Alexandre Dumas

Lore & Background

Alexandre Dumas, born in 1802 in Villers-Cotterêts, France, was a prolific French novelist and playwright whose works have been translated into many languages, making him one of the most widely read French authors. He began his career writing plays, achieving early success with his first production at age 27, and later produced numerous magazine articles and travel books, with his published works totaling 100,000 pages. Many of his historical adventure novels, including *The Count of Monte Cristo* and *The Three Musketeers*, were originally published as serials. In the 1840s, he founded the Théâtre Historique in Paris. Dumas was the son of General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, a mixed-race man born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) to a French nobleman and an enslaved African woman. After working for the Duke of Orléans, Dumas fell from favour following the 1851 election of Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, leaving France for Belgium, then Russia, and later Italy, where he founded a newspaper supporting Italian unification. He returned to Paris in 1864. An English playwright who knew him described Dumas as generous, large-hearted, delightfully amusing, and egotistical, with a talkative nature.

Reader's Guide

Alexandre Dumas’s behaviour and character were marked by a famously ebullient and self-centred nature. An English playwright who knew him late in life described Dumas as the most generous and large-hearted person imaginable, yet also the most delightfully amusing and egotistical creature on earth; his conversation, once started, was like a windmill that would not stop, especially when the subject was himself. Ecologically, as a writer, Dumas was extraordinarily prolific, producing published works that totalled 100,000 pages across several genres. He began his career by writing plays, which were successfully produced from the start, and he also wrote numerous magazine articles and travel books. His most famous historical adventure novels—including *The Count of Monte Cristo*, *The Three Musketeers*, *Twenty Years After*, and *The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later*—were originally published as serials. In the 1840s, he founded the Théâtre Historique in Paris. The significance of Dumas lies in his status as one of the most widely read French authors, with his works translated into many languages. Since the early 20th century, many of his novels have been adapted into films, extending his influence. His field is that of French literature and historical fiction, where his serialized adventure narratives and dramatic works helped shape the popular novel. His father, General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, was the first soldier of Afro-Antilles origin to reach the rank of general in the French army, a notable military career that did not, however, directly influence his son’s literary path.

Did You Know?

• Alexandre Dumas was a French writer.
• He is known for the historical adventure novel *The Count of Monte Cristo*.
• He is known for the historical adventure novel *The Three Musketeers*.
• His works were originally published as serials.