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10 Things about Cassandra Austen

March 22, 2021

Born 9 January 1773 – Died 22 March 1845

Cassandra Austen is well known as the most treasured sister to Jane Austen. They were born almost three years apart, and were inseparable from birth.

Their mother Mrs Austen said that, ‘If Cassandra was to have her head cut off, Jane would insist on sharing her same fate.’

From being very young, Jane looked up to her sister and often spoke of her virtues. Jane dedicated History, part of her Juvenilia she wrote around aged 12 to Cassandra. She described her as, “a Pheonix. Your taste is refine, your sentiments are noble, & your Virtues innumerable.”

Even before then, Jane was only 7 years old when she followed Cassandra to boarding school. First to Oxford, then to Reading and Southampton. And when Cassandra returned home, Jane did too. They shared a room all their lives, and told each other everything. They gossiped, as sisters do, and had insider jokes, and wrote to each other almost every day whilst apart.

Whilst Jane’s life is well known, and her talents as a writer have been acknowledged. It was made possible by her sister Cassandra, whose personality is lesser known.

Silhouette of Cassandra Austen

Cassandra was described as ‘handsome’ by some, although in this silhouette she looks very pretty. Eliza described her cousins as, ‘two beauties’, and it was said that Cassandra was prettier than Jane. This silhouette was done whilst Cassandra was alive, in contrast to the one we have of Jane which was created after her death.

Cassandra was a talented artist and painted the only portrait of Jane we have, including a back view. Cassandra was a wonderful watercolourist, and where Jane was known as a writer, she was known as the painter.

She painted Jane’s Juvenilia, including the wonderful Mary Queen of Scotts. Although it was said that the royal characters looked more like the Austen family than the royal family.

BAL3837 Mary Queen of Scots, c.1790 (w/c) by Austen, Cassandra (c.1772-1845) Private Collection English, out of copyright

Cassandra painted a back view of Jane whilst on holiday in Lyme Regis in 1804. Jane has her ribbons untied, so it was seen as quite racy at the time.

This frontal portrait was painted around 1810, although some Jane’s relatives thought it didn’t really look like Jane. It now sits in the National Portrait Gallery.

Cassandra was engaged only once in her life to Thomas Fowle. She knew him well as he was tutored by her father George Austen. They became engaged in 1795 when Cassandra was 22 years old. Needing money to marry, Tom went to the Caribbean to be a Military Chaplain. He would never return. He caught yellow fever and died in 1797, and was buried at sea on 13 February, although Cassandra did not receive this terrible news until the April of that year.

It was commented that Cassandra took the news of Tom’s death with great ‘self-command’, and it must have seemed so unfair that her future happiness had been cut short.

Cassandra had stayed with Tom’s family in Kintbury in Berkshire, which is 25 miles from Steventon, and upon her marriage would live in Wiltshire, 60 miles away. Letters from this period when Cassandra was staying at Godmersham have not survived, and it is speculated that there may have been a little jealousy on Jane’s part.

Jane was probably more upset that she would be parted from her sister, and this could account for her flirting so outrageously whilst staying with Madam Lefroy.

Jane wrote to Cassandra’s on her 23rd Birthday telling her all about it. In a letter dated Saturday 9 – Sunday 10 January 1796, Jane says, ‘In the first place I hope you will live twenty three years longer..’. She then continues with a long gossipy letter about her own antics whilst dancing, with friends, and her infatuation for Tom Lefroy.

Cassandra would have been related to Martha Lloyd through marriage. Around the same time, James was marrying his second wife, Mary Lloyd ( sister to Martha who lived with them). Their youngest sister Eliza was soon engaged to Tom’s brother, Reverend Fowle, which meant that Cassandra would have been the wife of her brother-in-law.

Meanwhile, there were changes in the rest of the Austen family. James daughter Anna had lived at Steventon Rectory since she was 2 years old after being consumed by grief. She was now 4 years old, and would soon be taken back to live with her father.

Henry was a lieutenant in the Oxfordshire Militia, and he would soon be engaged to Eliza, their widowed cousin. Charles and Francis were away at sea fighting France for their country. Edward was now 30 years old and settled at Rowlings in Kent with his wife Elizabeth, along with their first three children.

Cassandra was a wonderful childminder and was often called on in an emergency. Being single, she could drop everything, and take herself to where she was needed. She spent many months at Godmersham Park over the years.

