In a splendid chamber of the Palais Royal, formerly styled the Palais Cardinal, a man was sitting in deep reverie, his head supported on his hands, leaning over a gilt and inlaid table which was cover...

In ten minutes Mazarin and his party were traversing the street “Les Bons Enfants” behind the theatre built by Richelieu expressly for the play of Mirame, and in which Mazarin, who was an amateur of m...

D’Artagnan arrived at the Bastille just as it was striking half-past eight. His visit was announced to the governor, who, on hearing that he came from the cardinal, went to meet him and received him a...

When left alone with Bernouin, Mazarin was for some minutes lost in thought. He had gained much information, but not enough. Mazarin was a cheat at the card-table. This is a detail preserved to us by ...

Meanwhile the cardinal returned to his own room; and after asking Bernouin, who stood at the door, whether anything had occurred during his absence, and being answered in the negative, he desired that...

Years have elapsed, many events have happened, alas! since, in our romance of The Three Musketeers, we took leave of d’Artagnan at No. 12 Rue des Fossoyeurs. D’Artagnan had not failed in his career, b...

D’Artagnan, as he crossed the Pont Neuf, congratulated himself on having found Planchet again, for at that time an intelligent servant was essential to him; nor was he sorry that through Planchet and ...

On entering the hotel d’Artagnan saw a man sitting in a corner by the fire. It was Planchet, but so completely transformed, thanks to the old clothes that the departing husband had left behind, that d...

At the extremity of the village Planchet turned to the left in obedience to the orders of Aramis, and stopped underneath the window which had light in it. Aramis alighted and clapped his hands three t...

Thanks to what Aramis had told him, d’Artagnan, who knew already that Porthos called himself Du Vallon, was now aware that he styled himself, from his estate, de Bracieux; and that he was, on account ...

D’Artagnan passed through the iron gate and arrived in front of the château. He alighted as he saw a species of giant on the steps. Let us do justice to d’Artagnan. Independently of every selfish wish...

As they returned toward the castle, d’Artagnan thought of the miseries of poor human nature, always dissatisfied with what it has, ever desirous of what it has not. In the position of Porthos, d’Artag...

The road was long, but the horses upon which d’Artagnan and Planchet rode had been refreshed in the well-supplied stables of the Lord of Bracieux; the master and servant rode side by side, conversing ...

Whilst this scene was going on, d’Artagnan remained with open mouth and a confused gaze. Everything had turned out so differently from what he expected that he was stupefied with wonder. Athos, who ha...

D’Artagnan retired to bed⁠—not to sleep, but to think over all he had heard that evening. Being naturally goodhearted, and having had once a liking for Athos, which had grown into a sincere friendship...

The circumstances that had hastened the return of d’Artagnan to Paris were as follows: One evening, when Mazarin, according to custom, went to visit the queen, in passing the guard-chamber he heard lo...

The captive who was the source of so much alarm to the cardinal and whose means of escape disturbed the repose of the whole court, was wholly unconscious of the terror he caused at the Palais Royal. H...

Grimaud thereupon presented himself with his smooth exterior at the donjon of Vincennes. Now Monsieur de Chavigny piqued himself on his infallible penetration; for that which almost proved that he was...

In half an hour La Ramee returned, full of glee, like most men who have eaten, and more especially drank to their heart’s content. The pâtés were excellent, the wine delicious. The weather was fine an...

Whilst these projects were being formed by the Duc de Beaufort and Grimaud, the Comte de la Fère and the Vicomte de Bragelonne were entering Paris by the Rue du Faubourg Saint Marcel. They stopped at ...

There was once in the Rue des Tournelles a house known by all the sedan chairmen and footmen of Paris, and yet, nevertheless, this house was neither that of a great lord nor of a rich man. There was n...

The day had begun to break when Athos arose and dressed himself. It was plain, by a paleness still greater than usual, and by those traces which loss of sleep leaves on the face, that he must have pas...

