From the great classic writers of Shakespeare and Austen to authors of children’s books like Beatrix Potter, England has produced some of the greatest literature read and studied worldwide. If you study English Literature or are simply an enthusiast and you are planning a trip to England, here are 5 places you need to go:
1. London – Charles Dickens
If you are coming from overseas, you will probably fly into London, so let’s start there. There are museums and attractions for many different famous authors in London, but we are going to focus on one, Charles Dickens, the author of A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist and Great Expectations. One of the best and cheapest ways of seeing the places where Dickens lived and wrote about is by doing The Charles Dickens Free Walk – A Walk Through Dickens London. On their website, they have a detailed tour with directions that start at Chancery Lane Underground Station and end at the Charles Dickens Museum with stops at Lincoln’s Inn, The Old Curiosity Shop and many more. The walk is estimated at 2 hours and 45min so I would recommend wearing some walking shoes and setting aside a whole morning or afternoon. The Museum admittance fee is £9.50 for adults or £7.50 for concessions. While you are in London, you should also try and see Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, which is just a 10min drive from the Dickens Museum.
Read before you go: Bleak House – Charles Dickens. “London. […] In Lincoln’s Inn Hall. Implacable November weather. As much mud in the streets as if the waters had but newly retired from the face of the earth…”
2. Chawton – Jane Austen
Another place that is a must-see for literature lovers is the village of Chawton in Hampshire where Jane Austen spent the last eight years of her life and wrote and revised her six famous novels. Chawton is about an hour’s drive south-west from London. To experience all of the beautiful places and countryside that inspired books like Pride and Prejudice, Emma and Mansfield Park for a reasonable price, I would recommend doing the Jane Austen Circular Walk. The walk starts at Jane Austen’s House Museum which has an admittance fee of £9 for adults or £7 for concessions, then visits Chawton House Library (adults £10, concessions £8), St. Nicholas’ Church and All Saints’ Church, Farringdon. The Visit Hampshire Co. provide interesting facts, guides and directions on their website. Along the way, you can stop at Cassandra’s Cup Tea House, which is named after Jane’s sister, for some refreshments, or at The Greyfriar, a 16th-century pub with ‘classic fare’, like a Sunday roast, sausage and mash and an English breakfast.
Read before you go: Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen. “As a house, Barton Cottage, though small, was comfortable and compact; but as a cottage it was defective, for the building was regular, the roof tiled, the window shutters were not painted green, nor were the walls covered with honeysuckles.”
3. Stratford-upon-Avon – William Shakespeare
Perhaps the most famous English writer is William Shakespeare, the 16th-century playwright. Shakespeare was born in the village of Stratford-upon-Avon, and now much of that village has been made a tribute to the man himself. The town is 2 hours’ drive north-west of London and has many beautifully restored buildings from the period and experiences you will never forget. You can wander the streets and look at the architecture for free; however, I strongly suggest paying the all-access entry fee of £23 for adults or £21.50 for concessions to see inside all five of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust’s locations. You can go to Shakespeare’s Birthplace, the house where Shakespeare was born, and see performances and artefacts from the time and Shakespeare’s New Place, which was Shakespeare’s family home where he wrote his later plays. There is also Hall’s Croft, where Shakespeare’s daughter lived, Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, where Shakespeare courted his bride-to-be and Mary Arden’s Farm which was the home of Shakespeare’s mother and is now a working Tudor style farm. You can find out even more on their website.
Read before you go: Richard II – William Shakespeare. “This royal throne of kings, this sceptered isle, This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars, This other Eden, demi-paradise, […]–This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England.”
4. Haworth – Brontë Sisters
Haworth is in the north of England in Yorkshire; 4 hours’ drive north-east from London. It is famous because of the three Brontë sisters and their writing. Books such as Charlotte’s Jane Eyre, Emily’s Wuthering Heights and Anne’s The Tenant of Wildfell Hall were all inspired by the tranquil moors of Haworth. You can walk to the lovely Brontë Falls and Bridge and sit on the Brontë Stone Chair where the girls wrote. Then you can continue on the trail up to Top Withens, which is believed to be the site of Wuthering Heights, from there you can walk back down into the village and visit the Brontë Parsonage Museum for an entrance fee of £9.50 for adults or £6.50 for concessions and explore where the family lived. You can also see where all the Brontës apart from Anne are buried at St Michael & All Angels Church, which is also the church that Patrick Brontë curated.
Read before you go: Shirley and The Professor – Charlotte Brontë. “In sunshine, in prosperity, the flowers are very well; but how many wet days are there in life—November seasons of disaster, when a man’s hearth and home would be cold indeed, without the clear, cheering gleam of intellect.”
5. Lake District – Beatrix Potter
The Lake District in Cumbria, north England, was both home and inspiration to many English writers, one of which is Beatrix Potter, the author of The Tale of Peter Rabbit and many other heart-warming children’s books. You can visit her home at Hill Top House and drive to The Beatrix Potter Gallery and look at the exhibitions for £7, or you could also drive up to the magnificent Wray Castle and go inside to see the cavernous stone keep for £10.80. There is also The Armitt Museum that has paintings done by Potter and original copies of her books along with artefacts and stories from many other writers such as William Wordsworth. The entrance fee is £5. You can also enjoy the views on a car, steam train or ferry trip and see the picturesque landscape from her skilfully illustrated books.
Read before you go: any and all of the Peter Rabbit books. Beatrix Potter said: “Thank God I have the seeing eye, that is to say, as I lie in bed I can walk step by step on the fells and rough land seeing every stone and flower and patch of bog and cotton pass where my old legs will never take me again.”
These are 5 of the best places English literature enthusiasts can visit in England. If you are truly a lover of literature and English history, then all of these places will hopefully hold a special place in your heart after you visit them. They capture the stories and lives of these great English writers and will hopefully go on to inspire creativity in many generations to come. Enjoy your travels!
Jenaya Lewis is an Australian university student, studying English and History Education, who has grown up all around the world, yet she has always felt drawn to England and its beautiful places, people and culture. On top of becoming a teacher, her ultimate goal is to become a wizened old traveller who might point tourists in the right direction, or perhaps towards an adventure they do not know is heading their way.