Cassandra and Edward were close, and she got on well with his wife Elizabeth. She would often help his wife, especially when she was due to give birth. Sadly, Elizabeth became ill after the birth of their eleventh child, and died a few days later.

Elizabeth Bridges, Cassandra’s Sister-in-Law

Mrs Austen herself was a good housekeeper, and whilst at Steventon Rectory had milked cows, planted vegetables, cooked, mended, sewed, and kept the house running smoothly. With four boys at home, boys her husband tutored and her two girls, she was kept very busy indeed.

Cassandra inherited Mrs Austen’s good housekeeping skills, and whilst living at Chawton Cottage she would buy supplies, allocate duties to the servants, arranging the cooking, cleaning, and generally keep the house running efficiently. This meant that Jane was free to write and practice her piano playing which she did every morning.

After Jane had died, visitors to the cottage felt that it was somehow cold and and sad, and Cassandra’s life without her beloved sister must have been lonely at times. Anna Lefroy, their niece, said their relationship, ‘passed the common love of sisters; and it had been so from childhood.’

Ten years after Jane’s death in 1827, Cassandra was fifty-four years old when her mother died. She was now living alone in Chawton Cottage and free to travel and take visitors. She did what most people do when they live alone, Cassandra got a dog and named him Scout. He would fetch the milk from Chawton House and carry it in a pail with the handle between his teeth.

In 1843, two years before her own death, Cassandra burned two thirds of Jane’s letters. She felt the contents were too personal to them both, and she was probably right. Jane was such a private person, she published anonymously, and as her fame increased, Cassandra wanted to protect her memory. None of Cassandra’s Letters have survived or are kept privately. She also burned all her own letters she wrote to Jane, so even though we can read the 160 or so that survive, we are missing the other half of Jane’s correspondence.

Cassandra spent her dying days with her two brothers, Frank and Henry. Whilst visiting Frank at Portsdown Lodge, high above Portsmouth, Cassandra had a stroke. Although Frank was in his twilight years aged 71, he had to leave Cassandra to join his ship for a North America posting.

It was their brother Henry that came to look after Cassandra in the last days of her life. After his bank failed he took Holy Orders, and we would like to think that she died in his arms, just as Jane had died in hers.

Cassandra is buried on the Chawton Estate her brother Edward inherited. She has her own memorial tablet inside St Nicholas Church. You can find it on the left side of the church and Mrs Austen’s on the right side.

It reads,

IN MEMORY OF
CASSANDRA ELIZABETH 
AUSTEN
DAUGHTER OF THE LATE
REVEREND GEORGE AUSTEN
RECTOR OF SEVENTON
IN THIS COUNTY
DIED 22 OF MARCH 1845
BEING JUSTIFIED BY FAITH WE HAVE
PEACE WITH GOD THROUGH OUR LORD
JESUS CHRIST     Rom V.I.

Cassandra is buried with a previous resident of Chawton Cottage. In the churchyard at Chawton, she rests between her mother and Bridger Seward. He was Edward Austen’s bailiff who was moved out of Chawton Cottage so the Austen ladies could move in. His faded gravestone shows he died in 1808 at the great old age of 90.

Jane Austen’s Prayers

December 22, 2020

Jane Austen is known as the beloved author of Pride and Prejudice, Emma, and other witty and romantic novels. What is less known is that Jane was a deeply religious person who was devoted to God.

Jane wrote beautiful, heartfelt prayers to read with her family. As a child, she and Cassandra would often kneel at their bedside to recite their prayers. Later in life, Jane would read prayers in the morning when she rose, and in the evenings before bed.

Jane’s grandfather, father and brothers, as well as various cousins were all Clergymen, and it was a profession she knew well and admired and wrote about in her novels. She was devoted to God, and went to church often, no matter where she was living or whom she was visiting. It was simply part of her daily life.

Jane Austen’s original prayers are cared for by Mills College in Oakland, California, and for the first time you can read Jane’s original prayers in her neat handwriting that she wrote over 200 years ago.

Written on the outside of the sheets is “Prayers Composed by my ever dear Sister Jane” and you can read about their authenticity and history in the book.

