Editing Paul Verlaine (section)

===Final years===
[[File:Erected_in_1911_is_a_bust_monument_to_Verlaine,_sculpted_by_Auguste_Rodo,_in_the_Luxembourg_Gardens.jpg|thumb|right|Monument to Paul Verlaine, sculpted by [[Rodo]] in 1911, in the Luxembourg Gardens, Paris]]
[[Image:Sépulture de Paul Verlaine.jpg|thumb|right|Grave.]]
Verlaine's last years saw his descent into [[drug addiction]], [[alcoholism]], and poverty. He lived in slums and public hospitals, and spent his days drinking [[absinthe]] in Paris cafés. However, the people's love for his art resurrected support and brought in an income for Verlaine: his early poetry was rediscovered, his lifestyle and strange behaviour in front of crowds attracted admiration, and in 1894 he was elected France's "Prince of Poets" by his peers.

Verlaine's poetry was admired and recognized as ground-breaking, and served as a source of inspiration to composers. [[Gabriel Fauré]] composed many [[mélodie]]s, such as the [[song cycle]]s ''[[Cinq mélodies "de Venise"]]'' and ''[[La bonne chanson (Fauré)|La bonne chanson]]'', which were settings of Verlaine's poems.<ref>{{Cite book | last=Orledge | first=Robert | title=Gabriel Fauré | publisher=Eulenburg Books | location=London | year=1979 | page=[https://archive.org/details/gabrielfaur0000orle/page/78 78] | isbn=0-903873-40-0 | url=https://archive.org/details/gabrielfaur0000orle/page/78 }}</ref> [[Claude Debussy]] set to music ''[[Clair de lune (poem)|Clair de lune]]'' and six of the ''Fêtes galantes'' poems, forming part of the ''mélodie'' collection known as the ''Recueil Vasnier''; he also made another setting of ''Clair de lune'', and the poem inspired the third movement of his [[Suite bergamasque]].<ref name="Forgotten Songs CD">Rolf, Marie. Page 7 of liner notes to ''Forgotten Songs'' by [[Claude Debussy]], with [[Dawn Upshaw]] and [[James Levine]], Sony SK 67190.</ref> [[Reynaldo Hahn]] set several of Verlaine's poems as did the Belgian-British composer [[Poldowski]] (daughter of [[Henryk Wieniawski]]), German composer [[Anna Teichmüller]], and French composer [[Jeanne Rivet]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jeanne Rivet Song Texts {{!}} LiederNet |url=https://www.lieder.net/lieder/get_settings.html?ComposerId=24784 |access-date=2025-04-20 |website=www.lieder.net}}</ref>

Verlaine's drug dependence and alcoholism took a toll on his life. He died in Paris at the age of 51 on 8 January 1896; he was buried in the [[Cimetière des Batignolles]] (he was first buried in the 20th division, but his grave was moved to the 11th division—on the roundabout, a much better location—when the [[Boulevard Périphérique]] was built).<ref>Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 48689-48690). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.</ref>

A bust monument to Verlaine sculpted by [[Rodo]] was erected in 1911. It sits in the [[jardin du Luxembourg|Luxembourg Gardens]] in Paris.