Marriage and Temporary Stability

Claude and Camille finally married on June 28, 1870, just weeks before the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War. The wedding was a modest affair, witnessed by Courbet and attended by a few close friends. Monet's parents had both died by this time, and a small inheritance may have made the marriage possible, though the couple remained financially precarious.

Their flight to London during the war, followed by their sojourn in Holland, represented a relatively peaceful interlude. Camille adapted to exile with characteristic resilience, creating a home wherever they landed. Paintings from this period often show domestic scenes—Camille reading, sewing, or playing with Jean—that reveal the quiet intimacy of their life together.

The move to Argenteuil in 1871 marked the happiest period of their marriage. With sales beginning to improve thanks to Durand-Ruel's support, they could afford a house with a garden, a maid, and a more stable life. Camille bloomed in this environment, hosting friends like Renoir and Manet, who both painted her portrait. The garden at Argenteuil became an outdoor studio where Camille and Jean served as models for some of Monet's most joyful works.

Their second son, Michel, was born in March 1878, but by then shadows had fallen across their happiness. Camille's health, never robust, had begun to fail. The exact nature of her illness remains unclear—possibly tuberculosis or cancer of the uterus—but its progression was relentless. The family's finances had again deteriorated, and they were forced to share a house in Vétheuil with Alice Hoschedé and her six children, an arrangement born of economic necessity that would have profound consequences.