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 X A 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 ILLAG E OF V ILLERS -COTTERÊTS,
F I F T Y M I L E S N O R T H E A S T O F PA R I S .
D U M A S ’ B I RT H P L AC E , T H E N &
N OW
PHOTOS OF OF VILLERS-COTTERÊTS
PA R E N T S O F A L E X A N D R E D U M A S
Thomas-Alexandre Dumas
Marie-Louise Élisabeth Labouret
THOMAS-ALEXANDRE DUMAS
• father of Alexandre
Dumas
• born in SaintDomingue (which is
now Haiti)
• son of a French
nobleman and a mixedrace 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.
“ N E V E R F E A R Q UA R R E L S , B U T S E E K
H A Z A RD OU S A DV E NTU RES.”
from The Thr ee Musketeers
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.
“I have always had more dread of a pen, a bottle of ink,
and a sheet of paper than of a sword or pistol.”
from The Count of Monte Cristo
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.
“It is rare that one can see in a little boy the
promise of a man, but one can almost always see in a
little girl the threat of a woman.”
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.
“ 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 my p o ck e t , a n d I ’d
have fought with anybody who told me I was in no
condition to buy the Louvre.” from The Thr ee Musketeers
He was establishing himself
well, but temptation suddenly
appeared in the form of
young nobleman, Adolphe de
Leuven, who visited
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…
O n e o f h i s t a l e n t s w a s a t b i l l i a r d s, a n d
o n e e v e n i n g h e wo n 9 0 f r a n c s …
…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.
In May 1923 Dumas had in his pocket several
letters of introduction to old friends of his
fa t he r, wr it t e n by his m ot he r. It ha d be e n a ll
she could give him.
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.
H I S F E L L OW C L E R K S L AU G H E D …
…at his unfashionable
clothes and mocked his kinky
hair, which stood out all over
his head
like a mane.
FIRST APARTMENT
Dumas 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.
WORKING FOR THE DUC D’ORLEANS
TAU G H T D U M A S O N E I M P O RTA N T T H I N G :
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.
DURING THIS TIME,
A L E X A N D R E J R . WA S B O R N t o
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.
H E W RO T E A VAU D E V I L L E S K E T C H
WITH TWO OTHERS…
…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.
I N T H I S WAY, H A R D L Y K N O W I N G
ANYTHING ABOUT THE TRADITIONS
H E WA S C O N F R O N T I N G …
…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.
JUST AS DUMAS BEGAN TO DEFINE
HIMSELF AS AN ARTIST…
…he then met most of
the writers and artists
who would be his friends
and enemies for the rest
of his life.
D U M A S C O N T I N U E D W R I T I N G, &
E V E N T UA L L Y T H E D U C
( H I S E M P L OY E R ) T O L D H I M …
…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.
CLASSICAL CRITICS
D E N O U N C E D T H E P L AY …
…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.
N OW D U M A S WA S E AT I N G “ W I T H
A L L T H E T E E T H O F G L O RY ” …
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.
AT T H E B E G I N N I N G O F 1 8 3 2 ,
C H O L E R A WA S R AG I N G I N PA R I S.
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.
Dumas fell ill with the disease in April.
O N H I S R E C OV E RY, D U M A S F O U N D
PA R I S AG I TAT E D A N D U N E A S Y.
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.
I N T H E R H O N E VA L L E Y H E W E N T T R O U T FISHING; HE ATE A BEAR WHICH HAD KILLED
AND EATEN A HUNTER…
…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
CHÂTEAUBRIAND
narration”.
D U M A S R E T U R N E D T O PA R I S … AT T H E
C A F É D E PA R I S, O N T H E B O U L E VA R D …
…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.
D U M A S S E T O U T O N A N E W RO U N D O F
T R AV E L S T O T H E S O U T H .
He discovered the wine of SaintPéray; 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.
BAC K I N PA R I S H E P U T O N A N E W
DRAMA, CALIGULA…
…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”.
R O M A N T I C I S M WA S FA L L I N G I N T O A
D E C L I N E , A N D D U M A S WA S AC Q U I R I N G
N E W E N E M I E S.
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.
A F T E R H I S N E X T T R I P A B R OA D, T O G E R M A N Y,
H E T H O U G H T A B O U T S E T T L I N G D OW N A N D
M A R RY I N G H I S C U R R E N T M I S T R E S S …
…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.
“I know that the world is a drawing -room from which
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 . ”
from The Count of Monte Cristo
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.
D U M A S O N E D A Y 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 T A 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 RO F E S S O R , A ND NOW W RO T E H I S T O R I C A L
ROMANCES…
…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.