Meanwhile time was passing on for the prisoner, as well as for those who were preparing his escape; only for him it passed more slowly. Unlike other men, who enter with ardor upon a perilous resolutio...

At Blois, d’Artagnan received the money paid to him by Mazarin for any future service he might render the cardinal. From Blois to Paris was a journey of four days for ordinary travelers, but d’Artagna...

The musketeers rode the whole length of the Faubourg Saint Antoine and of the road to Vincennes, and soon found themselves out of the town, then in a forest and then within sight of a village. The hor...

They rode on in this way for ten minutes. Suddenly two dark forms seemed to separate from the mass, advanced, grew in size, and as they loomed up larger and larger, assumed the appearance of two horse...

“Well,” said Porthos, seated in the courtyard of the Hôtel de la Chevrette, to d’Artagnan, who, with a long and melancholy face, had returned from the Palais Royal; “did he receive you ungraciously, m...

They proceeded silently to the centre of the Place, but as at this very moment the moon had just emerged from behind a cloud, they thought they might be observed if they remained on that spot and ther...

We hope that the reader has not quite forgotten the young traveler whom we left on the road to Flanders. In losing sight of his guardian, whom he had quitted, gazing after him in front of the royal ba...

The halt at Noyon was but brief, everyone there being wrapped in profound sleep. Raoul had desired to be awakened should Grimaud arrive, but Grimaud did not arrive. Doubtless, too, the horses on their...

Two men lay prone upon the ground, one bathed in blood and motionless, with his face toward the earth; this one was dead. The other leaned against a tree, supported there by the two valets, and was pr...

This is what had taken place: We have seen that it was not of his own free will, but, on the contrary, very reluctantly, that the monk attended the wounded man who had been recommended to him in so st...

Grimaud was left alone with the executioner, who in a few moments opened his eyes. “Help, help,” he murmured; “oh, God! have I not a single friend in the world who will aid me either to live or to die...

Raoul was aroused from his sombre reflections by his host, who rushed into the apartment crying out, “The Spaniards! the Spaniards!” That cry was of such importance as to overcome all preoccupation. T...

The second interview between the former musketeers was not so formal and threatening as the first. Athos, with his superior understanding, wisely deemed that the supper table would be the most complet...

The reader must now cross the Seine with us and follow us to the door of the Carmelite Convent in the Rue Saint Jacques. It is eleven o’clock in the morning and the pious sisters have just finished sa...

At the very moment when the queen quitted the convent to go to the Palais Royal, a young man dismounted at the gate of this royal abode and announced to the guards that he had something of importance ...

The cardinal rose, and advanced in haste to receive the queen of England. He showed the more respect to this queen, deprived of every mark of pomp and stripped of followers, as he felt some self-repro...

“Well, Madame,” said de Winter, when the queen had dismissed her attendants. “Well, my lord, what I foresaw has come to pass.” “What? does the cardinal refuse to receive the king? France refuse hospit...

The horse and servant belonging to de Winter were waiting for him at the door; he proceeded toward his abode very thoughtfully, looking behind him from time to him to contemplate the dark and silent f...

Whilst this terrible scene was passing at Lord de Winter’s, Athos, seated near his window, his elbow on the table and his head supported on his hand, was listening intently to Raoul’s account of the a...

Athos had not failed to send early to Aramis and had given his letter to Blaisois, the only servingman whom he had left. Blaisois found Bazin donning his beadle’s gown, his services being required tha...

The three gentlemen took the road to Picardy, a road so well known to them and which recalled to Athos and Aramis some of the most picturesque adventures of their youth. “If Mousqueton were with us,” ...

The bustle which had been observed by Henrietta Maria, and for which she had vainly sought to discover a reason, was occasioned by the battle of Lens, announced by the prince’s messenger, the Duc de C...

D’Artagnan had calculated that in not going at once to the Palais Royal he would give Comminges time to arrive before him, and consequently to make the cardinal acquainted with the eminent services wh...

