Alexandre Dumas, the French author known for his sword- dueling epics The Man in the Iron Mask and The Three Musketeers, was no great duelist himself. On this day in 1825, the 22-year-old won his first and only sword duel when his opponent tripped over a tree root, fell backward into the snow, and surrendered. Dumas emerged unhurt, though not without a deep psychological scar: During the fight his belt buckle broke and his trousers fell down.
Ramblings of an unkempt man
