I've had 'Robert le Diable' in the garden for years and like it. First of all, the Centifolia classification is off, in my opinion. I take RlD for a Gallica hybrid of some sort. In my garden it's a low-growing, suckering, thin-caned (Gallica habit), thorny plant, fairly late-flowering, though that may be partly because it's in shade, and very tough. The flowers are good, and unique: very finely striated dark pink-mauve-purple with bruised-looking brownish shadings, unlike any other variety. Fragrant. Not susceptible to disease in my climate. No rebloom. I can grow regular Gallicas, and don't know whether this rose requires as much winter chill as they do, or not.

Melissa & rbehs, I definitely read too many old rose references... which is why I knew that there are two roses named 'Robert le Diable' in commerce- one classed as a centifolia/Gallica, and the other as a Gallica.

I haven't looked through the photos, but if tradition holds, at least some photos will be with the wrong record.

Virginia

I'd love to see a photo of this rose. Plot of opera sounds fantastic -- Romanticism to the nth degree -- a ruined convent with ghostly nuns gone bad dancing around, a spell, a magic branch. Sicily. It was a smash hit, apparently:
http://www.musicwithease.com/robert-le-diable-synopsis.html

I am getting more and more intrigued by this rose/roses, although I probably couldn't grow it successfully. Thanks for all the additional info--I may need check out the opera, also.

I really hope to find a specimen of this hard to find rose for my garden. It is beautiful!

David Austin roses. Peter Beale roses Cell roses of Belgium and Frazer Valley rose farm Canada all sell Robert le Diabla rose bare root in season

I noticed yesterday that Friends of Vintage Roses has Robert le Diable on their sale list (just one available I believe), if you are able to make your way to Sebastopol, California to pick it up.