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Jane and Dorothy: Lives of Jane Austen and Dorothy Wordsworth

Posted in Biography, Book review, Georgian Life, Jane Austen's World, Poetry, Regency Women, tagged , , , on June 23, 2025| 4 Comments »

A Book Review by Brenda S. Cox

“Marianne’s ‘excess of sensibility’ almost destroys her reputation, her health and her happiness, wihle Elinor’s more guarded behaviour is rewarded. But that is fiction; what of real life?”—Prologue to Jane and Dorothy, by Marian Veevers

Jane and Dorothy: A True Tale of Sense and Sensibility, The Lives of Jane Austen and Dorothy Wordsworth, by Marian Veevers. The lovely cover attracted my attention as I perused a library book table focused on Jane Austen.

I had read a review of this book some time ago and suggested it to a literary friend, who said there was no connection between Jane Austen and Dorothy Wordsworth, sister of poet William Wordsworth. But I decided to check out the book and find out how the author connects them. I’m glad I did, as it was a fascinating read.

Jane and Dorothy, by Marian Veevers, explores two parallel lives, Jane Austen’s and Dorothy Wordsworth’s. Veevers works for the Wordsworth Trust.

Jane Austen and Dorothy Wordsworth

Jane and Dorothy follows the lives of two women, living at approximately the same time, who never met. Parallel, never intersecting, similar in some ways and contrasting in others. Connections with Austen’s novels are intertwined in their stories. Jane (1775-1817) is compared to Elinor Dashwood, with strong feelings controlled by reason and religion. Dorothy (1771-1855) is more like Marianne, focusing on her emotions. In one teenage letter to a friend who was sympathizing with her misery, Dorothy wrote, “You cannot think how I like the idea of being called poor Dorothy . . . I could cry whenever I think of it.”

Both were writers. Jane Austen, of course, had four novels published during her lifetime, two more shortly after her death, and her Juvenilia and letters published years later.

Dorothy Wordsworth wrote journals, mostly about her ramblings in nature with her brother, who became a famous poet of Romanticism.  William Wordsworth used his sister’s journals as inspiration and a source of details for his poetry. His discussions and experiences with her also inspired him. A few of Dorothy’s own poems were published during her lifetime, but her journals and her travel narrative of a trip to Scotland were only published after her death.

Both Jane and Dorothy were dependent on their brothers later in their lives. Austen and her mother and sister were financially supported by her brothers after her father’s death, and her brother Edward provided Chawton Cottage where she wrote and rewrote her novels.

Dorothy lost her parents early in life and lived with various relatives as a poor relation, similar to Austen’s Fanny Price, until she threw in her lot with her brother William. Dorothy loved William passionately. (The author discusses rumors of sexual involvement and concludes that the rumors were false.) Dorothy devoted the rest of her life to her brother and, eventually, to his wife and children. Their financial situation was much harder than the Austens’, but they survived.

It was interesting to see the similar social and financial restrictions that society placed on both Jane and Dorothy, particularly as unmarried women, and to see how Jane’s life might have played out differently in other circumstances.

Yates ranting in Mansfield Park. Did Austen love home theatricals, or hate them? Or did she simply see their dangers?
C.E. Brock, public domain.

Austen and Drama

Having read so much about Jane Austen, I wasn’t expecting new insights into her life from this book. However, I found several. I’ll give just one example, from pages 47-50 of Jane and Dorothy.

Veevers discusses Austen’s attitude toward amateur home theatricals in Mansfield Park. Many have commented on the fact that Austen’s family performed such plays when she was growing up, and that she couldn’t really have thought they were wrong. Perhaps it was just the specific circumstances at Mansfield Park that made it wrong, or her attitude had changed due to the growing Evangelical disapproval of drama, or she was attributing disapproval to Fanny and Edmund.

However, Veevers speculates that, first, Jane may not have participated herself in those plays when she was growing up. She says the only evidence we have for that is Jane’s cousin, Phylly Walters, who wrote that “all the young folks” were participating in a performance in 1787—that is rather vague. Or Jane may have participated without enjoying it.

While Austen’s family approved of amateur theatricals, we don’t have to assume that she herself agreed. Instead, those experiences of plays in the Steventon barn may have shown Jane “the dark underbelly” of such practices. Veevers says any “modern-day member of an amateur dramatics company” would recognize these issues. She continues,

“Jane Austen gives an unflinching insider’s view of everything that is worst about amateur acting, from the concealed, but overwhelming self-interest of Julia and Maria Bertram who each hope to have the best part in the play ‘pressed on her by the rest,’ to the self-indulgent over-rehearsal of favourite scenes by some actors, and the insidious, self-gratifying criticisms of others’ performances—‘Mr Yates was in general thought to rant dreadfully . . . Mr Yates was disappointed in Henry Crawford . . .’” etc., etc. “There can be no doubt that this detailed understanding . . . came from real observation. It would seem that brother James’s annual productions in the Steventon barn were riven by jealousy, bad-feeling and unkindness.”—Jane and Dorothy, p. 49

Veevers goes on to speculate that Jane’s opinions may have been influenced by her dear friend Anne Lefroy. Mrs. Lefroy was a clergyman’s wife who apparently disapproved of amateur theatricals, politely declining to participate when a friend invited her. (Also, I would add, it appears those Steventon theatricals were an opportunity for flirtation between Jane’s still-married cousin Eliza and two of her brothers, so perhaps Henry Crawford and Maria Bertram’s fictitious flirtation also had a basis in past experience.)

I don’t think I personally agree with the idea that Austen disapproved of such theatricals, though. Austen certainly enjoyed the professional theatre, “good hardened real acting,” as Edmund Bertram called it, distinguishing that from amateur performances. Austen did, though, write several short, comic plays as a teenager, which may have been acted by her family. On a visit to Godmersham, she and Cassandra acted—most likely by reading aloud— a couple of plays with their nieces and nephews. (The Spoilt Child and Innocence Rewarded, according to Fanny Knight’s diary). Of course, that would have been on a much more limited scale than the play at Mansfield Park, with presumably less objectionable plays.

Whether Austen objected to amateur dramatics in general is questionable, but certainly she had seen enough to very realistically show the pitfalls of such productions in Mansfield Park. So I appreciated this insight from Jane and Dorothy.

Fanny Price loves nature, like both Jane Austen and Dorothy Wordsworth. Both Jane and Dorothy, like Fanny, experienced being marginalized by wealthier relatives.
H.M. Brock, public domain.

Spinsterhood

The book extensively explores attitudes toward “old maids” in Austen’s society. It’s easy to forget that Austen herself probably experienced prejudices against unmarried women. She certainly sometimes felt herself a poor relation at her wealthy brother’s Godmersham estate. She often lacked autonomy: her living situations and travels were dictated by her parents or brothers. Perhaps those feelings helped her create Fanny Price, dependent and marginalized.

