Earlier this month I visited Jane Austen's house with the Friends of the Cheltenham Festival of Literature. Most FCFL members are retired, but they are a cultured and, therefore, civilised lot to spend an idyllic day traversing in the footsteps of literary greats.
Jane Austen's house is a charming place, with plenty of atmosphere and objects to peruse. Set amongst the timber-framed and red-brick estate of her brother Edward Knight (he was adopted by rich relatives), Chawton Cottage's Georgian facade belies its cosy cottage interior. I can imagine the Austen sisters and their mother moving about the house, Mrs Austen reclining on the chaise longue in their small drawing room, Cassandra discussing household matters in the kitchen, and Jane sitting at her tiny table by the front dining-room window, scribbling her famous novels and wishing that their house wasn't situated quite so close to the road. I was heartened to hear that Jane was the tea and coffee keeper for the household and kept a surreptitious eye on these expensive commodities, keeping them in a locked cupboard by the dining-room fireplace.
Upstairs, in Jane and Cassandra's bedroom, I saw the replica 'tent' bed that they would have shared during their time at Chawton. How two adults would have fitted into this bed, I don't know, but it certainly shows that the sisters were close. Most moving is the framed copy of the letter that Cassandra wrote to Jane's favourite niece, Fanny Knight, upon Jane's death in July 1817. It's most heartening to know that writers are well-loved and missed by their closest, who have nothing but good words to say about them. Although, Jane's (fairly) young age might have something to do with this (she was 41 when she died)!
What else do I like about Jane's Hampshire home? The fact that Jane played the piano every morning before breakfast, which was held late at 10.00 a.m. I love the idea that Jane the writer needed to release her emotions before settling down to quiet to write in the dining-room after breakfast. I also loved seeing Jane's fine cream shawl, given to her by her brother Edward's mother-in-law, and the cords she used to hang her muffs around her neck.
Chawton Cottage was Jane's last home. She moved there in 1809 after several peripatetic years when her father, the Reverend George Austen, decided to retire from his rectorship at nearby Steventon. Jane was a Hampshire girl born and bred, and must have found some release and comfort in being back in her home county, for she started to revise Sense and Sensibility and to work on her other manuscripts. I was greatly struck by the sale of the Austen family possessions from Steventon, which included almost every household item, including Jane's dearly beloved pianoforte. No wonder Jane wept - and, earlier, had fainted - upon hearing the news!
But, if it wasn't for these developments and disappointments in Jane's life, the writer who we still take great pleasure in reading, would not have started out on her successful mission and produced her great works of literature.
Find out more about Jane Austen's House Museum at: http://www.jane-austens-house-museum.org.uk.
The Friends of the Cheltenham Festival of Literature are supporting ten events at this year's Festival (5th - 14th October): http://www.cheltenhamfestivals.com. There's even a Jane Austen's Ladies of a Certain Age event!
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