Artur Rembo French poet Date of Birth: 20.10.1854 Country: France

1. Biography of Arthur Rimbaud
2. Early Education and Travels
3. Troubled Relationship with Verlaine
4. Involvement in the Paris Commune and Separation from Verlaine
5. Adventures in Africa and Illness
6. Final Days and Death

Biography of Arthur Rimbaud

Arthur Rimbaud was a French poet born on October 20, 1854, in Charleville in northeastern France. He was the second child of Frederic Rimbaud (1814-1878) and Marie-Catherine-Vitalie Rimbaud (1825-1907). His father was a military officer who spent most of his career abroad, serving in Algeria from 1844 to 1850 and receiving the Legion of Honor in 1854. Captain Rimbaud was described as "impulsive, calm, and generous," with long mustaches and an officer's goatee. Rimbaud's mother, born Cuif, came from a prosperous peasant family. When Rimbaud was four years old, his father left the family, and he was raised by his mother.

Early Education and Travels

Rimbaud received his primary education at the Charleville High School. Soon after the publication of his first poem in 1870, at the age of 16, Rimbaud embarked on a journey through northern France and southern Belgium. At the age of seventeen, Rimbaud met the poet Paul Verlaine in Paris and became his close friend and lover. Verlaine invited Rimbaud to Paris and paid for his travel expenses. Rimbaud initially stayed at Verlaine's house but was soon expelled by Verlaine's 17-year-old pregnant wife, Mathilde Mauté, for his rudeness and debauchery. Rimbaud lived alternately with the writer and critic Theodore Banville, the poet and chansonnier Charles Cros, the composer Jean (Ernest) Cabaner, and the artist Jean-Louis Forain. Rimbaud and Verlaine participated in the meetings of literary circles called "Les Vilains Bonhommes" and "Les Hydropathes," where they socialized, argued, and made peace while drinking.

Troubled Relationship with Verlaine

In late October, due to Rimbaud's influence, Verlaine had his first conflict with Mathilde, who disapproved of Rimbaud's attempts to extricate Verlaine from her bourgeois family environment. In late December, during a dinner with the "Vilains Bonhommes," Rimbaud caused a scandal and lightly wounded the photographer Carjat with a cane-sword. Rimbaud was expelled from the circle, and Verlaine rented a room for him on Rue Campagne-Première in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, near Montparnasse.

Involvement in the Paris Commune and Separation from Verlaine

Rimbaud participated in the Paris Commune uprising. In 1872, Paul Verlaine abandoned his family and left with Rimbaud for London. After living there for some time, they traveled through Europe and parted ways in Brussels after Verlaine, under the influence of absinthe during a heated argument, shot Rimbaud in the wrist. Verlaine was sentenced to two years in prison. After parting ways with Verlaine, Rimbaud returned home to the Roche farm.

Adventures in Africa and Illness

Afterward, Rimbaud stopped writing and traveled the world until 1880. He engaged in trading coffee, spices, and skins in Africa, primarily in Egypt and Ethiopia. In Ethiopia, he lived in the city of Harar for an extended period, visited Emperor Menelik II in Addis Ababa to sell him a shipment of European weapons. In February 1891, in Aden, Yemen, Rimbaud began experiencing pain in his right knee. He initially believed it to be arthritis. Treatment yielded no results, and in March of the same year, the pain became so severe that he prepared to travel to France for medical treatment. Before leaving, Rimbaud consulted a British doctor who mistakenly diagnosed him with "tuberculous synovitis" and recommended urgent amputation. Rimbaud remained in Aden until May 7th to settle his financial affairs. He then embarked on a 13-day journey back to France on the ship L'Amazone. Upon arrival in Marseille, he was taken to the Hospital de la Conception, where a week later, on May 27th, his right leg was amputated. The post-operative diagnosis revealed bone cancer, likely osteosarcoma.

Final Days and Death

After a brief stay on the family farm from July 23rd to August 23rd, Rimbaud attempted to return to Africa but became so ill along the way that he was taken back to the same hospital, where his sister Isabelle visited him. The pain became unbearable, and on November 10, 1891, after the last rites were administered, Rimbaud died at the age of 37. He was buried in his hometown of Charleville.