Step inside the house where Jane Austen spent the last weeks of her life

In the Summer of 2025, Winchester College will open No. 8 College Street to the public for the first time as part of a worldwide celebration of the anniversary.

Jane Austen came to Winchester in May 1817, to seek medical treatment from a surgeon at the county hospital. With her sister Cassandra, she took lodgings in College Street, a part of the city already familiar to the Austen family. No fewer than eight of Jane’s nephews were pupils at Winchester College and the school is often mentioned in her letters.

Despite her failing health, Jane continued to write, composing her last poem just three days before her death. She was buried in Winchester Cathedral and her final journey was movingly described by Cassandra, who watched the funeral procession from the windows of No. 8. Through displays and artefacts, visitors will learn about the author’s connections with the city and the story of her last days.

Visit exhibitions and events at Historic Winchester venues

Hampshire Cultural Trust are celebrating the landmark anniversary with exhibitions and events around the county, including the Beyond the Bonnets exhibition, at The Gallery in The Arc. The exhibition gives a voice to those who were overlooked by many but not neglected in Austen’s novels: working women.

Winchester’s Great Hall will also host a Regency ball and fashion show in summer 2025, while City Museum displays two of Jane Austen's purses and her personalised ivory spool case.

Take a stroll in Jane Austen's Footsteps

During this anniversary year there will be a new Jane Austen trail around the city which will highlight key locations and connecting them with exhibitions and special events. A guided walk exploring Jane Austen's Winchester is among the special interest tours run by Winchester Tourist Guides, starting from the city’s Visitor Information Centre. Visitors can also enjoy a self-guided tour across Hampshire with the Jane Austen Trail.

For those who want to literally follow in Jane’s footsteps, the Jane Austen Circular Walk is a must. Start at Jane Austen's House in Chawton and retrace the route she would have taken across fields and through the village of Farringdon. Jane was inspired by this beautiful countryside to write, and revise, all her novels.

Jane Austen’s House run regular Guided Village Walks around Chawton – discover the village Jane Austen knew and loved, learn about her love of nature, Chawton neighbours, the houses and views she knew, and the importance of village life in shaping her writing. Throughout the walk, short readings from Jane Austen’s letters and novels bring her world to life.

For a longer stroll, the Jane Austen Trail winds its way from the market town of Alton to Chawton village. Starting from Alton High Street, where Jane and her sister Cassandra frequently walked for shopping and entertainment, Alton is also where her brother Henry had a branch of his bank, Austen, Maude and Tilson, and he often visited it from London.