Jane and Dorothy points out many illuminating parallels between Sense and Sensibility and Mansfield Park. Fanny is much like Marianne, with strong feelings. However Austen, when she was a more mature writer, made Fanny spiritually stronger, more nuanced, and with greater depth.

Marianne Dashwood gives way to her feelings and nearly dies. Fanny Price turns to religion and reason to keep her feelings under control, as Marianne determines to do at the end of Sense and Sensibility.
C.E. Brock, public domain.

End of Life

Dorothy lived much longer than Jane. Sadly, though, Dorothy’s last twenty years were spent with “her mind completely broken.” She had given her life to taking care of her family; that same family gave her loving care for those long years. It’s been speculated that she may have had some kind of dementia, or possibly severe depression. (She suffered, in fact, similarly to William Cowper in his final years. Cowper’s poetry, by the way, impacted both women.)

Of course we all wish that Jane had lived longer and written more. However, thinking of the many ways a spinster (like Miss Bates, for example, or Dorothy Wordsworth) might end up in Austen’s world, perhaps Jane’s earlier demise from an unknown disease was not the worst possible ending for her. The recent book and series Miss Austen also imagines long-lived Cassandra suffering late in her life.

As Veevers concludes,

“Jane and Dorothy were two unmarried, childless women who had failed to fulfil the destiny that their society prescribed for their sex. But they neither drooped nor withered as [1838 writer] Carlisle expected, nor developed the chagrin and peevishness which Dr. Gregory [1774] believed inseparable from their condition. Instead they forged their own meanings from their lives. . . . Jane and Dorothy were not simply products of their time. They made choices in their lives, and it was those choices which defined them.”

I found it fascinating to trace the choices of these two parallel lives, and the resulting joys and sorrows, during the same time in history. Well-written, easy to read, and compelling, Jane and Dorothy  is worth reading for anyone who wants to get deeper into “Jane Austen’s World.”

 

Brenda S. Cox is the author of Fashionable Goodness: Christianity in Jane Austen’s England. She also blogs at Faith, Science, Joy, and Jane Austen.

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At Home and Behind Closed Doors in Georgian England

Posted in 18th Century England, Georgian Life, Georgian marriage, Jane Austen's World, tagged , on November 18, 2024| 13 Comments »

Vic’s DVD Set

Inquiring readers: At the end of 2010, PBS sent Jane Austen’s World blog many DVDs for review. Most dealt with Jane Austen or the Georgian/Regency era. Close to fifteen years have passed since the series “At Home With the Georgians” first aired in the US. Recently I started to think that a new audience of Jane Austen fans might not be aware of this marvelous series, which presented the private lives, courtships, and marriages of Georgian men and women in 18th Century England. This series was developed in a variety of ways: by reading original sources, such as letters, discussions with experts, museum displays, and visiting the houses and regions where the British from all classes once lived. 

This three part series is based on Amanda Vickery’s book, Behind Closed Doors: At Home in Georgian England, a thoroughly informative and academic effort. Vickery is also the host of this visually stunning show. About the Georgian household she states that a home “reflected your taste, your values, your moral character, and the state of your marriage.” This concise introduction sums up the series. A man’s home ownership determines his position. For example, a rented home could determine his status. If he rented the entire house, from top to bottom, he could not only attract a wife, he would  also be viewed as a full citizen qualified to vote. Bachelors who rented rooms in squalid areas of town, were at the bottom of the matrimonial ladder, always yearning to improve their circumstances.

Bachelor fantasizing about a home and family. (DVD scene)

Marrying well was the major focus for Georgian women. Spinster ladies who were unsuccessful in finding a husband, led lives of dependency. Austen described their lot beautifully in her letters and novels.

Gertrude Saville, a very sad spinster (DVD Scene)

Finding a husband and raising a family were a Georgian woman’s main ambitions. As for the man, all he really needed for happiness was “a wife and a fire.” His primary focus early in life was to set up the kind of household that enabled him to woo a woman successfully. 

A proper Georgian Family. Thomas Hudson,The Thistlethwayte Family, ca. 1758. Yale Center for British Art

The third video has a much darker tone than the first two, but its content is equally as fascinating. In it, Vickery discusses how the home provided safety during the night, especially in cities, towns, and rural communities that were dark after sundown and badly lit at night in an age before electricity.

Georgian dress with chatelaines attached to her bodice and skirt

While the wife carried the keys and other instruments, such as sewing scissors, inside the home during the day to perform her housewifely duties (notice the instruments attached to the bodice in the image), the husband’s responsibility was to walk around the house every night, and lock the doors and windows to prevent intruders from entering. As the 18th century progressed, crimes, including relatively minor ones of theft, were punished more harshly. Serious robberies and break ins led increasingly to brutal imprisonment or a death sentence. 

The “At Home With the Georgians” videos are divided into the following three topics. Click on the links to read our full reviews.

  1. A Man’s Place, reviewed by Vic. Read it at this link.
  2. A Woman’s Touch, reviewed by Tony Grant, a frequent contributor to this blog. Read it at this link.
  3. Safe as Houses, reviewed by Vic, with photo contributions from Tony Grant. Read it at this link.

Where to view the videos today

DVDs of these videos are available at Amazon and eBay. Roku Channel and Tubi offer free views, although if I recall correctly, they come with ads. One YouTube channel features at least the first two videos: A Man’s Place and A Woman’s Touch. Click on soniab1’s YouTube channel to see them.

About Amanda Vickery

Amanda Vickery reading letters & documents

Amanda Jane Vickery FBA is an English historian, writer, radio and television presenter, and professor of early modern history at Queen Mary, University of London. Source: Wikipedia

About her Book

Podcast talks with Amanda Vickery, Blackwell’s Bookshops – around 20 min total

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November in Jane Austen’s World

Posted in A Year in Jane Austen's World, Edwardian Life, Georgian Life, Jane Austen Novels, Jane Austen's family, Jane Austen's letters, Jane Austen's life, Jane Austen's World on November 11, 2024| 1 Comment »

I can hardly believe we’ve arrived at November in Jane Austen’s World! After 10 months of this series, it’s proved an experience I won’t soon forget. What a fantastic journey! As we turn now to Jane Austen’s life, letters, and novels in the month of November, I can’t wait to explore Jane’s Regency world in the fall!

If you’d like to catch up on previous months, you can find each post of the “A Year in Jane Austen’s World” series here: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, and October.

As is our tradition, let’s first take a look at Jane Austen’s beautiful Hampshire countryside this time of year. As you might imagine, the yellow and golds of fall are on display and the weather has changed. Here is a gorgeous photo of the Chawton landscape this time of year:

Chawton House in November: Photo @ChawtonHouse.

