Alexandre Dumas

The Black Tulip is a historical novel and a work of Romantic poetry written by Alexandre Dumas, p re, and first published in 1850. It begins with a historic event of 1672, the lynching of the Dutch Grand Pensionary Johan de Witt and his brother Cornelis, considered rebels against the stadtholder William III. During these events there was tulip mania across the Netherlands. In this scenario, the main fictional character Cornelius Van Baerle, belonged to the natural school, whose motto was: "To despise flowers is to offend God", and thus followed the syllogism: "To despise flowers is to offend God, The more beautiful the flower is, the more does one offend God in despising it, The tulip is the most beautiful of all flowers, Therefore, he who despises the tulip offends God beyond measure". (p. 46, The Black Tulip)The city of Haarlem had set the prize of 100,000 Francs to whoever could grow a black tulip. At stake was not only the prize, but fame and honour. Also, the gardener would perpetuate his name in history by the tulip's recorded name. The prosperous Cornelius Van Baerle, godson of Cornelius de Witt, starts the liking of growing tulips in his state. Then he takes the challenge of growing the black tulip. But as an act of misfortune, his neighbour, Isaac Boxtel - also a gardener - watches his every move, and fearing his success, starts plotting. Followed by unsuccessful schemings, Boxtel moved by envy, denounces Van Baerle to Justice, because of Van Baerle's relation to the brothers De Witt, traitors of the nation then. Van Baerle is suddenly arrested, and condemned to a life sentence in prison. Dumas uses religious beliefs for dramatic effect, and words as "Fate", "Providence" and "Misfortune". Misfortune plays a major influence throughout Van Baerle's life events, but at the end succumbs to be a major act of Providence, showing that God is always in control, both in sadness as in happiness. Was in such an act, that Van Baerle meets the beautiful daughter of the jailer, Rosa Gryphus. Cornelius loses everything but had kept the bulbs of the tulips, that were expected to be black. In midst of loss and sorrows, Rosa helps him to grow the flower in the jail. His growing affection for Rosa gives courage to not give up his fancies and expectations. Rosa is seen as a brave and virtuous girl, not held by her father vices, but strong in her own pursuits. The drama elucidates how far an envious person can go; how the righteous ones are not forgotten by God; how in the midst of misfortune a greater happiness is right ahead, and so love and flowers can grow within stone walls. As famously phrased in To Althea: From Prison by Richard Lovelace, "Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage". Van Baerle was free, even inside a prison he was faithful to his conscience. The guards could keep his hands, but not love from him moving forward. And the latter played a major role to prove his innocence. The philosophy of the book is summed up: "Sometimes one has suffered so much that he has the right never to be able to say, 'I am too happy.'"The novel was originally published in three volumes in 1850 as La Tulipe Noire by Baudry (Paris). A similarity of story may be seen in The Count of Monte Cristo by same author. (wikipedia.org)

Regal and dazzlingly beautiful, Mary was often misunderstood yet revered for the mystery of her life. Succumbing to the irresistible impulses of passion, she gambled away her throne for love. Unbelievable acts of abduction, rape and even murder were performed at her behest; she stopped at nothing. Ultimately, the deadly game of power she played and lost against her envious cousin, Elizabeth I, cost her not only her kingdom, but also her life. Betrayed by those she trusted most, pampered and adored even as she was led to her own beheading, she remained an enigma. Four centuries after her death, the legendary life of Mary Stuart Queen of Scots, as retold by Alexandre Dumas, still mesmerizes the listener with its drama and intrigue. BiographyAlexandre Dumas (born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 - 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas p re (where p re is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the most widely read French authors. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later. His novels have been adapted since the early twentieth century into nearly 200 films. Prolific in several genres, Dumas began his career by writing plays, which were successfully produced from the first. He also wrote numerous magazine articles and travel books; his published works totalled 100,000 pages. In the 1840s, Dumas founded the Th tre Historique in Paris. His father, General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) to Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman, and Marie-Cessette Dumas, an African slave. At age 14, Thomas-Alexandre was taken by his father to France, where he was educated in a military academy and entered the military for what became an illustrious career. Dumas's father's aristocratic rank helped young Alexandre acquire work with Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orl ans, then as a writer, a career which led to early success. Decades later, after the election of Louis-Napol on Bonaparte in 1851, Dumas fell from favour and left France for Belgium, where he stayed for several years, then moved to Russia for a few years before going to Italy. In 1861, he founded and published the newspaper L'Ind pendent, which supported Italian unification, before returning to Paris in 1864. Though married, in the tradition of Frenchmen of higher social class, Dumas had numerous affairs (allegedly as many as 40). He was known to have had at least four illegitimate children, although twentieth-century scholars believe it was seven. He acknowledged and assisted his son, Alexandre Dumas, to become a successful novelist and playwright. They are known as Alexandre Dumas p re ('father') and Alexandre Dumas fils ('son'). Among his affairs, in 1866, Dumas had one with Adah Isaacs Menken, an American actress who was less than half his age and at the height of her career. The English playwright Watts Phillips, who knew Dumas in his later life, described him as "the most generous, large-hearted being in the world. He also was the most delightfully amusing and egotistical creature on the face of the earth. His tongue was like a windmill - once set in motion, you never knew when he would stop, especially if the theme was himself." (wikipedia.org)

