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17th out of 66 books
—
65 voters
The History of England
As a schoolgirl, Jane Austen must have suffered terribly under her lessons of English history. The sixteen-year-old finally took revenge and wrote her own history of the Kings and Queens of England. Containing thirteen mischievous portraits of the English Royals, this very entertaining--and incomparably unreliable--history book is illustrated by Mandy Schludt, whose previo...more
Hardcover, 60 pages
Published
January 10th 1993
by Algonquin Books
(first published November 1st 1977)
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"By a partial, prejudiced, and ignorant historian," Jane Austen's wit comes through in her comical take on Britain's monarchs. She wrote this at sixteen. For me the highlight of the book is when she gets to the Tudor monarchs, including, "that pest of society," Elizabeth.
Jun 05, 2008
Abigail
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Jane Austen Fans / Readers With a Taste for Satire
Shelves:
literature-classics
Review Temporarily Removed.
Dies ist ein schmales Bändchen aus dem Jugendwerk Jane Austens. Es ist keine Abhandlung englischer Geschichte als vielmehr eine jugendlich verspielte Abrechnung mit der Art und Weise wie Geschichte den jungen Damen jener Zeit gelehrt wurde... scheinbar ohne Reiz für Spekulation und klar von den Vorurteilen des Lehrers zu den historischen Personen geprägt.
Jane Austen nimmt dies, obwohl erst 16 Jahre alt, glasklar aufs Korn und mit gespitzter Feder bleibt nicht viel übrig von den glorreichen Herr...more
Jane Austen nimmt dies, obwohl erst 16 Jahre alt, glasklar aufs Korn und mit gespitzter Feder bleibt nicht viel übrig von den glorreichen Herr...more
A history of England from 1399 to 1649, written by a 16-year-old Jane Austen who had her tongue firmly in cheek.
Declaring herself a “partial, prejudiced, & ignorant Historian” on page one, she proceeds to mangle and muddle all the historical facts she can think of in a delightfully droll parody of every dry history textbook you have ever read. Henry IV, we are told, ascended to the throne “after having prevailed on his cousin & predecessor Richard the 2d to resign it to him, & to ret...more
Declaring herself a “partial, prejudiced, & ignorant Historian” on page one, she proceeds to mangle and muddle all the historical facts she can think of in a delightfully droll parody of every dry history textbook you have ever read. Henry IV, we are told, ascended to the throne “after having prevailed on his cousin & predecessor Richard the 2d to resign it to him, & to ret...more
Feb 02, 2009
Kat
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Jane Austen fans, people who like British history
I've seen other versions of Jane Austen's The History of England at bookstores and online, but this one surpasses all the others because it contains a facsimile of the actual pages Miss Jane wrote herself, complete with colored illustrations by her sister Cassandra.
A History of England is a parody of Oliver Goldsmith's The History of England from The Earliest Times to the Death of George II. If you've ever had to study British history, that text might sound familiar. It was oft used in Jane Aust...more
A History of England is a parody of Oliver Goldsmith's The History of England from The Earliest Times to the Death of George II. If you've ever had to study British history, that text might sound familiar. It was oft used in Jane Aust...more
Most Janeites know Jane Austen’s biting wit of old. It is certainly present in all of her novels. But if you love Jane Austen and have not read “The History of England,” you are missing one of the most exuberant displays of that wit. This little book, written by a young Jane and dedicated to her sister Cassandra, pokes fun at historians, historical figures, and unreasonable prejudices. The edition I read included both a facsimile copy of the manuscript, complete with Cassandra’s pictures, and th...more
My dad found the electronic, scanned version of this in the British Library.
We both stood at that little kiosk and read a very biased account of the history of England.
When I was younger I didn't understand how people thought Jane Austen was funny… but now I do. Her commentaries on the actions of each king and queen are laugh out loud hilarious.
We both stood at that little kiosk and read a very biased account of the history of England.
When I was younger I didn't understand how people thought Jane Austen was funny… but now I do. Her commentaries on the actions of each king and queen are laugh out loud hilarious.
Very enjoyable. I was able to decipher the handwriting for the most part, but thankfully a transcription was provided just in case. You can tell this is one of her very early works, but the irony that she would hone to perfection (especially in Pride and Prejudice) is still very much in evidence. Austen lovers should read this.
Another facsimile book of a young writer, complete with original manuscript and charming illustrations by Jane's sister Cassandra.
For those who find the script a little tricky to read, the manuscript is reproduced at the back of the book in modern type.
Brilliant and wicked, it's got sharp little gems like this throughout:
"Henry the 4th ascended the throne of England much to his own satisfaction in the year 1399, after having prevailed on his cousin & predecessor Richard the 2nd to resign it...more
For those who find the script a little tricky to read, the manuscript is reproduced at the back of the book in modern type.
