Editing Gaetano Donizetti (section)

===1845–1848: return to Paris; declining health; return to Bergamo; death===
[[File:Donizetti-Andrea-nephew of composer.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Andrea Donizetti, nephew of composer Gaetano Donizetti, 1847]]
By the time he reached Paris, Donizetti had been suffering from malaises, headaches, and nausea for decades, but had never been formally treated. In early August, he initiated a lawsuit against the Opéra which dragged on until April 1846 and in which he prevailed.

The culmination of the crisis in Donizetti's health came in August 1845 when he was diagnosed with cerebro-spinal syphilis and severe mental illness. Two doctors, including Dr. [[Philippe Ricord]] (a specialist in syphilis), recommended that, along with various remedies, he abandon work altogether and both agreed that the Italian climate would be better for his health. But letters to friends reveal two things: that he continued to work on ''[[Gemma di Vergy]]'' that autumn for its performance in Paris on 16 December, and that he revealed a lot about the progression of his illness.<ref name=WEINX>{{harvnb|Weinstock|1963|loc=Ch. X: August 1845 – September 1846, pp. 233–255}}</ref>

As his condition worsened, the composer's brother Giuseppe dispatched his son Andrea to Paris from Constantinople. Arriving there on 25 December, Andrea lodged at the Hôtel Manchester with his uncle, but immediately consulted Dr. Ricord on his uncle's condition. Ricord recorded his opinion in mid-January that, while it ultimately might be better for the composer's health for him to be in Italy, it was not advisable for him to travel until the spring. Consulting two additional doctors as well as Dr. Ricord, Andrea received their written opinion after an examination on 28 January 1846. In summary, it stated that the doctors "believe that M. Donizetti no longer is capable of calculating sanely the significance of his decisions".<ref>Drs. Calmeil, Mitivié, and Ricord to Andrea Donizetti, 28 January 1846, in {{harvnb|Weinstock|1963|p=246}}</ref>

====Institutionalization====
In February 1846, reluctant to consider going further towards institutionalization, he relied on the further advice of two of the doctors who had examined his uncle in late January. They stated:

{{quote|We....certify that M. Gaetan (''sic'') Donizetti is the victim of a mental disease that brings disorder into his actions and his decisions; that it is to be desired in the interest of his preservation and his treatment that he be isolated in an establishment devoted to cerebral and intellectual maladies.<ref>Drs. Calmeil and Ricord to Andrea Donizetti, 31 January 1846, in {{harvnb|Weinstock|1963|p=247}}</ref>}}

[[File:Philippe Ricord by Etienne Carjat.jpg|thumb|upright|Dr. Philippe Ricord]]

Therefore, Andrea agreed to allow his uncle to be taken to a facility which has been described as "resemb[ling] that of a health spa.... with a central hospital more-or-less in the guise of a country house"<ref name=WEA>{{harvnb|Weatherson|2013|pp=12–17}}</ref> and Donizetti left Paris by coach with Andrea, believing that they were travelling to Vienna, where he was due by 12 February to fulfill his contract. Following behind in another coach was Dr. Ricord. After three hours they arrived at the Maison Esquirol in Ivry-sur-Seine, a suburb of Paris,{{sfn|Weatherson|2013|pp=12–14}} where an explanation involving an accident was concocted to explain the need to spend the night at a "comfortable inn".<ref name=WEA/> Within a few days—realizing that he was being confined—Donizetti wrote urgent letters seeking help from friends, but they were never delivered. However, evidence provided from friends who visited Donizetti over the following months, states that he was being treated very well, the facility having a reputation for the care given to its patients.<ref name=WEA/> Various aggressive treatments were tried, and were described as having their "successes, however fleeting".<ref name=WEA/>

By the end of May, Andrea had decided that his uncle would be better off in the Italian climate, and three outside physicians were called in for their opinions. Their report concluded with the advice that he leave for Italy without delay.<ref>Report of 12 June 1846, in {{harvnb|Weinstock|1963|p=246}}</ref> But, as Andrea began to make plans for his uncle's journey to and upkeep in Bergamo, he was forced by the Paris Prefect of Police to have his uncle undergo another examination by other physicians appointed by the Prefect. Their conclusion was the opposite of that of the previous doctors: "we are of the opinion that the trip should be forbidden formally as offering very real dangers and being far from allowing hope of any useful result."<ref>Report of three doctors, 10 July 1846, in {{harvnb|Weinstock|1963|p=243}}</ref> With that, the Prefect informed Andrea that Donizetti could not be moved from Ivry. Andrea saw little use in remaining in Paris. He sought a final opinion from the three doctors practicing at the clinic, and on 30 August, they provided a lengthy report outlining step-by-step the complete physical condition of their declining patient, concluding that the rigours of travel—the jolting of the carriage, for example—could bring on new symptoms or complications impossible to treat on such a journey.<ref>Report from Drs. Calmeil, Ricord, and Moreau to Andrea Donizetti, 30 August 1846, in {{harvnb|Weinstock|1963|pp=254–255}}</ref> Andrea left for Bergamo on 7 (or 8) September 1846, taking with him a partial score of ''[[Le duc d'Albe]]'', the completed score of ''[[Rita (opera)|Rita]]'', and a variety of personal effects, including jewelry.<ref>{{harvnb|Weinstock|1963}} and {{harvnb|Ashbrook|1982}} provide different departure days.</ref>

