The exile to London of artists like Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Charles Daubigny and many others was not neutral; they were able to socialise, paint and discover English painting, to which their reaction was less enthusiastic than is often claimed. They also exhibited their work, having crossed paths with another exile - and not the least of them - the art dealer Paul Durand-Ruel. These are all essential stages in the history of Impressionism.