The Three Musketeers [antikvár]

introductionAlexandre Dumas, generally known as Dumas pere, was one of the first novelists (Sir Walter Scott had anticipated him) to understand what a happy hunting ground history could be as a source of exotic and intriguing plots for swashbuckling romance. The Three Musketeers is based on the Mernoires de Monsieur d'Artagnan, published at the beginning of the eighteenth century. Charles de Batz-Castelmore d'Artagnan (c. 162 3-7 3) was a Gascon soldier in the service of Louis XIV who was killed at the siege of Maastricht.For The Three Musketeers Dumas adapted the chronology of d'Artagnan's life to suit his plot. It opens with the arrival of the impoverished eighteen-year-old noble d'Artagnan in Paris with the ambition of joining the Musketeers, a Praetorian Guard for the young King Louis XIII, who is engaged in a struggle for power with the remarkable Cardinal Richelieu. M. de Treville, the captain of the Musketeers, is an old friend of d'Artagnan's father, and when the hot-blooded yotmg man has proved his abilities with his sword he is accepted into the regiment. After duelling with each of them, d'Artagnan strikes up close friendships with three established Musketeers - Athos, a melancholy but typical gentleman of the period, Porthos, the thick-headed, valiant giant, and the exquisite and worldly priest Aramis.The fotir gallants-tmcover a plot by Richelieu to discredit the young queen, Aime of Austria. In a foolish moment she has given a pair of earrings to the Duke of Buckingham, the chief minister of the English King Charles I. Buckingham falls in love with Aime, but now that he is in command of the expeditionary force sent to relieve the Huguenots of La Rochelle, any intercourse between the Queen of France and France's principal enemy would give Richelieu the lever that he needs to break the political influence which threatens his own. The adventures, skirmishes and swordplay that the four companions encovmter in their defence of their queen's honour make The Three Musketeers one of the most delightful of historical romances.Like d'Artagnan, the three musketeers were based on real characters.