Jane Austen Timeline

How It All Went Down

Dec 16, 1775

Jane Austen Born

Jane Austen is born in Steventon, England. She is the seventh of eight children born to William and Cassandra Austen, and one of only two daughters. Throughout her life, her older sister, also named Cassandra after her mother, is her closest friend.

1783

First Schooling

Cassandra and Jane Austen are sent to Oxford, England to be educated by a private tutor named Ann Cawley. Both girls contract typhoid fever during an outbreak and return home to Steventon.

1785

Boarding School

Austen enrolls in boarding school at Abbey School in Reading.

1786

Home School

The family's money runs out and Austen returns to Steventon from boarding school. The rest of her education is completed at home from her father's voluminous library. Austen lives with her parents and sister for the rest of her life.

1793

Lady Susan

Austen begins Lady Susan, a novella told in the form of a series of letters. She works on it for two years.

Dec 1795

Austen's First "Love"

Austen meets Tom LeFroy, an Irish law student who is the nephew of her neighbor. Austen and LeFroy spend time together during his month-long visit to Steventon. He leaves in January 1796 and soon becomes engaged to someone else, ending whatever relationship they had. Austen writes affectionately of LeFroy to her sister, prompting later speculation that he is the real-life inspiration for her male characters.

Aug 1797

First Novel Attempt

Austen completes the first draft of First Impressions, the novel that later becomes Pride and Prejudice.

1801

Austen Family Moves to Bath

Austen moves with her parents to the resort town of Bath, England, after her father's retirement from clergy.

Dec 2, 1802

An Indecent Proposal

Just before her 27th birthday, Jane Austen receives her only marriage proposal. A recent Oxford grad named Harris Bigg-Wither proposes to Austen while she is visiting his sisters. Realizing that the marriage would be good for her family's circumstances, Austen accepts. The next morning, however, she changes her mind and withdraws her acceptance. Bigg-Wither marries two years later; Austen never does.

1803

Thwarted Novel

Austen sells a novel called Susan to a publisher for £10. But the book is never published, and Austen's family later buys back the rights to the work.

Jan 21, 1805

Austen Falls on Hard Times

Jane's father William George Austen dies, leaving his wife and sisters financially dependent on his sons. The Austen women first rent a house in Bath, then move in with Jane's brother Frank and his wife.

Jul 7, 1809

Chawton Cottage

Jane and Cassandra Austen and their mother move into Chawton Cottage, a home on an estate owned by their brother Edward.

Oct 1811

Sense and Sensibility

Austen publishes Sense and Sensibility, whose author is identified on the cover only as "a Lady." Austen's name is not attached to any of the novels she publishes during her lifetime.

Jan 1813

Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice is published.

May 1814

Mansfield Park

Mansfield Park is published.

Nov 1815

An Awkward Request

The librarian of the Prince Regent (later King George IV), a big fan of Austen's work, invites her to the prince's London home and suggests that she dedicate her soon-to-be-published book to him. Austen is not a fan of the prince, but is unable to say no. Emma is published the next month with a dedication to the prince. It is the last novel published in her lifetime.

1816

Austen Falls Ill

Austen begins to feel the first signs of a long, progressive illness that saps her energy. She continues to work on two novels, Persuasion and Northanger Abbey, but is delayed by her illness and by financial troubles caused by the failure of her brother Henry's bank.

May 1817

Death Draws Near

A bed-ridden Jane and Cassandra Austen move to Winchester in order to be closer to Austen's doctor.

Jul 18, 1817

Jane Austen Dies

Jane Austen dies at the age of 41. She is buried in Winchester Cathedral.

Dec 1817

Final Novels

Austen's final novels, Persuasion and Northanger Abbey (a rewrite of the unpublished novel Susan), are posthumously published together in one volume. A biographical note by her brother Henry publicly identifies her for the first time as the author of her previous novels.

1869

A Legacy Revived

Austen's nephew James Edward Austen-Leigh publishes a biography of his aunt entitled A Memoir of Jane Austen. The memoir sparks renewed interest in the writer.

1883

Austenolatry

The first popular editions of Austen's novels are published, sparking Austen fandom that continues to this day. Critic (and father of Virginia Woolf) Leslie Stephens calls her rabid following "Austenolatry."