Celebrating Hampshire Historians

Austen, Jane

16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817

This is not the place to repeat the well-documented life of one of England’s most celebrated novelists, but the huge amount of writing about her incidentally provides an intimate picture of her period. Not only does it vividly illuminate life in the north of the county in and around Basingstoke, but also elsewhere, in Bath, Southampton and Winchester.

Sources

• Collins, I 1994 Jane Austen and the Clergy
• Le Faye, D, 3 ed 1995, Jane Austen’s Letters
• Tomalin, C, 1997, 2000, Jane Austen: A Life

Portrait

National Portrait Gallery, NPG3630, pencil and watercolour, ca 1810, by her sister Cassandra Austen; the image below was taken from the statue outside the Willis Musuem, Basingstoke.

Contribution to county’s history

Incidentally, and presumably unwittingly she wrote about the history of her period, depicting faithfully the lives of the middle and upper classes in north Hampshire and elsewhere. As such, her novels qualify to at least be thought of as ‘memoirs’. In general, in her juvenile History of England, written at age 15, she showed an approach to history that borders on the Horrible Histories of Terry Deary, so popular amongst today’s children!  She parodied it, and poked fun at the school texts she had had to read, such as the playwright Oliver Goldsmith’s 4-volume History of England published in 1771. In particular, she mocked what she regarded as historians’ claim to objectivity. That she regarded her History with some seriousness is indicated by the fact that later in life she copied it into one of three notebooks of her early works with illustrations by her sister, none of which was published until 1922. The original is held by the British Library (Add. MS 59874). A German edition was published in 2009.  

Relevant published works

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_History_of_England_(Austen)
• Austen, J, History of England, https://penelope.uchicago.edu/austen/austen.html

Critical Comments

Jane Austen cannot be regarded as a serious historian of her native county, but due to her close links with a wide range of professionals, clergymen, naval officers, doctors, lawyers etc, her works provide a window on the period.

Other Comments

An important centre for studies of Jane Austen and early women’s writing: Chawton House, Alton, GU34 1SJ

Contributor

Barry Shurlock, 19 October 2021

Key Words

Horrible history, parody, fiction

Any queries or further suggestions for this part of the list should be addressed to celebrating@hantsfieldclub.org.uk.

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