T H E S T E P S O F T H E S C A F F O L D D E A T H T E A R S O F F T H E

M A S K T H AT H A S B E E N W O R N T H R O U G H L I F E , A N D T H E R E A L V I S A G E I S D I S C L O S E D . ”  

f r o m   T h e C o u n t o f M o n t e C r i s t o

D UMAS PUSH ED H IM SE LF TO TH E TO P, WH IC H WAS

WH ERE HE WANTED TO BE , AND IN THAT SENSE …

…his life is the most ambitious and interesting of his melodramas. He talked of himself as a popularizer, but he was an entertainer who studied history with

passion and desire, and few storytellers have had such

lasting power.

In his novel Georges he sketched aspects of his father’s

experience with an insight which shows how deeply he

considered the matter, and he recorded with an unblinking

truthfulness the insults which must have come out of his

childhood experience.

DUMAS UNDERSTOOD THE RACISCM OF THE AGE VERY

WELL

IN MANY WAYS, MANY OF HIS OTHER B OOKS CAN BE READ AS ALLEGORIES IN

WHICH HE EXPRESSES CRUCIAL INSIGHTS…

…about what it meant to share different and conflicting origins. All the more impressive, then, was his ability to reflect and represent key

aspects of the French culture, and to become a much-loved icon of French letters and world

culture.

The Man in the Iron Mask

“NOW I'D LIKE SOMEONE TO

TELL ME THERE IS NO

DRAMA IN REAL

LIFE!” from The Count of Monte

Cristo

fin

BIBLIOGRAPHIE

BLACK EUROPEANS: A British Library Online Gallery feature by guest curator Mike Phillips; http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/features/blackeuro/pdf/dumas.pdf

Alexandre Dumas; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandre_Dumas

Alexandre Dumas Sr; http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pv&GRid=6753&PIpi=19484461