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    The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo
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    The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo
    Unavailable
    The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo
    Audiobook13 hours

    The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo

    Written by Tom Reiss

    Narrated by Paul Michael

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    WINNER OF THE 2013 PULITZER PRIZE FOR BIOGRAPHY

    General Alex Dumas is a man almost unknown today, yet his story is strikingly familiar - because his son, the novelist Alexandre Dumas, used his larger-than-life feats as inspiration for such classics as The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers.

    But, hidden behind General Dumas's swashbuckling adventures was an even more incredible secret: he was the son of a black slave-who rose higher in the white world than any man of his race would before our own time. Born in Saint-Domingue (now Haiti), Alex Dumas made his way to Paris, where he rose to command armies at the height of the Revolution - until he met an implacable enemy he could not defeat.

    The Black Count is simultaneously a riveting adventure story, a lushly textured evocation of 18th-century France, and a window into the modern world's first multi-racial society. TIME magazine called The Black Count "one of those quintessentially human stories of strength and courage that sheds light on the historical moment that made it possible." But it is also a heartbreaking story of the enduring bonds of love between a father and son.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateSep 18, 2012
    ISBN9780449012680
    Unavailable
    The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo

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    Reviews for The Black Count

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    • 5/5
      Fantastic book. It's amazing that this man (Alex Dumas) has gotten zero credit or lip service until now. A new hero for me.

      Tom Reiss put together a brilliant biography
    • 4/5
      So...it was well written and all, Dumas Sr. just isn't as interesting as I was lead to believe. It's like when horror movies claim to be inspired by true events - yeah, there might be some vague semblance between the movie and an event that happened, it's just...the event was a pale shadow of the movie. Dumas Sr. is a pale shadow of the characters and stories based on him.
    • 5/5
      [The Black Count] is a biography of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, the father of the famous novelist [[Alexandre Dumas]] and the inspiration for many of his stories, particularly [The Count of Monte Cristo]. He was the son of a French nobleman and an African slave, and a martial hero, rising from private to general-in-chief of an army in only a few years. His story rivals the ones in his sons' books, including a shipwreck, foreign dungeons and suspected poisoning, before being almost forgotten because of France's renewed racism/Napolean's personal ire. I really enjoyed this book; I learned a lot about France's colonial history as well.
    • 4/5
      Few readers astounded by Alexandre Dumas' swashbuckling tales of derring do in The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers realize they have a basis in a true French hero - Dumas' father. The story of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas - a larger than life character befitting any novel - is well worth resurrecting from obscurity. He was a black man who rose to Commander-in-Chief (equivalent of a four star general), "the highest rank for a man of color in an all-white army before Colin Powell." Thomas-Alexandre Dumas was born on a Haitian sugar plantation to a French nobleman father and slave mother. When the father returned to France, he took his then freed son along and gave him a gentleman's education. When Thomas Alexandre decided to join the military at the very lowest level, the father was incensed that his name would be attached to a private. The resulting, never-repaired rupture led Thomas Alexandre to adopt his slave mother's name, 'Dumas'. Surviving the French Revolution, Dumas rose quickly through the ranks, gaining a reputation for valor, physical strength, moral conviction, and courageous leadership. He was revered and respected by those men serving under him. By 1796, he formed an alliance with Napoleon Bonaparte which would lead to Dumas' greatest fame and lowest despair. They fought together through the Italian and Egyptian campaigns. His great height (over 6 foot tall) and dark good looks led the Egyptians to believe he was the leader, not Napoleon. This assuredly did not sit well with Napoleon. Dumas, having the "unique perspective of being from the highest and lowest ranks of society at the same time", was firmly committed to The Republic's principles of liberty, equality and fraternity. He soon came to feel Napoleon was more interested in self-aggrandizement than concern for his own soldiers. After a confrontation, Dumas was ordered back to France. On the way, the poorly equipped ship ran aground. Dumas was thrown into an Italian dungeon as a prisoner of war. There he languished for two years. Napoleon refused to have his name spoken in his presence. Dumas' wife eventually won his release. He returned to France a broken man. Although novelist Alexandre Dumas was just a young boy when his father died, he was raised on stories of his meteoric rise, enormous charisma and military prowess. These form the basis of his greatest novels. To those who knew General Dumas, the fictional characters were thinly veiled depictions of the great man. Nevertheless, the victors write the history and Napoleon effectively erased his quarrelsome General from our collective consciousness. Author Thomas Reiss goes far in repairing and resurrecting the Black Count's reputation. This is a fast moving book that kept me drawn in to the finish. One might complain that Reiss slips occasionally into hagiography, and also inserts himself too much into this otherwise engaging story. The book opens with Reiss battling with French bureaucracy and dynamiting into a sealed safe in an attempt to access some Dumas family documents and memorabilia. Overall, though, I was quite satisfied. Anyone who is a big fan of the younger Dumas' novels, or those lovers of military history will be particularly drawn to this book.