* A portion from the sales of Jane Austen’s Prayers will go to support Chawton House Library. What Jane called the ‘Great House’. You can find out more about the charity and their work here

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Jane Austen’s Birthday 16 December

December 1, 2020

Jane was born on the cold frosty night of 16 December 1775 in Steventon, near Basingstoke in Hampshire. She was the seventh of eight children and the second daughter.

The next morning her father Reverend George Austen wrote to his sister-in-law Mrs Walter in Kent with the exciting news,

We have now another girl, a present plaything for her sister Cassy and a future companion. She is to be Jenny, and seems to me as if she would be as like Henry, as Cassy is to Neddy.

A few days after Jane was born, a blizzard struck the south of England, which caused the naturalist Gilbert White to note that the trees in Selborne were looking ‘quite naked’.

It was one of the harshest winters ever to be recorded, and this cold snap lasted through until the following Spring. Only then could Jane be taken out of the house. She was baptised at St Nicholas Church, Steventon on 5 April 1776 as recorded in the church register.

Birthday Celebrations

From Jane’s novels, her surviving letters, and other pieces of writing there seems little mention of Birthday celebrations, although there is one birthday that does stand out.

Jane’s 19th birthday. It was a significant one as she received from her father a portable writing slope he had purchased from Ring Brothers in December 1794.

It would have been an expensive purchase at the time, costing 12 shillings.

Jane Austen’s Portable Writing Desk © Public Domain

The Austen family had bought a number of household items from Ring Brothers which was a kind of shopping emporium in the town of Basingstoke. They mainly supplied furniture and household goods. You can read the Austen family purchases in the accounts ledger which still survives today.

Jane’s father George had noted the purchase himself in his own pocket book,

A Small Mahogany Writing desk with 1 Long Drawer and Glass Ink Stand Compleat. 12s. December 5, 1794.

It was small, light, and portable, and meant that Jane could continue writing her letters and novels wherever she went. A lock and key secured her papers, and an inner compartment was used to safely store her glasses and the early drafts of her novels.

Once placed on a table, it could be opened up to reveal a sloped leather writing surface, with a small storage place for ink and quills.

Almost Lost

It was almost lost when Jane was returning from a visit to her brother Edward at Godmersham Park at Kent. Upon arrival at the Bull & George Inn at Dartmouth for an overnight stay, it was put on a carriage heading for Dover.

Jane wrote about this traumatic event in a letter to Cassandra on 24 October 1798,

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 towards 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… 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.

Jane’s writing desk containing her letters and a legal document, plus her life savings of seven pounds. They would have been lost without Mr Nottley’s quick thinking.

See Jane’s Portable Writing Desk at the British Library

The writing desk was passed down through Jane’s brother James family.

His son James Edward Austen Leigh wrote of the desk in his memoirs,

This mahogany desk, which has done good service to the public, is now in the possession of my sister, Miss Austen.

The desk had found its way to Canada where it had been stored in an old suitcase.

On 29 October 1999, Jane’s great-great-great niece Joan Austen Leigh entrusted the desk to the British Library.

It contained a glass ink pot, a penknife, and in the desk drawer two pairs of tortoiseshell spectacles and a pair of wire framed spectacles. According to Jane’s family, they all belonged to her.

Jane’s desk is now a popular attraction that attracts many visitors to the Sir John Ritblat Gallery at the British Library in London.

https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/jane-austens-writing-desk
The Real Jane Austen, A Life in Small Things by Paula Byrne
Jane Austen Letters, Deirdre Le Faye

8 Little Known Things About Edward Austen

November 19, 2020

8 Things you may not know about Jane Austen’s Brother Edward Austen Knight

Born 7 October 1767 – Died 19 November 1852

On this day, Edward Austen died peacefully at his Godmersham home at the age of eighty-five and is buried beside his wife in Godmersham Church.

One could say that Edward Austen had been lucky in life. Although his birth year is often reported as 1768, he was actually born the previous year on 7 October 1767 as clearly written in the Parish Register.

Born into a loving, fun and intelligent family, they affectionately called him ‘Neddy’.

Edward was described as being good, amiable, and sweet-tempered. This probably brought him to the attention of Thomas Knight who was a cousin of his father’s who had no children of his own. He and his wife Elizabeth looked around the family for an heir and chose to adopt Edward.

He was presented to them when he was sixteen years old, and spent his school holidays between Kent and Hampshire.