November in Hampshire

November is the time for crisp weather, rain, and pretty fall colors. I found this lovely description of November weather in Austen’s letters:

Castle Square (21 November 1808): 

“How could you have a wet day on Thursday? With us it was a prince of days, the most delightful we have had for weeks; soft, bright, with a brisk wind from the southwest; everybody was out and talking of spring, and Martha and I did not know how to turn back. On Friday evening we had some very blowing weather,—from six to nine; I think we never heard it worse, even here. And one night we had so much rain that it forced its way again into the store-closet; and though the evil was comparatively slight and the mischief nothing, I had some employment the next day in drying parcels, etc. I have now moved still more out of the way.”

Wouldn’t you love to walk with Jane in that beautiful soft, bright day with its brisk wind! I’ve enjoyed quite a few similar walks this past week where I live and it’s exhilarating.

Jane Austen’s House Museum and gardens are always so pretty. Here is a recent November photo:

Jane Austen’s House in November, Photo: @JaneAustensHouse.

November in Jane Austen’s Letters

We don’t have many letters from the month of November in Austen’s collection of surviving letters, but November produces a few interesting details such as these:

20 November 1800 (Steventon):

  • Night out: “Your letter took me quite by surprise this morning; you are very welcome, however, and I am very much obliged to you. I believe I drank too much wine last night at Hurstbourne; I know not how else to account for the shaking of my hand to-day. You will kindly make allowance therefore for any indistinctness of writing, by attributing it to this venial error. Naughty Charles did not come on Tuesday, but good Charles came yesterday morning. About two o’clock he walked in on a Gosport hack. His feeling equal to such a fatigue is a good sign, and his feeling no fatigue in it a still better. He walked down to Deane to dinner; he danced the whole evening, and to-day is no more tired than a gentleman ought to be.“
  • Dance partners lacking: “There were only twelve dances, of which I danced nine, and was merely prevented from dancing the rest by the want of a partner. We began at ten, supped at one, and were at Deane before five. There were but fifty people in the room; very few families indeed from our side of the county, and not many more from the other. My partners were the two St. Johns, Hooper, Holder, and a very prodigious Mr. Mathew, with whom I called the last, and whom I liked the best of my little stock.”
  • Jane’s appearance for the ball: “Mary said that I looked very well last night. I wore my aunt’s gown and handkerchief, and my hair was at least tidy, which was all my ambition.”

21 November 1808 (Castle Square):

  • First thoughts on Chawton Cottage: “There are six bedchambers at Chawton; Henry wrote to my mother the other day, and luckily mentioned the number, which is just what we wanted to be assured of. He speaks also of garrets for store-places, one of which she immediately planned fitting up for Edward’s man-servant; and now perhaps it must be for our own; for she is already quite reconciled to our keeping one. The difficulty of doing without one had been thought of before. His name shall be Robert, if you please.”
Black and white pen and ink drawing of the cottage by Ellen Hill
Chawton Cottage by Ellen Hill

November in Jane Austen’s Novels

Sense and Sensibility

  • Lucy Steele Visits Barton Park: Elinor tells Marianne, “I have known it these four months. When Lucy first came to Barton Park last November, she told me in confidence of her engagement.” 

Pride and Prejudice

  • Mr. Collins Visits Longbourn: He writes to Mr. Bennet: “If you should have no objection to receive me into your house, I propose myself the satisfaction of waiting on you and your family, Monday, November 18th, by four o’clock, and shall probably trespass on your hospitality till the Saturday se’nnight following, which I can do without any inconvenience, as Lady Catherine is far from objecting to my occasional absence on a Sunday, provided that some other clergyman is engaged to do the duty of the day.”
  • Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley leave Netherfield in November: “How very suddenly you all quitted Netherfield last November, Mr. Darcy! It must have been a most agreeable surprise to Mr. Bingley to see you all after him so soon; for, if I recollect right, he went but the day before. He and his sisters were well, I hope, when you left London?”
Mr. Collins comes to Longbourn, Pride & Prejudice (1995).

Mansfield Park

  • Sir Thomas returns home: “November was the black month fixed for his return. Sir Thomas wrote of it with as much decision as experience and anxiety could authorise. His business was so nearly concluded as to justify him in proposing to take his passage in the September packet, and he consequently looked forward with the hope of being with his beloved family again early in November.”
  • Maria marries in November: “Mrs. Rushworth was quite ready to retire, and make way for the fortunate young woman whom her dear son had selected; and very early in November removed herself, her maid, her footman, and her chariot, with true dowager propriety, to Bath, there to parade over the wonders of Sotherton in her evening parties; enjoying them as thoroughly, perhaps, in the animation of a card-table, as she had ever done on the spot; and before the middle of the same month the ceremony had taken place which gave Sotherton another mistress.”
  • November gloom and dirt (mud): “Not only at home did [Fanny’s] value increase (‘with the departure of her cousins’), but at the Parsonage too. In that house, which she had hardly entered twice a year since Mr. Norris’s death, she became a welcome, an invited guest, and in the gloom and dirt of a November day, most acceptable to Mary Crawford.”
Michelle Ryan as Maria Bertram in Mansfield Park.

Emma

  • Mr. Woodhouse argues autumn colds: “That has been a good deal the case, my dear; but not to the degree you mention. Perry says that colds have been very general, but not so heavy as he has very often known them in November. Perry does not call it altogether a sickly season.”
  • Jane Fairfax catches a November cold: “Jane caught a bad cold, poor thing! so long ago as the 7th of November, (as I am going to read to you,) and has never been well since. A long time, is not it, for a cold to hang upon her? She never mentioned it before, because she would not alarm us. Just like her! so considerate!—But however, she is so far from well, that her kind friends the Campbells think she had better come home, and try an air that always agrees with her; and they have no doubt that three or four months at Highbury will entirely cure her—and it is certainly a great deal better that she should come here, than go to Ireland, if she is unwell. Nobody could nurse her, as we should do.”
  • Emma and Mr. Knightley must return from their seaside honeymoon by November, so that Isabella and her husband can stay at Hartfield with Mr. Woodhouse:
    • “[Emma and Mr. Knightley] had determined that their marriage ought to be concluded while John and Isabella were still at Hartfield, to allow them the fortnight’s absence in a tour to the seaside, which was the plan.”
    • “But Mr. John Knightley must be in London again by the end of the first week in November.”
    • “[Emma] was able to fix her wedding-day—and Mr. Elton was called on, within a month from the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Martin (in September), to join the hands of Mr. Knightley and Miss Woodhouse.”
Bill Nighy as Mr. Woodhouse in Emma (2020).

November Dates of Importance

And now for our monthly round-up of November dates of importance relating to Jane and her family:

Family News:

  • November 1796: Jane’s brother James Austen engaged to Mary Lloyd, a close family friend.
  • 17 November 1798: James Austen’s son, James-Edward, born.
  • November 1797: Edward Austen moves his family from Rowling to Godmersham Park in Kent.

