The Black TulipA prize of 100,000 guilders awaits the gardener who can produce a black tulip, a rich reward that incites a bitter competition in 17th-century Holland. Cornelius von Baerle, a gifted and passionate florist, has dedicated himself to cultivating the elusive flower. But a ruthless rival, capitalizing on accusations that led to the assassination of Cornelius's godfather, falsely accuses the young horticulturist of treason. Sentenced to life imprisonment, Cornelius conspires with his jailer's daughter to grow the black tulip in secret. Alexandre Dumas sets his captivating tale in the 1670s, a generation after Holland was gripped by the economic madness of Tulip mania and shortly after the mob lynching of a pair of Dutch statesmen. His fictional treatment of these historic events forms a timeless political allegory in which the rare flower represents the triumph of justice, tolerance, and true love over greed, jealousy, and obsession. |
Contents
| 3 | |
| 17 | |
The pupil of John de Witt | 30 |
The murderers | 44 |
The amateur tulipgrower and his neighbour | 58 |
A tulipfanciers hatred | 71 |
The happy man becomes acquainted with misfortune | 82 |
An incursion | 98 |
Rosas lover | 193 |
A woman and a flower | 202 |
What had happened during the eight days | 212 |
The second bulb | 225 |
The opening of the flower | 236 |
The jealous man | 245 |
In which the black tulip changes its master | 255 |
President Van Systens | 262 |
The family cell | 111 |
The jailers daughter 1 16 | 117 |
The will of Cornelius van Baerle | 123 |
The execution | 140 |
The thoughts of one of the spectators during the last scene | 146 |
The pigeons of Dort | 153 |
The wicket in the cell door | 161 |
Master and scholar | 170 |
The first bulb | 181 |
A member of the Horticultural Society | 272 |
The third bulb | 284 |
The song of the flowers | 295 |
In which Van Baerle before quitting Loevestein settles his accounts with Gryphus | 306 |
In which one begins to suspect what kind of punishment was reserved for Cornelius van Baerle | 316 |
Haarlem | 322 |
A last prayer | 332 |
Conclusion | 339 |
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Common terms and phrases
asked Cornelius Baerle's Baerlensis beautiful black tulip brother Buitenhof burghers carriage cell Cornelius de Witt Cornelius van Baerle Cornelius's Craeke cried Cornelius cried Rosa daughter dear Rosa death door drying-room escape executioner eyes father flower flower-bed followed Frisian garden give godfather godson Grand Pensionary grating Gryphus Haarlem Hague hand heard heart heaven honour Horticultural Horticultural Society hour hundred thousand florins Isaac Boxtel Jacob jailer John de Witt Loevestein look Lord Louvois master mind mould murmured Mynheer nelius night officer Orangeists packet pale paper phus pigeons poor Prince Prince of Orange prisoner recognised replied Rosa Rosa's Ruart servant shouted shut smile Stadtholder staircase stolen Systens tell thing third bulb thought three bulbs took town trembling tulip-fancier tulip-grower turned van Systems voice William of Orange window young girl