At a quarter to six o’clock, Monsieur de Gondy, having finished his business, returned to the archiepiscopal palace. At six o’clock the curate of St. Merri was announced. The coadjutor glanced rapidly...

It was about eleven o’clock at night. Gondy had not walked a hundred steps ere he perceived the strange change which had been made in the streets of Paris. The whole city seemed peopled with fantastic...

The closet into which d’Artagnan and Porthos had been ushered was separated from the drawing-room where the queen was by tapestried curtains only, and this thin partition enabled them to hear all that...

Anne of Austria returned to her oratory, furious. “What!” she cried, wringing her beautiful hands, “What! the people have seen Monsieur de Condé, a prince of the blood royal, arrested by my mother-in-...

It had been d’Artagnan’s practice, ever since the riots, to sleep in the same room as Porthos, and on this eventful morning he was still there, sleeping, and dreaming that a yellow cloud had oversprea...

When d’Artagnan returned to the Palais Royal at five o’clock, it presented, in spite of the excitement which reigned in the town, a spectacle of the greatest rejoicing. Nor was that surprising. The qu...

Instead of returning, then, by the Saint-Honoré gate, d’Artagnan, who had time before him, walked around and reentered by the Porte Richelieu. He was approached to be examined, and when it was discove...

Mazarin was desirous of setting out instantly for Saint Germain, but the queen declared that she should wait for the people whom she had appointed to meet her. However, she offered the cardinal Laport...

D’Artagnan went straight to the stables; day was just dawning. He found his horse and that of Porthos fastened to the manger, but to an empty manger. He took pity on these poor animals and went to a c...

And now our readers must leave the Standard to sail peaceably, not toward London, where d’Artagnan and Porthos believed they were going, but to Durham, whither Mordaunt had been ordered to repair by t...

They all four entered the tent; they had no plan ready⁠—they must think of one. The king threw himself into an armchair. “I am lost,” said he. “No, sire,” replied Athos. “You are only betrayed.” The k...

“Have you been to the general?” said Mordaunt to d’Artagnan and Porthos; “you know he sent for you after the action.” “We want first to put our prisoners in a place of safety,” replied d’Artagnan. “Do...

Whilst Mordaunt was making his way to Cromwell’s tent, d’Artagnan and Porthos had brought their prisoners to the house which had been assigned to them as their dwelling at Newcastle. The order given b...

The little troop, without looking behind them or exchanging a word, fled at a rapid gallop, fording a little stream, of which none of them knew the name, and leaving on their left a town which Athos d...

As our fugitives approached the house, they found the ground cut up, as if a considerable body of horsemen had preceded them. Before the door the traces were yet more apparent; these horsemen, whoever...

As night closed in they arrived at Thirsk. The four friends appeared to be entire strangers to one another and indifferent to the precautions taken for guarding the king. They withdrew to a private ho...

As soon as the noise of the hoofs was lost in the distance d’Artagnan remounted the bank of the stream and scoured the plain, followed by his three friends, directing their course, as well as they cou...

The next morning King Charles I was haled by a strong guard before the high court which was to judge him. All London was crowding to the doors of the house. The throng was terrific, and it was not til...

The parliament condemned Charles to death, as might have been foreseen. Political judgments are generally vain formalities, for the same passions which give rise to the accusation ordain to the condem...

Toward midnight Charles heard a great noise beneath his window. It arose from blows of hammer and hatchet, clinking of pincers and cranching of saws. Lying dressed upon his bed, the noise awoke him wi...

The mob had already assembled when the confession terminated. The king’s children next arrived⁠—the Princess Charlotte, a beautiful, fair-haired child, with tears in her eyes, and the Duke of Gloucest...

The snow was falling thick and icy. Aramis was the next to come in and to discover Athos almost insensible. But at the first words he uttered the comte roused himself from the kind of lethargy in whic...

It was, in fact, Mordaunt whom d’Artagnan had followed, without knowing it. On entering the house he had taken off his mask and imitation beard, then, mounting a staircase, had opened a door, and in a...

