One for all and all for one!

Did you know that the valiant d'Artagnan wasn't just a product of Alexandre Dumas' imagination? Did you know also that Athos, Porthos and Aramis as well as Monsieur de Treville, the captain of the King's musketeers, also existed? I didn't, not until today when I started looking up whether one of my favorite literary heroes was considered deserving of a statue. Why not, I reasoned, after all Captain Nemo has a monument in Nantes.
Luck is on my side and I found a very interesting article about the real d'Artagnan, Charles de Batz-Castelmore, his service to the French crown and his death in a battle at the gates of Maastricht in Holland. It was the most interesting and informative article and I urge you to read it here. Wikipedia also has an interesting entry about d'Artagnan and his life. The two complement each other nicely.
Once I was done reading both articles I thought about how I started the Special Feature posts because I loved the idea of literature inspiring artists to paint and sculpt, but d'Artagnan is just one example of real people inspiring artists and writers centuries after they lived and died (did you know there's a new Three Musketeers movie awaiting release this fall?).
Now I'm off to find out more about the other three musketeers. Wish me luck!