Jane Austen & Tom Lefroy

Jane Austen undoubtedly belongs to the most famous female writers in history. Her novels are frequently on required reading lists of many schools. Despite that, her novels are still even nowadays in favor among girls. She was also famous for not wanting to marry, but was it always true?

It's a common fact that Jane Austen never married, but that doesn't mean she didn't have any suitors. The most significant love she ever experienced was when she met a young Irish man who was visiting his relatives in Ashe (near her place) on Christmas holidays at the turn of the year 1795-1796. It was Thomas Lefroy, a lawyer from Dublin with outstanding academic records, who later in life even became a Lord chief of Justice of Ireland (the most senior judge in the court).

She mentions him in letter to her sister, that wasn't present at that time:

"(...) I am almost afraid to tell you how my Irish friend and I behaved. Imagine to yourself everything most profligate and shocking in the way of dancing and sitting down together. I can expose myself however, only once more, because he leaves the country soon after next Friday, on which day we are to have a dance at Ashe after all. (...) "

These two grew close to each other but couldn't marry, because it wasn't the right time. Tom was poor with no career jet and still financially dependent on his great-uncle. All summed up it wouldn't end well.

Aftermath

However he became an inspiration for Jane's novels as she wrote First Impressions in 1796, an early version of Pride and Prejudice. Some people even argue that Tom Lefroy was the template for Mr. Darcy. In fact John Spence suggests in biography Becoming Jane Austen(2003) that their personalities could've actually been models for Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet. Nevertheless in opposite - Tom's as E. Bennet and Jane's as Mr. Darcy. That can be also bit seen in her letter to her sister:

"...to me, and I was too proud to make any enquiries; but on my father's afterwards asking where he was, I learnt that he was gone back to London in his way to Ireland, where he is called to the Bar and means to practise."

How it ended?

Tom Lefroy left Ashe at the end of January 1796 and the two never saw each other again. Tom eventually married Mary Paul in March 1799. Jane got an offer of marriage from Harris Bigg-Wither in 1802 and she accepted. It was logical. He was a rich brother of her friend so Jane would never have to worry about poverty again in her life. But she changed her mind overnight and declined the proposal.

When Jane Austen died in July 1817 Tom Lefroy traveled all the way from Ireland to England to pay his respects to her. He also participated in an auction of her personal things where he bought the publisher's rejection letter for her novel First impressions.

Endgame

When Tom was older his nephew questioned him about his relationship with Jane Austen. He admitted that he had loved her, but said that it was a "boyish love".