The main character of The Three Musketeers is a real person. D'Artagnan was indeed a musketeer. However, he was not particularly scrupulous when it came to matters of honor.

Alexandre Dumas, as is well known, took liberties with historical facts and did not shy away from plagiarism. He borrowed the plot for The Three Musketeers from the three-volume Memoirs of Monsieur D'Artagnan, a work that was very popular in France in the 18th and 19th centuries. The writer even mentions it in the brief preface to his great novel. Here, however, it is worth making a reservation. The Memoirs are recollections of days long past, but not in our case. The Memoirs of D'Artagnan were published in 1700, 27 years after the death of the Gascon, who, incidentally, was not particularly literate, read poorly, and may not have been able to write at all. This is a work of fiction created by the writer and journalist Gacien de Courty de Sandre, who was probably personally acquainted with D'Artagnan. However, he invented most of the adventures of his fictional character, and Dumas, who was born 90 years after Sandre's death, appropriated them for himself.

In other words, D'Artagnan did exist. So did the prototypes of Athos, Porthos, and Aramis—they served in the musketeer company and had similar-sounding names. It is not certain, however, that they were friends. D'Artagnan did indeed move to Paris at a very young age, but not in 1628, as in the book, but somewhat later. His star rose after the death of Cardinal Richelieu. The Gascon was brought closer to Mazarin, to whom D'Artagnan was extremely loyal during the Fronde, which somewhat differs from the events of the novel Twenty Years After.

Exciting games and adventures await you - freespin.com

So our hero's career rise under Mazarin and Louis XIV, as well as his death in the war with Holland, is pure truth. But the intrigues against Richelieu, the secret help to the queen, the conspiracy with Buckingham, the trip for the pendants, the execution of Milady, and the murder of Rochefort are fiction. The “Stranger from Menga” also existed in reality and was indeed Richelieu's confidant and secret agent. However, he was not at odds with D'Artagnan and was definitely not killed by him. The real Rochefort died in Orleans in 1687, outliving the real D'Artagnan by 14 years.

If D'Artagnan's real biography had turned out the same as the biography of the fictional D'Artagnan, it is unlikely that the memory of this man would have survived to this day. It would not even have reached Dumas senior, because the real Cardinal Richelieu, who said that he had no enemies other than the enemies of France, did not stand on ceremony with people like D'Artagnan. The almighty minister did indeed wage a ruthless war on duelling. Of course, people were not executed for dueling, but it was possible to ruin one's career forever.

If the real D'Artagnan had actually started a fight with the prototypes of Athos, Porthos, and Aramis and been caught doing so, victory in the skirmish would not have saved him from disgrace. Nor would the protection of De Tréville. The Gascon would have returned to his native Gascony and could have forgotten about a military career forever. Not to mention attempts to interfere in court intrigues! Heads rolled one after another there. People who even tangentially crossed paths with Cardinal Richelieu could not count on him to reward their resourcefulness and courage with an officer's commission. Oh no! Their reward was the dungeons of the Bastille or a trip to the Place de Grève, the place of execution for state criminals.

For attempting to warn Buckingham about the assassination attempt (if the cardinal was indeed planning one), D'Artagnan would have been sent to the scaffold. And for his friendship with a man who corresponded with Madame de Chevreuse... It's too scary to even think about.

We know practically nothing about D'Artagnan's life under Richelieu. As mentioned above, the Gascon's star rose during the Fronde, when he proved useful to Mazarin. The prototype for Athos, Armand de Silleguy d'Otville, was no longer alive by that time. He died in December 1643. According to one version, he died in a duel; according to another, he died defending D'Artagnan from hired assassins. The prototype for Aramis, Henri d'Aramitz, had already retired by that time. In short, if the Gascon had planned to kidnap the cardinal, his life would have collapsed overnight. However, the real D'Artagnan had no reason to kidnap his benefactor.