    • 4/5
      What a wonderfully woven tale! I picked this book up because I loved the Count of Monte Cristo and had no idea that the character was inspired by Dumas' own father. It is remarkable how much the man accomplishes and how graceful and strong he remains through adversity. The details of the French Revolution and rise of Napoleon are skillfully intertwined with Dumas' life. Great read!
    • 4/5
      Early reviewer copy. I don't read much history, but the narrative of his life was interesting enough to keep me entertained the whole way through. Worth the read :)
    • 5/5
      Meticulously researched, Tom Reiss's The Black Count brings to life the forgotten French hero General Alexandre Dumas, father of the famed author of the same name. The elder Dumas's life spanned from 1762 until 1807 and saw him travel from a childhood on Saint-Domingue to the heights of power as a military hero during the French Revolution to his unfortunate decline during the early year's of Napoleon's reign. Reiss, much like the author Dumas, clearly developed a great affinity and admiration for the General. For those familiar with Dumas's writings they will notice many parallels between characters in his works and the real life of his father. Reiss carefully points out these similarities, but is careful to not totally invest in the statements made by the younger Dumas- often identifying many of his descriptions of his father as more hero worship than true to life. General Dumas died when his son was five, and Reiss notes that most of what the younger Dumas recounted of his father would have come to him from his mother or his father's friends.Beyond just the fascinating life Dumas led, Reiss also connects his life to the turbulent racial policies of the French nation during this time period. He demonstrates how the initial hopes for equality and fraternity during the Revolution would eventually be corrupted and manipulated by Napoleon after his seizure of power. The initial parallel rise in power between Napoleon and Dumas during the Revolution was particularly fascinating.Highly recommended- reads like a novel and succeeds in bringing to life a hero who should not have been forgotten.
    • 4/5
      This book won the Pulitzer prize for biography in 2013, so I read it. It is the 68th such winner I have read. The life recounted is an amazing one and full of interest. I was also astounded at the research the author of this book was able to do, finding in France letters over 200 years old and apparently never before used to tell the biography of the father of the author of The Count of Monte Cristo.--which book I read March 6, 1975, with much appreciation. The way the father of Alexandre Dumas was treated by Napoleon is shameful and is another reason why Napoleon is no hero.
    • 5/5
      My initial response to finding out about Dumas's father was: Whaaaaat? How did I not hear about this before? I am a big Dumas fan and this book will frame how I think about and read his stories from now on. A re-reading of The Count of Monte Cristo is in my near future.Military biographies aren't something I generally seek out, but I found The Black Count to be an all-around fascinating story told in an appealing and straightforward manner. (I especially enjoyed the footnotes, linking such wide-ranging topics as the official sword of the US Marine Corps to the narrative.) Pertinent maps front many chapters. Reiss's source list is extensive for those seeking further details.
