Monet's Grave and the Fate of His House and Garden

Past the quiet church, a small sign in the cemetery points to Monet's grave. For a man of his fame, it is strikingly modest: a family tomb beneath a cross, bearing the names of Monet's relatives, so you'll see the name Monet again and again. Claude Monet's name is there, along with those of his elder son Jean and younger son Michel.

Look closely at Jean Monet's headstone just to the left of Claude's. He died in 1914. Claude's stone reads 1926. Jean died before his father, so Michel, the younger son, inherited everything, including the house, the garden and the paintings. But Michel had little interest in all this and did not even visit Giverny. Management fell to Jean's wife, Blanche Hoschedé, Alice Hoschedé's daughter. Monet's son had married his stepdaughter, which makes for a tangled family story.

Blanche managed the property until her death in 1947, after which no one was left to care for the house and garden, and the once-beautiful flowers and grounds fell into ruin. About 20 years later, in 1966, Michel, a car enthusiast, died in a car accident in Vernon. His will left everything to the French Academy of Fine Arts. The house, garden and artworks thus passed to the French state. To restore them, donations were gathered and the Claude Monet Foundation was established, which manages the property today. The many paintings once displayed in Monet's house were moved to a single museum: the Musée Marmottan Monet.

That's all there is to see in Giverny. Next we'll introduce several museums where you can see Monet's work, so listen on your way back to Paris. For the shuttle bus or mini-train back to Vernon station, check Google Maps.