Oscar Wilde hard labour, the maximum penalty, and was jailed from 1895 to 1897. During his last year in prison, he wrote "De Profundis" (published posthumously in 1905), a long letter which discusses his spiritual journey through his trials, forming a dark counterpoint to his earlier philosophy of pleasure. On his release, he left immediately for France, never to return to Ireland or Britain. There he wrote his last work, "The Ballad of Reading Gaol" (1898), a long poem commemorating the harsh rhythms of prison life. He died destitute in Paris at the age of 46. Oscar Wilde was born at 21
Willie Wilde can give nothing to the house and Willie is always in a state of utter poverty. So all is left upon me." Willie and Lily had their only child, Dorothy 'Dolly' Ierne Wilde, in July 1895. Lady Wilde wrote Oscar a lengthy letter seeking reconciliation between him and Willie, who, she said, was "sickly and extravagant". She added that she was "miserable at the present position of [her] two sons" and "at the general belief that you hate your brother". She then asked Oscar to hold out his hand to Willie, a request she repeated several times in the letter: