In the footsteps of Jane Austen

This year marks 200 years since the death of one of England’s most influential and cherished female writers. Jane Austen was only 41 years old when she died in July, 1817. Tracing her footsteps, we take a look at how the world around her shaped her writing.

Writers are always influenced by places they lived and travelled. Their observation and comprehension of environments is one of the skills that separates a good writer from a great one. Nowhere is this trait more apparent than in the case of Jane Austen. Her beloved characters gave a unique, and at the time, a rather unusual glimpse of her world.

Born in the sleepy village of Steventon, north Hampshire, and the daughter of a Clergyman. Her family and friend’s letters characteriser Ms. Austen as shy and respectful, upon introduction, you may never have expected this young lady to become the author of some of the most famous novels of our time.

Jane Austen was born on the 16th of December in 1775. She was one of eight children born to the Austen household and was one of only two daughters. Her father’s Church (The Parish Church of St Nicholas, pictured) still stands at the end of a narrow lane, surrounded by quiet countryside. The house in which she was born was located steps away on the same lane, but has unfortunately not stood the test of time. There are no plaques to commemorate the site and it is marked only by a lone apple tree, if you don’t have a keen eye for apple trees then it is a little difficult to find.

26 years later, in May of 1801, the Austen family were uprooted, changing their rural lifestyle for that of Bath – a large and luxurious holiday destination of the time. Madeline Smith, Events and Marketing Director at the Jane Austen Museum in Bath, explains Ms. Austen’s feelings toward her father’s decision to move: “In her mid-twenties Jane began drafting Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Northanger Abbey.  However, in December 1800, Jane received news that was to affect her creative output. Her father announced his decision to retire from the ministry, leave Steventon and move the family to Bath. Jane was shocked to be told that she was moving from the only home she had ever known. An indication of Jane’s state of mind was her lack of productivity as a writer, during the time she lived at Bath.”

Ms. Austen may have loved life in rural Hampshire, but it was from her experiences in Bath that she created some of her most intriguing characters. “Bath and Jane Austen are closely associated not only because Jane spent a period of her life living here in Bath, but also because her first and last novels were set here, which were Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. Northanger Abbey has a heroine called Catherine Morland, who is in love with Bath and that is very reflective of Jane’s own experience when she first came to visit the town. In contrast, Persuasion, which was written some 18 years later, shows Bath in a different light; the heroine, Ann Elliot, finds the town oppressive and that reflected Jane’s own feelings later on, when she was living here.” Explains Serena Dunlot, who is a host at the Jane Austen Centre in Bath.

Bath has many locations dedicated to Jane Austen. The Jane Austen Centre, (pictured) in the heart of Bath, is a perfect place to begin. Here period dressed guides take you through the life and times of Ms. Austen while she was in residence in Bath. From the beginning of her time as a visitor coming to see her aunt and uncle, already residing in Bath to the locations her family lived and the key moments that occurred in Ms. Austen’s life while living here.

“Bath at that time was really a place of luxury where the wealthy came to display their style and importance. You can tell from some of Jane’s letters that she was rather unhappy whilst she was living here. George Austen [Jane Austen’s father] died of a very sudden illness in January 1805 and the three woman were left almost penniless – with his death also came the loss of his pension which had provided their income. They had to downsize and ended up living in lodgings on Trim Street, which was an adjustment from where they started at number 4 Sydney place, with a large house and gardens. It really was a horrible time for all of them.” said Paul Crossey, General Manager at the Jane Austen Centre. “Each of the six novels that Jane Austen wrote makes a mention of Bath somewhere and the characters in her novels that appear to like Bath tended to be among her least likeable characters; shallow, unreliable, unpleasant and dishonest, even if Jane Austen was not entirely happy in Bath, it is a source of great satire within her work”. 

During September the Jane Austen Centre hosts the renowned ‘Jane Austen Summer Festival and Ball.’  Each year, Jane Austen fans come from all over the world to take part in this real life ‘Becoming Austen’ gathering. Participants come in fancy dress where they have the opportunity to learn dances appropriate to the time and are transported into the environments that shaped the pages of Sense and Sensibility or Pride and Prejudice. The ball is hosted at the Bath Assembly Room, one of Bath’s most famous historical function rooms.

Royal Crescent in Bath is just as iconic a scene. Perched at the top of a grassy knoll, Royal Crescent is a Grade 1 listed site, one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture in Britain and the jewel of Bath. It is a stunning grouping of residencies in the shape of a crescent moon – and a well-known feature of many a Jane Austen dramatisation. No. 1 (pictured) is located at the right hand corner of Royal Crescent, with its front entrance facing the park and this perfectly restored Georgian townhouse is open to the public as a museum. 

