James Austen was an English clergyman, best known for being the eldest brother of celebrated novelist

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

. His father George Austen's living had been in

Steventon, Hampshire Steventon is a village and a civil parish with a population of about 250 in north Hampshire, England. Situated 7 miles south-west of the town of Basingstoke, between the villages of Overton, Hampshire, Overton, Oakley, Hampshire, Oakley and North ...

, and James succeeded him in this position, in 1801. Austen's mother, formerly Cassandra Leigh, was a member of a prominent Oxford family, and was a descendant of one of the founders of St. John's College. Cassandra's family connection entitled her sons to be legacy students, who did not have to compete for admission, and who were entitled to attend tuition free. Austen attended

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and his younger brother

Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

both attended, and shared accommodation. Like his more famous sister, Austen was a writer. According to

Felicity Day Felicity may refer to: Places * Felicity, California, United States, an unincorporated community * Felicity, Ohio, United States, a village * Felicity, Trinidad and Tobago, a community in Chaguanas Entertainment * ''Felicity'' (TV series), ...

, writing in ''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...

'', for a year in the 1790s, he published a weekly periodical called ''

The Loiterer ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'', and wrote much of its content. He published several pieces by his brother Henry, and Day speculated that he may have published one piece by his teenage sister Jane. Day says the satirical pieces in ''The Loiterer'' resembled the unpublished juvenilia the teenage Jane wrote for her family. James and his brother Henry were both romantically interested in their cousin,

Eliza de Feuillide Eliza Capot, Comtesse de Feuillide (née Hancock; 22 December 1761 – 25 April 1813) was the cousin, and later sister-in-law, of novelist Jane Austen. She is believed to have been the inspiration for a number of Austen's works, such as ''L ...

, the daughter of their aunt

Philadelphia Austen Hancock Philadelphia Austen Hancock (15 May 1730 – 26 February 1792) was an English socialite and the aunt of Jane Austen. Throughout her life, rumours circulated in India and England that she was the mistress of Warren Hastings, who was the godfather ...

. Eliza married Henry. Austen married at 27, and was widowed when he was 30. His first wife bore him a daughter,

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...

. His second wife, bore him at least two more children, James Edward and

Caroline Caroline may refer to: People * Caroline (given name), a feminine given name * J. C. Caroline (born 1933), American college and National Football League player * Jordan Caroline (born 1996), American (men's) basketball player Places Antarctica * ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Austen, James English Protestant ministers and clergy 1765 births 1819 deaths People from Steventon, Hampshire Austen family Jane Austen 19th-century English Anglican priests Alumni of St John's College, Oxford