1801:
Mario de Monteleone (a descendent of Andrea Vitelli, aka Bel Demonio) marries Maria d'Amalfi. Birth of their first son Fulvio Coriolani. (Paul Féval- Les Compagnons du Silence)

The Convent of the Brothers of Mercy in Sartene in Corsica is already the heardquarters of the Veste Nere led by one Michele Pozza or Michele Bozzo, a.k.a. Fra Diavolo (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs).
Some historians believe that Mario, Bozzo, Fra Diavolo, etc. are just aliases of the same man, the future Colonel, leader of the Black Coats. SEE ARTICLE

1803:
Conspiracy of the Seven Members of the High Council of the Veste Nere against Fra Diavolo at the Convent of the Mercy. They are all executed. (Note: The Colonel is now identified as Fra Diavolo.) (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs).

1805:
The vampire Countess Addhema preys on Parisian nobility. (Paul Féval - Les Drames de la Mort)

In Naples, birth of Julian de Monteleone, second son of Mario de Monteleone. (Paul Féval - Les Compagnons du Silence).

In Sartene, Birth of Giovanna Maria Reni, related to the Bozzo and the Corona of Bastia. She later becomes Julie Maynotte, and then Julie Schwartz. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs).

Brigadier Gérard fights for Napoleon. (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - Brigadier Gerard)

1806:
Michele Pozza or Bozzo, a.k.a. Fra Daviolo, is reportedly hung in Naples by Victor Hugo's father, General Hugo. (Paul Féval - Les Compagnons du Silence) SEE ARTICLE

1807:
Birth of Celeste de Monteleone, daughter and third child of Mario de Monteleone. (Paul Féval - Les Compagnons du Silence)

1808:
birth of Remy d'Arx. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs)

In Naples, Mario de Monteleone and his Iron Knights fights against Napoleon and join forces with Ferdinand of Bourbon. (Paul Féval - Les Compagnons du Silence) SEE ARTICLE

1809:
The Man in Grey is active in France. (Baroness Orczy - The Man in Grey)

1812:
During Napoleon's Russian Campaign, young Captain de Filippone murders Armand de Kergaz. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 1)

Birth of Roland Fitz-Roy, Duke of Clare (a.k.a. Coeur d'Acier). Alsp birth of Marguerite-Aimée Sadoulas, who later becomes the Countess of Clare and a member of the High Council of the Black Coats. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs)

The superhumanly brilliant Louis Lambert seeks access to higher dimensions. (Balzac - Louis Lambert)

1814:
The spirit of her dead uncle returns to save Usule Mirouet. (Balzac - Ursule Mirouet)

1815: Edmond Dantes is arrested in Marseilles. (Alexandre Dumas - Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) Jean Valjean is freed from the Toulon Penitentiary. (Victor Hugo - Les Misérables) Italian nobleman Fabrice Del Dongo joins Napoleon in Waterloo. (Stendahl - La Chartreuse de Parme) In London in August, Helen Brown and her son, Tom Brown, are arrested in a salon in Oxford Street, taken to Newgate, then deported to New South Wales. (Paul Féval- Jean Diable) In Italy, Ferdinand of Bourbon takes over the Kingdom of Naples. Manuele Giudicelli takes Julian and Celeste de Monteleone back to Sicily, and leaves them at the Convent of Caltagirone. In October, Mario de Monteleone returns triumphant to Sicily. Meanwhile, Joachim Murat tries to take over the Kingdom of Naples from Ferdinand, but is defeated. He finds refuge with Mario. Ferdinand has both men arrested and executed at the Castle of Pizzo on 15 November -- allegedly executed in Mario's case. (Paul Féval - Les Compagnons du Silence) SEE ARTICLE

1816:
Probable birth of Andrea de Filippone, later known as the arch-criminal Sir Williams. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 1)

1817:
Tom Brown, posing as Henri de Belcamp, escapes from New south Wales, and later meets Napoleon in Longwood, then returns to England and begins his career as John Devil. Gregory Temple of Scotland Yard, the world's fiurst detective, breaks the case. (Paul Féval- Jean Diable)

Fergus O'Breane also meets separately with Napoleon in Saint-Helens. (Paul Féval - Les Mystères de Londres).

1818:
Now calling himself Colonel Bozzo, Monteleone moves his crimal activies to France. Under his leadership, the Veste Nere eventually spawns several criminal organizations in Germany, Italy and England. They become known as the Habits Noirs, the Rosenkrentz, and the Black Coats. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs) SEE ARTICLE

1819:
At the family pension run by Mme Vaucquier, Vautrin uses the ambitions of a young man named Rastignac to enrich himself. (Balzac - Le Père Goriot)

1820:
Birth of Fanchette, the Colonel's grand-daughter. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs).

1823: Ruined nobleman Arnaud de Luizzi meets the Devil and embarks on a series of adventures. (Frederic Soulié - Les Mémoires du Diable) Probable birth of Rocambole. Mario de Monteleone's eldest son, aka Bel Demonio and Prince Coriolani, takes over the Companions of Silence, defying the traps laid for him by Johann Spurzheim, but eventually dies in the flames of Vesuvius. (Paul Féval - Les Compagnons du Silence)

1825:
First recorded case involving the Habits Noirs, led by Colonel Bozzo. The Colonel's right-hand man is named Lecoq (also known in the underworld as Toulonnais l'Amitie). The gang frames Andre Maynotte. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 1) SEE ARTICLE

1826: Exposed after Lucien de Ribempré's arrest, Vautrin blackmails his way into being named assistant to the Head of the Surete. (Balzac - Splendeur et Misères des Courtisanes) 1827: Marguerite Sadoulas, then 15, begins her career of crime. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 2).

1827: The Head of the Surete, "Monsieur Jackal", fights the mysterious Salvator (aka Lord Richmond and Commissioner No.52), the leader of a revolutionary conspiracy known as the Mohicans of Paris. (Alexandre Dumas - Les Mohicans de Paris) Gabriel Corday, a dwarf who goes by the name of Nandou, a brilliant actor and magician, and Jeanne Sorel, fight for justice. (Kay Nolte Smith - A Tale of the Wind)

1828:
Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket travels to the South Pole. (Edgar Allan Poe - The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym) SEE ARTICLE

1829:
Edmond Dantes escapes from the Chateau d'If. (Alexandre Dumas - Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) SEE ARTICLE

Probable births of Monsieur Lecoq, the son of the member of the High Council of the Black Coats, and of Erik.

1830:
The story of Julien Sorel. (Stendhal - Le Rouge et le Noir)

End of the adventures of nobleman Arnaud de Luizzi with the Devil. (Frederic Soulié - Les Mémoires du Diable)

Fergus O'Breane poses as the Marquis of Rio Santo and takes over London's Gentlemen of the Night (until 1835). (Paul Féval - Les Mystères de Londres) SEE ARTICLE

1832:
The adventures of the charming yet utterly evil Chevalier Draxel. (Etienne-Leon de Lamothe-Langon - Le Diable)

Beginning of the "Heart of Steel" saga of the Black Coats. Marguerite Sadoulas, posing as the Countess of Clare, becomes one of the leaders of the Habits Noirs. Her adversary is the mysterious Monsieur Coeur, aka "Heart of Steel", the real Count of Clare. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 2 - Coeur d'Acier) SEE ARTICLE

1832: Paris riots which see the death of Javert, and Gavroche, grand finale of Jean Valjean, the wedding of Cosette and Marius Pontmercy, and the end of Les Miserables. (Victor Hugo - Les Misérables) 1833: The bloody saga of Madame Putiphar. (Petrus Borel - Madame Putiphar) 1834: The "Jerusalem Street" saga of the Black Coats. The gang tries to steal the fortune of Mathurine Goret and manipulates a Louis XVII pretender. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 3 - La Rue de Jerusalem)

1835:
Beginning of the "Companions of the Treasure" saga of the Black Coats. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 6 - Les Compagnons du Trésor) SEE ARTICLE

1838: Prince Rodolphe, Duke of Gerolstein, fights the criminals of the Paris underworld, especially the Maître d'École (Schoolmaster), the Chourineur (Stabber), and La Chouette (The Owl) to save a beautiful young girl known only as Fleur-de-Marie. (Eugene Sue - Les Mysteres de Paris) Fifth saga of the Black Coats: The Invisible Weapon. Young magistrate Remy d'Arx challenges the power of the Black Coats. Colonel Bozzo's weapon to defeat d'Arx is Fleurette, a young woman raised by Leocadie Samayoux, aka Maman Leo, the hulkish leader of a circus of crime. Maman Leo eventually turns against the Black Coats, and Fleurette is revealed to be Remy's long-lost sister. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 5 - L'Arme Invisible)

1838: A mysterious man calling himself Simbad the Sailor, Lord Wilmore, Abbot Busoni and Count of Monte-Cristo appears in various places in France, Italy and the Mediterranean region. (Alexandre Dumas - Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) SEE ARTICLE 1839: Alleged Discovery of the Sphinx of the Ice at the South Pole. (Jules Verne - Le Sphinx des Glaces) SEE ARTICLE

1840:
Birth of Saladin. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 7 - La Bande Cadet)

1841:
C. Auguste Dupin (aka Lupin)'s first recorded case, The Murders in the Rue Morgue. (Poe - The Murders in the Rue Morgue)

1842:
André Maynotte returns to gain revenge on the Habits Noirs and exposes Lecoq, now posing as a nobleman. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 1) SEE ARTICLE

End of the the "Companions of the Treasure" saga of the Black Coats. Colonel Bozzo is seemingly murdered by his grand-son, Julian aka Chevalier Mora. Various leaders of the Black Coats compete to gain the succession -- and treasure -- of Colonel Bozzo. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 6) SEE ARTICLE

Beginning of the "Cadet Gang" saga of the Black Coats. Cadet l'Amour, leader of the Cadet gang, challenges Marguerite Sadouras, and tries to gain conotrol of the Black Coats. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 7 - La Bande Cadet)

1843:
The exploits of Felina de Cambure, the She-Tigress of Paris, fashion designer by day, gang leader by night. (Frédéric Soulié (?) - La Tigresse de Paris)

End of the the "Heart of Steel" saga of the Black Coats. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 2 - Coeur d'Acier)

1844: Sir Williams and his pupil, the young Rocambole fight Armand de Kergaz for his inheritance. They clash with the reformed courtesan and adventuress, Baccarat. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 1 - L'Héritage Mystérieux) The Count of Monte-Cristo makes his appearance in Paris. (Alexandre Dumas - Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) SEE ARTICLE

1845:
More C. Auguste Dupin/Lupin investigations. (Poe - The Mystery of Marie Roget - The Purloined Letter)

1846:
After having destroyed Danglars, Villefort and Fernand (aka Count of Morcerf), the Count of Monte-Cristo disappears. (Alexandre Dumas - Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) SEE ARTICLE

1848:
Erik embarks on his travels to the Orient. (Gaston Leroux - Le Fantôme de l'Opéra)

1849:
Birth of Lecoq's son, Louis Lecoq de Gentilly. Birth of Mademoiselle Saphir.

1850: Sir Williams and Rocambole lead the evil crime society known as "Club of the Jack of Hearts". They are defeated by Armand de Kergaz and Baccarat; Sir Williams is mutilated; Rocambole exiled to England. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 2 - Le Club des Valets de Coeur) Probable births of Théophraste Lupin, Jean Ballmeyer / Roussel, and Victor "Toto" Chupin.

1852:
Beginning of the fourth saga of the Black Coats: The Sword Swallower. A rival crime lord, Saladin, kidnaps Saphir and enrtrusts her to Maman Léo. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 4 - L'Avaleur de Sabres)

1853: End of the "Cadet Gang" saga of the Black Coats. Chevalier Mora posing as the Colonel destroys Cadetr's gang. (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 7 - La Bande Cadet) 1854: Rocambole returns to Paris as the Marquis de Chamery but is again defeated by Baccarat. He kills Sir Williams and ends up in the Toulon Penitentiary. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 3 - Les Exploits de Rocambole)