    • 4/5
      A biography of Alex Dumas, the father of Alexandre Dumas and the inspiration for The Count of Monte Cristo and many of the other characters Dumas wrote about.I never imagined that The Count of Monte Cristo had a real life inspiration, and in fact, I did not know that Alexandre Dumas was a man of color. His father was born into slavery in France's dominion of Saint-Domingue, to a white father who was a scoundrel noble and a slave woman. From there, this biography goes on to describe his rise to military fame and glory in the French Revolution and his disgraceful treatment at the hands of Napoleon. I have never read a biography so full of adventures and highs and lows. I learned much about Revolutionary France, and the history of slavery. It took me a very long time to finish this book, but I do not think that is due to the book or its writing, more due to my state of mind at the moment. It is a testament to the book and writing that although it took me two months to read, there was never a moment when I wanted to quit or put it aside.
    • 4/5
      Very interesting story of Alex Dumas, who was born as a slave on a coffee plantation in present-day Haiti and ended up a top-ranking general during the French Revolution. As one of the greatest swordsmen and military leaders of his day, Alex captured seemingly impregnable mountaintop fortifications, single-handedly defended a bridge against a whole squadron of enemy dragoons, and became Napoleon's cavalry commander during the Egyptian campaign. Later, his adventures became a major source of inspiration for "The Three Musketeers," "The Count of Monte Cristo," and several other books by his son, the novelist Alexandre Dumas. It's an amazing story, and very well written. At a few points, the story goes farther than necessary into the political turmoil of the French Revolution. The parts about slavery and race in 18th Cent. France were fascinating, though.
    • 5/5
      I had a late life introduction to actually reading Alexandre Dumas' novels, though of course I was familiar with his stories from movies and TV, etc. This biography of his father, Alex Dumas, is worthy of one of his son's novels (as it should be -- it probably inspired a good deal of them!). Son of a French expatriate in Sainte-Domingue and a slave on his sugar plantation -- and the only one of their children that his father brought back to France with him -- he grew up to be a soldier and general whose military feats were legendary in the French Republican Army. The story of his military exploits and glory and his subsequent fall after the rise of Bonaparte is one I'm surprised no one had told before. There is a great deal of background on the French colonization of Sainte-Domingue (now Haiti) and the French Revolution. Some reviewers have criticized the depth of detail Reiss provides, but I found it very helpful.This is not historical fiction, but for anyone interested in Dumas, or the French Revolution, this is well worth your time.
    • 1/5
      I requested this book because I love Alexandre' Dumas's books. I thought that this would be a similar read to his type of writing. Instead, what this book is is a scholarly look at not only the life of this man, his father, but the wars and the political views of the times. It was not an enjoyable read. It was more something you would read in school and have to report on. It did not hold my intrerest at all. I tried to pick it back up after laying it aside several times, but I could honestly barely get to the end. This being said, I am a HUGE history buff and ruly enjoy reading books on historical figures and times. However, this book was a huge disapointment. While very fact-filled it was NOT fun to read.
    • 4/5
      I was really looking forward to what seemed like a fun book, but it turned out to be heavy on the theme of Franco-Black race-relations in late 18th century France (a narrow but important subject to be sure) and light on personal action/adventure. The problem appears to be few sources for his life and many of those sources are suspect as the imaginations of his son the novelist. So Reiss goes off on many tangents. Still, it was a remarkable life, somewhat created by circumstance and with a banal anti-climatic ending. It's tempting to view father and son as a single life because then you have a young daring adventurer and the older man of letters and intellect and it feels complete. In any case the world now has the most complete biography of General Alexandre Dumas who deserves the monument.
    • 5/5
      The Black Count is an amazing story of Alex Dumas, the father of Alexandre Dumas (The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers). Set during the French Revolution and Napoleon's quest, Alex Dumas is an extraordinary man in an extraordinary time. The research is fascinating and it boggles the mind that this story is not better known. Mr. Reiss writes a compelling book and I couldn't put it down.