This silhouette shows George Austen presenting his son Edward to the Knights with Mrs Knight’s mother. It was painted by William Wellings to celebrate the occasion. Edward was sixteen years old at the time.

William Wellings Silhouette of Edward Austen Presented to Knight Family © Wikipedia

Unlike his brothers, he was not sent to University. Instead, he was taught at home as a country gentleman to take on the duties of the estates. Edward loved the countryside, and enjoyed horse riding and hunting with the boys in the surrounding villages.

He went on a Grand Tour of the Continent between 1786 and 1790 when he was 18 which included a year spent in Dresden, then Italy and Rome. As a memento of his tour, Edward’s full-length portrait was painted when he was twenty-one. A fragment of broken marble and a ruined temple can be seen in the background, as though it was painted in Italy!

Edward Austen, Anonymous portrait painted in 1789 during the Grand Tour © Chawton House

Edward wrote journals and illuminating letters home showing his writing talents matched those of his siblings. They are still in existence today, and show that he loved to describe his surroundings and experiences in great detail.

When he returned from his Grand Tour, he met and married Elizabeth Bridges on 27 December 1791. She was a local beauty and the daughter of Sir Brook Bridges of Goodnestone near Wingham.

They lived in a house called Rowlings after their marriage, and later moved into Godmersham Manor which was larger and could accommodate their growing family.

Edward kept himself busy managing the estates and was also made High Sheriff of Kent in 1801.

Jane made the stagecoach journey from her Hampshire home many times to stay for long periods and help look after her nieces and nephews. It was said that Godmersham was inspiration for Mansfield Park, and moving in wealthy circles gave Jane ideas for the characters in her novels.

Godmersham Park Painting also used on the Jane Austen £10 Bank Note © Public Domain

In 1793, Edward’s first child Fanny Catherine was born, the first of eleven children. She would become Jane’s favourite niece whom she thought of ‘as another sister’. Jane would advise her later in life when it came to marriage and matters of the heart. It was one of Jane’s last pleasures to re-read Fanny’s letters before she died.

On 10 October 1808, a terrible thing struck the family when Jane was in Southampton and Cassandra in Kent. Elizabeth was only 35 when she died ten days after the birth of her eleventh child from a sudden illness. After his wife’s death, Edward spent more time in Hampshire to be closer to his family.

Upon the death of Edward’s adoptive father Thomas Knight in 1794, Godmersham Park was inherited by his wife Elizabeth with the remainder of his estate going to Edward. She gave it to Edward and moved to a house in Canterbury until she died in 1812. Edward then took the name ‘Knight’ in appreciation of their generosity.

Although there were two estates included in his inheritance, Godmersham Park in Kent and Hampshire. Edward also inherited a third estate in Wittersham, also in Kent.

Edward was a bit of a hypochondriac like his mother, and possibly the management of such large estates and people brought on stress. He would often complain of stomach disorders, faintness and gout. Later this would bring about a visit to Bath to which Jane would accompany him.

Although Edward was a wealthy man he still had money worries, and Jane almost lost the right to live in Chawton Cottage.

He was involved in a court battle that challenged his inheritance through an earlier will linked to his adoptive mother Elizabeth. If the will was upheld, he would have lost the Hampshire estate. It dragged on for years and Edward ultimately settled out of court which shows the seriousness of the claim.

He also lost £20,000 when his brother Henry’s Bank went bankrupt.

Edward lived at Godmersham until his death on 19 November 1852, spending most of his time with his children and grand-children. He had been in good spirits on his usual drive around the countryside the day before.

On the morning of his death, he woke early and asked his servant to leave him to rest, and when the servant returned he had passed away.

One of his relations said afterwards,

It strikes me as a characteristic end of his prosperous and placid life, and he will certainly leave on the minds of all who knew him an image of Gentleness and quiet Cheerfulness of no ordinary degree.

Further Reading:
Spence, J. Jane Austen’s Brother Abroad: The Grand Tour Journals of Edward Austen

To read more about Jane’s family, see About Jane Austen

Jane Austen Stamps

October 1, 2020

If you love collecting Jane Austen memorabilia, one of the easiest and cheapest things to collect are Jane Austen stamps.

As stamps are produced in great quantities, so it is less about the stamps themselves and more about the postmarks that go with them that adds the value. Or in some cases, what the stamps are stuck to!