1856: Emma Bovary falls in love with Leon Dupuis. (Flaubert - Madame Bovary) The otherworldly entity known as the Horla manifests itself. (Maupassant - Le Horla) Probable birth of Armand Lavarede. 1859: Rocambole aka Convict No. 117, escapes from the Toulon Penitentiary. He leads the Companions of the Moon (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 4 - Les Compagnons du Clair de Lune) (Later deleted from continuity). He repents and becomes a fighter for the cause of good; He and Baccarat team up to defeat the evil Vasilika. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 5 - La Resurrection de Rocambole) First case of Monsieur Lecoq. (Emile Gaboriau - Monsieur Lecoq) 1860: The adventures of Cigarette, a former child heroine from the 1848 riots. (Ouida - Under Two Flags)

More evidence of secret research into Lunarium technology. (Alexandre Dumas - Voyage à la Lune) SEE ARTICLE

1861:
Police Inspector Paul Picard meets the villainous Ric Lazare, aka Zoltan Lajos, a man impersonating Cagliostro. (William Kotzwinkle - Fata Morgana)

1862:
Rocambole travels to India. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 6 - Le Dernier Mot de Rocambole)

In Paris, Père Tabaret and Monsieur Lecoq investigate the Lerouge Case. (Emile Gaboriau - L'Affaire Lerouge)

1863:
First balloon journey across Africa. (Jules Verne - Cinq Semaines en Ballon)

1864:
Adventures of Captain Hatteras. (Jules Verne - Les Aventures du Capitaine Hatteras)

Prof. Lidenbrock travels to the "Center" of the Earth. (Jules Verne - Voyage au Centre de la Terre) Rocambole returns to Europe. He tells his life story to Ponson du Terrail. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 7 - La Vérité sur Rocambole) In Paris, Monsieur Lecoq investigates the Crime of Orcival. (Emile Gaboriau - Le Crime d'Orcival)

1865: In America, the Gun-Club fires a projectile towards the Moon. On board is intrepid French man Michel Ardan and Gun-Club president Barbicane. (Jules Verne - De la Terre à la Lune - Autour de la Lune) SEE ARTICLE The mysterious leader of the Paris underworld known as the Roi Mystere (King Mystery), helped by the wealthy dwarf Mac Callan, opposes evil Imperial procurer Sinnimari. (Gaston Leroux - Le Roi Mystere)

A young geologist discovers a Lost World and an entrance to the Earth's Core near the North Pole. (George Sand - Laura)

1866: End of the fourth saga of the Black Coats: The Sword Swallower. Saladin now takes over the remains of the Black Coats, dubbed the "Black Silk Hats". (Paul Féval - Les Habits Noirs 4 - L'Avaleur de Sabres) SEE ARTICLE Prof. Arronax embarks upon the Nautilus and meets Captain Nemo. (Jules Verne - 20.000 Lieues sous les Mers) SEE ARTICLE In London, Rocambole terrorizes the Underworld as the new "Man in Grey". (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 8 - Les Misères de Londres) In Paris, Monsieur Lecoq investigates File 113. (Emile Gaboriau - Le Dossier 113)

1867: Monsieur Lecoq investigates a blackmail ring. (Emile Gaboriau - Les Esclaves de Paris) Transylvanian plotter Mathias Sandorf is imprisoned, then escapes but swears revenge on those who betraued him. (Jules Verne - Mathias Sandorf) SEE ARTICLE Probable birth of Juve.

1868:
The Nautilus allegedly sinks in the Maelstrom. (Jules Verne - 20.000 Lieues sous les Mers) SEE ARTICLE

Rocambole is back in France. His last saga is interrupted by his biographer's death the following year. (Ponson du Terrail - Rocambole 9 - Les Démolitions de Paris)

1870: The Paris Commune, during which Erik builds his secret residence in the Paris Opera. (Gaston Leroux - Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) SEE ARTICLE Beginning of the Rougon-Macquart saga. (Emile Zola - La Fortune des Rougon) Probable birth of Fantômas.

