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A pictorial post of Jane Austen's House, Chawton, Hampshire

A holiday day out prompted me to think how blessed I was to be standing in HER HOUSE, her bedroom, her home and garden. With so many photos to share I decided to put some here.

Jane Austen is a name known to many and loved by many. She was a woman writing at a time when women were undervalued in society, at a time when there were very few female writers. Her books cover such topics as adultery, pre marital sex, infidelity, promiscuity and marital abuse under a veneer of respectability. What was the daily life like for this unmarried, principled woman who has charmed and influenced countless male and female over 200 years? Details of the house can be found in many places, but here I want to share my excitement and pleasure of a lovely afternoon in my heroine's home. Here I wanted to take a look at Jane Austen from a slightly different perspective. I hoped that seeing where she lived through my lens would give you a taste of her life and times.

Jane lived near Alton and was a frequent visitor to Bath

Picture 1
When Jane's father died, her brother found a home for a home for Jane, sister Cassandra and their mother. Their friend also lived here. Jane did not die here though. She was so ill she was taken to Winchester to a doctor's where she died.

Picture 2
It was quite fascinating to see where the family prepared their food. I could imagine them being in the house and the garden was lovely and restful too.

Picture 3
The dining room was lovely. The dinner service shown here was Jane's brother's
The fireplace was where the ladies made tea and coffee after dinner.

Picture 4
Fascinating and exciting. Jane was believed to have written her books at THIS TABLE. It was in the dining room. Did she write Pride and Prejudice here at this very table ?

Picture 5
These are some jelly moulds in the kitchen. Seeing these made the Austens seem like very real people.

Picture 6
This is a lovely little Japanese table.

Picture 7
The fireplace where Jane would have made the tea and coffee. It was fashionable for the ladies to make tea and coffee after dinner and this ritual appears in some of the novels.

Picture 8
The Austen carriage. This was very small by standards of the day but was probably sufficient for their needs. Jane and her mother and sister lived modestly.

I hope I have conveyed the wonder of the visit.

Updated April 15, 2018

Comments

DerdriuMarrinerMay 17, 2024

Thank you for your comment below on Sep. 2, 2017, in answer to my previous, same-day comment and question.

Congratulations on the writing-desk photo at the Bronte Parsonage!

Is there any way to share that photo opp -- ;-D -- on Wizzley?

VeronicaSep 2, 2017

Yes indeed. The ladies were teeny tiny in stature. Queen Victoria was not more than 5ft tall or less in fact.

I did have my photo taken at the Bronte Parsonage , Haworth writing desk recently. That was a fantastic moment.

DerdriuMarrinerSep 2, 2017

Veronica, Would the three women all have fit into such a tiny-looking carriage seat? Where would the candles have been placed if she wrote other than by daylight? That chair would have kept her posture straight!
Now if only you could have had a picture of yourself taken in your fetching bonnet with paper at her table!

VeronicaJul 30, 2017

KINBESA

Ah "Persuasion " ... So beautifully written. I love it.

kimbesaJul 23, 2017

Thanks for posting this! It's a hard choice between Jane's books. And the movies, too. The first one coming to mind right now is Persuasion with Amanda Root.

VeronicaJul 21, 2017

UPDATE
This week sees the 200th anniversary of Jane's death at Winchester.

She is also being commemorated on British banknotes too.

About time too.

VeronicaNov 29, 2015

N.B. For those of you able to visit, Jane Austen's House is open, free on her birthday .

The notice is below ;-

Jane's Birthday
16 December10:30am- 4:30pm (Last entry 4:00pm)
Free Entry

Join us once again to celebrate Jane Austen's Birthday. As in previous years there will be free entry for the day and we invite you to visit the house, which will be decorated ready for Christmas, and to join us for a Mince Pie and a cup of something warming.

VeronicaSep 5, 2015

Perhaps it was a place that she felt comfortable and it also saved on the cost of candles. They were quite poor by this date. I was enthralled and then to sit in her garden was incredible.