Historic Dates:

  • 9 November 1799: Napoleon becomes First Consul of France.
  • 20 November 1815: The Treaty of Paris is signed, officially ending Napoleonic wars.

Writing:

  • 1 November 1797: Jane’s father, Reverend Austen, offers “First Impressions” to Thomas Cadell, a London publisher, but is ultimately unsuccessful.
  • November 1797: Austen begins revisions on “Elinor and Marianne,” which later becomes Sense and Sensibility.
  • November 1813: 2nd editions of Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility released.
  • November 1813: Mansfield Park accepted for publication (most likely).
  • 13 November 1815: Austen visits the Prince Regent’s Library at Carlton House, where she receives the invitation to dedicate a future novel to him.
Jane Austen reluctantly dedicated Emma to the Prince Regent, at his request.

Sorrows: I am happy to report that I could not find any major family sorrows during the month of November in the family history, biographies, or letters.

Looking Toward December

This truly has been an enormous joy each month, and as this is the penultimate post for this series, I cannot tell you all how excited I am to round out the series next month as we explore December in Jane Austen’s World, Jane’s birthday, and all things Regency Christmas!

RACHEL DODGE teaches college English classes, gives talks at libraries, teas, and book clubs, and writes for Jane Austen’s World blog. She is the bestselling author of The Little Women Devotional, The Anne of Green Gables Devotional and Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen. Now Available: The Secret Garden Devotional! You can visit Rachel online at www.RachelDodge.com.

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October in Jane Austen’s World

Posted in A Year in Jane Austen's World, Edwardian Life, Georgian Life, Jane Austen Early Life, Jane Austen Novels, Jane Austen's family, Jane Austen's letters, Jane Austen's life, Jane Austen's World, Regency, Regency Life, tagged , , , , on October 9, 2024| 3 Comments »

As we enjoy the crisp air of autumn, let’s take a tour of October in Jane Austen’s World! We’ll look at her life and times through the lens of her letters, novels, and personal interests and see what we can learn about Regency life in the month of October.

If you’re just jumping on the bus, you can find previous articles in the “A Year in Jane Austen’s World” series here: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, and September.

First off, let’s see what Jane Austen’s beautiful Hampshire countryside looks like in October. Big changes occur as the month continues, which means the lush green of summer turns to the yellow, gold, and ruby colors of fall. Here is a stunning photo of Chawton House Gardens:

Chawton House in October: Photo @ChawtonHouse.

October in Hampshire

October in Jane Austen’s Hampshire brings a total change of atmosphere. The leaves turn, and the weather cools and crisps, just like the apples in the orchard at Chawton House. As is our tradition, I’ve collected a few snippets from Austen’s letters regarding the season change, weather, and gardens/orchards:

24 October 1798 (“Bull & George,” Dartford): “My day’s journey has been pleasanter in every respect than I expected. I have been very little crowded and by no means unhappy. Your watchfulness with regard to the weather on our accounts was very kind and very effectual. We had one heavy shower on leaving Sittingbourne, but afterwards the clouds cleared away, and we had a very bright chrystal afternoon.”

27 October 1798 (Steventon): “I understand that there are some grapes left, but I believe not many; they must be gathered as soon as possible, or this rain will entirely rot them.”

24 October 1808 (Castle Square): “We have just had two hampers of apples from Kintbury, and the floor of our little garret is almost covered.”

11 October 1813 (Godmersham Park): “We had thunder and lightning here on Thursday morning, between five and seven; no very bad thunder, but a great deal of lightning. It has given the commencement of a season of wind and rain, and perhaps for the next six weeks we shall not have two dry days together.”

Such detailed descriptions of October! Here now is a current glimpse of Jane Austen’s House Museum and its gardens in October:

Jane Austen’s House in October, Photo: @JaneAustensHouse.

October in Jane Austen’s Letters: Jane’s Writing

While there are other October letters to consider, there is one excerpt that requires our attention first because it pertains to the safekeeping of Austen’s writing!

24 October 1798 (“Bull and George,” Dartford):

  • “I should have begun my letter soon after our arrival, but for a little adventure which prevented me. After we had been here a quarter of an hour it was discovered that my writing and dressing boxes had been by accident put into a chaise which was just packing off as we came in, and were driven away toward Gravesend in their way to the West Indies. No part of my property could have been such a prize before, for in my writing-box was all my worldly wealth, 7l., and my dear Harry’s deputation. Mr. Nottley immediately despatched a man and horse after the chaise, and in half an hour’s time I had the pleasure of being as rich as ever; they were got about two or three miles off.”

Thank goodness her writing box was found (and any money stowed in it). And what a beautiful description: “all my worldly wealth.” Though money and paperwork are important, one wonders if any of her writing might also have been in that box–a letter, a scene, a phrase. That would be treasure indeed.

Regency Era traveling writing desk.

October in Jane Austen’s Letters: A Great Loss

Now we must turn our main focus to Austen’s letters dating from October 1808. For those of us who take a personal interest in Jane Austen’s life and family, this is the month when Elizabeth Austen, Edward’s darling wife, died (10 October 1808).

Elizabeth Austen nee Bridges (1773-1808) married Edward Austen (Knight) on 27 December 1791, in Goodnestone, Kent, England. They had a large family and were very happily married. She was 35 when she passed and Edward never remarried.

The letters between Jane and Cassandra during that time are particularly tender. Both sisters mourned her death, but as is usual when a family member loses a spouse, they were even more concerned for Edward and his children (Jane’s nieces and nephews). I highly recommend reading the letters in full on your own, but below are several excerpts that share the beautiful manner in which Jane and Cassandra helped to comfort Edward and his children as they grieved the lost of a beloved wife and mother:

13 October (Castle Square):

  • First news of Elizabeth’s death: “My dearest Cassandra,—I have received your letter, and with most melancholy anxiety was it expected, for the sad news reached us last night, but without any particulars. It came in a short letter to Martha from her sister, begun at Steventon and finished in Winchester.”
  • Family Condolences: “We have felt, we do feel, for you all, as you will not need to be told,—for you, for Fanny, for Henry, for Lady Bridges, and for dearest Edward, whose loss and whose sufferings seem to make those of every other person nothing. God be praised that you can say what you do of him: that he has a religious mind to bear him up, and a disposition that will gradually lead him to comfort.”
  • Fanny Knight: “My dear, dear Fanny, I am so thankful that she has you with her! You will be everything to her; you will give her all the consolation that human aid can give. May the Almighty sustain you all, and keep you, my dearest Cassandra, well; but for the present I dare say you are equal to everything.”
  • Update on the boys: “You will know that the poor boys are at Steventon. Perhaps it is best for them, as they will have more means of exercise and amusement there than they could have with us, but I own myself disappointed by the arrangement. I should have loved to have them with me at such a time. I shall write to Edward by this post.”
Patchbox with portrait of Elizabeth Austen, courtesy of Jane Austen’s House.

