Jane Austen at Bath
5 July – 2 November 2025
I have melancholy news to relate, & sincerely feel for your feelings under the shock of it.—I wish I could better prepare you for it. But having said so much, your mind will already forestall the sort of event which I have to communicate.—Our dear Father has closed his virtuous & happy life, in a death almost as free from suffering as his Children could have wished.
This is one of two letters that Jane wrote to Frank from Bath telling him their father had died. She wanted to tell him first what happened before he heard or read the news elsewhere.
It’s dated 21 January 1805, and the other letter on display is the first letter that Jane wrote to him that he did not receive as he had already left his ship. What must have been upsetting for Jane, she had to rewrite the letter all over again.
It would signal the end of living in Bath for Jane, as shortly after she would leave the city and move to Southampton. Ironically, it was to live with Frank and his new wife Mary.
The Most Tiresome Place in the World
Along with the two letters written by Jane, the other special items in this exhibition is the manuscript of The Watsons, and a lock of Mr Austen’s hair and the little envelope Jane in which she kept it.
The Watsons
I love seeing Jane’s writing and crossings out from her novels, and this novel is one of the only manuscripts that remain. You can read her writing and I pulled up a chair to do this as it was so quiet.
Probably written in Bath in 1804-5, The Watsons was left unfinished by Jane. Cassandra said that Jane her about the story where a clergyman dies leaving his daughters penniless, and it may have been the similarity to Jane’s own situation as to why she left it unfinished.
Jane Austen kept it by her for more than a decade during which all her famous novels were published, so may have intended to pick it back up at some point.
Around the walls of the two rooms that are part of this exhibition are first editions of Jane’s novels. The prints and illustrations connected to Regency Bath displayed on the walls include architecture, maps, fashion and comedy sketches.
They relate more to Jane’s time living at Bath rather than having links to her life, however, it’s a nice addition as it gives you an understanding of the Georgian period, fashions and what living in the city would have been like.
If you are a Jane Austen fan, I can recommend this exhibition as you can see Jane’s treasures and read her manuscript and letters she wrote from Bath.
They are very special, and at a small cost of £7 (or if you have an annual ticket, £2) it is definitely worth it.
No. 1 Royal Crescent
It’s been years since I visited No. 1 Royal Crescent, a Georgian House that was really the show-home for the Crescent. It was rented out for periods of time, especially in September and October which were the high seasons at Bath.
One fact I found fascinating, was that people bought the facade of The Circle and would then employ their own architect to complete the back of the house. Therefore, each house on The Crescent has a different layout inside – fascinating!
(If you want to take a look inside one of the houses, The Royal Crescent Hotel is in the middle of the row, and has a wonderful garden where you can sit for drinks).
Each of the rooms is currently showing a clip about Jane Austen and her time living in Bath projected on the walls. Some people in our group liked it, and others just wanted a quiet experience.
You walk through the house starting on the ground floor then working your way up to the top floor of the house. You then go down the back stairs to visit the servants part of the house and the outdoor patio. The little boards have a QR code so you can look up each room of the house on your mobile as you go round.
The house shows you how a family with money would have lived here during the Georgian period, and Jane may have visited people living in similar houses, however, it lacked a little bit of feeling for me. This is probably because there was no connection to people that stayed in the house.
One thing I did love that the curator told me is that the wallpaper panels are held up with brass strips. When someone new rented the house, in the high season of September/October for example, they brought their own wallpaper to match their furnishings. When the seasons changed, they then rehung a different pattern (such as flowers in Spring)on the walls to lighten the room.
It may be better to visit on Fridays and Saturdays when there are volunteers in Regency dress giving people talks about Bath and Georgian life. My ticket is good for one year, however, so I may go back for the views from the bedrooms!
Love Bridgerton?
Bridgerton fans will see the exterior of No.1 Royal Crescent as the home of the Featherington family, of course, only the first house on the most iconic Crescent in the country would have been good enough for the social-climbing, flamboyant Featheringtons!
Private tours start from £17 per person – please email no1royalcrescent@bptrust.org.uk to enquire.
The Watsons
TALK: What is The Watsons – the beginnings of a novel? A short story? An experiment lying between biography and fiction? Why did she keep it? Kathryn Sutherland is talking about Jane’s unfinished novel at the museum on 30 October – Buy Tickets
You can read Jane’s full copy of The Watsons manuscript at the King’s College Library Project
Events
You can find an updated list of events on the Jane Austen 2025 events page and the key exhibitions at Jane Austen 250.
Further Reading
Read more about Jane Austen’s Bath and Jane Austen 250.
I enjoyed reading The Watsons by Rose Servosa which you can find on her website.
You can find a comprehensive list of Jane Austen’s Letters in Deirdre Le Faye’s Book.
Thank you
Unlike Jane’s novels, this blog doesn’t make any pewter. If you enjoy reading the posts then please consider buying me a coffee. Thank you.
