In 1842 Norwid went to Dresden, ostensibly to gain instruction in sculpture.
He later also visited Venice and Florence.
After he settled in Rome in 1844, his fiancée Kamila broke off their engagement.
Later he met Maria Kalergis, née Nesselrode, who became his "lost love", even as his health deteriorated.
The poet then travelled to Berlin, where he participated in university lectures and meetings with  local Polonia.
It was a time when Norwid made many new social, artistic and political contacts.
After being arrested and forced to leave Prussia in 1846, Norwid went to Brussels.
During the European Revolutions of 1848, he stayed in Rome, where he met fellow Polish intellectuals Adam Mickiewicz and Zygmunt Krasiński.

During 1849–1852, Norwid lived in Paris, where he met fellow Poles Frédéric Chopin and Juliusz Słowacki, as well as Russians Ivan Turgenev and Alexander Herzen.
Financial hardship, unrequited love, political misunderstandings, and a negative critical reception of his works put Norwid in a dire situation.
 He lived in poverty and suffered from progressive blindness and deafness, but still managed to publish his work in the Parisian publication Goniec polski.
In 1842 Norwid went to Dresden, ostensibly to gain instruction in sculpture. He later also visited Venice and Florence. After he settled in Rome in 1844, his fiancée Kamila broke off their engagement. Later he met Maria Kalergis, née Nesselrode, who became his "lost love", even as his health deteriorated. The poet then travelled to Berlin, where he participated in university lectures and meetings with  local Polonia. It was a time when Norwid made many new social, artistic and political contacts. After being arrested and forced to leave Prussia in 1846, Norwid went to Brussels. During the European Revolutions of 1848, he stayed in Rome, where he met fellow Polish intellectuals Adam Mickiewicz and Zygmunt Krasiński.
During 1849–1852, Norwid lived in Paris, where he met fellow Poles Frédéric Chopin and Juliusz Słowacki, as well as Russians Ivan Turgenev and Alexander Herzen. Financial hardship, unrequited love, political misunderstandings, and a negative critical reception of his works put Norwid in a dire situation.  He lived in poverty and suffered from progressive blindness and deafness, but still managed to publish his work in the Parisian publication Goniec polski.
Cyprian Norwid