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| French poet Baudelaire suicide letter fetches €234,000 at auction | French poet Baudelaire suicide letter fetches €234,000 at auction |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A letter by the French 19th-Century poet Charles Baudelaire announcing he would kill himself has sold at auction for €234,000 (£204,000; $267,000). | |
| The note, dated 30 June 1845, was addressed to Baudelaire's lover Jeanne Duval. | The note, dated 30 June 1845, was addressed to Baudelaire's lover Jeanne Duval. |
| The poet, who was 24 years old at the time, attempted to commit suicide on the same day - but survived. | The poet, who was 24 years old at the time, attempted to commit suicide on the same day - but survived. |
| The French auction website Osenat said the letter sold to a private buyer for three times the estimated price. | The French auction website Osenat said the letter sold to a private buyer for three times the estimated price. |
| In the letter, Baudelaire informed his mistress of his intention to take his own life. "By the time you receive this letter, I will be dead," it said. | In the letter, Baudelaire informed his mistress of his intention to take his own life. "By the time you receive this letter, I will be dead," it said. |
| "I am killing myself because I can no longer live, or bear the burden of falling asleep and waking up again." | "I am killing myself because I can no longer live, or bear the burden of falling asleep and waking up again." |
| Baudelaire, who had money problems after squandering his inheritance, stabbed himself in the chest but suffered no serious injuries. | Baudelaire, who had money problems after squandering his inheritance, stabbed himself in the chest but suffered no serious injuries. |
| He lived for another 22 years, writing in that time the volume that established his reputation, Les Fleurs du Mal (The Flowers of Evil). | He lived for another 22 years, writing in that time the volume that established his reputation, Les Fleurs du Mal (The Flowers of Evil). |
| His works influenced generations of French poets. He died wracked by syphilis in 1867. | His works influenced generations of French poets. He died wracked by syphilis in 1867. |