Home > The Three Musketeers Summary & Study Guide

The Three Musketeers | Introduction

The Three Musketeers, published in 1844-1845, is typical of Dumas's works: quick-witted heroes who fight and love unceasingly, fast-paced narrative, and entertaining dialogue. In its romantic subject matter, the book is typical of its time; what is not typical is the fact that it has survived and remains entertaining and accessible for modern readers.

The novel has been adapted for over sixty films and spin-offs and has sold millions of copies in hundreds of languages all over the world. Despite the fact that it is very long and is filled with improbable events, larger-than-life characters, and exaggerated dialogue—or because of these traits—it is a fast, exciting read and still feels fresh and entertaining despite the long time that has elapsed since it was first written.

The story was drawn from a number of original historical sources, including Les Memoires de M. d'Artagnan by Sandraz de Courtils and Intrigues Politiques et Galantes de la Coeur de France, memoirs of events from the period in which the novel takes place. Dumas's collaborator, Auguste Maquet, brought him a rough scenario for a book set during the reign of King Louis XIII and starring the King, Queen Anne, Cardinal Richelieu, and the Duke of Buckingham. This scenario, drawn from events in the original sources, would be fleshed out by Dumas to become The Three Musketeers. According to records kept by the Marseille library, Dumas checked out Les Memoires de M. d'Artagnan and never returned it. Because Dumas' s works have been so wildly popular, for a long time he was not considered a "serious" writer. However, in recent years, more attention has been given to him because his work laid the foundations for bourgeois drama as he brought history alive for a broad segment of the population who otherwise would have had no interest in it and as he created a new kind of Romantic novel.

The Three Musketeers Summary

Part I: Chapters One through Ten
Young, ambitious d'Artagnan goes to Paris to seek his fortune, bearing a letter of introduction to Monsieur de Treville, captain of the King's Musketeers. He is impetuous and proud, and at his first stop at an inn, he gets into a fight with a nobleman who makes fun of his horse. The man's henchmen beat up d'Artagnan, but when he returns to consciousness, he sees the man talking to a beautiful woman in a carriage, calling her "Milady," before they set off. When he checks his belongings, he finds out that the man has stolen his letter of introduction.

He goes to see de Treville anyway and is impressed by the dash and swagger of all the Musketeers he sees at de Treville's headquarters. De Treville says he will help d'Artagnan but that he can't be a Musketeer before proving his worth, so he makes d'Artagnan a member of the King's Guards, a position that will allow him to prove himself worthy. D'Artagnan sees his enemy from the inn, "The Man from Meung," and runs out to attack him. On the way, he inadvertently insults Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, three Musketeers, and they each challenge him to a duel later that day.

When he arrives at the dueling ground, the Musketeers are surprised that they are all scheduled to fight the same man. However, d'Artagnan is a man of his word and is determined to fight even though he knows they will probably kill him. This courage and honor impresses them. When the fight is about to start, the Cardinal's guards show up to arrest the Musketeers because dueling is against the law. D'Artagnan joins the Musketeers, and they all beat the guards. The Musketeers are impressed with this and adopt him into their circle.

King Louis XIII hears about the fight and asks to meet d'Artagnan, but he is not home when they come to see him. They head off to the tennis court, where d'Artagnan gets in a fight with one of the Cardinal's guards. He wins again. They meet the King the next day, and he praises their loyalty and bravery and gives d'Artagnan a reward.

They spend the money on a lavish dinner and on a servant for d'Artagnan. Planchet is a loyal, intelligent man, the ideal servant. The others have servants too: Athos has Grimaud, a totally silent man; Porthos has Mousqueton, who shares his taste for luxury; and Aramis has Bazin, who is devout and who wants Aramis to quit the Musketeers and become a priest.

A stranger, Monsieur Bonacieux, shows up at d'Artagnan's house and asks him for help. His wife, who is a lady-in-waiting for Queen Anne, has been kidnapped, perhaps because she may know something about the Queen's affair with the Duke of Buckingham. Monsieur Bonacieux is d'Artagnan's landlord, so he agrees to help him in exchange for free rent. The kidnapper is the Man from Meung, d'Artagnan's enemy. D'Artagnan sees the man and runs after him, but loses him again.