15 October (Castle Square):

  • Concern for Edward: “Your accounts make us as comfortable as we can expect to be at such a time. Edward’s loss is terrible, and must be felt as such, and these are too early days indeed to think of moderation in grief, either in him or his afflicted daughter, but soon we may hope that our dear Fanny’s sense of duty to that beloved father will rouse her to exertion. For his sake, and as the most acceptable proof of love to the spirit of her departed mother, she will try to be tranquil and resigned. Does she feel you to be a comfort to her, or is she too much overpowered for anything but solitude?”
  • Concern for Lizzy: “Your account of Lizzy is very interesting. Poor child! One must hope the impression will be strong, and yet one’s heart aches for a dejected mind of eight years old.”
  • Mourning clothes for Cassandra: “Your parcel shall set off on Monday, and I hope the shoes will fit; Martha and I both tried them on. I shall send you such of your mourning as I think most likely to be useful, reserving for myself your stockings and half the velvet, in which selfish arrangement I know I am doing what you wish.
  • Mourning clothes for Jane: “I am to be in bombazeen and crape, according to what we are told is universal here, and which agrees with Martha’s previous observation. My mourning, however, will not impoverish me, for by having my velvet pelisse fresh lined and made up, I am sure I shall have no occasion this winter for anything new of that sort. I take my cloak for the lining, and shall send yours on the chance of its doing something of the same for you, though I believe your pelisse is in better repair than mine. One Miss Baker makes my gown and the other my bonnet, which is to be silk covered with crape.”
  • Sisterly Condolences: “That you are forever in our thoughts you will not doubt. I see your mournful party in my mind’s eye under every varying circumstance of the day; and in the evening especially figure to myself its sad gloom: the efforts to talk, the frequent summons to melancholy orders and cares, and poor Edward, restless in misery, going from one room to another, and perhaps not seldom upstairs, to see all that remains of his Elizabeth. Dearest Fanny must now look upon herself as his prime source of comfort, his dearest friend; as the being who is gradually to supply to him, to the extent that is possible, what he has lost. This consideration will elevate and cheer her. Adieu. You cannot write too often, as I said before. We are heartily rejoiced that the poor baby gives you no particular anxiety. Kiss dear Lizzy for us. Tell Fanny that I shall write in a day or two to Miss Sharpe.”
From Beatrice Knight’s article on Regency Mourning. Click HERE to read her article on this topic.

24 October (Castle Square):

  • Edward’s sons arrive: “Edward and George came to us soon after seven on Saturday, very well, but very cold, having by choice travelled on the outside, and with no greatcoat but what Mr. Wise, the coachman, good-naturedly spared them of his, as they sat by his side. They were so much chilled when they arrived, that I was afraid they must have taken cold; but it does not seem at all the case: I never saw them looking better.”
  • Jane’s Affectionate Observations: “They behave extremely well in every respect, showing quite as much feeling as one wishes to see, and on every occasion speaking of their father with the liveliest affection. His letter was read over by each of them yesterday, and with many tears; George sobbed aloud, Edward’s tears do not flow so easily; but as far as I can judge they are both very properly impressed by what has happened. Miss Lloyd, who is a more impartial judge than I can be, is exceedingly pleased with them.”
  • Entertaining the boys: “George is almost a new acquaintance to me, and I find him in a different way as engaging as Edward. We do not want amusement: bilbocatch, at which George is indefatigable, spillikins, paper ships, riddles, conundrums, and cards, with watching the flow and ebb of the river, and now and then a stroll out, keep us well employed; and we mean to avail ourselves of our kind papa’s consideration, by not returning to Winchester till quite the evening of Wednesday.”
  • Church on Sunday: “I hope your sorrowing party were at church yesterday, and have no longer that to dread. Martha was kept at home by a cold, but I went with my two nephews, and I saw Edward was much affected by the sermon, which, indeed, I could have supposed purposely addressed to the afflicted, if the text had not naturally come in the course of Dr. Mant’s observations on the Litany: ‘All that are in danger, necessity, or tribulation,’ was the subject of it.”
  • Sunday walk: “The weather did not allow us afterwards to get farther than the quay, where George was very happy as long as we could stay, flying about from one side to the other, and skipping on board a collier immediately.”
  • Sunday evening: “In the evening we had the Psalms and Lessons, and a sermon at home, to which they were very attentive; but you will not expect to hear that they did not return to conundrums the moment it was over… While I write now, George is most industriously making and naming paper ships, at which he afterwards shoots with horse-chestnuts, brought from Steventon on purpose; and Edward equally intent over the ‘Lake of Killarney,’ twisting himself about in one of our great chairs.”
A game of “Spillikins,” image courtesy of the Jane Austen Centre. Read their article for the rules of the game!

25 October (Castle Square) – contained in the same post:

  • Updates on Edward: “All that you say of Edward is truly comfortable; I began to fear that when the bustle of the first week was over, his spirits might for a time be more depressed; and perhaps one must still expect something of the kind.”
  • Adventures to Northam and Hopeful Plans for Netley: “We had a little water-party yesterday; I and my two nephews went from the Itchen Ferry up to Northam, where we landed, looked into the 74, and walked home, and it was so much enjoyed that I had intended to take them to Netley to-day; the tide is just right for our going immediately after moonshine, but I am afraid there will be rain; if we cannot get so far, however, we may perhaps go round from the ferry to the quay. I had not proposed doing more than cross the Itchen yesterday, but it proved so pleasant, and so much to the satisfaction of all, that when we reached the middle of the stream we agreed to be rowed up the river; both the boys rowed great part of the way, and their questions and remarks, as well as their enjoyment, were very amusing; George’s inquiries were endless, and his eagerness in everything reminds me often of his uncle Henry.”
  • Evening Entertainment: “Our evening was equally agreeable in its way: I introduced speculation, and it was so much approved that we hardly knew how to leave off.”
Site of the Itchen ferry in the 18th C.

October in Jane Austen’s Novels

Sense and Sensibility

  • Private Balls and Parties: “When Marianne was recovered, the schemes of amusement at home and abroad, which Sir John had been previously forming, were put into execution. The private balls at the park then began; and parties on the water were made and accomplished as often as a showery October would allow.”
  • Colonel Brandon’s Fateful Letter: “The first news that reached me of her [little Eliza] came in a letter from herself, last October. It was forwarded to me from Delaford, and I received it on the very morning of our intended party to Whitwell; and this was the reason of my leaving Barton so suddenly, which I am sure must at the time have appeared strange to every body, and which I believe gave offence to some. Little did Mr. Willoughby imagine, I suppose, when his looks censured me for incivility in breaking up the party, that I was called away to the relief of one whom he had made poor and miserable; but had he known it, what would it have availed? Would he have been less gay or less happy in the smiles of your sister? No, he had already done that, which no man who can feel for another would do. He had left the girl whose youth and innocence he had seduced, in a situation of the utmost distress, with no creditable home, no help, no friends, ignorant of his address! He had left her, promising to return; he neither returned, nor wrote, nor relieved her.”
Alan Rickman as Colonel Brandon, Sense and Sensibility (1995).