    • 4/5
      Tom Reiss, a well-known biographer, here examines the life of a man he calls "one of history's forgotten heroes": General Alexandre Dumas, father of the famous novelist. The illegitimate son of a renegade French nobleman and a Haitian slave, Alexandre Dumas went from slavery (his father sold him to pay for passage back to France) to commander of more than 50,000 men in the French Army. He played an important role in the wars following the French Revolution and Napoleon's rise to power, and yet he remains a little-known figure, probably rescued from complete obscurity by the fame of his son, author of such novels as The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers. Alex Dumas was, by all accounts, almost superhumanly strong, extremely handsome, and highly intelligent. A superb fighter, Dumas was renowned for his physical prowess and courage in the face of danger. Not only that, but he seems to have been a man of strong moral fiber as well. I loved reading his letters to his wife Marie-Louise, written from various battlefields around the world. He never flagged in his faithfulness to her and his love for their children (though a soldier's life certainly offered many opportunities for less than exemplary behavior). Dumas also demonstrated unfailing commitment to his ideals. One example of this is when he was in Egypt. He came across a sizeable treasure abandoned by one of the Marmeluke warriors, but instead of keeping it for himself (as he could have easily done), he turned it over to the French government. He was a true idealist who earnestly believed in and fought for the best values of the French Revolution. He would never betray the Republic... but, sadly, it would betray him. To tell Dumas's story, quite a bit of history is required. Some readers may find it dry, but I enjoyed it all. Much time is devoted to examining the race relations of Dumas's period, which were complicated to say the least. I enjoyed the way that Reiss weaves threads from the son's novels (especially The Count of Monte Cristo) with the real-life events. Dumas's long, unjust, and physically debilitating imprisonment by the Neapolitan government after he was shipwrecked leaving Egypt provided much of the basis for Edmund Dantés's adventures. d'Artagnan's famous day of duels was also inspired by General Dumas's own life. One thing I didn't care for was Reiss's occasionally sarcastic, even mocking tone toward those who hold ideologies different from his own. To be sure, I agreed with most of the comments he made, but chronological snobbery and scholarly superciliousness are turn-offs no matter what the issue. One of the most fascinating "big ideas" I took away from this book is that human society is not always moving forward to better thought, knowledge, and ethics. We aren't evolving morally. I think we assume that we've been progressing and becoming more and more enlightened (however one defines that) as the centuries roll on, but it simply isn't the case. Dumas's life bears this out. When he was young, people of color had remarkable freedoms in France (despite France's sugar empire in Haiti and other places where the most brutal form of race-based slavery was practiced). But Dumas, who was once the toast of French society and a highly respected general, lived to see almost all his freedoms and rights taken away by Napoleon's rule. It was heartbreaking to watch a man who had sacrificed so much for his country become a victim of the racism that gained so much ground there during his lifetime.All in all, this was an excellent biography that I thoroughly enjoyed despite its rather unhappy ending. Alex Dumas emerges from these pages as not only a great general, but as a man whose moral integrity and courage command respect.
    • 5/5
      The Black Count tells the story of Alexandre Dumas, father of the novelist of the same name. Alex Dumas was born to a white aristocratic French father and a black mother on the French sugar colony of Saint-Domingue. When he was 14 he moved to France with his father and even as a mulatto he was a free man because "No one is [a] slave in France." There he took up the life of French nobility and later joined the army as one of Queen's Dragoons. He entered as a private and rose to general in command of the Army of the Alps.After glorious (and not so glorious) battles, he traveled France then the Mediterranean with Napoleon. Upon returning from Egypt he was nearly shipwrecked off the Italian coast and was thrown into the dungeon for being a high-ranking French general.He finally returns home to find the ideas of the French Revolution overthrown by Emperor Napoleon. Due to his skin color he lives out his last few years with none of the respect due a great general. Enter Alexandre Dumas, the novelist, who immortalizes his father's exploits in novels such as The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers.The book is painstakingly researched, the author finding even the smallest traces of Alex Dumas' trail. He goes through great lengths to explain the world around Dumas to help the reader understand the true tragedy of his life. Besides Dumas' story the author includes tidbits about his research, but not so much they detract from the story.Overall I enjoyed the book. The beginning was a bit slow given that the author gave the background of the setting and time period. His explanations of the French Revolution were easy to follow and the military exploits as exciting as a Dumas novel. The ending was sad (and abrupt), especially after learning about Dumas' life: a man who gave so much for his country is treated worst than dirt in return.Reiss' book brings the great General Dumas to life again so that perhaps over 200 years later he will get the respect and recognition he deserves.
