Timeline of Jane Austen's Life and Publication of Her Books

Below is a timeline of the different significant events in Jane Austen's life including when all the novels - Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey, The Watsons and Sanditon - were written and when they were published.

Year	What Happened?	Age
1775	(16 Dec) Jane Austen born at Steventon in Hants, seventh child of the Rev. George Austen (1731-1805) and Cassandra Leigh (1739-1827)	0
1784/5	Jane Austen and her sister, Cassandra, leave the Abbey School, Reading	9
1795	Eleanor and Marianne written, an epistolary work (novel written in letters). Lady Susan possibly also written at this point.	20
1796	(Oct) First Impressions begun (later called Pride and Prejudice) (finished Aug 1797)	21
1797	(Nov) Sense and Sensibility begun, revision of Elinor and Marianne. First Impressions unsuccessfully offered to Cadell who never looked at it.	22
1798/9	Northanger Abbey written. Sold to Crosby & Go. in 1803, however they never published the book.	Online Advertising
1801	Austens move to Bath	26
1805	Rev. George Austen dies. The Watsons and Lady Susan written about this time	30
1806	Austens leave Bath for Clifton with 'happy feelings of escape', and visit Adlestrop and Stoneleigh. The families total income per year is 400 - 450 ponds. 210 ponds came from her mother and sisters incomes, the rest made up from her brothers' aid. Cassandra was left a small amount of money from her late fiancé. This amount of money was considered minimal for one women to live on in their class of society, not three. 1807 (Mar) Austens settle in at Castle Square, Southampton 32 1809 Austens move to Chawton, Hampshire (owned by Jane's brother Edward) 34 1811 Mansfield Park begun (Feb). Sense and Sensibility first of Jane's novels published. the publishing was at Jane's expense (Nov.) 36 1812 (July) 1000 copies of Sense and Sensibility sold, netting 140 ponds income. (Nov.) Pride and Prejudice sold to Egerton publishing house for 10 ponds. 37 1813 (Jan) Pride and Prejudice published (Summer) Mansfield Park finished (Nov.) second editions of this and Sense and Sensibility 38 1814 The chaplain of the Prince Regent writes to her asking her to write about a man such as himself, and indicates that the Prince would like Jane to dedicate her next novel to him. Jane disapproves of the Price's treatment of his wife but eventually dedicates Emma to him. (21 Jan) Emma begun (finished 29 Mar 1815) (May) Mansfield Park published by Egerton 39 1815 Persuasion begun (finished August 1816) (Dec) Emma published by John Murray. 40 1816 Jane regains her manuscript Susan and renames her heroine Catherine. (July) Persuasion is finished with its first ending. Mansfield Park, second edition. 1817 (Jan-Mar) Sanditon begun (March) Persuasion is finished being revised. (28 July) Jane Austen dies at Winchester; buried in Winchester Cathedral (Dec) Northanger Abbey; and Persuasion published by Murray 42 1818 Posthumous publication of Northanger Abbey (originally "Susan") andPersuasion (Austen's fifth and sixth - and last - published novels), with biographical notice by her brother Henry; this is the first any of her novels are identified as penned by Jane, the first published simply as "by a lady" and each of the following published as "by the author of..." 1 year after death For a detailed chronology, see R. W. Chapman, Jane Austen: Facts and Problems (1948), pp. 175-183