Regal and dazzlingly beautiful, Mary was often misunderstood yet revered for the mystery of her life. Succumbing to the irresistible impulses of passion, she gambled away her throne for love. Unbelievable acts of abduction, rape and even murder were performed at her behest; she stopped at nothing. Ultimately, the deadly game of power she played and lost against her envious cousin, Elizabeth I, cost her not only her kingdom, but also her life. Betrayed by those she trusted most, pampered and adored even as she was led to her own beheading, she remained an enigma. Four centuries after her death, the legendary life of Mary Stuart Queen of Scots, as retold by Alexandre Dumas, still mesmerizes the listener with its drama and intrigue. BiographyAlexandre Dumas (born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 - 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas p re (where p re is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the most widely read French authors. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later. His novels have been adapted since the early twentieth century into nearly 200 films. Prolific in several genres, Dumas began his career by writing plays, which were successfully produced from the first. He also wrote numerous magazine articles and travel books; his published works totalled 100,000 pages. In the 1840s, Dumas founded the Th tre Historique in Paris. His father, General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) to Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman, and Marie-Cessette Dumas, an African slave. At age 14, Thomas-Alexandre was taken by his father to France, where he was educated in a military academy and entered the military for what became an illustrious career. Dumas's father's aristocratic rank helped young Alexandre acquire work with Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orl ans, then as a writer, a career which led to early success. Decades later, after the election of Louis-Napol on Bonaparte in 1851, Dumas fell from favour and left France for Belgium, where he stayed for several years, then moved to Russia for a few years before going to Italy. In 1861, he founded and published the newspaper L'Ind pendent, which supported Italian unification, before returning to Paris in 1864. Though married, in the tradition of Frenchmen of higher social class, Dumas had numerous affairs (allegedly as many as 40). He was known to have had at least four illegitimate children, although twentieth-century scholars believe it was seven. He acknowledged and assisted his son, Alexandre Dumas, to become a successful novelist and playwright. They are known as Alexandre Dumas p re ('father') and Alexandre Dumas fils ('son'). Among his affairs, in 1866, Dumas had one with Adah Isaacs Menken, an American actress who was less than half his age and at the height of her career. The English playwright Watts Phillips, who knew Dumas in his later life, described him as "the most generous, large-hearted being in the world. He also was the most delightfully amusing and egotistical creature on the face of the earth. His tongue was like a windmill - once set in motion, you never knew when he would stop, especially if the theme was himself." (wikipedia.org)