Janey Abbott, Communications Officer at Bath Preservation Trust said: “Although we don’t have any particular proof that Jane Austen did visit here [No. 1 Royal Crescent] we do have proof that she visited places very near to here and many of which would have been very similar in style and decoration. She may have been in attendance at a ball only a few houses down from us, and these houses have an almost identical layout. Jane Austen also mentioned, in her letters, that she frequently took strolls along the crescent during her time living in Bath.”

 “In early 1809, Edward [Jane’s older brother] offered his mother and sisters [Jane and Cassandra] a more settled life in the form of a large house in Chawton, rent free, for life. Jane, Cassandra, Martha Loud [a family friend living with the Austen woman at the time] and their mother moved into Chawton Cottage (pictured) on the 7th of July 1809. In Chawton, Jane would embark on her most prolific time as a writer.” Said Madeline Smith, Events & Marketing Director at The Jane Austen Museum.

Chawton is a small Hampshire village which is just 15 miles from the village of Steventon where Ms. Austen grew up. It is her most notable residence (she lived there from 1809 to 1815) and her only home that has been converted to a museum and is now open to the public. The Jane Austen Museum offers an excellent peek into her day to day life. Here you can easily imagine Jane waking early in the morning, making breakfast for her mother, her sister and for Martha – which was her only household chore. Jane would then spend her afternoons writing at the tiny writing desk, which the museum still has on display. She would take walks in the area and visit with company into the evenings. During her time in Chawton village she saw four of her works published, thanks to the help of her brother, Henry. These included Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Mansfield Park and finally Emma.

Jane’s diminishing health became an increasing concern to her mother and sister and she was again relocated, this time to a house in the city of Winchester, Hampshire, where she could live closer to her doctor. Marked with a blue English Heritage plaque, Jane’s Winchester house is nestled at number 8, College Street (pictured), a narrow street just a brisk walk from her final resting place of Winchester Cathedral.  “They are not quite sure of what Jane Austen died of, one theory is that she had Anderson’s disease which is a hormonal condition that affects the adrenal glands, but without early diagnosis and access to modern medicine it can be fatal, but this is still very much up for debate.” Said Simon Barwood, Media and Communications Officer at Winchester Cathedral.

This year, Winchester Cathedral (pictured) will celebrate the life of Jane Austen. On the July 18th 2017 they will be hosting a re-creation of the burial, including a small funeral procession which will follow the original path, leading from Ms. Austen’s College Street address to the cathedral. Letters by herself and by her family will be read aloud, such as a letter written by her sister Cassandra, which reads: “She was the sun of my life, the glide of every pleasure, the soother of every sorrow. I had not a thought concealed from her and it is as if I have lost part of myself.”

 On display at this time in the Winchester Cathedral will be the burial register and an inscription about Ms. Austen. Charlotte Baraville, Director of Events at Winchester Cathedral explains: “Jane Austen died on the 18th of July but our burial registry has recorded her death as the 17th of July. It shows that it wasn’t a big funeral. Just four people attended, one of which was the vicar. It was a very low key ordinary funeral for someone who was connected to the cathedral. I think the burial register is deceptive of the fact that she was not anyone special in those days. An error like that would not have been made for anyone important. It was probably not written on the day. It might have been written afterwards and it was a mistake that was made.”

“Because Jane Austen’s characters are so familiar, so universal, they seem to stand the test of time. Especially with Pride and Prejudice, if you read it a few times, then you will realise what prolific characters they are. You recognise their habits and their habits are also very clearly present in contemporary society.  You know a Mrs. Bennett – you know someone who is that noisy. You do kind of hate her but you also want her gossip – there is that part of you that you loath, that wants to know. Mrs. Bennet is a fantastic character. There is a bit of Mrs. Bennet in everyone. That’s why we have Buzzfeed, and that’s why we have twitter. Mrs. Bennet, if she was alive now, she would be doing TMZ. Mrs Bennet is an Austen TMZ!” said Rob Crossan, a Freelance Travel Journalist and Jane Austen Researcher.

Indeed, the works of Jane Austen do have a profound impact upon the literary world. Her stories and her characters continue to amaze new generations, inspire readers and writers alike. Her style of writing was unique to only her at a time when only a handful of women chose to put themselves forward as authors. Jane Austen lived the quiet life, and she was never truly recognised for her greatness until after her death. Although there were a few of her books published during her lifetime, she never saw her name in print. This was by her request, as she enjoyed her humble and quiet life and never sought the notoriety or fame. 

Publish in The Mail On Sunday supplement magazine EVENT (January of 2017)