''Le Chevalier de Maison-Rouge'' (translated as ''The Knight of Maison-Rouge: A Novel of Marie Antoinette'' or ''The Knight of the Red House'') was written in 1845 by

Alexandre Dumas, père Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where ''Suffix (name)#Generational titles, '' is French language, French for 'father', to distinguish him from ...

. It is related to a series referred to as the , though technically not part of that series as the characters of Joseph Balsamo (also known as Cagliostro) and Doctor Gilbert do not appear in the novel, and many of the other series' protagonists have died by the start of this novel. The novel takes place shortly after the end of the series, following the death of

Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...

. Set in Paris during the

Reign of Terror The Reign of Terror (french: link=no, la Terreur) was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the First Republic, a series of massacres and numerous public executions took place in response to revolutionary fervour, ...

, the novel follows the adventures of a brave young man named Maurice Lindey who unwittingly implicates himself in a Royalist plot to rescue

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette Josèphe Jeanne (; ; née Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. She was born an archduchess of Austria, and was the penultimate child a ...

from prison. Maurice is devoted to the Republican cause, but his infatuation with a beautiful young woman leads him into the service of the mysterious Knight of Maison-Rouge, the mastermind behind the plot. Alexandre Dumas based events in the novel on "", an attempt by the Marquis Alexandre Gonsse de Rougeville to communicate with Marie Antoinette by hiding a secret message in the petals of a carnation. According to the biography ''La vie d'Alexandre Dumas père'' by J. Lucas-Dubreton, Dumas had originally titled the work ''Le Chevalier de Rougeville'', but changed the title to ''Le Chevalier de Maison-Rouge'' after receiving a complaint from the son of the Marquis de Rougeville.

Bibliography

English translation of ''La vie d'Alexandre Dumas père'' by J. Lucas-Dubreton

External links

(French) 1845 French novels Novels by Alexandre Dumas Novels set in the French Revolution Novels set in Paris Cultural depictions of Louis XVI Cultural depictions of Marie Antoinette {{1840s-hist-novel-stub