1872: Phileas Fogg travels around the World in 80 Days. (Jules Verne - Le Tour du Monde en 80 Jours) The Rougon Family enter the world of finance. (Emile Zola - La Curée) 1873: The Rougon Family in the Halles (Emile Zola - Le Ventre de Paris) 1874: Birth of Arsene Lupin. Soon afterwards, his father, Theophraste Lupin, emigrates to the United States. (Maurice Leblanc - Arsene Lupin)

1875: The events of the Mysterious Island and the "fake" disappearance of Nemo. (Jules Verne - L'Ile Mysterieuse) SEE ARTICLE Gouroull, the Frankenstein Creature returns. He first resurfaces in Ireland. (Jean-Claude Carriere - La Tour de Frankenstein) Michel Strogoff delivers a secret message from Moscow to Irkutsk. (Jules Verne - Michel Strogoff) The Rougon Family and the Church. (Emile Zola - La Faute de l'Abbé Mouret)

1876: The Rougon Family enters politics. (Emile Zola - Son Excellence Eugene Rougon) 1877: Hector Servadac embarks upon an interplanetary journey through the solar system on a piece of Earth stolen by a comet.. (Jules Verne - Hector Servadac) The underground industrial civilization of the "Black Indies" is established. (Jules Verne - Les Indes Noires) Gervaise Macquart meets Coupeau. Alcoholism drives the couple to ruin and, eventually, death. (Emile Zola - L'Assommoir) 1879: The Affair of the 500 Millions of the Begum in which two rival futuristic cities are built. (Jules Verne - Les 500 Millions de la Begum) 1880: Second adventure of the Frankenstein Monster. The Monster reappears in Scotland. (Jean-Claude Carrière - Le Pas de Frankenstein) The story of Nana the courtesan. (Emile Zola - Nana) 1881: The events of Phantom of the Opera. (Gaston Leroux - Phantom of the Opera). 1882: Mathias Sandorf returns as the mysterious Dr. Antekirtt, master hypnotist and lord of the secret island Antekirtta. (Jules Verne - Mathias Sandorf) SEE ARTICLE 1883: The Rougon Family in the Department Store business. (Emile Zola - Au Bonheur des Dames) 1884: Birth of Rouletabille. 1885: Gervaise's son, Etienne, takes part in a miners' strike in the North of France. (Emile Zola - Germinal) Death of Gabriel Corday, aka Naudou. (Kay Nolte Smith - A Tale of the Wind) 1886: Robur the Conqueror demonstrates the superiority of his electric-powered flying machine, the Albatross. (Jules Verne - Robur le Conquerant) SEE ARTICLE 1887: Birth of Maigret. The Selene Company travel to the Moon. (André Laurie - Les Exilés de la Terre) SEE ARTICLE

1888:
Mad scientist Mr. Synthesis seeks to control the evolution of Man and then modify the orbit of the Earth. (Louis Boussenard - Les Secrets de Monsieur Synthèse)

1889:
The Gun-Club also studies a crazy scheme to move the Earth off its axis. (Jules Verne - Sans Dessus Dessous)

1890:
Exploration of the Solar System. (Georges Le Faure & Henry de Graffigny - Les Aventures Extraordinaires d'un Savant Russe) SEE ARTICLE

Probable birth of Harry Dickson.

1891:
Armand Lavarede travels around the world with five centimes in his pocket. (Paul d'Ivoi - Les Cinq Sous de Lavarede)

1892:
The affair of the Castle in the Carpathians, in which the scientist Orfanik uses technology to preserve the image and sound of his master's dead lover. (Jules Verne - Le Château des Carpathes)

Approximate birth of The Nyctalope

1894:
At age 20, Arsene Lupin faces the Countess of Cagliostro - his first great adventure. (Maurice Leblanc - La Comtesse de Cagliostro)

1895: Third reappearance of the Frankenstein Monster, in the Swiss Alps. (Jean-Claude Carrière - La Nuit de Frankenstein) 1896: Inventor Thomas Roch designs the world's first rocket-powered missile intended to be launched from a submarine. (Jules Vene - Face au Drapeau)

An entire region of France sees the physical laws of nature change, as a result of the arrival of a mysterious electro-magnetic entity from outer space. (J. H. Rosny Aîné - Le Cataclysme)

1897:
Jean Fanfare appears. (Paul d'Ivoi - Jean Fanfare)

1898:

The Corsair Triplex rules the Seas. (Paul d'Ivoi - Le Corsaire Triplex)

The sinister spymaster Mr. Sabin operates in France. (E. Phillips Oppenheim - The Mysterious Mister Sabin)

1899:
Dr. Caresco, one of the first mad surgeons. (André Couvreur - Le Mal Nécessaire)

The adventures of investigator and master-chef M. Auguste Didier. (Amy Myers)