Jane Austen’s brother Edward was lucky to have been adopted by the childless Knights and hence inheirited the Chawton Estate, Jane’s house in Chawton formed part of that estate. Much later, when her mother was widowed, Edward was able to offer shelter and a home in the modest house for his mother and the two sisters Jane and her devoted sister Cassandra.

They took up residence in 1809 at Chawton, whilst small it was much loved and enjoyed by the Austen women. They were also welcome at the great manor house under a mile away, where Edward or his brothers might be in temporary residence from time to time.  The ladies also frequently visited the Godmersham Park Estate, where Edward and his family resided for mostof each year.

• The Chawton Manor House is now a library dedicated to the study of work written mainly by English women between 1600 and 1830.
• The cottage where Jane Austen lived is now The Jane Austen House museum.
• Jane lived a modest life, her work viewed as a minor novelist during her life time and had fallen out of fashion within 3 years of her death.
• Redeemed subsequently she is now the second most read author worldwide, being second only to Shakespeare
• FR Leavis the great literary critic rated Jane Austen highly amongst his five top novelists ever in the English language.
• In recent years her work has been again massively successful not only in the written word but in versions popularised on film and television.
• Modestly buried in a poorly attended funeral in Winchester Cathedral, she sadly dies too young and due to burning and disposal many of her original manuscripts and letters were lost.