Inspired by
The Three Musketeers
Alexandre Dumas’s tale of the swashbuckling Musketeers never seems to tire, and two centuries after publication the novel continues to inspire interpretations and sequels.
Dumas himself wrote two sequels to The Three Musketeers: Twenty Years After (1845) and The Vicomte de Bragelonne (1847), creating a trilogy sometimes known as the D‘Artagnan romances. Twenty Years After takes place in 1648, two decades following the close of The Three Musketeers. Charles I, the king of England, is on the verge of losing his throne to the revolutionary Oliver Cromwell, and D’Artagnan convinces his now-retired colleagues that their services are needed to protect the purity of the throne. Meanwhile, Mordaunt, the son of Milady, is determined to foil the efforts of those who killed his mother.
The Vicomte de Bragelonne, also known as The Man in the Iron Mask, joins Aramis, Athos, Porthos, and D’Artagnan as they plan to free a prisoner, known only as Philippe, from the infamous Bastille. Philippe has suffered for eight years in an oppressive iron mask, all the while kept ignorant of his crime. By an incredible twist, the release of the prisoner helps further the true goal of the Musketeers: dethroning Louis XIV, who has become corrupt.
Numerous authors, attempting to capitalize on the fame of The Three Musketeers, have written spurious sequels. The True Memories of D‘Artagnan the Musketeer, by Emile Desbeaux, appeared in 1874, immediately following Dumas’s death. In 1883 Paul Mahalin published Son of Porthos, which he falsely claimed was a novelization of a lost play by Dumas. Henry Llewellyn Williams, a prolific translator of Dumas, also falsely claimed that his 1901 D’Artagnan the King-Maker was a novelized version of a Dumas play.
Another icon of French literature, Cyrano de Bergerac, appears with D‘Artagnan in a delightfully inventive series by Paul Féval fils and M. Lassez. Cyrano, the title character in the famous play by Edmond Rostand, is first an enemy, in D’Artagnan Contre Cyrano de Bergerac (D’Artagnan Against Cyrano de Bergerac, 1925), a novel in four volumes. After numerous adventures the two resolve their differences and become great friends, as recorded in D Artagnan et Cyrano Reconcilies (D Artagnan and Cyrano Reconciled, 1928), a novel in three volumes. English translations of the novels and their individual volumes have appeared under a variety of titles.
A recent sequel, the 1993 Le Dernier Amour d’Aramis (The Last Love of Aramis) by Jean-Pierre Dufreigne, is a memoir told from the point of view of Aramis; it received considerable literary acclaim, but to date no English translation has appeared.
Rudyard Kipling, celebrated author of Kim and The Jungle Book, used “The Three Musketeers” as the name of his series of eighteen stories about three soldiers, inspired by Kipling’s association with British regiments in India. Each of the men—an Irishman, a Yorkshire native, and a Cockney—speak in their own dialect, which Kipling captures with unflinching accuracy.
FILM
More than a dozen movie adaptations of The Three Musketeers appeared in the twentieth century, many bringing together some of Hollywood’s brightest stars. Douglas Fairbanks, well-loved star of early cinema, starred as D‘Artagnan in The Three Musketeers (1921), directed by Fred Niblo. In a light-hearted 1948 production directed by George Sidney, Gene Kelly plays D’Artagnan and uses his dancing moves in numerous fencing scenes, while Lana Turner plays Milady and Angela Lansbury takes the part of Queen Anne.
A 1973 version directed by Richard Lester features some of the most famous players in Hollywood, performing at the top of their careers. Michael York, Richard Chamberlain, Oliver Reed, and Frank Finlay are stunning as D’Artagnan, Aramis, Athos, and Porthos, respectively; Charlton Heston as Cardinal Richelieu and Faye Dunaway as Milady add a deliciously nasty presence to the steamy intrigue and drama. The version is also famous for a lawsuit that ensued when Richard Lester determined he had enough footage for two films and released a second installment, The Four Musketeers, without making additional payment to the actors. A judge ruled in the actors’ favor.
Among recent Musketeer extravaganzas is Stephen Herek’s 1993 adaptation starring Charlie Sheen as Aramis, Kiefer Sutherland as Athos, Oliver Platt as Porthos, Chris O‘Donnell as D’Artagnan, and Rebecca De Mornay as Milady. The production boasts rambunctious sound and energy, impressive stunts, abundant slapstick humor, and the delightfully evil grin of Tim Curry, who plays the scheming Cardinal Richelieu. Another all-star cast lined up to continue the story in The Man in the Iron Mask (1998), directed by Randall Wallace and starring Leonardo DiCaprio as King Louis XIV, Jeremy Irons as Aramis, John Malkovich as Athos, Gérard Depardieu as Porthos, and Gabriel Byrne as D’Artagnan.