====Attempts to move Donizetti back to Paris====
[[File:Eduard Lannoy.jpg|thumb|upright|Baron Eduard von Lannoy, Lithography by Josef Kriehuber, 1837]]
[[File:Donizetti Foto.jpg|thumb|275px|[[Daguerreotype]] taken on 3 August 1847: Donizetti with his nephew Andrea in Paris]]

In late December, early January 1847, visits from a friend from Vienna who lived in Paris—Baron Eduard von Lannoy—resulted in a letter from Lannoy to Giuseppe Donizetti in Constantinople outlining what he saw as a better solution: rather than have friends travel the five hours to see his brother, Lannoy recommended that Gaetano be moved to Paris where he could be taken care of by the same doctors. Giuseppe agreed and sent Andrea back to Paris, which he reached on 23 April. Visiting his uncle the following day, he found himself recognized. He was able to go on to convince the Paris Prefect, by threats of family action and general public concern, that the composer should be moved to an apartment in Paris. This took place on 23 June and, while there, he was able to take rides in his carriage and appeared to be much more aware of his surroundings. However, he was held under virtual house arrest by the police for several more months, although able to be visited by friends and even by Verdi while he was in Paris. Finally—on 16 August—in Constantinople, Giuseppe filed a formal complaint with the Austrian ambassador (given that the composer was an Austrian citizen).

In Paris, the police insisted on a further medical examination. Six doctors were called in and, of the six, only four approved of the travel. Then the police sent in their own doctor (who opposed the move), posted gendarmes outside the apartment, and forbade the daily carriage rides. Now desperate, Andrea then consulted three lawyers and sent detailed reports to his father in Constantinople. Finally, action taken by Count Sturmer of the Austrian Embassy in Turkey caused action to be taken from Vienna which, via the Embassy in Paris, sent a formal complaint to the French government. Within a few days, Donizetti was given permission to leave and he set out from Paris on what was to be a seventeen-day trip to Bergamo.<ref name=WEINXI>{{harvnb|Weinstock|1963|loc=Ch. XI: September 1846 – April 1848, pp. 256–271}}</ref>

====Final journey to Bergamo====
{{More citations needed|section|date=March 2019}}
[[File:Tomb Donizetti.jpg|thumb|upright|Donizetti's tomb in Bergamo]]

Arrangements had been made well ahead of time as to where Donizetti would live when he arrived in Bergamo. In fact, on his second visit to Paris, when it appeared that his uncle would return to Italy, Andrea had an agreement from the noble [[Scotti family]] for his uncle to be able to stay in their palace. The accompanying party of four consisted of Andrea, the composer's younger brother Francesco who had come specially from Bergamo for this purpose, Dr. Rendu, and nurse-custodian Antoine Pourcelot. They traveled by train to [[Amiens]], then on to [[Brussels]], after which they traveled in two coaches (one of which was Donizetti's, sent ahead to await the party). They crossed Belgium and Germany to Switzerland, crossing the Alps via the [[Gotthard Pass|St Gotthard Pass]], and came down into Italy arriving in Bergamo on the evening of 6 October, where they were welcomed by friends as well as the mayor.
[[File:Gaetano Donizetti (portrait by Giuseppe Rillosi).jpg|thumb|left|Portrait of Gaetano Donizetti by Giuseppe Rillosi, 1848]]

Based on the report of the accompanying doctor, Donizetti did not appear to have suffered from the journey. He was settled comfortably in a large chair, speaking very rarely or only in occasional monosyllables, and mostly remaining detached from everyone around him. However, when Giovannina Basoni (who eventually became Baroness Scotti) played and sang arias from the composer's operas, he did appear to pay some attention. On the other hand, when the tenor Rubini visited and, together with Giovannina, sang music from ''Lucia di Lammermoor'', Antonio Vasselli reported that there was no sign of recognition at all.<ref name=WEINXI/> This condition continued well into 1848, more or less unchanged until a serious bout of apoplexy occurred on 1 April followed by further decline and the inability to take in food. Finally, after the intense night of 7 April, Gaetano Donizetti died on the afternoon of 8 April.

Initially Donizetti was buried in the cemetery of [[Valtesse]] but in 1875 his body was transferred to Bergamo's [[Santa Maria Maggiore, Bergamo|Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore]] near the grave of his teacher Simon Mayr.