The Black Tulip is a historical novel and a work of Romantic poetry written by Alexandre Dumas, p re, and first published in 1850. It begins with a historic event of 1672, the lynching of the Dutch Grand Pensionary Johan de Witt and his brother Cornelis, considered rebels against the stadtholder William III. During these events there was tulip mania across the Netherlands. In this scenario, the main fictional character Cornelius Van Baerle, belonged to the natural school, whose motto was: "To despise flowers is to offend God", and thus followed the syllogism: "To despise flowers is to offend God, The more beautiful the flower is, the more does one offend God in despising it, The tulip is the most beautiful of all flowers, Therefore, he who despises the tulip offends God beyond measure". (p. 46, The Black Tulip)The city of Haarlem had set the prize of 100,000 Francs to whoever could grow a black tulip. At stake was not only the prize, but fame and honour. Also, the gardener would perpetuate his name in history by the tulip's recorded name. The prosperous Cornelius Van Baerle, godson of Cornelius de Witt, starts the liking of growing tulips in his state. Then he takes the challenge of growing the black tulip. But as an act of misfortune, his neighbour, Isaac Boxtel - also a gardener - watches his every move, and fearing his success, starts plotting. Followed by unsuccessful schemings, Boxtel moved by envy, denounces Van Baerle to Justice, because of Van Baerle's relation to the brothers De Witt, traitors of the nation then. Van Baerle is suddenly arrested, and condemned to a life sentence in prison. Dumas uses religious beliefs for dramatic effect, and words as "Fate", "Providence" and "Misfortune". Misfortune plays a major influence throughout Van Baerle's life events, but at the end succumbs to be a major act of Providence, showing that God is always in control, both in sadness as in happiness. Was in such an act, that Van Baerle meets the beautiful daughter of the jailer, Rosa Gryphus. Cornelius loses everything but had kept the bulbs of the tulips, that were expected to be black. In midst of loss and sorrows, Rosa helps him to grow the flower in the jail. His growing affection for Rosa gives courage to not give up his fancies and expectations. Rosa is seen as a brave and virtuous girl, not held by her father vices, but strong in her own pursuits. The drama elucidates how far an envious person can go; how the righteous ones are not forgotten by God; how in the midst of misfortune a greater happiness is right ahead, and so love and flowers can grow within stone walls. As famously phrased in To Althea: From Prison by Richard Lovelace, "Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage". Van Baerle was free, even inside a prison he was faithful to his conscience. The guards could keep his hands, but not love from him moving forward. And the latter played a major role to prove his innocence. The philosophy of the book is summed up: "Sometimes one has suffered so much that he has the right never to be able to say, 'I am too happy.'"The novel was originally published in three volumes in 1850 as La Tulipe Noire by Baudry (Paris). A similarity of story may be seen in The Count of Monte Cristo by same author. (wikipedia.org)

Alexandre Dumas (born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 - 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas p re (where p re is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the most widely read French authors. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later. His novels have been adapted since the early twentieth century into nearly 200 films. Prolific in several genres, Dumas began his career by writing plays, which were successfully produced from the first. He also wrote numerous magazine articles and travel books; his published works totalled 100,000 pages. In the 1840s, Dumas founded the Th tre Historique in Paris. His father, General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) to Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman, and Marie-Cessette Dumas, an African slave. At age 14, Thomas-Alexandre was taken by his father to France, where he was educated in a military academy and entered the military for what became an illustrious career. Dumas's father's aristocratic rank helped young Alexandre acquire work with Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orl ans, then as a writer, a career which led to early success. Decades later, after the election of Louis-Napol on Bonaparte in 1851, Dumas fell from favour and left France for Belgium, where he stayed for several years, then moved to Russia for a few years before going to Italy. In 1861, he founded and published the newspaper L'Ind pendent, which supported Italian unification, before returning to Paris in 1864. Though married, in the tradition of Frenchmen of higher social class, Dumas had numerous affairs (allegedly as many as 40). He was known to have had at least four illegitimate children, although twentieth-century scholars believe it was seven. He acknowledged and assisted his son, Alexandre Dumas, to become a successful novelist and playwright. They are known as Alexandre Dumas p re ('father') and Alexandre Dumas fils ('son'). Among his affairs, in 1866, Dumas had one with Adah Isaacs Menken, an American actress who was less than half his age and at the height of her career. The English playwright Watts Phillips, who knew Dumas in his later life, described him as "the most generous, large-hearted being in the world. He also was the most delightfully amusing and egotistical creature on the face of the earth. His tongue was like a windmill - once set in motion, you never knew when he would stop, especially if the theme was himself." (wikipedia.org)

Alexandre Dumas (born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 - 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas p re (where p re is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the most widely read French authors. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later. His novels have been adapted since the early twentieth century into nearly 200 films. Prolific in several genres, Dumas began his career by writing plays, which were successfully produced from the first. He also wrote numerous magazine articles and travel books; his published works totalled 100,000 pages. In the 1840s, Dumas founded the Th tre Historique in Paris. Dumas's father's aristocratic rank helped young Alexandre acquire work with Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orl ans, then as a writer, a career which led to early success. Decades later, after the election of Louis-Napol on Bonaparte in 1851, Dumas fell from favour and left France for Belgium, where he stayed for several years, then moved to Russia for a few years before going to Italy. In 1861, he founded and published the newspaper L'Ind pendent, which supported Italian unification, before returning to Paris in 1864. Though married, in the tradition of Frenchmen of higher social class, Dumas had numerous affairs (allegedly as many as 40). He was known to have had at least four illegitimate children, although twentieth-century scholars believe it was seven. He acknowledged and assisted his son, Alexandre Dumas, to become a successful novelist and playwright. They are known as Alexandre Dumas p re ('father') and Alexandre Dumas fils ('son'). Among his affairs, in 1866, Dumas had one with Adah Isaacs Menken, an American actress who was less than half his age and at the height of her career. The English playwright Watts Phillips, who knew Dumas in his later life, described him as "the most generous, large-hearted being in the world. He also was the most delightfully amusing and egotistical creature on the face of the earth. His tongue was like a windmill - once set in motion, you never knew when he would stop, especially if the theme was himself." (wikipedia.org)

