Updated March 30, 2026 at 11:23 AM AKDT
The remains of d'Artagnan, a swashbuckling swordsman made famous by French writer Alexandre Dumas' 19th century novel The Three Musketeers, may have been found under the tiles of a church in the Netherlands near the battlefield where he died fighting more than 3 1/2 centuries ago.
The discovery was made earlier in March when the floor tiles of the church were removed for repair after the ground under them had sunk.
When published in 1844, Dumas' novel, which evokes the adventures of musketeers Athos, Porthos, Aramis and d'Artagnan — yes, there were actually four musketeers — became an overnight sensation. The three musketeers captured imaginations and soon became myth.
In the 20th century dozens of movies chronicled their adventures, with each era casting its leading man as the noble, brave and loyal, leading musketeer. Actor and dancer Gene Kelly starred in the 1948 Hollywood version of The Three Musketeers.
But d'Artagnan, whose real name was Charles de Batz de Castelmore, was a real person. He served as the personal guard of the French kings and as a spy and a musketeer for Louis XIV.
A 2020 French documentary about d'Artagnan on French-German TV channel ARTE shows that while much romanticized, the musketeer guards were actually quite brutal, carrying out the will of the king during what the film characterizes as violent times. Still, only the best horsemen and sword fighters made the cut as a musketeer, and d'Artagnan was a legend. Both in Dumas' novel and reality.
D'Artagnan was a favorite of Louis XIV and, in 1673, led the Sun King's siege on the Dutch city of Maastricht during the Franco-Dutch war.
The walled city fell. But so did d'Artagnan, when he was shot through the throat by a musket. The monarch wrote to the queen that he had lost one of his "best" and "loyal" men, according to the documentary.
Odile Bordaz is a French historian who has been trying to locate d'Artagnan's remains for decades and also appears in the 2020 ARTE documentary.
"We know that d'Artagnan's body was brought back to his camp, and that Louis XIV celebrated a Mass for him," she says. "But no one ever talks about what happened to his body after that. It is a mystery."
Until now.
Bordaz has long theorized that the musketeer's body was probably buried near the French camp, rather than being taken back to France, so that King Louis XIV could have personally attended his burial. In addition, while common soldiers were buried in mass graves, officers and noblemen were usually laid to rest in a church.
The documentary shows Bordaz visiting the church six years ago, where she meets with Maastricht archaeologist Wim Dijkman, who shows her that the altar is likely on the same spot as Louis XIV military camp during the siege of Maastricht. The attack was massive, involving nearly 50,000 infantry and cavalry as well as 58 canons.
Still, Jos Valke, a deacon at the church of Wolder in Maaschtrict, described their shock at the discovery.
"Those tiles were picked up and that's when we actually found the bones," he told Dutch television's RTV Maaschtrict. "And that was the time to bring in an archaeologist."
Dijkman was brought in. He told RTV that he had actually been petitioning church officials to let him carry out excavations at the property since meeting Bordaz many years ago.
Dijkman says he is very hopeful the skeleton is that of d'Artagnan. A coin was also found alongside it that belonged to the bishop of Liège who held Mass there for the Sun King every day. But Dijkman says they must be sure, so are carrying out analysis with DNA from the descendants of d'Artagnan's father.
"This has really a become a top-level investigation," he told RTV. "We want to be absolutely certain, or as certain as possible, whether it is the famous musketeer who fell here near Maastricht or not."
Back in Paris, Cecile Rebillard is closely following the news. The mother of three has brought her youngest to Les Invalides, the 17th century military hospital complex founded by Louis XIV, and today a museum which holds many collections of musketeer swords and armor. She says the discovery is exciting.
"We all read Dumas," she says. "It's something that's passed on from generation to generation. So finding d'Artagnan's skeleton is great. It brings fiction to life."
Before walking away, Rebillard smiles and recites the Musketeer mantra known to every French school child: "All for one and one for all."
Copyright 2026 NPR
