Chawton House Library

Elsewhere in the village Chawton House Library (above) has become an internationally respected research and learning centre for the study of early women’s writing from 1600 to 1830. Set in the manor house that once belonged to Austen’s brother, Edward, the library, house and gardens are also open to the general public.

How Jane Austen's mystery woman was edited out of history

Historian Lucy Worsley suggested this week that although Austen almost certainly never slept with a man, she may instead have slept with a woman. We know not if her relations with Sharp were anything more than platonic, but either way, the obscurity of the latter is just as Austen’s relatives would have wished it. While the great novelist considered her correspondent a most treasured confidante, Austen’s family took a very different view of Anne. For this woman was a member of the servant class. Indeed, she’d worked for the Austens themselves – as a governess to Jane’s niece.

Such a friendship flouted the social norms of the time. By keeping it out of official versions of Austen’s life, the family could create a false image of the famous author as a conservative maiden aunt, devoted above all else to kith and kin. As a result, the close bond she shared with Anne, who wrote plays in between teaching lessons, has become one of literature’s most enduring secrets.

A Secret Sisterhood: The hidden friendships of Austen, Brontë, Eliot and Woolf by Emily Midorikawa and Emma Claire Sweeney will be published by Aurum Press on 1 June 2017 (£20).

Read all: telegraphwomen/life/jane-austens-mystery-woman-edited-history

Jane and her Alton Apothecary

When Jane Austen felt unwell her first recourse would have been to consult an apothecary. Today we tend to think of apothecaries as a relic of the middle ages, a cross between a magician and an alchemist, peddling dubious potions that were likely to do more harm than good.  In fact they were the precursors of today’s dispensing chemists, spending up to 7 years training. In the early stages of her illness Jane had been treated by William Curtis, a qualified Apothecary in Alton. His story offers a fascinating insight into the role played by members of this ancient profession within their local communities. It is possible that William himself may have been the model for the character of Mr Perry, the apothecary in Emma, who was said to be ‘an intelligent, gentlemanlike man’.
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Austen paid £38.90 for Emma.

Jane Austen received only one cheque from her publisher, John Murray, for her fourth novel, Emma. It was for the unprincely sum of 38 pounds, 18 shillings and one penny (£38.90, worth about £3,480 today) — and they spelt her name wrong. It was written for “Austin” rather than Austen.
The cheque will go on display at the Which Jane Austen? exhibition at the Bodleian Library in Oxford from June 23, along with newly discovered letters.
Kathryn Sutherland, a professor of bibliography at Oxford University and curator of the exhibition, said: “The only way Jane could cash it [the cheque] was by counter-signing it on the…

? exhibition: the cheque for £38.90 that Austen was payed for Emma.

Lucy Worsley's Jane Austen Behind Closed Doors

the gardens of Chawton House Library and the Jane Austen’s House Museum

Saturday 10th June 2017

Venue: Chawton House Library
Join us for this biennial event when Chawton Village opens its gardens to raise funds for village projects. Enjoy

exploring the gardens of Chawton House Library and the Jane Austen’s House Museum as well as many other charming gardens – and don’t forget to find the scarecrows in our ‘wilderness’!