Pride and Prejudice

  • Mr. Collins Writes to Mr. Bennet: Excerpts from letter, from “Hunsford, near Westerham, Kent, 15th October,” read as follows:

    “The disagreement subsisting between yourself and my late honoured father always gave me much uneasiness; and, since I have had the misfortune to lose him, I have frequently wished to heal the breach: but, for some time, I was kept back by my own doubts, fearing lest it might seem disrespectful to his memory for me to be on good terms with anyone with whom it had always pleased him to be at variance… As a clergyman, moreover, I feel it my duty to promote and establish the blessing of peace in all families within the reach of my influence…

    “If you should have no objection to receive me into your house, I propose myself the satisfaction of waiting on you and your family, Monday, November 18th, by four o’clock, and shall probably trespass on your hospitality till the Saturday se’nnight following, which I can do without any inconvenience, as Lady Catherine is far from objecting to my occasional absence on a Sunday, provided that some other clergyman is engaged to do the duty of the day.”
David Bamber as Mr. Collins, Pride and Prejudice 1995.

Mansfield Park

  • Tom Bertram on Hunting: “We have just been trying, by way of doing something, and amusing my mother, just within the last week, to get up a few scenes, a mere trifle. We have had such incessant rains almost since October began, that we have been nearly confined to the house for days together. I have hardly taken out a gun since the 3rd. Tolerable sport the first three days, but there has been no attempting anything since.”
  • Mr. Crawford on Fanny: “You see her every day, and therefore do not notice it; but I assure you she is quite a different creature from what she was in the autumn. She was then merely a quiet, modest, not plain-looking girl, but she is now absolutely pretty. I used to think she had neither complexion nor countenance; but in that soft skin of hers, so frequently tinged with a blush as it was yesterday, there is decided beauty; and from what I observed of her eyes and mouth, I do not despair of their being capable of expression enough when she has anything to express. And then, her air, her manner, her tout ensemble, is so indescribably improved! She must be grown two inches, at least, since October.”
  • Miss Crawford’s Response: “Phoo! phoo! This is only because there were no tall women to compare her with, and because she has got a new gown, and you never saw her so well dressed before. She is just what she was in October, believe me. The truth is, that she was the only girl in company for you to notice, and you must have a somebody.”
Fanny Price refusing Henry Crawford.

Emma

  • Emma Longs for Isabella’s Christmas Visit: “[Emma’s] sister, though comparatively but little removed by matrimony, being settled in London, only sixteen miles off, was much beyond her daily reach; and many a long October and November evening must be struggled through at Hartfield, before Christmas brought the next visit from Isabella and her husband, and their little children, to fill the house, and give her pleasant society again.”
  • Mrs. Weston on Mr. Frank Churchill and Jane Fairfax: “‘You may well be amazed,’ returned Mrs. Weston, still averting her eyes, and talking on with eagerness, that Emma might have time to recover— ‘You may well be amazed. But it is even so. There has been a solemn engagement between them ever since October—formed at Weymouth, and kept a secret from every body. Not a creature knowing it but themselves—neither the Campbells, nor her family, nor his.—It is so wonderful, that though perfectly convinced of the fact, it is yet almost incredible to myself. I can hardly believe it.—I thought I knew him.'”
  • Mr. and Mrs. Weston’s Pain: “Engaged since October,—secretly engaged.—It has hurt me, Emma, very much. It has hurt his father equally. Some part of his conduct we cannot excuse.”
  • Emma and Mr. Knightley get married in October:
    • “Before the end of September, Emma attended Harriet to church, and saw her hand bestowed on Robert Martin…”
    • “The Mr. Churchills were also in town; and they were only waiting for November. The intermediate month was the one fixed on, as far as they dared, by Emma and Mr. Knightley. They had determined that their marriage ought to be concluded while John and Isabella were still at Hartfield, to allow them the fortnight’s absence in a tour to the seaside, which was the plan.”
    • “But Mr. John Knightley must be in London again by the end of the first week in November.”
    • “[Emma] was able to fix her wedding-day—and Mr. Elton was called on, within a month from the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Martin, to join the hands of Mr. Knightley and Miss Woodhouse.”
Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma Woodhouse, Emma 2009.

October Dates of Importance

This brings us now to several important October dates relating to Jane and her family:

Family News:

7 October 1767: Edward Austen born at Deane.

25 October 1804: Austen family returns to Bath and lives at 3 Green Park Buildings East.

October 1806: Austen women move to Southampton to live with Francis Austen and wife Mary.

14 October 1812: Edward Austen officially adopts “Knight” as surname.

4 October 1815: Austen travels to London and stays two months to nurse Henry during his illness.

Historic Dates:

19 October 1781: Major British defeat at the Battle of Yorktown, marking the end of the fighting during the American Revolutionary War.

16 October 1793: Marie Antoinette executed in France.

1 October 1801: Truce between Britain and France.

21 October 1805: Nelson defeats French-Spanish fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar.

Writing:

October 1796: Austen begins writing “First Impressions” (later revised as Pride and Prejudice).

30 October 1811: Sense and Sensibility published “By a Lady.”

Sorrows:

10 October 1808: Elizabeth Austen (Edward’s wife) dies after eleventh childbirth.

Battle of Trafalgar.

October

As we round the corner into the last few months of the year, it’s fascinating to find so many interesting tidbits each month in Jane Austen’s letters, novels, and life. Next month, we’ll take a look at November in Jane Austen’s World!

RACHEL DODGE teaches college English classes, gives talks at libraries, teas, and book clubs, and writes for Jane Austen’s World blog. She is the bestselling author of The Little Women Devotional, The Anne of Green Gables Devotional and Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen. Now Available: The Secret Garden Devotional! You can visit Rachel online at www.RachelDodge.com.

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September in Jane Austen’s World

Posted in A Year in Jane Austen's World, English Garden, Georgian Life, Jane Austen's letters, Jane Austen's life, Jane Austen's World, Regency, Regency Life, Regency World on September 9, 2024| 1 Comment »

As we explore September in Jane Austen’s World, we’re nearing the end of summer and the start of fall. Let’s take a look at Jane Austen’s life, letters, and novels and all they can tell us about Regency life in the month of September!

If you’re just jumping on the bus, you can find previous articles in this “A Year in Jane Austen’s World” series here: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, and August.

