He was the son of the famous painter and
art historian Léonor, and was close friend of Stendhal.
Mérimée was also a friend to Empress Eugenia,
a monument inspector, and a senator and France academic,
and was able to enjoy prestige in the court of Napoleon
III. An expert of English and Spanish literature, he was
strongly inspired by them in his works; of which most were
theatrical. His narratives marked the shift from Romanticism
to Realism. He wrote short stories, La venus de L'ille
(1837), Colomba (1840), and Carmen (1845,
that inspired the so named play by Bizet), dramas and the
historic novel La vision du Charles IX (1829). He
went on with his activity of poet and narrator, but he dedicated
himself to historic and archeological studies as well. His
wide correspondence (published only in 1941-61) was remarkable
and one of the most important of the century; his notes
and memories offered worthy testimonies of Stendhal's life.
The Plays of Clara Gazul (1825, tr. 1825)
La Guzla (1827).
The Chronicle of the Reign of Charles IX (1829; tr.
Colomba (1852, tr. 1853)
Carmen (in Revue des Deux Mondes, 1845; as a book,
1846, tr. 1881
La Vénus dIlle (1837)
Letters to an Unknown (in Revue des Deux Mondes,