Welcome to Chawton House in Hampshire owned by the Knight family since the
1580s and closely linked to Jane Austen through her brother Edward
who inherited this impressive home and two other estates. Join us to find out how he
became the owner and why this historical home became so intriguing and famous.
Chawton House is in the pretty village of Chawton, Hampshire already famous as being the home of Jane
Austen in her later life at this modest cottage, a home she lived in with her mother and sister and
family friend thanks to the generosity of Edward providing the cottage for their use. We have
created a separate video with a full room-by-room tour of the house where some amazing personal
possessions and the writing desk from which you wrote all six novels is on display. Check out
that video after this one. The estate was acquired by Nicholas Knight in 1578 and this property was
built in 1588 by John Knight passing down the generations within the family. 441 years later
it has many tales to tell. Walking up the driveway we are seeing the view that Jane Austen would have
seen as she strolled excitedly up to the house to visit her brother when he was in residence.
But how did he become the owner?
Edward was born in Deane on the 7th October 1767, described as a sweet and lovable blonde-haired
boy, the third child of eight children to the Reverend George and Cassandra Austen.
They lived in Steventon Hampshire where George was rector.
This is the little church in Steventon
that Edward, Jane and family would visit when their father was conducting the service.
It was thanks to his wealthy distant cousin Thomas Knight that George and family lived in the
Steventon rectory as Thomas owned the estate. In 1781 Thomas Knight passed away and his heir became
his only son, Thomas Knight II. Thomas and his wife Catherine had no children of their own and
as was customary in those days they looked for a relative, a nephew or a cousin suitable to become
the heir. Edward was the eldest brother of Jane Austen and at the age of 12 he was introduced to
Thomas and Catherine, they warmed to him quickly whilst visiting the Austen family in Steventon
and took him on the remainder of their wedding tour of the Hampshire estates they now owned.
The main residence of Thomas and Catherine was Godmasham in Kent.
From here they penned the letter to George pleading for Edward to join them for the holidays.
After some reluctance due to the school work they agreed.
By 15 in around 1783 Edward was adopted by the Knights and would become heir to the fortune,
part of the agreement was for him to change his name to Knight when becoming the heir.
This decision would not only change the course of Edward's life but also have a
huge impact on Jane's writing career. To mark the occasion Thomas commissioned a silhouette,
here you can see George Austen presenting Edward to the Knights.
The Knights sent Edward on a grand tour of the continent when he was 18,
between 1786 and 1790 including 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 21.
Here it is hanging in the dining room next to the clothes worn by Edward as a child.
Following his return he married Elizabeth Bridges they would live in Godmersham and have 11
children. Jane would travel to Kent by coach many times to help look after her nieces and nephews.
It's thought Godmersham was the inspiration for Mansfield Park.
Thomas Knight II passed away in 1794 leaving Godmersham to his wife Catherine and Chawton
and Steventon to Edward. Ultimately Catherine released Godmersham to Edward
and moved to Canterbury before her death. Disaster struck the family in 1808 when
Edward's wife died suddenly after giving birth to their 11th child. This would
lead to him spending more time in Hampshire with the family he would never marry again.
More sadness followed for Edward, Jane died in Winchester in 1817
where she's buried in Winchester Cathedral, he then lost his mother in 1827
and she's buried here in the Chawton estate church Saint Nicholas.
Edward Austen Knight saw out his days in Godmersham
and is buried alongside his wife Elizabeth.
There are many rooms to tour around with history from other generations of the Knight family,
like this 17th-century freestanding staircase added by Sir Richard Knight.
The huge map of Georgian London in 1746.
The protection marks scratched into the woodwork next to the fireplace in the great hall,
a common practice until the 18th century to ward off evil spirits from coming down the chimney.
The museum also has various changing exhibitions like this one on women writers.
The library is a very special place holding many rare and unique books.
In 1992 Sandy Lerner co-founder of cisco systems took a 125-year lease
on the property and created the centre for the study of early women's writing 1600-1830.
The property was only open to scholars until 2016 when it was then opened to the general public.
Moving into the garden, the grounds have been restored to a late 18th-century style
with an informal south lawn seen here.
There are two terraces, this is the library terrace built by Edward's
grandson Montague Knight. The window above is the library hence the name.
In the small courtyard is the on-site cafe for cream teas.
The upper terrace has fantastic views across the estate with the house and
church in view. We will visit the church near the end where Jane Austen's mother is buried.
At the top of the estate is a walled garden built by Edward and referred to
in Jane's letters. Sadly she died before it was completed. In the 19th-century Montague Knight
split the garden in two and added these lovely ornate gates to the rose garden.
You can take further walks to the outer limits of the estate and see the Hampshire countryside
and today some sheep and lambs grazing in the beautiful fields surrounding the estate.
The 13th-century Saint Nicholas church is the only church in the village of Chawton and is part of
the house estate. What Jane would have known has changed considerably as a disastrous fire
in 1871 all but destroyed it. The churchyard was reserved for the Knight family burials, you can
find many of the family laid to rest here although Edward was buried in Godmersham with his wife.
A bronze statue of Jane Austen looks out over her beloved Hampshire and Chawton.
The church is usually open if you wish to wander around inside
and there is a memorial to Jane's mother and sister that was saved from the 1871 fire.
The graves of Cassandra and her mother are in the cemetery to the right of the church.
Well there you go, what an incredible tour around Chawton House. We found a lot out about
the Knight family and of course Edward and Jane Austen as well. I hope you enjoyed the
video do check out our other guides on the channel we've got more from Jane Austen,
lots of English heritage and national trust videos for you to go and check out and keep you occupied,
so thanks very much for watching and we'll see you again next time.