Duc de Richleau

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Toohey
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Duc de Richleau

Post by Toohey »

Would anyone be able to help me with the age of the noble Duc?
The fist book he appears in, The Prisoner in the Mask, is set in 1894 and in this book my guess he is in his early 20's. Though by the last book Dangerous Inheritance, set in 1960, he must be knocking on for 90! But, a few years ago, Christopher said he would love to play the Duc in a possible remake of The Devil Rides out (set in 1935) but by Lee was in his early 80's when he said this. So by that reckoning the Duc would have been at least 100 by the time of the last novel.
Jim
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Post by Jim »

We've been through this one before, and it's a common problem in long-running series. Don't forget Hercule Poirot is already RETIRED from the Belgian police when we first meet him, yet he goes on solving crimes for another 35 years!

Let's give Armand deRichlieu the benefit of the doubt, and make him a mature 19 at his first appearance--quite possible in the 19th Century, and it gives him the convenient birth year of 1875. Then he'd be (only) 85 when he dies at the end of DANGEROUS INHERITANCE. Unfortunately, it also makes him 60 at the time of TDRO, and he's pretty active in the WW II stories for a man of his age.

I guess we just have to allow Mr Wheatley some artistic license...
Hoyo de Monterrey
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Post by Hoyo de Monterrey »

I have worked out to my own satisfaction, from various clues in the books, that the Duke was born in 1875. This fits in quite neatly (and don't forget he's a sprightly old chap - all those physical and spiritual exercises).

Unfortunately authors don't always worry about such details until it's too late - when people started dissecting the Sherlock Holmes stories they had enormous problems with multiple Mrs Watsons, for example!
"Here's to crime"
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