    • 4/5
      Working through this one a bit slowly, but it's good so far. An interesting history lesson - Alexandre Dumas, the French Revolution, sugar plantations, and more...now I definitely want to go back and read The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo to see what all Dumas drew from his father's life story!
    • 4/5
      I found this book very interesting. Wile I have never been a fan of Dumas, I have always been fascinated by the French Revolution. I would recomend this book to anyone who is interested in the french revolution, not just those who are avid readers of Duma's work.
    • 4/5
      This book tells the fascinating story of General Alex Dumas, father of Alexandre Dumas' the novelist and exactly the sort of larger-than-life figure who could have starred in one of his son's books (and perhaps provided inspiration for some of them). Not only are many of the stories recounted here worthy of an adventure story, but this book also illuminates a side of the French Enlightenment and Revolution that is rarely discussed in more general accounts, of how for a brief period of time in the 18th century there were opportunities and rights available to former slaves and the mixed race children of slaves and their masters in the French motherland (less so in the colonies) that were a century ahead of similar developments in what became the United States or the other English colonies. General Dumas was a true believer in the principles of liberty and equality of the sort that is often forgotten while popular portrayals of the French Revolution focus on the series of demagogues having their enemies executed, and his background shows us why.
    • 4/5
      What an interesting topic and one that I really was not familiar with. The French Revolution is such a complex and turbulent time and one that before this never really sat down to really understand. For being a multi layered novel it flows together so well. You have three things, the main character Alex Dumas, the back drop of the French revolution, and third are the ethical issues of slavery during the period. The author does such a great job of blending all three of these together and it keeps a steady flow without getting too bogged down. I have to say that this is one of the best novels nonfiction or fiction that I have read this year. A definite must read.
    • 5/5
      There is something profoundly important in Tom Reiss' The Black Count" that relates to how we define our personal stories and the stories of our collective consciousness. The Black Count details the life of Alex Dumas, father of Alexandre Dumas the author of the Count of Monte Cristo. Born to a titled white father and slave mother, Dumas was both sold into and bought out of slavery by his father. When Dumas joined the military, he eschewed the higher rank that was his birthright and entered as a common soldier, taking on his slave mother's name. He quickly earned his way up the ranks. What we can all learn from his experience is that he did not hold on to the wound of his slave experience: He allowed his personal history to define his values, but chose not to allow it to define him as a man. Reiss details the birth of race-based slavery as a relatively new phenomenon when viewed within the annals of all of human history, showing that it was based out of commercial expediency rather than racial superiority. He even gives mention to the fact that the chain of ownership began with black Africans, a fact almost always left out of the slavery discussion. I only mention this because this is a wound that needs closing. Is there racism? Most definitely. Should we stand up against it? Absolutely. But that does not mean people need to define themselves by it. Doing so creates a kind of self-imposed slavery, limiting what a person believes is possible for him/herself. With a good three quarters of black children in America living without a present father figure, Alex Dumas serves as a role model of what kind of person they can be and how powerful the concept of choice is in what they will believe about themselves.The other thing that Reiss does in The Black Count is to make intricate connections between historical fact and everyday life. There is a tendency these days to reduce complex situations into simplistic rhetoric. When terms like "collateral damage" replace the concept of human tragedy, campaigns are built on "don't you love America," and illegal war are begun over "bringing the evil-doers to justice," we desperately need a different way to understand the world we live in. Instead of interspersing dry historical fact within the Dumas story and expecting the reader to make his/her own connections, Reiss explains the context and consequences with the deftness of a great novelist. The result is that the reader sees the complexities of human history at every level and understands that life cannot be reduced to black and white, dichotomous thinking. Our society needs a paradigm shift into this more "wholistic" way of thinking, where we understand that all our choices have multiple, interconnected consequences. The Black Count is more than just history, it reflects a lesson back to us about our own personal stories and public dialogue.
