Chawton
Encyclopedia
Chawton is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire
district of Hampshire
, England
. It is 1.6 miles (2.5 km) southwest of Alton
, just south of the A31 which runs between Farnham
and Winchester
. The village is famous as the home of Jane Austen
for the last eight years of her life. The village lies within the South Downs National Park
.
The nearest railway station is 1.7 miles (2.7 km) northeast of the village, at Alton
.
In 2000, Chawton had a population of around 380. It is within the census area of Downland which has 2,149 people.
in Scotland
. Henry III
visited the manor on over forty occasions. The descendants of John Knight, who built the present Chawton House
at the time of the Armada
(1588), added to it and modified the landscape in ways that reflect changes in politics, religion and taste. One of those descendants was Elizabeth Knight, whose progresses were marked by the ringing of church bells and whose two husbands both had to adopt her surname. Later in the 18th century, Jane Austen
's brother Edward (who had been adopted by the Knights) succeeded, and in 1809 was able to move his mother and sisters to a cottage in the village.
The house in which Jane Austen lived – "Chawton Cottage" – is now Jane Austen's House Museum
and is visited by 30,000 people each year.
Jane Austen
lived in the house with her mother and sister, Cassandra, from 1809 until May 1817, when because of illness she moved to Winchester to be near her physician
. She died there on 18 July 1817.
Austen wrote many of her books in Chawton. Among the items of furniture are a Clementi pianoforte (about 1810) and a Hepplewhite
bureau-bookcase containing several of her works.
By the start of the twentieth century the house was tenanted by a workmen's club.
, the 400 year old grade ll* listed Elizabethan manor house
that once belonged to Jane Austen's brother and 275 acres (1.1 km²) of land, has been restored as part of a major international project to establish the new Centre for the Study of Early English Women's Writing, 1600–1830. It houses a collection of over 9,000 volumes, together with some related manuscripts. Visitors can see the relationship between the library, the house, the estate and a working farm of the 18th and early 19th centuries.
In 1992 a 125-year lease on the house was purchased for £1.25 million by a foundation established by Sandra Lerner
, co-founder of Cisco Systems
.
East Hampshire
East Hampshire is a local government district in Hampshire, England. Its council is based in Petersfield. Other towns are Alton, Horndean and Whitehill-Bordon....
district of Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is 1.6 miles (2.5 km) southwest of Alton
Alton, Hampshire
Alton is a historic market town and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of the English county of Hampshire. It had a population of 16,584 at the 1991 census and is administered by East Hampshire district council. It is located on the source of the River Wey and is the highest town in...
, just south of the A31 which runs between Farnham
Farnham
Farnham is a town in Surrey, England, within the Borough of Waverley. The town is situated some 42 miles southwest of London in the extreme west of Surrey, adjacent to the border with Hampshire...
and Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
. The village is famous as the home of Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
for the last eight years of her life. The village lies within the South Downs National Park
South Downs National Park
The South Downs National Park is England's newest National Park, having become fully operational on 1 April 2011. The park, covering an area of in southern England, stretches for from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east through the counties of Hampshire, West Sussex and East Sussex...
.
The nearest railway station is 1.7 miles (2.7 km) northeast of the village, at Alton
Alton railway station
Alton railway station is a railway station in the town of Alton, in the English county of Hampshire. The station is the terminus for two railway lines; the Alton Line which runs to Brookwood and onto London Waterloo and the Mid Hants Watercress Railway, which runs to Alresford. The latter once ran...
.
In 2000, Chawton had a population of around 380. It is within the census area of Downland which has 2,149 people.
Village history
Chawton's recorded history begins in the Domesday survey of 1086. In the 13th century, there was a royal manor house. The owner, John St John, served as deputy to Edward IEdward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. Henry III
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
visited the manor on over forty occasions. The descendants of John Knight, who built the present Chawton House
Chawton House
Chawton House is a grade ll* listed Elizabethan manor house in the village of Chawton in Hampshire. It was formerly the home of Jane Austen's brother, Edward Austen Knight, and is now a library and study centre....
at the time of the Armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
(1588), added to it and modified the landscape in ways that reflect changes in politics, religion and taste. One of those descendants was Elizabeth Knight, whose progresses were marked by the ringing of church bells and whose two husbands both had to adopt her surname. Later in the 18th century, Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
's brother Edward (who had been adopted by the Knights) succeeded, and in 1809 was able to move his mother and sisters to a cottage in the village.
Jane Austen
Jane Austen's House Museum
Jane Austen's House Museum is a small private museum in the village of Chawton near Alton in Hampshire. It occupies the 17th century house in which novelist Jane Austen spent the last eight years of her life and where she wrote Mansfield Park, Emma and Persuasion.Jane Austen's House Museum was...
and is visited by 30,000 people each year.
Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
lived in the house with her mother and sister, Cassandra, from 1809 until May 1817, when because of illness she moved to Winchester to be near her physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
. She died there on 18 July 1817.
Austen wrote many of her books in Chawton. Among the items of furniture are a Clementi pianoforte (about 1810) and a Hepplewhite
George Hepplewhite
George Hepplewhite was a cabinetmaker. He is regarded as having been one of the "big three" English furniture makers of the 18th century, along with Thomas Sheraton and Thomas Chippendale...
bureau-bookcase containing several of her works.
By the start of the twentieth century the house was tenanted by a workmen's club.
Chawton Cottage
"Chawton Cottage", Jane Austen's house and garden are open to the public.Chawton House
Chawton HouseChawton House
Chawton House is a grade ll* listed Elizabethan manor house in the village of Chawton in Hampshire. It was formerly the home of Jane Austen's brother, Edward Austen Knight, and is now a library and study centre....
, the 400 year old grade ll* listed Elizabethan manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
that once belonged to Jane Austen's brother and 275 acres (1.1 km²) of land, has been restored as part of a major international project to establish the new Centre for the Study of Early English Women's Writing, 1600–1830. It houses a collection of over 9,000 volumes, together with some related manuscripts. Visitors can see the relationship between the library, the house, the estate and a working farm of the 18th and early 19th centuries.
In 1992 a 125-year lease on the house was purchased for £1.25 million by a foundation established by Sandra Lerner
Sandra Lerner
Sandy Lerner was a co-founder of Cisco Systems . After leaving Cisco, she was a founder of Urban Decay cosmetics, and an advocate of animal welfare....
, co-founder of Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Jose, California, United States, that designs and sells consumer electronics, networking, voice, and communications technology and services. Cisco has more than 70,000 employees and annual revenue of US$...
.