Jane Austen's House

Over het museum

The cottage in Chawton began about 500 years ago as a thatched timber farmhouse and later served as a coaching inn. In 1769 it was bought by the Knight family, distant relatives of the Austens, and became part of their Chawton estate. In 1809 Edward Austen, who had been adopted by the Knights as their heir, offered the house to his mother and sisters. Jane Austen moved in with her mother, her sister Cassandra and their friend Martha Lloyd in July 1809 and lived here for the last eight years of her life.

Here she wrote, revised and published all six of her novels: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. In May 1817, in poor health, she left for Winchester, where she died on 18 July 1817. Her mother and Cassandra stayed on, and after Cassandra's death in 1845 the building was divided into dwellings for estate workers and later served as an estate office and a working men's club.

In 1940 Dorothy Darnell founded the Jane Austen Society to save the house. Its benefactor T. E. Carpenter bought it for £3,000 and gave it to the nation as a memorial to his son. The Duke of Wellington opened the museum on 23 July 1949. Over the following decades more rooms were opened and the interior was restyled to look as it did in the Austens' time. Today the Grade I listed house is an accredited museum run by a charity, with period rooms, museum rooms and a cottage garden.

Hoogtepunten

• The tiny writing table at which Jane Austen wrote
• Her letters, jewellery and first editions of all six novels
• Period rooms including the Drawing Room, Dining Room and bedroom
• Permanent exhibition 'Jane Austen and the Art of Writing'
• Cottage garden
• Family fun area with Regency activities

Vaste collectie

• Jane Austen and the Art of Writing – A permanent exhibition on Austen's creative process, with objects that inspired her and first editions of all six novels shown together in the house where she wrote them.
• Period rooms of the house – The Drawing Room, Dining Room and upstairs bedroom, restored to their historic layout with original furniture and reproduction wallpapers, plus museum rooms with display cases.

Opgericht

1949

Beheerder

Jane Austen's House (registered charity)

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

2026 on-the-door prices; pre-booking online saves £1. Every ticket becomes an annual pass that allows unlimited visits for a year (annual pass tickets must be pre-booked, and evidence of eligibility may be requested for concessions). Art Fund members and Jane Austen Society members pay £7.50 with a membership card; Museums Association and ICOM members are free by arrangement. Tickets are non-refundable.

Toegankelijkheid

• Deels rolstoeltoegankelijk
• Lift: niet aanwezig
• Aangepast toilet
• Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats: geen informatie
• Hulphonden welkom
• Tastmodellen / voelbare objecten
• Rondleidingen in gebarentaal: geen informatie
• Informatie in eenvoudige taal: geen informatie
• Audiodescriptie: geen informatie

The house is historic, with low doorways and uneven surfaces. The ground floor and outbuildings are fully accessible, and there is an accessible toilet with baby changing. The upstairs of the main house can only be reached by a historic wooden staircase, but it can be viewed in a 360-degree virtual tour. Assistance dogs are welcome throughout the house. A descriptive tour with opportunities to touch objects can be arranged for visitors who are blind or partially sighted. One early-morning 'quiet visit' slot a month is offered for people who prefer a calmer environment.

Kinderen & gezin

Erg geschikt voor kinderen & gezinnen

• Gezinsrondleidingen & workshops
• Speurtocht, doeboekje of kinderaudiotour
• Doe- en voelstations
• Verschoonruimte

A family fun area offers hands-on Regency activities such as letter writing, portrait miniatures, bonnet design and dressing up. In the garden, visitors can play traditional games and borrow a picnic blanket and a book from the children's book basket. Children under 6 enter free and family tickets are available. A village playground and parkland with picnic benches are opposite the house.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

Chawton is just off the A31 at the A31/A32 roundabout near Alton. Sat nav postcode GU34 1SD. The walk from Alton station takes about 30 minutes. A taxi from Alton takes about 8 minutes.

Service & horeca

• Museumwinkel

A gift shop sells gifts, books and jewellery; visitors check in at the shop before entering the house. There is no café on site, but Cassandra's Cup café and the Greyfriar pub are opposite the house and the Old Kitchen Tearoom at Chawton House is a short walk away. Picnics can be eaten in the garden or at picnic tables in the village parkland.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

Het museum heeft hierover geen informatie gepubliceerd.

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