MONS.- This exhibition tells the story of Verlaine and Belgium. Like an epic novel, it takes you on a journey through the man and his writings, drawing on a wealth of original and unique documents.

From the quarrel between Arthur Rimbaud and Paul Verlaine via the gunshot that led to the latter’s prosecution to Verlaine’s spell in Mons Prison, the exhibition seeks to repay some of the debt that other writers and literature in general owe to this great poet.

On the way, we encounter others who played a part in his story: his wife Mathilde Mauté, the judge Theodore t’Serstevens, his ‘friends’ Eugénie and Philomène, contemporary Belgian men of letters, but also the likes of Stéphane Mallarmé and Victor Hugo... And of course, in the shadows, Arthur Rimbaud, the beau Satan adolescent.

PAUL VERLAINE
Paul Verlaine was born in Metz on 30 March 1844, the only son of Elisa Dehée and Auguste Nicolas Verlaine, a former soldier.

Right from adolescence, Verlaine knew he was a writer. He admired Baudelaire and sent Victor Hugo his poem La Mort at the age of fourteen.

In 1866, at the age of twenty-two, he published his first collection, Poèmes saturniens. Recognition first came with Fêtes galantes in 1869, the year he sought the hand in marriage of Mathilde Maute, with whom he had fallen in love and to whom he dedicated La Bonne Chanson. The wedding took place on 11 August 1870, but the couple’s happiness was short-lived.

THE RIMBAUD-VERLAINE RELATIONSHIP 1871 - 1873
In september 1871, while Mathilde was pregnant with their son Georges, Verlaine invited a rebellious young poet named Arthur Rimbaud into their home. The two men began a passionate relationship that would have a profound impact on Verlaine’s personal life, but also on his work.

The exhibition presents Henri Fantin Latour’s famous painting By the Table, one of the few depictions of the two poets together.

THE BRUSSELS AFFAIR TRIAL AND JUDGEMENT - 1873
The relationship between the two men came to a head in Brussels in July 1873, when Verlaine, drunk, fired two revolver shots at Rimbaud. Although the young man did not press charges, Verlaine was nevertheless sentenced to two years in prison. His disheveled appearance and depraved morals were responsible for his fate.

Discovered by Bernard Bousmanne, the curator of the exhibition, the most famous revolver in French literature has never been seen by the public before, and will be one of the centerpieces of the exhibition.

Confiscated by the police after the poet’s arrest, the revolver was eventually returned to the gunsmith in Montigny from whom Verlaine had bought it. A century later, the business was wound up, and the weapon was given to R., a private collector living in Belgium. After ballistic analysis and historical investigation, it seems highly likely that this revolver is indeed the one that Paul Verlaine bought in Brussels on 10 July 1873, and which he fired at Rimbaud.

VERLAINE IN PRISON (1873-75)
Verlaine was imprisoned in Brussels for a few months, and then transferred to Mons in October 1873, to one of the first cellular prisons. He was released on 16 January 1875 after serving eighteen months.

"I once dwelt in the finest of castles In the fairest land of fresh water and hills: Four towers stood atop four wings, And in one of these I dwelt a long, long time." – wrote Verlaine on leaving prison

It was in Mons that Verlaine served out his prison sentence, enjoying certain privileges under the prison regime; It was in Mons that he wrote some of his finest poems; It was in Mons that he published Romances sans paroles, a collection of poetry that marked a fundamental change of direction in his work. Freed from the constraints of rhyme, he blazed the trail towards free verse; It was in Mons, too, that, listening to the murmur and noise of the city above the rooftops, he mused and wrote:

"What have you done, you standing there In floods of tears? Tell me what you have done With your young life?"

The final proofs of Mes Prisons, corrected by Verlaine, are among the unpublished documents that visitors to the exhibition will be able to see. In this account of his prison years, Verlaine tells the story of the Brussels Affair, his stay in Mons and the fervour of the religious conversion he experienced during his time in prison.

RELEASE FROM PRISON AND FAREWELL TO RIMBAUD, ACCURSED POET (1875-1891)
On his release from prison, Verlaine saw Rimbaud one last time. Although the two men no longer had anything to say to one another, Verlaine continued to champion the young poet’s reputation. It was Verlaine who was responsible for Rimbaud’s fame and the legend of the accursed poet.

“THE LETTERS”
Verlaine’s freedom with words is revealed equally in his poetry and in the many letters he wrote throughout his life – to Rimbaud, but also to his friends and family. His letters are full of improbable new coinages born of his imagination as a writer and his lyrical turn of mind, at times under the influence of absinthe. There are also amusing sketches – whether of his lover, one of his mistresses or himself – characterised by the sardonic view he took of himself.

The exhibition focuses in this section on the recognition achieved by Verlaine. He was admired by many artistic and literary movements, which were at times violently opposed to one another, but all of which laid claim to the modernity that Verlaine embodied.

In the early 1890s, the poet was invited by Belgian literary circles to give a lecture tour in Belgium. He thus returned to the country almost twenty years after his imprisonment – in poor health but enjoying unanimous recognition.

The exhibition surveys a number of major artistic figures, including Stéphane Mallarmé, Emile Verhaeren and Félicien Rops, who admired the poet and influenced his reputation, especially in Belgium.