The house is largely unchanged since she lived there.

It is worth a visit.

MiraSep 5, 2015

I see now about Jane Austen and that table. :) I share your enthusiasm for this place :)

VeronicaSep 5, 2015

I know. She is truly believed to have written at the little writing table in the parlour there. Her family noted it in their letter writing and her descendants memories and she was happily situated there by the window in the light.

I was surprised to see it so small but this does seem to be the case that she sat at that little table to write. It was amazing to see. I went made with my camera I was so excited to visit.

MiraSep 5, 2015

Amazing photos. I would imagine though she'd have written at the much larger dining table. I wonder what made the curators think she used the little table. Either way, it's wonderful that they turned the place into a museum.

VeronicaSep 4, 2015

It has been on my to-do list for many years, as I said below. But recently my friend had two gruelling rounds of chemotherapy after a mastectomy and surprised me one day when she said she wished she had visited Jane Austen's house.

This knocked me sideways. We spend so much time being busy and important that we don't take the time to be "human " and ourselves. So this summer, my husband and I spent the time going round England visiting places we have and haven't been to including Stonehenge, and Jane's house. pub lunches, afternoon teas. It was wonderful.

Dear community ...seize the moment and don't put things off. :(

jptanabeSep 4, 2015

How lovely to visit Jane Austen's house - she's been a favorite of mine (and my daughter's forever). Your photos certainly convey a lot of the atmosphere of her life. Thanks for sharing.

VeronicaAug 23, 2015

Yes, it was good to see the house exactly how she would have lived in it , with their artefacts there.

blackspanielgalleryAug 22, 2015

Nice antiques. Always a look into the past is refreshing.

VeronicaAug 5, 2015

yes and by candlelight too. Exactly!

GuestAug 5, 2015

When you see the little table where Jane Austin wrote her magnificent works, it shows how much can be accomplished with such a small space.

VeronicaAug 5, 2015

It has been on my to do list all my adult life but is over 200 miles away. I am glad I went . Opposite the house is a tea shop which serves afternoon tea on a china tea service. It was like stepping back in time.

CruiseReadyAug 5, 2015

What a wonderful day you must have had visiting her home. Thank you for sharing!

Comments

DerdriuMarrinerMay 17, 2024

VeronicaSep 2, 2017

DerdriuMarrinerSep 2, 2017

VeronicaJul 30, 2017

KINBESA

Ah "Persuasion " ... So beautifully written. I love it.

kimbesaJul 23, 2017

Thanks for posting this! It's a hard choice between Jane's books. And the movies, too. The first one coming to mind right now is Persuasion with Amanda Root.

VeronicaJul 21, 2017

UPDATE
This week sees the 200th anniversary of Jane's death at Winchester.

She is also being commemorated on British banknotes too.

About time too.

VeronicaNov 29, 2015

VeronicaSep 5, 2015

MiraSep 5, 2015

I see now about Jane Austen and that table. :) I share your enthusiasm for this place :)

VeronicaSep 5, 2015

MiraSep 5, 2015

VeronicaSep 4, 2015

jptanabeSep 4, 2015

How lovely to visit Jane Austen's house - she's been a favorite of mine (and my daughter's forever). Your photos certainly convey a lot of the atmosphere of her life. Thanks for sharing.

VeronicaAug 23, 2015

Yes, it was good to see the house exactly how she would have lived in it , with their artefacts there.

blackspanielgalleryAug 22, 2015

Nice antiques. Always a look into the past is refreshing.

VeronicaAug 5, 2015

yes and by candlelight too. Exactly!

GuestAug 5, 2015

When you see the little table where Jane Austin wrote her magnificent works, it shows how much can be accomplished with such a small space.

VeronicaAug 5, 2015

CruiseReadyAug 5, 2015

What a wonderful day you must have had visiting her home. Thank you for sharing!