There have been two main sets of Jane Austen stamps produced, one in 1975 to celebrate 200 years since Jane’s brith and the second in 2013 to celebrate 200 years since Pride and Prejudice was published.

Anniversary of 200 Years since Jane’s Birth (1975)

This set of four was produced in 1975 and celebrated the 200th anniversary of Jane’s birth. The four illustrations feature characters in Jane’s novels, and these are harder to find.

All the stamps read Jane Austen 1775-1817 up the left hand side and then a description of the characters. The first is Emma & Mr Woodhouse from Emma, then Catherine Morland from Northanger Abbey, a proud Mr Darcy is from Pride and Prejudice, and Mary and Henry Crawford from Mansfield Park complete the set.

Emma & Mr Woodhouse (Emma)

Catherine Morland (Northanger Abbey)

Mr Darcy (Pride and Prejudice)

Mary and Henry Crawford (Mansfield Park)

200th Anniversary of Pride and Prejudice (2013)

The most recent stamps were produced in 2013 to celebrate 200 years since Jane’s first novel Pride and Prejudice was published.

The Royal Mail launched the commemorative stamps on 21 February 2013. There are six stamps to collect, one for each of Jane’s novels, and below you can find the written commentary that came with each.

Sense and Sensibility

On opening the door, she saw Marianne stretched on the bed, almost choked by grief, one letter in her hand, and two or three other laying by her. Elinor drew ear, but without saying a word; and seating herself on the bed, took her hand, kissed her affectionately several times, and then gave way to a burst of tears, which at first was scarcely less violent than Marianne’s.

Pride and Prejudice

As she stood before the canvas on which he was represented, and fixed his eyes upon herself, she thought of his regard with a deeper sentiment of gratitude than it had ever raised before; she remembered its warmth, and softened its impropriety of expression.

Mansfield Park

There certainly are not so many men or large fortune in the world as there are pretty women to deserve them.

Emma

Oh! to be sure,’ cried Emma, ‘it is always incomprehensible to a man that a woman should every refuse an offer of marriage. A man always imagines a woman to be ready for any body who asks her.

Northanger Abbey

She took her candle and looked closely at the cabinet … The key was in the door, and she had a strange fancy to look into it; not, however, with the smallest expectation of finding anything, but it was so very odd, after what Henry had said. In short, she could not sleep till she had examined it. So, placing the candle with great caution on a chair, she seized the key with a very tremulous hand and tried to turn it; but it resisted her utmost strength.

Persuasion

When they came to the steps, leading upwards from the beach, a gentleman, at the same moment preparing to come down, politely drew back, and stopped to give them way. They ascended and passed him; and as they passed, Anne’s face caught his eye, and he looked after her with a degree of earnest admiration, which she could not be insensible of. She was looking remarkably well; her very regular, very pretty features, having the bloom and freshness of youth restored by the fine wind which had been blowing on her complexion, and by the animation of eye which it had also produced. It was evident that the gentleman, (completely a gentleman in manner) admired her exceedingly. Captain Wentworth looked round at her instantly in a way which shewed his noticing of it. he gave her a momentary glance, a glance of brightness, which seemed to say, ‘That man is struck with you, and even I, at this moment, see something like Anne Elliot again‘.

Special Postmarks

One thing to look out for is a postmark with a quote from Pride and Prejudice. On the first week of the launch, letters mailed from Chawton or Steventon (Jane Austen Country) were postmarked with a special Pride and Prejudice quote, ‘Do anything rather than marry without affection’.

Collection Packs

To mark the 200th anniversary of Jane’s birth in 1975, the Royal Mail produced special collection packs which you can still find today.

Presentation Packs

This set also came in a Presentation Pack and an insert all about Jane.

First Day Cover, Insert and Posters, PHQ Cards

You can also find other items that feature the stamps. Some are called First Day Cover and they are franked with a postmark on the first day of launch and sometimes the first ones off the press.

In England, there are two tiers or postage for mail. First Class postage costs more and is for more urgent letters that will arrive the next day. The Second Class postage costs a little less and is for less urgent letters that will arrive in 2-3 days. The cost of the stamps go up each year which is why they say 1st or 2nd on each stamp.

You can order the stamps from anywhere in the world via the Royal Mail website and watch out for new ones released on key dates. You can also find sheets of new stamps and sometimes franked stamps for sale on second hand websites.

