Carriages "full of future Heroes, Legislators, Fools, & Vilains" - Exploring school life in Winchester

Have you ever wondered what school life was like in the early 1800s? In the next two posts, I will write about school life in Jane Austen's times, starting with a boys' school and moving on to a girls' establishment in my next post. 

Entrance into Winchester College. 

Detail of Winchester College 

Jane Austen's connection to Winchester extends beyond her short stay in the city; in fact, several of her nephews studied at Winchester College, and it was next to this prestigious school that she spent the final days of her life. 

Winchester College, right next to Jane Austen's last home. 

When I visited Jane Austen's last home, I learnt a lot about this connection from their well-curated exhibition, but I also had the chance to explore the College Treasury to learn more about the history of the college. 

Inner courtyard of Winchester College. 

In the early 19th century, Winchester College was one of the leading schools in the country, and it is still a highly prestigious institution to this day. At the time, there were between 150 and 200 boys studying at this college, and most of the students were boarders at the school. The students received a classical education here and learnt Latin and Greek, but could also choose subjects such as French, dancing, writing and drawing skills. 

This desk was on display at 8 College Street, (Jane's last home). Each boy at Winchester College had a desk like this. 

It's fascinating to see names and nicknames carved onto the desk. "Fat Prawn" is an interesting choice!

Eight of Jane's nephews studied at Winchester College as Commoners (fee-paying pupils). Jane often mentions the College in her letters and must have heard many stories about it from her nephews, who often stayed with their aunts in Chawton and Southampton. These nephews ended up having careers in the clergy, army and navy, in line with family tradition.

These fascinating Long Rolls show students enrolled in order of seniority by academic performance (as opposed to age). The scrolls detail when each of Jane's nephews attended the school and how they progressed through the forms. 

In a scroll from 1811 (above), Edward Austen (eldest son of Edward Austen Knight) is marked near the top. He was a pupil here from 1807 to 1811, a talented cricketer and rose to the ranks of Senior Prefect at the college. 

His brothers, George and Henry, are marked further down the scroll (senior part of fifth book). George, who studied here from 1808 to 1812, failed in his chosen legal career but, like Edward, was an excellent cricketer. Henry went on to have a career in the army.

In a scroll from 1816 (above left), James Edward Austen is marked who was the son of James Austen and later became Jane's biographer. (If you look closely enough, there is a Wickham below his name!)

In a scroll from 1818 (above right), Charles Knight is marked, who was one of Edward Austen Knight's younger sons. Charles was at the school from 1814-1818, and he was Jane's only nephew staying at the school when she was in Winchester. Jane looked forward to a visit from Charles, as she wrote to James Edward Austen on 27th May, 1817: "on Thursday, which is Confirmation & Holiday, we are to get Charles out to breakfast. We have had but one visit from him poor fellow, as he is in Sickroom, but he hopes to out be tonight." (Letter 160) Charles later went to Cambridge, was ordained and became the Rector of Chawton, his father's estate.

Cricket was a popular hobby for the pupils, and regular matches were held between the college and the commoners. This cricket bat dates back to mid- to late 18th century. 

This music book from 1800-1810 belonged to the Austen family and is open on the page with "Domum", the Winchester College song, which refers to a domum tree that grows on the college grounds. The book is currently on loan from Jane Austen's House.

Whilst Jane lived here, the Headmasters of the college were Goddard and Gabell, whom Jane mentions in her letters with regards to the boys' release from boarding. She writes in a letter to Martha Lloyd in 1812, "Our next visitor is likely to be William from Eltham in his way to Winchester, as Dr Gabell chuses he should come then before the Holidays, tho it can be only for a week." (Letter 77) William Knight (also son of Edward) struggled in his studies and left the college after two years. He later became the vicar of Steventon like his grandfather. 

Portrait of William Stanley Goddard (Headteacher from 1793-1810) by John Lucas. 

Jane complained in a letter about Headteacher Goddard's unwillingness to let the boys leave before the end of term: "Edward has had a less agreable answer from Dr Goddard, who actually refuses the petition. Being once fool enough to make a rule of never letting a boy go an hour before the Breaking up Hour, he is now fool enough to keep it. We are all disappointed." (1808, Letter 55). I'm left wondering if Jane had this Headteacher in mind when choosing a surname for Mrs Goddard in Emma...

Thomas Bower (below) was a writing master at Winchester in the early 1800s. Writing was held at high importance at the school, and many writing competitions were held there.  

Students were encouraged to write poems, and "Fugitive Pieces" is a booklet of poems by Jane's nephew, James Edward Austen, who wrote many of these poems when he was at Winchester in 1814-15. 

Gold and silver prize medals (below) were given as school prizes to students for essays, speeches and the like. Interestingly, none of Jane Austen's nephews received prizes for their writing. 