    • 5/5
      This is a biography of Alexandre Dumas' father, who inspired many characters and aspects of his son's fiction. He was the son of a French count and a black Haitian slave, who grew up in Haiti, was leased into slavery by his father (to help pay the count's passage back to France), and then led the life of a rich playboy when he arrived in France before joining the army and becoming a committed Republican fighter and one of Napoleon's generals.Now, that's one hell of a hook. This biography is written exquisitely and I found myself applauding the author over what he chose to include and to point out, and the amount of historical background he included. There's enough background for a novice of the period to feel well-informed, but not so much to bore the knowledgeable, and every bit relates back to Dumas' life. The book is full of extracts from Alexandre Dumas' memoir, letters written to and from the General and his close family and friends, and various military dispatches. I was honestly slightly shocked over just how many source documents were available. The book is exciting, joyous, and heart wrenching at times, with the flow and intensity of a novel.The only momentary annoyance I felt was during some references to Napoleon's height. The annoyance coming from the fact that his height was actually slightly above average for the period. Granted perhaps all of her generals were exceptionally tall, but the author could have pointed out that Napoleon really wasn't short in the least. That's just me being nitpicky though.
    • 5/5
      The three revolutions that created our modern world are the American, the Haitian and the French Revolution. The story of the [[The Black Count]] is the point of intersection between the three in that they tried and did for a short time, at least for the French and the Haitian, create a society based on the principle of equality for man regardless of race, birth or religion. It is also the key for the lecture of Alexandre Dumas' important works [[The Count of Monte-Cristo]] and [[Georges]], the later treating the question of race. That the real father of Dumas, a General of the French revolution be less known that his illustrious son author of the "Three Musketeers" is explained by the reaction to the French revolution, the counter coup of the Thermidorians and the appearance of the strong man of the sugar lobby, General Bonaparte. As the later reestablished slavery in the Antilles, it is also the story of how he failed to do so in St Domingue, where the Black Count was born a slave, prompting the independence of this nation as black and mulatto only under the name Haiti, followed by its economic blocade by the rest of the world.It is therefore not surprising that Napoleon resented this Black Count, one of the original black Jacobins, a military competitor for his fame thirsty ego and true hero of the French revolution, when they met face to face during the Egyptian expedition. Tom Reiss not only writes wonderfully but he also researched his subject at the Castle of Vincennes France and in the Dumas archives in Villers-Cotteret because this extraordinary Black Count, unlike Edmond Dantes, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, really existed.I hope this singular book will be translated in French, Spanish and Creole soon.
    • 3/5
      I grew up reading Dumas pere work, The Count of Monte Cristo is one of my favorite books. Just by reading the synopsis of this book I was hooked as I am sure will happen to other Dumas' fans. There is a lot of detail in this book that I did know now, the author does a great job at referencing real life characters and situations that if one has a good memory and is paying attention can relate to Dumas' work. Characters and situations that show up in his novels Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers. The author also does an excellent job at conveying how much Dumas adored his father. I found the snippets from Dumas' memoirs the most interesting. The drawback for me is that it took a long time to become interesting. Almost a 100 pages! The reason being the book goes back to the times of Dumas's great grandfather. Unless you have a keen interest in Saint-Domingue and slavery at the time it's simply hard to get through this part of the book.
    • 5/5
      A book everyone should read. AWESOME!!!!
      Great book. Read it
    • 5/5
      Fantastic read. I’m not surprised it won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography. Well researched, Riess packs a lot into every page. I’ve recommended this book to several people who enjoy history and they enjoyed it as well.
    • 5/5
      An amazing piece of history about a great man as well as a great introduction to the French Revolution.
    • 5/5
      One of the most compelling biographies I have ever listened to. The narrator is awesome!
    • 5/5
      Excellent. I really enjoyed this book. It was informative and entertaining.