Though Mordaunt had been so completely taken by surprise and had mounted the stairs in such utter confusion, when once seated he recovered himself, as it were, and prepared to seize any possible oppor...

D’Artagnan had judged correctly; Mordaunt felt that he had no time to lose, and he lost none. He knew the rapidity of decision and action that characterized his enemies and resolved to act with refere...

In ten minutes the masters slept; not so the servants⁠—hungry, and more thirsty than hungry. Blaisois and Mousqueton set themselves to preparing their bed which consisted of a plank and a valise. On a...

Grimaud waited till he heard the bolt grind in the lock and when he was satisfied that he was alone he slowly rose from his recumbent posture. “Ah!” he said, wiping with his sleeve large drops of swea...

Scarcely had d’Artagnan uttered these words when a ringing and sudden noise was heard resounding through the felucca, which had now become dim in the obscurity of the night. “That, you may be sure,” s...

A deep silence reigned for a long time in the boat after the fearful scene described. The moon, which had shone for a short time, disappeared behind the clouds; every object was again plunged in the o...

During the six weeks that Athos and Aramis had been absent from France, the Parisians, finding themselves one morning without either queen or king, were greatly annoyed at being thus deserted, and the...

The two friends rode rapidly down the declivity of the Faubourg, but on arriving at the bottom were surprised to find that the streets of Paris had become rivers, and the open places lakes; after the ...

The night was dark, but still the town resounded with those noises that disclose a city in a state of siege. Athos and Aramis did not proceed a hundred steps without being stopped by sentinels placed ...

As Athos and Aramis proceeded, and passed different companies on the road, they became aware that they were arriving near the field of battle. “Ah! my friend!” cried Athos, suddenly, “where have you b...

On leaving Paris, Athos and Aramis well knew that they would be encountering great danger; but we know that for men like these there could be no question of danger. Besides, they felt that the denouem...

Athos found much less difficulty than he had expected in obtaining an audience of Anne of Austria. It was granted, and was to take place after her morning’s levee, at which, in accordance with his rig...

The arrest produced no sensation, indeed was almost unknown, and scarcely interrupted the course of events. To the deputation it was formally announced that the queen would receive it. Accordingly, it...

After quitting Anne, Mazarin took the road to Rueil, where he usually resided; in those times of disturbance he went about with numerous followers and often disguised himself. In military dress he was...

Now let us pass the orangery to the hunting lodge. At the extremity of the courtyard, where, close to a portico formed of Ionic columns, were the dog kennels, rose an oblong building, the pavilion of ...

Supper was eaten in silence, but not in sadness; for from time to time one of those sweet smiles which were habitual to him in moments of good-humor illumined the face of d’Artagnan. Not a scintilla o...

At first, on arriving at the door through which Mazarin had passed, d’Artagnan tried in vain to open it, but on the powerful shoulder of Porthos being applied to one of the panels, which gave way, d’A...

Mazarin turned the lock of a double door, on the threshold of which they found Athos ready to receive his illustrious guests according to the notice Comminges had given him. On perceiving Mazarin he b...

At the expiration of ten minutes Aramis arrived, accompanied by Grimaud and eight or ten followers. He was excessively delighted and threw himself into his friends’ arms. “You are free, my brothers! f...

D’Artagnan knew his part well; he was aware that opportunity has a forelock only for him who will take it and he was not a man to let it go by him without seizing it. He soon arranged a prompt and cer...

Whilst d’Artagnan and Porthos were engaged in conducting the cardinal to Saint Germain, Athos and Aramis returned to Paris. Each had his own particular visit to make. Aramis rushed to the Hôtel de Vil...

On going home, the two friends found a letter from Athos, who desired them to meet him at the Grand Charlemagne on the following day. The friends went to bed early, but neither of them slept. When we ...

It is said that Mazarin, who, though a cardinal, had not taken such vows as to prevent it, was secretly married to Anne of Austria. —⁠La Porte’s Memoirs ↩ The Three Musketeers. ↩ This secret passage i...