First off, we always love to see what each month brings to the English countryside in Jane Austen’s Hampshire. You can already see a hint of fall colors here and there, but the gardens are still lush and green. Here is a look at Chawton House this time of year:

Chawton House in September: Photo @ChawtonHouse.

September in Hampshire

In September, Jane Austen’s Hampshire still feels like summer, but there is a hint of autumn in the air that deepens as the month draws on. Of the weather, we have two comments from Austen in September 1796:

1 September (Rowling): “Our men had but indifferent weather for their visit to Godmersham, for it rained great part of the way there and all the way back.”

18 September (Rowling): “What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps one in a continual state of inelegance.”

Here is a glimpse of Jane Austen’s House Museum and its gardens in September:

Jane Austen’s House in September, Photo: @JaneAustensHouse.

September in Jane Austen’s Letters

Of Austen’s surviving letters, there are four from the month of September. All are dated from September 1796, at Rowling House. Austen spent several weeks there visiting her brother Edward and his wife, Elizabeth, at their first home, Rowling, a large farmhouse in Kent. Here are a few interesting highlights from her letters during her time there:

1 September:

  • Jane and Cassandra’s friendship: “The letter which I have this moment received from you has diverted me beyond moderation. I could die of laughter at it, as they used to say at school. You are indeed the finest comic writer of the present age.”
  • New gowns: “I have had my new gown made up, and it really makes a very superb surplice. I am sorry to say that my new coloured gown is very much washed out, though I charged everybody to take great care of it. I hope yours is so too.”
  • Jane’s skill with a needle and thread: “We are very busy making Edward’s shirts, and I am proud to say that I am the neatest worker of the party.”

Jane Austen quite prided herself on her needlework. In her article “I Am the Neatest Worker of the Party”: Making and Mending the Family’s Wardrobe,” Ann Buermann Wass (Persuasions On-Line) shares this:

“Before the invention of the sewing machine, all sewing had to be done by hand. While some tasks were left to professionals, the sewing of mothers, sisters, and daughters was a significant contribution to the household. Both letters and diaries suggest that women’s hands were seldom idle as they “sat at work,” that is, sewed garments for themselves and their families and mended them as they showed signs of wear. This work, stowed in work (or sewing) bags, was portable and could be carried around the house or even taken out visiting, allowing women to be productive while they chatted.” (Bauermann Wass)

Lady with a Red and Blue Sewing Bag (1815). National Gallery of Art.

5 September:

  • Cassandra attends a ball: “I shall be extremely anxious to hear the event of your ball, and shall hope to receive so long and minute an account of every particular that I shall be tired of reading it. Let me know how many, besides their fourteen selves and Mr. and Mrs. Wright, Michael will contrive to place about their coach, and how many of the gentlemen, musicians, and waiters, he will have persuaded to come in their shooting-jackets. I hope John Lovett’s accident will not prevent his attending the ball, as you will otherwise be obliged to dance with Mr. Tincton the whole evening. Let me know how J. Harwood deports himself without the Miss Biggs, and which of the Marys will carry the day with my brother James.”
  • Jane attends a ball: “We were at a ball on Saturday, I assure you. We dined at Goodnestone, and in the evening danced two country-dances and the Boulangeries. I opened the ball with Edward Bridges; the other couples were Lewis Cage and Harriet, Frank and Louisa, Fanny and George. Elizabeth played one country-dance, Lady Bridges the other, which she made Henry dance with her, and Miss Finch played the Boulangeries. (In reading over the last three or four lines, I am aware of my having expressed myself in so doubtful a manner that, if I did not tell you to the contrary, you might imagine it was Lady Bridges who made Henry dance with her at the same time that she was playing, which, if not impossible, must appear a very improbable event to you. But it was Elizabeth who danced.) We supped there, and walked home at night under the shade of two umbrellas.”

15 September:

  • Living in style: “We have been very gay since I wrote last; dining at Nackington, returning by moonlight, and everything quite in style, not to mention Mr. Claringbould’s funeral which we saw go by on Sunday.”
  • Jane’s commentary: “Miss Fletcher and I were very thick, but I am the thinnest of the two. She wore her purple muslin, which is pretty enough, though it does not become her complexion. There are two traits in her character which are pleasing — namely, she admires Camilla, and drinks no cream in her tea.”
  • A gentleman Jane admired: “We went by Bifrons, and I contemplated with a melancholy pleasure the abode of him on whom I once fondly doated.”
  • Jane’s travel plans: “As to the mode of our travelling to town, I want to go in a stage-coach, but Frank will not let me. As you are likely to have the Williams and Lloyds with you next week, you would hardly find room for us then. If anyone wants anything in town, they must send their commissions to Frank, as I shall merely pass through it. The tallow-chandler is Penlington, at the Crown and Beehive, Charles Street, Covent Garden.

What an intriguing line: “the abode of him on whome I once fondly doated.” Like me, you’re probably thinking, Who was this man? While some might wonder if she was referencing Tom Lefroy, it seems that Austen was actually writing about a different man.

Syrie James explains this reference in the following excerpt from her article, “Edward Taylor of Bifrons: Jane Austen’s First Love,” English Historical Fiction Authors (December 3, 2014):

When Jane wrote that letter in 1796, her flirtation with Lefroy had ended some seven months prior. She was reminiscing with wistful longing about a young man she’d met many years earlier. Scholars have long since identified the “Him” as Edward Taylor, and the “abode,” Bifrons Park, as the estate in Kent which he would one day inherit. Little else, however, was known about him. Biographer Deirdre Le Faye, in Jane Austen: A Family Record (1989) simply states, “Jane met and briefly cherished a girlish passion for young Mr. Edward Taylor of Bifrons.” John Halperin, in The Life of Jane Austen (1984), refers to Edward Taylor as “her old beau” and “the most shadowy of her possible early ‘suitors.’

You can read more of James’s fascinating article about Edward Taylor of Bifrons HERE. Her book Jane Austen’s First Love is based on her research about the young man Jane Austen apparently “doated” on in her youth. I have not read it, but I like the concept!

18 September:

  • News of Frank’s new appointment: “Frank has received his appointment on board the “Captain John Gore,” commanded by the “Triton,” and will therefore be obliged to be in town on Wednesday.” (The “Triton” is a new 32 frigate just launch at Deptford. Frank is much pleased with the prospect of having Captain Gore under his command.)

Having brothers in the Navy meant that the two Austen sisters were well-versed on topics surrounding ships, men in leadership, and appointments. Here is a fascinating bit of information I discovered about the very unique HMS Triton:

“Triton was an experimental ship and the only one built to that design; she was constructed out of fir due to wartime supply shortages of more traditional materials and had some unusual features such as no tumblehome. Her namesake was the Greek god Triton, a god of the sea. She was commissioned in June 1796 under Captain John Gore, with whom she would spend the majority of her active service, to serve in the Channel in the squadron of Sir John Warren.” (Wikipedia)

HMS Triton, artist Nicholas Pocock (1797).

