The February Revolution of 1848 swept away the Monarchy and brought the poets to power. Lamartine proclaimed the Republic. Dumas, Hugo and Sand got involved. But when it came to electing their new president, the French chose Louis Napoléon Bonaparte. Hugo, elected to the Assembly with the conservative party, felt his convictions waver. He could not close his eyes to the misery that surrounded him. A young painter made headlines by representing the people in his paintings, Courbet invented realism. Balzac died leaving behind him a colossal body of work that had consumed all his strength. When Louis Napoléon proclaimed himself emperor, Hugo definitively shifted to the left. He had no choice but to flee France, followed by a ruined Dumas. They would not be there to say goodbye to their friend Nerval.