Alexandre Dumas (born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 - 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas p re (where p re is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the most widely read French authors. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later. His novels have been adapted since the early twentieth century into nearly 200 films. Prolific in several genres, Dumas began his career by writing plays, which were successfully produced from the first. He also wrote numerous magazine articles and travel books; his published works totalled 100,000 pages. In the 1840s, Dumas founded the Th tre Historique in Paris. Dumas's father's aristocratic rank helped young Alexandre acquire work with Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orl ans, then as a writer, a career which led to early success. Decades later, after the election of Louis-Napol on Bonaparte in 1851, Dumas fell from favour and left France for Belgium, where he stayed for several years, then moved to Russia for a few years before going to Italy. In 1861, he founded and published the newspaper L'Ind pendent, which supported Italian unification, before returning to Paris in 1864. Though married, in the tradition of Frenchmen of higher social class, Dumas had numerous affairs (allegedly as many as 40). He was known to have had at least four illegitimate children, although twentieth-century scholars believe it was seven. He acknowledged and assisted his son, Alexandre Dumas, to become a successful novelist and playwright. They are known as Alexandre Dumas p re ('father') and Alexandre Dumas fils ('son'). Among his affairs, in 1866, Dumas had one with Adah Isaacs Menken, an American actress who was less than half his age and at the height of her career. The English playwright Watts Phillips, who knew Dumas in his later life, described him as "the most generous, large-hearted being in the world. He also was the most delightfully amusing and egotistical creature on the face of the earth. His tongue was like a windmill - once set in motion, you never knew when he would stop, especially if the theme was himself." (wikipedia.org)

Alexandre Dumas (born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 - 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas p re (where p re is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the most widely read French authors. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later. His novels have been adapted since the early twentieth century into nearly 200 films. Prolific in several genres, Dumas began his career by writing plays, which were successfully produced from the first. He also wrote numerous magazine articles and travel books; his published works totalled 100,000 pages. In the 1840s, Dumas founded the Th tre Historique in Paris. His father, General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) to Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman, and Marie-Cessette Dumas, an African slave. At age 14, Thomas-Alexandre was taken by his father to France, where he was educated in a military academy and entered the military for what became an illustrious career. Dumas's father's aristocratic rank helped young Alexandre acquire work with Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orl ans, then as a writer, a career which led to early success. Decades later, after the election of Louis-Napol on Bonaparte in 1851, Dumas fell from favour and left France for Belgium, where he stayed for several years, then moved to Russia for a few years before going to Italy. In 1861, he founded and published the newspaper L'Ind pendent, which supported Italian unification, before returning to Paris in 1864. Though married, in the tradition of Frenchmen of higher social class, Dumas had numerous affairs (allegedly as many as 40). He was known to have had at least four illegitimate children, although twentieth-century scholars believe it was seven. He acknowledged and assisted his son, Alexandre Dumas, to become a successful novelist and playwright. They are known as Alexandre Dumas p re ('father') and Alexandre Dumas fils ('son'). Among his affairs, in 1866, Dumas had one with Adah Isaacs Menken, an American actress who was less than half his age and at the height of her career. The English playwright Watts Phillips, who knew Dumas in his later life, described him as "the most generous, large-hearted being in the world. He also was the most delightfully amusing and egotistical creature on the face of the earth. His tongue was like a windmill - once set in motion, you never knew when he would stop, especially if the theme was himself." (wikipedia.org)

The first volume of the chronological edition of Alexandre Dumas Complete theater brings together plays from his youth and Henri III et sa cour, a historical drama which was a great success in 1829. Placed in their context of creation, Dumas's first plays inaugurate an immense career as a playwright.