M A Q U E T K N E W H I S T O RY A N D H A D
I D E A S , B U T H E WA S N ’ T A W R I T E R
IN DUMAS’ CLASS
A collaboration seemed
inevitable and its first product
was The Three Musketeers. Many
of D’Artagnan’s exploits were
D’Artagnan of
The Three Musketeers
based on his father’s
experiences.
AFTER THE SUCCESS OF THE THREE
MUSKETEERS DUMAS RECALLED AN ISLAND
HE HAD GLIMPSED IN THE MEDITERRANEAN
…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.
D U M A S WA S N O W N O L O N G E R R E - I N V E N T I N G
H I S T O RY, H E WA S C R E A T I N G I T. D U M A S ’
A C T I V I T Y WA S I N D U S T R I A L .
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.
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
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!”
“SINCE HE NEEDS 200,000 FRANCS A YEAR… HE
H I R E S I N T E L L E C T UA L D E S E R T E R S A N D
T R A N S L A T O R S A T WA G E S T H A T D E G R A D E
THEM…
…TO THE CONDITION OF NEGROES WORKING UNDER THE LASH
OF A MULATTO! NONE OF HIS DRAMAS OR HIS ROMANCES IS
REALLY HIS OWN.”
Subsequently Jacqout was
sentenced to six months in
prison for libel.
I N T H E B O U L E VA R D S O M E O N E
H I S S E D AT H I M “ M U L AT T O ” …
…"My father was a mulatto,
my grandfather was a Negro,
and his father was a monkey”,
he replied, “My ancestry
begins where yours ends”.
H E S H OW E D N O A N G E R - H E S T I L L T O O K
H I S WA L K O N T H E B O U L E VA R D, T E A S E D
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!”
I N 1 8 4 6 D U M A S T R AV E L L E D T O N O R T H A F R I C A
A S A R E P R E S E N TATI V E O F T H E F R E N C H
G OV E R N M E N T.
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 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.
AFTER THE REVOLUTION OF 1848 HE DETERMINED TO
E N T E R T H E N A T I O N A L A S S E M B L Y. H E F O U N D E D A
MAGAZINE LE MOIS , BUT HIS POLITICAL VIEWS WERE
C O N T R A D I C T O R Y 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!”
“IF I HAD HAD ENOUGH MONEY”, HE ONCE
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
TO MARTINIQUE TO BE ELECTED FROM THERE ”…
…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.”
D R A M A T I C A R T WA S N O T I N F AV O 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 OW I N G
Y E A R T H E T H É Â T R E H I S T O R I Q U E F A 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.
D U M A S M OV E D O N T O R U S S I A A B O U T 1 8 5 9 ,
W H E R E F R E N C H WA S T H E S E C O N D
L A N G UA G E O F T H E E L I T E …
…and his writings were
enormously popular. Dumas
spent two years in Russia,
before leaving to seek
different adventure. He
published travel books about
Russia.
H E S E T O U T A G A I N O N H I S T R AV E L S , A N D
W H E N H E R E T U R N E D T O PA R I S H I S P L AY S
W E R E O N C E M O R E I N FAV O R .
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.
Giuseppe Garibaldi
T H E B O H E M I A N L I F E B E G A N AG A I N O N A
S M A L L E R S C A L E , W I T H L E S S L U X U RY A N D
F E W E R S E RVA N T S …
…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 X A 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
Alexandre Dumas fils
Prussians, failed.
S U D D E N LY D U M A S F O U N D H I M S E L F A
NEW CAREER AS A COOK.
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.
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.
N O W H E L I V E D F R O M D AY T O D AY,
B O R ROW I N G F RO M E D I T O R S A N D H I S
D R A M AT I C AG E N T…
…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.
N OW D U M A S, W H O H A D N E V E R C O U N T E D
A N Y T H I N G,
WA S O B S E S S E D W I T H T H E F E A R O F
BEING WITHOUT MONEY…
…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.
"ON THE STEPS OF THE SCAFFOLD DEATH TEARS OFF THE
MASK THAT HAS BEEN WORN THROUGH LIFE, AND
T H E R E A L V I S A G E I S D I S C L O S E D. ”
from The Count of Monte Cristo
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.
D U M A S P U S H E D H I M S E L F T O T H E T O P, W H I C H
WA S
W H E R E H E WA N T E D T O B E ,
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.
DUMAS UNDERSTOOD THE
R AC I S C M O F T H E AG E V E RY W E L L
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.
I N M A N Y WAY S , M A N Y O F H I S O T H E R B O O K S
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
The Man in the Iron Mask
to reflect and represent key
aspects of the French culture, and to become a much-loved
icon of French letters and world culture.
fin
“NOW I'D LIKE
SOMEONE TO
TELL ME THERE
IS NO DRAMA IN
REAL LIFE!” from
The Count of Monte
Cristo
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/cgibin/fg.cgi?page=pv&GRid=6753&PIpi=19484461