The Three Musketeers is a novel written by Alexandre Dumas written in 1844. The book is set in the 17th century and describes the journey of a young man called d'Artagnan who sets off from his home to travel to Paris and join the Musketeers, the King's guard.
The story follows King Louis XIII of France who is seeking to keep a friendship between England and France. The King gives diamonds to the Queen of England but the Queen of England gives them to her lover to keep. Cardinal Richelieu is the King's Cardinal and is corrupt. He wishes for there to be war between France and England and ultimately the removal of King Louis XIII so that he, the Cardinal, can rule France. The story follows d'Artagnan and his three musketeer friends, Athos; Aramis and Pothos, who try to foil Cardinal Richelieu's plans and to save the King.
The story was written by Alexandre Dumas during a time where there was a lot of debate between Republicans and Monarchists and this is what inspired by the political aspect of the story. The author was actually a practicing fencer at the time of writing The Three Musketeers and is seemingly inspired by this in writing the story and making it an integral part of the novel.
The book was well-received as it was a historical novel that explored France's culture and traditions and critics have praised the book. The book has also been turned into a full-feature film.