September in Jane Austen’s Novels

Sense and Sensibility

  • The Dashwood women arrive at Barton Cottage in September: “As a house, Barton Cottage, though small, was comfortable and compact; but as a cottage it was defective, for the building was regular, the roof was tiled, the window shutters were not painted green, nor were the walls covered with honeysuckles. A narrow passage led directly through the house into the garden behind. On each side of the entrance was a sitting room, about sixteen feet square; and beyond them were the offices and the stairs. Four bed-rooms and two garrets formed the rest of the house. It had not been built many years and was in good repair. In comparison of Norland, it was poor and small indeed!—but the tears which recollection called forth as they entered the house were soon dried away. They were cheered by the joy of the servants on their arrival, and each for the sake of the others resolved to appear happy. It was very early in September; the season was fine, and from first seeing the place under the advantage of good weather, they received an impression in its favour which was of material service in recommending it to their lasting approbation.”
Barton Cottage, Sense and Sensibility (1995), an 18th century stone cottage on Flete Estate in South Devon.

Pride and Prejudice

  • Lydia’s new husband goes hunting in September: “Lydia was exceedingly fond of him. He was her dear Wickham on every occasion; no one was to be put in competition with him. He did everything best in the world; and she was sure he would kill more birds on the first of September than anybody else in the country.”

September 1st is when hunting season opens for partridge, duck, and goose in the UK, as it did in Jane Austen’s day. Apparently, Lydia thinks her new husband will kill more birds than any other man in England on opening day!

Mansfield Park

  • Mr. Crawford goes to Norfolk in September: “The season and duties which brought Mr. Bertram back to Mansfield took Mr. Crawford into Norfolk. Everingham could not do without him in the beginning of September. He went for a fortnight—a fortnight of such dullness to the Miss Bertrams as ought to have put them both on their guard, and made even Julia admit, in her jealousy of her sister, the absolute necessity of distrusting his attentions, and wishing him not to return; and a fortnight of sufficient leisure, in the intervals of shooting and sleeping, to have convinced the gentleman that he ought to keep longer away, had he been more in the habit of examining his own motives, and of reflecting to what the indulgence of his idle vanity was tending; but, thoughtless and selfish from prosperity and bad example, he would not look beyond the present moment. The sisters, handsome, clever, and encouraging, were an amusement to his sated mind; and finding nothing in Norfolk to equal the social pleasures of Mansfield, he gladly returned to it at the time appointed, and was welcomed thither quite as gladly by those whom he came to trifle with further.”

Emma

  • Mr. Weston proclaimed a hero by Emma’s sister for his help one September night: “Me, my love,” cried his wife, hearing and understanding only in part.— “Are you talking about me?—I am sure nobody ought to be, or can be, a greater advocate for matrimony than I am; and if it had not been for the misery of her leaving Hartfield, I should never have thought of Miss Taylor but as the most fortunate woman in the world; and as to slighting Mr. Weston, that excellent Mr. Weston, I think there is nothing he does not deserve. I believe he is one of the very best-tempered men that ever existed. Excepting yourself and your brother, I do not know his equal for temper. I shall never forget his flying Henry’s kite for him that very windy day last Easter—and ever since his particular kindness last September twelvemonth in writing that note, at twelve o’clock at night, on purpose to assure me that there was no scarlet fever at Cobham, I have been convinced there could not be a more feeling heart nor a better man in existence.—If any body can deserve him, it must be Miss Taylor.”
  • Harriet’s visit to the Martin family and a fond September memory: “She had seen only Mrs. Martin and the two girls. They had received her doubtingly, if not coolly; and nothing beyond the merest commonplace had been talked almost all the time—till just at last, when Mrs. Martin’s saying, all of a sudden, that she thought Miss Smith was grown, had brought on a more interesting subject, and a warmer manner. In that very room she had been measured last September, with her two friends. There were the pencilled marks and memorandums on the wainscot by the window. He had done it. They all seemed to remember the day, the hour, the party, the occasion—to feel the same consciousness, the same regrets—to be ready to return to the same good understanding; and they were just growing again like themselves, (Harriet, as Emma must suspect, as ready as the best of them to be cordial and happy,) when the carriage reappeared, and all was over. The style of the visit, and the shortness of it, were then felt to be decisive. Fourteen minutes to be given to those with whom she had thankfully passed six weeks not six months ago!”
  • Harriet marries Mr. Martin in September: “Before the end of September, Emma attended Harriet to church, and saw her hand bestowed on Robert Martin with so complete a satisfaction, as no remembrances, even connected with Mr. Elton as he stood before them, could impair.—Perhaps, indeed, at that time she scarcely saw Mr. Elton, but as the clergyman whose blessing at the altar might next fall on herself.—Robert Martin and Harriet Smith, the latest couple engaged of the three, were the first to be married.”
  • Anne grieves living away from Kellynch Hall for Michaelmas (29th of September): “Michaelmas came; and now Anne’s heart must be in Kellynch again. A beloved home made over to others; all the precious rooms and furniture, groves, and prospects, beginning to own other eyes and other limbs! She could not think of much else on the 29th of September; and she had this sympathetic touch in the evening from Mary, who, on having occasion to note down the day of the month, exclaimed, “Dear me, is not this the day the Crofts were to come to Kellynch? I am glad I did not think of it before. How low it makes me!”
Harriet marries Mr. Martin (Emma 2009).

September Dates of Importance

This brings us now to several important September dates that relate to Jane and her family:

Family News:

15 September 1791: James Austen becomes vicar of Sherborne St John, Hampshire.

September 1794: Charles Austen graduates from the Royal Naval Academy and becomes a midshipman aboard HMS Daedalus.

Historic Dates:

3 September 1783: The Treaty of Paris is signed, ending the American War of Independence.

29 September (yearly): Michaelmas celebrations, a day of feasting, which traditionally included a roast goose and blackberry pie.

Writing:

August/September 1815: Jane Austen possibly travels to London, regarding the publication of Emma, returning early in September.

Sorrows:

6 September 1814: Charles Austen’s wife Fanny dies after childbirth.

Chawton House Gardens in September: Photo @ChawtonHouse.

September

As you can see, September is a month when Jane Austen and her friends, family, and characters enjoyed travel, balls, and other outings. Next month, we’ll step into autumn in Hampshire and learn about October in Jane Austen’s World!

RACHEL DODGE teaches college English classes, gives talks at libraries, teas, and book clubs, and writes for Jane Austen’s World blog. She is the bestselling author of The Little Women Devotional, The Anne of Green Gables Devotional and Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen. Now Available: The Secret Garden Devotional! You can visit Rachel online at www.RachelDodge.com.

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