Brilliant and wicked, it's got sharp little gems like this throughout:
"Henry the 4th ascended the throne of England much to his own satisfaction in the year 1399, after having prevailed on his cousin & predecessor Richard the 2nd to resign it...more
This book is a hoot. Austen fans, please add it to your shelves.
Easy read, really cute.
Any fan of Jane Austen's work or witty literary works in general should take the time to read this piece of juvenilia.
In this work, Jane Austen imitates the style of history books that were used to educate children at the time and humorously puts a spin on historical facts.
Moreover, this short piece offers an interesting glimpse at the raw writing skills the young Jane Austen possessed. Furthermore, it is an incredible foreshadowing of what was to come later: her world-famous novels.
In this work, Jane Austen imitates the style of history books that were used to educate children at the time and humorously puts a spin on historical facts.
Moreover, this short piece offers an interesting glimpse at the raw writing skills the young Jane Austen possessed. Furthermore, it is an incredible foreshadowing of what was to come later: her world-famous novels.
I found this while researching Austen for a paper. I had somehow never managed to hear about this title, and was interested in reading it. It's lovely and short (as all histories should be!) and wonderfully illustrated by her sister Cassandra. It was especially nice to see the copies with Austen's handwriting (although her handwriting is slightly hard to read). This is another gem and example of Austen displaying her talents at an early age and laying the ground work for her full length works.
From what I gather, every female on earth is, by default, in love with Austen's Mr Darcy. That's kind of how I feel about Austen herself. She is modest, supurbly talented, and as witty as Beatrice from Shakespeare. This little volume (stress "little", the text is only about ten pages long) is confusing to someone who knows excactly no real history, but still delightful. Apparently she wrote it when she was fifteen. (Swoon)
I think you have to have fairly deep knowledge of English royal history to get a laugh out of this. Luckily, I do, and I did. The way Austen rooted for the Lancasters sounded like someone choosing sides in the Carolina/Duke rivalry: uncritically and enthusiastically, with a fair amount of personalization. It was ridiculous, and entertained me to no end. Three stars instead of four because there's just not enough to it.
This was a great edition of this "history" as it includes a facsimile of Austen's notebook pages with the drawings. Very few dates, as she said, except a letter written on the 6th of May (no year.) Charming parody of history texts with enough notes on the text to complete the picture. Only 16!
Just for fun, and to feed my Austen-mania. I liked that this contained a facsimile version of her original manuscript, complete with some bad drawings and all Miss Austen's wry humor, evident even at this early age. This was random but quite funny, although I had to refer to the typed version in the back to decipher much of the handwriting. It makes a lovely addition to my Austen shelf at home.
In all honesty, I wondered if this would better be classified as fiction. When she was 16, Jane Austen wrote this sketchy and hilarious history (with "very few dates"), poking sarcastic fun at some of the British rulers and defending others. Not good for real history, but a lot of fun for a laugh. It would be easier to understand if one already had a working knowledge of British royalty.
Sooooo funny!
This is even better then Lesley Castle!
It's REALLY funny... I mean, I actually laugh while reading this little masterpiece.
Jane Austen gives her personal version of English story with her wit and humor.
It's a real pleasure to read!
It's REALLY funny... I mean, I actually laugh while reading this little masterpiece.
Jane Austen gives her personal version of English story with her wit and humor.
It's a real pleasure to read!
Nov 26, 2007
Pancha
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of Jane Austen, Regency England, and sarcasm
Shelves:
classics
Jane Austen's snarky version of the History of England, written when she was a teenager. Excerpts of this appear as Fanny's writings in the 1999 version of Mansfield Park. The text can be found online if you can't get the book, and is well worth the read.
I don't love reading histories as much as I used to, but this was a hilarious read. It's so opinionated and pointed and done in the way only Jane could, thumbing her nose and complimenting in the same breath of truly gorgeous words.
I love Jane Austen and her short piece, History of England from the Reign of Henry the 4th to the Death of Charles the 1st, was a great read. I definitely recommend it so that on can read the snarkiness and learn some history!
The only history of England I read for the Cambridge tripos. Probably a bad idea, in retrospect. But very entertaining, especially when you consider that Austen was like fifteen when she wrote it.
Not knowing much of the history of England covered this certainly makes a witty commentary from an 18th century woman's point of view. Any Austen lover should read this!
Enjoyable canter through history from the perspective of a young woman who is extremely witty and not afraid to speak her own mind.
Amusing little confection with Austen's patented tinge of snobbish-yet-highly-intelligent-and-endearing sarcasm.
Totally over the top. Where she did her research I'll never know... too verbose, no photos, very little humor.
Jane Austen's very comical, inaccurate history of some of the kings/ queens of England. Very biased--a riot!!
While the title cracked me up, I wasn't all that enthralled with the book, but it was short, so I finished.
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Jane Austen (16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.
Austen lived her entire life as part of a close-knit family located on the lower fr...more
More about Jane Austen...
Austen lived her entire life as part of a close-knit family located on the lower fr...more
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