Exhibition 'Victor Hugo in Exile' in Brussels

Victor Hugo lived in exile for 19 years outside his home country. The works and manuscripts from this period of the French poet and writer are displayed in an exhibition in Brussels titled 'Victor Hugo in Exile'. This exhibition aims to familiarize visitors with lesser-known aspects of the author's life and interests, such as his inclination towards design and architecture. In 1848, after the fall of Louis-Philippe's monarchy and the beginning of the Second Republic of France, Victor Hugo entered parliament. Just three years into his tenure, on December 2, 1852, Napoleon Bonaparte, the then-president, dissolved parliament and transformed the republic into a monarchy. In response to Bonaparte's coup, Hugo, a leader of the left in parliament, declared armed struggle. His call was met with little support from citizens, and the government severely suppressed the not-so-numerous protests from opponents. Following this failure, the long period of exile for this poet and writer began. Brussels was his first destination, where he wrote 'Little Napoleon' as his first step in the struggle during exile. After about a year in Brussels, Victor Hugo moved to the island of Jersey and finally to Guernsey, both of which are in the English Channel. In 1853, he expressed his disdain for Napoleon III and his commitment to freedom in the collection 'The Punishments'. In 1856, he wrote 'Meditations', inspired by the life and death of his daughter Léopoldine, who died in 1846. In 1854, to save John Tapner from death, he wrote a letter to the citizens of Guernsey requesting a commutation of the death sentence. Ultimately, his efforts were in vain, and Tapner, accused of murder, was executed. One of Hugo's designs depicts this execution scene. On August 16, 1859, Napoleon III announced a general amnesty. About 70% of the opponents took advantage of this amnesty and returned to France, but Hugo, despite his solitude on Guernsey, did not accept the amnesty request, stating: 'I remain faithful to my conscious struggle, and when freedom is established, I will return.' After writing the story collection 'The Legends of the Centuries' in 1859, he turned to the novel 'Les Misérables', which he completed in 1862 after 17 years. The essay 'William Shakespeare' in 1864 and the novels 'The Toilers of the Sea' in 1866 and 'The Man Who Laughs' in 1869 are other works by Victor Hugo during his exile. In 1870, after Napoleon III's defeat by the Prussian Empire, Victor Hugo returned to Paris to a grand reception from the people, marking the end of his 19 years of exile. This exhibition features not only Hugo's poems, novels, and designs but also his personal and family letters. Among these letters is one from his lover Juliette, written on February 16 and 17, 1863, to commemorate their 30th anniversary together. In this romantic letter, sent with a red rose, it states, '30 years of love passed like a lovely day without interruption.' The exhibition 'Victor Hugo in Exile', managed by Laura Hugo, a descendant of Victor Hugo, will continue until March 29, 2015, at the Museum of Manuscripts in Brussels.