Musketeer d'Artagnan's remains believed found under Dutch church
6 hours ago
- #D'Artagnan
- #History
- #Archaeology
- Remains believed to be those of the legendary French musketeer d'Artagnan have been found under a Dutch church.
- The skeleton was discovered under St Peter and Paul Church in Maastricht by deacon Jos Valke, who is 99% certain it belongs to d'Artagnan.
- D'Artagnan, a close aide to Louis XIV, was killed during the Siege of Maastricht in 1673 and later immortalized in Alexandre Dumas' stories.
- Evidence supporting the identification includes burial on sacred ground, a bullet found in the grave, and a 1660 coin from the bishop who attended Mass for Louis XIV.
- An archaeologist involved in the excavation is awaiting DNA confirmation but acknowledges the high likelihood of the skeleton being d'Artagnan.
- D'Artagnan is believed to have been hit by a musket ball in the throat during the siege and was buried locally due to mid-summer conditions.