Émile Erckmann, Phalsbourg, 1822--Lunéville, 1899. Alexandre Chatrian,
Soldatenthal, 1826--Villemombles, 1890
Most of the literary work of these two men was done jointly, hence their
hyphenated signature. Erckmann did most of the writing, Chatrian most of
the editing and adapting for the stage. Their work consisted of short
stories, novels and plays, particularly with scenes laid along the
Franco-German (Alsatian) frontier, where they were both born. Their
stories usually deal with incidents of the French Revolution, the Empire
of Napoleon l and the Franco-Prussian War; they attacked war, and their
stories are generally of a fantastic or idyllic type.
Important works: _Madame Thérèse_ (1863), _Histoire d'un Conscrit de
1813_ (1864), _L'Ami Fritz_ (1864, their best known novel), _Le Juif
Polonais_ (1869, their best known play, known in English as _The
Bells_), _Les Rantzau_ (1882, a play), and several collections of
_Contes_. The _Montre du Doyen_ is from the _Contes Fantastiques_
(1860).
Edition: Most of their work has been published by Hetzel.