Collectors know that the ones sent from Chawton, Bath and Winchester, and other places associated with Jane are the most sought after.

Visiting the Jane Austen Centre in Bath?

If you are visiting the Jane Austen Centre in Bath you can find Jane Austen stamps in their gift shop. These can be used to mail postcards from the UK to anywhere in the world. A great gift for a Jane Austen fan to receive back home.

Happy stamping!

Jane Austen Centre Bath
Royal Mail Stamp Collections

Jane Austen Treasures: Pelisse Coat

September 14, 2020

Jane Austen’s silk pelisse is the most well provenanced item of clothing believed to have been worn by Jane.

It was given to Hampshire County Museum Services and Archives by a descendant of Jane’s family, and is one of the most special items owned by Jane Austen.

It is a pleasure to see it in person and I am always struck at how slight Jane was. From the length of the coat we know that Jane was between 5 feet 6 and 5 feet 8. Compared to women of her time she was seen as tall and slim.

We have a good idea of what Jane looked like from her family, and you can imagine her soft brown curls and hazel eyes being complemented by the silk weave of the oak leaves.

The coat is in such good condition considering it is over 200 years old. The style reflects the change in fashion to a looser waist and high frill collar which was popular when she had it made, although it would have had a belt which has been lost along the way.

Jane mentions her coat in a letter to Cassandra dated 23-24 August 1814,

I must provide for the possibility, by troubling you send up my Silk Pelisse by Collier on Saturday. -I feel it would be necessary on such an occasion.

Jane was staying with Henry at his home in Henrietta Street in London at the time. Henry had mentioned that they could call in to see their friends the Birches and the Crutchleys on the way back to Chawton.

It seems they were families of importance for Jane to risk her coat being brought by Colliers, the pubic carriage that ran between Alton and London.

Jane did have another coat as she mentions another trimmed pelisse in her letter dated 30 April 1811, however, this one is made of silk so it was more of a luxury item worn on special occasions.

We like to think that Jane made this purchase from the money she received from sales of Pride and Prejudice published in 1813.

Jane’s pelisse dates to 1814 which is the same year she wrote Mansfield Park. She writes about the importance of owning a pelisse as an indication of ones social standing as the other ladies look down on Fanny for not owning one,

The young ladies who approached her at first with some respect, in consideration of her coming from a baronet’s family, were soon offended by what they termed “airs”; for, as she neither played on the pianoforte nor wore fine pelisses, they could, on farther observation, admit no right of superiority.

We know that Jane loved shopping and a pelisse was a fashionable item to wear in the early 18th century. This fashion plate from La Belle Assemblée dated September 1813 is a beautiful example of a coat worn outdoors.

Morning Dress September 1813. A Fashion Plate from *La Belle Assemblée*. Number 18 *© Public Domain*

Although pelisse coats had been worn from the 17th century, their style changed over time from being more of a cloak to a fitted garment worn with a high collar.

Fabric was important, and Jane probably purchased hers from one of the large warehouses in London. French imports of silk were banned at the time due to the war so the fabric would have been made in England. Jane would have paid a seamstress to make up the coat which would have cost more than the fabric, and the finished coat would have been an luxury item for her.

She liked wearing brown, and she chose a fabric decorated with an oak leaf pattern which represented the wooden ships in the fleet of the British Navy. It may have been a display of support for her Navy brothers Charles and Frank who were on active duty at the time.

Jane also mentions a pelisse in her military novel Persuasion where Captain Wentworth likens his old ship to a pelisse,

I had no more discoveries to make than you would have as to the fashion and strength of any old pelisse, which you had seen sent about among half your acquaintance ever since you could remember, and which at last, on some wet day, is lent to yourself.

How wonderful Captain Wentworth is to be concerned with Anne’s pelisse coat.. we love him even more!

See Jane Austen’s Pelisse Today

Jane’s pelisse is only shown at special events in order to preserve it so go and see it if you get the chance.

In the meantime, a replica can be found in Jane’s dressing room in her home, now the Jane Austen’s House Museum at Chawton.

Photograph Author’s Own with thanks to the Jane Austen’s House Museum

Want to make your own pelisse?

The talented Hilary Davidson has created a pattern from Jane’s pelisse that you can use to sew your own. You can find it through a link on her website www.hilarydavidson.net.