In 1815, James Edward wrote this verse for a competition: "Ulysses announces to Hecuba that the Manes of Achilles demand the death of Polyxena". 

Although James Edward didn't win any competitions at Winchester, later on James Edward became known for his "Memoir" or the first biography of Jane Austen, which is an invaluable source of information for biographers and scholars of Austen. 

Above is a diary entry by a boy called Charles Minet who writes about a rebellion that broke out at the college in 1818. As a result, 26 pupils were expelled from Winchester. Jane's nephew, Charles Knight, was involved in the rebellion, but didn't get expelled; however, the family were disappointed in his behaviour. Thankfully, he succeeded academically at Winchester. 

This plan shows Winchester College Commoners. 

I was amused to notice the room name "Wickham's" in the floor plan!" I was wondering if Mr Wickham was sent to Winchester before going to Cambridge!

Living in Chawton on the road towards Winchester, the Austen ladies lived conveniently close to Winchester, and it was easy for the nephews to come and visit their aunts there. In July, 1816, Jane wrote to her nephew James-Edward about carriages full of schoolboys on their way back from boarding school that the Austen ladies watched drive past their home: "We saw a countless number of Postchaises full of Boys pass by yesterday morning - full of future Heroes, Legislators, Fools, & Vilains" (Letter 142).

Picture courtesy: The Warden and Scholars of Winchester College

References and further reading: 

Quotes from: Le Faye, Deirdre. (2011) Jane Austen's Letters. Fourth Edition. OUP. 

To read more about Jane's last home, click here: 

https://austenised.blogspot.com/2025/06/a-peek-inside-jane-austens-last-home-in.html

To read more about Jane Austen's Winchester, click here: 

https://austenised.blogspot.com/2010/08/following-janes-last-journey.html

Jane Austen's Statue Unveiling at Alton Assembly Rooms

Regency Week is here and, marking 250 years from the birth of Jane Austen, a statue has been unveiled in front of the Alton Assembly Rooms. Today, on Regency Day, excitement built up as crowds of Janeites paraded from the market square and then gathered around the Assembly Rooms to witness the unveiling. 

After opening speeches by Caroline Jane Knight (second left), descendant of Edward Austen Knight, and Cllr Annette Eyre, the Mayor of Alton, the statue was unveiled by the Mayor together with Jeremy Knight (also of the Knight family of Chawton House). 

Cllr Jannette Eyre, Mayor of Alton's opening speech. 

Unveiling of the statue by the Mayor of Alton and Jeremy Knight.

The sculptor, Mark Coreth, collaborated with the Morris Singer foundry to create the bronze sculpture. He explained that he wanted Jane Austen to "rise from her books" and designed the sculpture to reflect her actual height (close to 5'8", which was a significant height for a woman of her time). 

Mark Coreth

The statue is situated in a newly created "Regency Garden" with a Regency-inspired planting scheme and flowers mentioned in Jane Austen's letters. I'm sure the Alton residents will enjoy sitting on the "carriage benches" in this garden and take in their surroundings.

It was wonderful to be there this beautiful (if hot!) day and soak up the atmosphere. This is the busiest, most bustling and lively Regency Day I have seen!

What do you think about the new statue? 

A peek inside Jane Austen's last home in Winchester

No 8 College Street with a plaque for Jane Austen. 

If you have ever visited Winchester, you may have walked past this unassuming neutral-coloured building where Jane once stayed. For the first time this year, to commemorate Jane Austen 250, the house is open to visitors for special tours of the property; I was lucky enough to explore this building over the weekend and see the very informative exhibition created especially for the occasion. 

Winchester College on the left of Jane's lodgings.

Number 8 was built in the 18th century, and the building remains for the most part as it was during Jane's time here. The house was built on Winchester Cathedral land and was leased out to tenants. The property is now owned and managed by Winchester College, which is situated next door. Interestingly, eight of Jane's nephews studied at this prestigious boarding school, and the institute was familiar to Jane through these family connections. I will write more about Winchester College in another post soon. 

When Jane Austen's health could no longer improve under the care of the Alton apothecary, Jane travelled with her sister Cassandra to Winchester for better treatment from Dr Giles King Lyford. She wrote, "As our Alton Apothy did not be pretend to be able to cope with it, better advice was called in. Our nearest very good is in Winchester... I am going to Winchester, instead, for some weeks to see what Mr Lyford can do farther towards re-establishing me in tolerable health". It was here that Jane was cursed by Cassandra and her sister-in-law, Mary, during the terminal stages of her illness and this is where she breathed her last on 18th July 1817. 

The lease was held by a local lady called Mary David who owned several properties on the street, and Jane's friend Elizabeth Heathcote arranged the accommodation for the Austen ladies. The sisters occupied several rooms on the middle floor of the house, although it is unknown how many rooms belonged to their lease. 

