Editing Charles Baudelaire (section)

==Final years==
[[File:Charles Baudelaire.jpg|thumb|left|Baudelaire by [[Nadar (photographer)|Nadar]], 1855]]
Baudelaire next worked on a translation and adaptation of [[Thomas De Quincey]]'s ''[[Confessions of an English Opium-Eater]]''.<ref>Richardson 1994, p. 311.</ref> Other works in the years that followed included ''[[Le Spleen de Paris|Petits Poèmes en prose]]'' (''Small [[prose poetry|Prose poems]]''); a series of art reviews published in the ''Pays, Exposition universelle'' (''Country, World Fair''); studies on [[Gustave Flaubert]] (in ''[[L'Artiste]]'', 18 October 1857); on [[Théophile Gautier]] (''Revue contemporaine'', September 1858); various articles contributed to Eugène Crépet's ''Poètes français''; ''[[Les Paradis artificiels]]: opium et haschisch'' (''French poets; Artificial Paradises: opium and hashish'') (1860); and ''Un Dernier Chapitre de l'histoire des oeuvres de Balzac'' (''A Final Chapter of the history of works of Balzac'') (1880), originally an article "Comment on paye ses dettes quand on a du génie" ("How one pays one's debts when one has genius"), in which his criticism turns against his friends [[Honoré de Balzac]], [[Théophile Gautier]], and [[Gérard de Nerval]].{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=537}}
[[Image:Jeanne Duval.JPG|thumb|left|[[Jeanne Duval]], painted by [[Édouard Manet]] in 1862 ([[Museum of Fine Arts (Budapest)|Budapest Museum of Fine Arts]])]]
[[File:Apollonie Sabatier by Vincent Vidal (M500901 0000130 p).jpg|thumb|upright|[[Apollonie Sabatier]], painted by [[Vincent Vidal]]]]

By 1859, his illnesses, his long-term use of [[laudanum]], his life of stress, and his poverty had taken a toll and Baudelaire had aged noticeably. But at last, his mother relented and agreed to let him live with her for a while at [[Honfleur]]. Baudelaire was productive and at peace in the seaside town, his poem ''Le Voyage'' being one example of his efforts during that time.<ref>Richardson 1994, p. 281.</ref> In 1860, he became an ardent supporter of [[Richard Wagner]].

His financial difficulties increased again, however, particularly after his publisher Poulet Malassis went bankrupt in 1861. In 1864, he left Paris for Belgium, partly in the hope of selling the rights to his works and to give lectures.<ref>Richardson 1994, p. 400.</ref> His long-standing relationship with [[Jeanne Duval]] continued on-and-off, and he helped her to the end of his life. Baudelaire's relationships with actress Marie Daubrun and with courtesan [[Apollonie Sabatier]], though the source of much inspiration, never produced any lasting satisfaction. He smoked [[opium]], and in Brussels he began to drink to excess. Baudelaire suffered a massive stroke in 1866 and paralysis followed. After more than a year of [[aphasia]], he received the [[last rites]] of the Catholic Church.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.library.vanderbilt.edu/baudelaire/englishintro.html|title=Baudelaire: Une Micro-Histoire|access-date=6 January 2011|archive-date=10 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110210144838/http://www.library.vanderbilt.edu/baudelaire/englishintro.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> The last year of his life was spent in a semi-paralyzed state in various [[Sanatorium|"maisons de santé"]] in Brussels and in Paris, where he died on 31 August 1867. His funeral was held at the Saint-Honoré d'Eylau church, with a few dozen persons in attendance. Baudelaire is buried in the [[Cimetière du Montparnasse]], Paris.

Many of Baudelaire's works were published posthumously. After his death, his mother paid off his substantial debts, and she found some comfort in Baudelaire's emerging fame. "I see that my son, for all his faults, has his place in literature." She lived another four years.