Chronology

1802 July, 24th : Alexandre Dumas was born in Villers-Cotterêts, in the region called Aisne. He was the son of General Thomas Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailetterie (left) and of Marie-Louise Labouret.

1811 He enters Abbé Grégoire's school and will stay there until 1813.

1816 Dumas becomes a clerk for a sollicitor in Villers-Cotterêts. He devotes more energy to the hunt than to the study of the law.

1819 Dumas meets Adolphe de Leuven with whom he will write his first literay works.

1822 First journey to Paris.

1823 Dumas settles in Paris and gets a job at the Duke of Orléans's office.

1824 July, 24th : Birth of Alexandre Dumas junior, (left) the fruit of his love affair with Laure Labay.

1825 Writing and peformance of the play La Chasse et l'amour (Hunting and Loving) with Leuven.

1829 February, 10th : Henri III et sa cour (Henri III and his court) is performed at the Comédie française. It is the first glorious feat of the romantic theater and Dumas becomes one of the leaders of the movement, along with Victor Hugo.

1830 March, 30th : First night of Christine at the théâtre de l'Odéon. Dumas gets involved in 1830's revolution.

1831 March, 5th : Birth of Marie-Alexandrine, daughter of Dumas and Belle Kreilssamner.
May, 3rd : Antony's first production at the théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin, Dumas's first triumphant success.

1832 First journey abroad, to Switzerland, where Dumas meets Chateaubriand.

1833 Publication of Impressions de Voyage - Suisse. Dumas invites the tout-Paris of arts (among them is Delacroix), literature and theatre to a magnificent party.

1835 Journey to Italy.

1838 Journey to Belgium and Germany.

m1840 He marries the actress Ida Ferrier. Spends some time in Italy.
Publication of Impressions de voyage - excursions sur les bords du Rhin and Souvenirs de voyage - une année à Florence.

1841 Publication of Le Chevalier d'Harmental.

1844 After several scattered tries, Dumas takes up novel-writing and publishes one after the other LesTrois mousquetaires, Une Fille du Régent, Le Comte de Monte-Cristo, La Reine Margot. His collaboration with Auguste Maquet (on left) begins.
Dumas lives in Saint-Germain-en-Laye and buys a piece of land in Port-Marly to have a house built there.

1845 Sues Eugène de Mirecourt about his pamphlet Fabrique de romans, Alexandre Dumas et Cie (Alexandre Dumas and Co. : Novel factory). Publication of Vingt ans après, Le Chevalier de Maison-Rouge, La Dame de Monsoreau.

1846 Journey to Spain and then to North-Africa. Publication of Le Bâtard de Mauléon, Joseph Balsamo, Une Fille du Régent.

1847 Dumas opens his Théâtre Historique in February, and inaugurates his Château de Monte-Cristo, in Port-Marly, in July. He is elected Major of Saint-Germain-en-Laye's Garde Nationale. Publication of La Reine Margot, Impressions de voyage, de Paris à Cadix, Les Quarante-cinq, Le Vicomte de Bragelonne.

1848 Dumas gets involved in 1848's revolution and fails to be elected as Member of Parliament. Publication of Le Collier de la reine. Publication of La Dame aux camélias, Alexandre Dumas junior's novel.

1849 Auction sale of Monte-Cristo. Publication of Les Mille et un fantômes.

1850 Dumas is prosecuted for debts. The Théâtre Historique is bankrupt. Publication of La Tulipe noire and Ange Pitou.

1851 Having to face more and more prosecutions, Dumas takes refuge in Brussels where numerous opponents of Napoléon III, such as Victor Hugo, live. Publication of Olympe de Clèves and Mes Mémoires.

1852 First and triumphant stage production of La Dame aux camélias by Dumas junior. Journeys to the Netherlands and Germany. Publication of La Comtesse de Charny and Isaac Laquedem.

1853 Dumas stays in turn in Brussels and Paris where he negociates the settlement of his bankrupcy. Publication of his paper Le Mousquetaire.

1854 Dumas leaves Brussels and settles back in Paris. Publication of Les Mohicans de Paris and Le Page du duc de Savoie.

1856 Publication of Les Compagnons de Jéhu.

1857 Dumas visits Victor Hugo exiled in Guernesey. Journey to England and Germany. End of publication of Le Mousquetaire, launch of Le Monte-Cristo.
Publication of Le Meneur de Loups.

1858 From june 1858 till March 1859, Dumas travels in Russia, from Saint-Petersburg to the Caucasus. Publication of Les Louves de Machecoul and De Paris à Astrakan.

1859 Journey to Italy. Publication of Le Caucase.

1860 Meets Garibaldi. Dumas sails the Mediterranean sea with Emilie Cordier, his mistress, on the yacht Emma. He joins Garibaldi in Sicilia, and helps him by going to Marseille to buy rifles for his troops. After his victory, Garibaldi appoints Dumas Chief of excavations and museums, in Naples. Publication of Mémoires de Garibaldi and Causeries. Launches the paper L'Indipendente in Naples.

1861 Dumas lives in Naples until 1864.

1863 Publication of La San-Felice.

1864 Dumas goes back to France and settles in Enghien. Publication of Ivanhoé.

1865 Dumas begins a series of talks in France and abroad. Journey to Austria and Hungary.

1866 Journey to Italy. Republication of the paper Le Mousquetaire.

1867 Dumas has his photograph taken with Adah Menken, his mistress, which scandalizes people. Journey to Germany. Publication of Les Blancs et les Bleus and La Terreur prussienne.

1868 Publication of D'Artagnan.

1869 Dumas stays in Brittany for a while in order to work on his Dictionnaire de cuisine. Publication of Le Docteur mystérieux and La Fille du marquis.

1870 Journey to Spain. Dumas settles in his son's villa in Puys, near Dieppe, where he dies on December, 5th. His funeral takes place on December, 8th.

1873 Posthumous publication of Le Grand Dictionnaire de Cuisine.