Jane wrote to her nephew and biographer, James Edward, "We have a neat little drawing room with a bow window overlooking Dr Gabell's garden". Dr Gabell was the Headmaster of Winchester College. The drawing room may have been this room (below), as it has a neat bow window from where you can see the garden opposite. 

The serene, quiet atmosphere with just the sound of old, creaking floor boards and the melancholy quotes on the walls really take you back to Jane Austen's time here. 

Jane wrote to her nephew James-Edward, "Our lodgings are very comfortable". 

Jane only left the lodgings once, in a sedan chair. She spent most of her time lying on the sofa and was visited by her brothers, her friend Elizabeth Heathcote who lived nearby, and her nephew Charles Knight, who was then a student at the college. 

The image below shows the floor plan of how the middle floor would have looked in Jane's times. 

Walking through this hallway, there are two more rooms at the back that may have been used as bedrooms.

The first "bedroom" (above) exhibited pictures and stories about Winchester College, which I will discuss in more detail in a further post. 

The second room had some maps and an exquisite naval ship on display. 

This model of a warship was created out of bone and metal by French prisoners during the Napoleonic wars, possibly at Portsmouth Harbour. The bone came from the prisoners' food scraps. The significance of this ship is Jane Austen's family connection to the navy and its influence on her novels Mansfield Park and Persuasion. 

From this room, you can see out onto the garden behind the property with a view of Winchester College on the left. 

Downstairs, there are first and second editions of Jane Austen's novels on display. These were bound in cardboard, and wealthier readers would get their copies bound in leather, which was expensive. 

A first edition of "Emma". 

Visiting Jane Austen's last home was such a special opportunity and a somewhat emotional experience for a lifelong admirer of Jane Austen, thanks to Winchester College who have created a truly wonderful exhibition to celebrate the life of Jane Austen. 

Looking out of the upstairs window, you could feel how Cassandra must have felt when the funeral procession left from the house and finally disappeared from her sight on their way towards the Cathedral, where Jane had the privilege to be buried and is still paid respects by thousands of mourners every year. 

Picture courtesy: The Warden and Scholars of Winchester College

References and further reading: 

My blog about Jane's last journey: https://austenised.blogspot.com/2010/08/following-janes-last-journey.html

Le Faye, Deirdre. (2011) Jane Austen's Letters. Fourth Edition. OUP.

My thoughts on "Jane Austen - The Rise of a Genius"

Have you seen the new BBC documentary, "Jane Austen - The Rise of a Genius" yet? 

The two-part documentary, commemorating Jane Austen 250, is an accolade to Jane Austen and discusses her significant influence on modern literature and growth as a writer. The production explores the events in Jane Austen´s life that had a profound effect on her and the people that she knew who influenced her writing.  

For the documentary, the BBC have chosen a range of "experts" to discuss Jane Austen, some of whom are more questionable than others! I thought it was interesting to hear what the biographer, Paula Byrne, had to say about Jane Austen, but Cherie Blair may have been a less relevant expert on the topic. 

Dr Paula Byrne

Cherie Blair

There were several familiar faces from Jane Austen adaptations, such as:

Greg Wise (Willoughby in S & S 1995)

Charity Wakefield (Marianne in S & S 2008)

Sam West (Mr Elliott in Persuasion 1995) 

Tamsin Greig (Miss Bates in Emma 2009)

The dramatisation was well carried out, however the casting was not to my liking - I much preferred the Jane Austen of the recent "Miss Austen" series. 

It was interesting to hear first-hand about the euphoria that authors feel when their book first gets published. The authors interviewed shared how Jane Austen would have felt when she first got her books published and the empowerment that she felt when she earned her own money through writing. 

I thought it was interesting how the documentary described how Jane Austen fitted in her time period and the radical ideas that she had under cover. The documentary claims that Jane Austen was essentially a political novelist who wrote about money, class and movement and was against treating people as commodities, whether they were slaves or unmarried spinster women. Jane Austen used the novel to bring about inequalities in her society, highlighting the disparity in wealth and the responsibility that people with money had over others. The documentary shows how these issues were close to Jane´s own heart, having been somewhat of a commodity in the marriage market herself and been at the mercy of her father and brothers throughout her life. In her novels, Jane Austen makes references to things that her contemporaries would have found radical but modern readers can often be oblivious to, such as her choice to name her book "Mansfield Park" (after the abolitionist judge, Lord Mansfield). Some of these themes were also discussed by Helena Kelly in her novel, "Jane Austen the Secret Radical", which I read recently. 

Although the two-part documentary didn´t teach me anything new as such, I thought it was a well-researched introduction into the world of Jane Austen and her journey to develop her unique style. I feel that the documentary could be helpful for students who are learning about 19th century literature and Jane Austen in particular. I also feel that critics of Jane Austen could benefit from seeing the documentary, as it brings out the best in Jane Austen and really highlights her significance and influence in so many areas.