The three other Musketeers agree that they should help Madame Bonacieux because helping her will help the Queen and annoy the Cardinal, who is their sworn enemy.

A group of the Cardinal's guards show up to arrest Monsieur Bonacieux, and d'Artagnan lets them take him. The Musketeers can't afford to be involved in this arrest—they have greater plans. The police then wait in Bonacieux's apartment and question everyone who shows up to visit him, while d'Artagnan eavesdrops from his apartment. When Madame Bonacieux arrives, however, he rescues her from their clutches and takes her to Athos's house. She says that the Cardinal's men kidnapped her and that she has escaped. She has important things to do for the Queen, so d'Artagnan takes her back to the palace. Meanwhile, he's fallen in love with her. He is aware that he may be questioned about what he did that evening, so he goes to visit Monsieur de Treville so that he will have an alibi. He changes de Treville's clock so de Treville will think d'Artagnan was with him at the time when he was really fighting the Cardinal's guards.

Part I: Chapters Eleven through Twenty
D'Artagnan goes to see Aramis and finds a woman knocking on Aramis's door. This surprises him, and so does the fact that a woman, not Aramis, answers. The women give each other handkerchiefs, and the woman in Aramis's house leaves. He is shocked to see that she is Madame Bonacieux.

He asks her what she's doing, and she doesn't tell him, but she allows him to walk with her to another house, where she's carrying out some secret mission. When he goes home, he finds that Athos has been arrested because the police thought he was d'Artagnan. He goes to the Louvre to tell de Treville about the arrest. On the way, he sees Madame Bonacieux, who is walking with Aramis. He's angered that she lied to him about being on a special mission, but when he confronts the man, he sees that it's not Aramis at all, but the Duke of Buckingham, the Queen's secret lover. Courteously, he agrees to guard them as they walk to the Louvre.

At the Louvre, the Queen and the Duke have a secret and emotional meeting. The Duke knows that the Cardinalists have summoned him to France and have made it look like the Queen summoned him. He's not fooled. But he wanted to see her so much that he came anyway. He adores the Queen, and she loves him, but she's more reluctant to admit it because she is married and he is loyal to the King of England, historically an enemy of the French. Buckingham says he will declare war on France if it will give him an excuse to make diplomatic missions to Paris and see her. She gives him a love-token—a set of twelve diamond tags that the King gave her for her birthday.

Meanwhile, Monsieur Bonacieux has endured imprisonment in the Louvre. He's petrified and broken down by fear. He is interrogated and brought to Cardinal Richelieu. Frightened and impressed by the Cardinal, he tells all about his wife's intrigues on behalf of the Queen and the Duke and swears that he will remain loyal to the Cardinal and tell him all about his wife's activities.

The following day, de Treville hears that Athos has been arrested. He goes to ask the King to release him, but the Cardinal arrives first and tells the King that Athos should remain in prison. However, de Treville does convince him that he can't arrest a Musketeer without a good reason. He tells the King that d'Artagnan was with him at the time in question, not knowing that d'Artagnan reset the clocks so he would have this alibi. The Cardinal is suspicious but can't do anything to prove his suspicions, so the King agrees to free Athos.

As soon as de Treville leaves, the Cardinal tells the King that the Duke of Buckingham has secretly visited the Queen. The King is furious, and the Cardinal slyly acts like he's defending the Queen's honor against scandal. He mentions that the Queen is apparently involved in a conspiracy with Buckingham and therefore England, as well as with Spain and Austria. This angers the King, but he is made even more furious by suspicions that the Queen is having an affair with Buckingham.

A search proves that the Queen does have incriminating letters, which show that she is involved in a conspiracy against the Cardinal but which don't mention any affair with the Duke. The King is relieved. He doesn't care about the plot against the Cardinal, since it doesn't affect him, and he decides to apologize to his wife by holding a ball in her honor. The Cardinal is the mastermind behind all of this and suggests that the King ask the Queen to wear all twelve of her diamond tags. Since she gave them to Buckingham, this will expose her when she shows up without them. The King has no idea that the tags are missing and is pleased with the idea of asking her to wear his gift.

... » Complete The Three Musketeers Summary