Alexandre Dumas, also known as Alexandre Dumas père, was born July 24, 1802, in Villers-Cotterêts, France.

Born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, he adopted the Dumas family name from his grandmother, a Dominican slave. Despite encountering societal prejudice because he was one-quarter black, Dumas managed to break into French literary circles and became one of the most respected and successful authors of French literature.

He began writing plays after working as a scribe for the Duke of Orleans (later named King Louis Philippe) during the 1830 revolution. Dumas was a prolific writer, best known for novels such as The Three Musketeers, The Man in the Iron Mask, and The Count of Monte Cristo. His work has been translated into more than 100 languages and adapted into a multitude of films.

After suffering a stroke, he died on December 5, 1870, in Puys, France, and was buried in the family vault. In 2002, he was exhumed and reinterred in the hallowed Pantheon in Paris, among other French luminaries.