Jane Austen was born in Hampshire, England on December 16, 1775, to Reverend George Austen and his wife Cassandra. She was the seventh child of eight, and was very close to her sister Cassandra. The only education she received outside of her home was that of the Abbey boarding school in Reading, England. Jane and her sister Cassandra. They were both sent home after a disease broke out in Reading, thus their education was continued at home. It was there that the girls and their siblings spent time learning the piano, drawing, and reading.
The Austen family spent much of their leisure time reading novels. The Reverend Austen had an extensive library that Jane spent many hours in. The Austen family would also put on plays in the church, with the help of their cousin.
In her early adulthood, trips were taken to Bath, London, and Southampton where the Austen's attended balls an plays. Jane was known by many as a social butterfly and met Mr. Tom Lefroy on one of these many outings. In one of her many letters to Cassandra, she admits to flirting with him, and despairs over the fact that she will only see him one last time. It was later said by Mr. Lefroy that he did have a "boyish love for Jane Austen". Jane was proposed to in 1802 by Harris Bigg-Wither while she and Cassandra were staying with the Bigg family. She accepted but changed her mind and refused him the next morning declaring that she did not love him.
Reverend Austen died in 1805, so the Austen family moved to Southampton to be closer to her brothers who were in the navy at the time. In 1809, Mrs. Austen, Cassandra, and Jane moved to Chawton to live in a house provided by their brother Edward. It was in this house that she revised Sense and Sensibility, and it was published anonymously in 1811. She then revised Pride and Prejudice, which was published in January of 1813. Jane became quite famous after the publishing of Pride and Prejudice, compelling her to begin work on Mansfield Park.
She finished her novels while living in Chawton, and after many years of writing, attending concerts, and visiting with her family, she left everything to Cassandra in her will and died on July 18, 1871. She was only 41 years old.
1. The
March 2010. http://www.pemberley.com/janeinfo/janelife.html#life1a.
2. Jane Austen.org: Jane Austen Biography. 2010. Web. 26 March
2010. http://www.janeausten.org/.
