Charlotte Brontë is a literary icon — full stop. The well-known English author and poet left a tremendous heritage of writing that includes classics like Jane Eyre, Shirley, and Villette. She was the oldest of the Brontë sisters including Emily and Anne, and being the oldest child in a motherless family thrusted her into a position of precocious leadership and instilled in her a sometimes nearly overpowering feeling of duty — which clashed with a rebellious nature and personal ambition.

Here are some facts about the legendary Charlotte Brontë, the fiercely independent woman who presented a new type of heroine to the literary world by defying age-old societal expectations and emerging as a bold and virtuous woman in her own right.

Life & Times of Charlotte Brontë

1. When was Charlotte Brontë born?

Charlotte Brontë was born on April 21, 1816 in the village of Thorton in West Yorkshire, England. Charlotte Brontë is the oldest of the three literary Brontë sisters that include Emily and Ann.

2. Charlotte Brontë attended Roe Head School and got invited to return as a teacher…

In 1831, 14-year-old Charlotte Brontë was enrolled in Roe Head School in Mirfield — with Margaret Wooler as her headmistress — after being pulled from Cowan Bridge School and the literally toxic environment that resulted in the deaths of her two older sisters Maria and Elizabeth. Between 1835 and 1838, Charlotte Brontë returned to Roe Head as a teacher working for Margaret Wooler. Her younger sisters, Emily and Anne, were able to attend the same school, thanks to Charlotte’s salary.

3. …which Charlotte Brontë hated

Unhappy and lonely as a teacher at Roe Head School, Charlotte Brontë vented her frustrations through poetry, creating a series of melancholy prose. Charlotte Brontë drew a strong contrast between her wretched job as a teacher and the rich imaginary realms she and her siblings had built in her poem, We Wove a Web in Childhood, written in December 1835.

4. Charlotte Brontë once had a bible thrown at her by a student

In 1839, Charlotte Brontë began her work as a governess (which is an outdated term for a nanny/tutor for richer families) in Yorkshire, a job she held until 1841. During that time, Charlotte Brontë worked for the Sidgwick family at their summer home, where one of her responsibilities was a rebellious kid who once threw a Bible at Charlotte, an occurrence that may have inspired a scene in the first chapter of Jane Eyre, where John Reed tosses a book at the young Jane.

Click to buy Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë!

5. Charlotte Brontë was obsessed with Duke Wellington

Growing up, Charlotte Brontë might have been some of a fangirl when it came to Arthur Wellesley, who was the 1st Duke of Wellington. She was definitely pleased when she met her idol in her thirties, telling a friend that he was “a real grand old man.” Through her childhood writings and playtimes, Charlotte would name her toy soldiers after the Duke and the name Wellesley was also commonly featured as the name of her heroes in the stories she wrote when she was young. This fact was a lot more interesting when we thought it was Duke Ellington.

6. Charlotte Brontë couldn’t see well — but could read in the dark

Charlotte Brontë was extremely nearsighted, a trait she inherited from her father Patrick Brontë, who had to have his cataracts removed without anesthesia later in life. Charlotte Brontë was so nearsighted that she couldn’t read the sheet music in front of her and had to give up playing the piano. Nonetheless, when she was a teacher, her students were stunned to discover that she could read extremely well in complete darkness, a skill they mistook for magic.

7. Charlotte Brontë was told to give up her literary pursuits — just because she was a woman

Charlotte Brontë and her siblings adored literature from an early age — and Charlotte went all the way to the top to get feedback on her writing. Only 16 years old, Charlotte Brontë sent some of her stuff to the poet Robert Southey. He replied that she should abandon her dreams, because “Literature cannot be the business of a woman’s life & it ought not to be. The more she is engaged in her proper duties, the less leisure she will have for it, even as an accomplishment & a recreation. To those duties, you have not yet been called, & when you are you will be less eager for celebrity. You will not then seek in imagination for excitement.” Fuck Robert Southey is what we have to say about that.

8. Charlotte and Emily Brontë studied briefly in Brussels…

Charlotte Brontë and Emily Brontë left Yorkshire at the age of 21 and traveled to Brussels, Belgium with the intention of learning languages that would help them start up their own school. Charlotte Brontë excelled at the Pensionnat Héger school, where she studied French, German, and literature.

9. … where Charlotte Brontë fell in love with the married head of school

Charlotte Brontë quickly fell in love with Constantin Héger, the stern master. He would later become an inspiration for Rochester, the male figure in Jane Eyre, both sharing the aspect of being married. Nevertheless, that didn’t stop Charlotte from writing him a series of emotional letters after returning to England. It’s believed that she based The Professor and Villette on this period of her life.

10. Constantin Héger never replied to her letters

Constantin Héger was something of a dick and never replied to Charlotte Brontë’s letters and tore them up. For some reason, his wife pieced them together — which is how they ended up at the British Library. One of them reads: “I know that you will lose patience with me when you read this letter. You will say that I am over-excited, that I have black thoughts etc. So be it Monsieur – I do not seek to justify myself, I submit to all kinds of reproaches – all I know is that I cannot – that I will not resign myself to the total loss of my master’s friendship. I would rather undergo the greatest bodily pains than have my heart constantly lacerated by searing regrets.” I mean, damn.

11. Charlotte Brontë owned a piece of Napoleon’s coffin

Before Charlotte’s affection became too obvious, Constantin Héger and his wife thought highly of her. So much so that, knowing Charlotte’s fondness for all things related to the Duke of Wellington, he presented her a shard from Napoleon Bonaparte’s coffin, which he had purchased previously. It is currently one of the numerous artifacts housed in the Brontë Parsonage Museum.

12. Charlotte’s first paycheck from Jane Eyre went to the dentist

Charlotte Brontë had such bad teeth that when a fellow writer met her, he described her as having “a large mouth, and many teeth were gone; altogether plain.” That comment was enough for Charlotte Brontë to spend her first profits from Jane Eyre on some much-needed dental procedures. Hopefully it did a lot for her self-confidence!

13. Charlotte Brontë knew how to dump a guy

Charlotte Brontë rejected six marriage propsals! One of them was from her best friend’s brother, Henry Nussey. Her letter to him embodies the tried-and-true old-fashioned “it’s not you, it’s me” line, as she goes on to explain how she can’t bring happiness to him and that she’s not the woman he thinks she could be.

14. When did Charlotte Brontë get married?

Charlotte Brontë also turned down Arthur Bell Nicholls’ marriage proposal in 1839, stating, “I am not the serious, grave, cool-hearted individual you suppose; you would think me romantic and eccentric.” Another variation of “it’s not you, it’s me” bit, but this refusal was said to have left Nicholls weeping. Eventually, though, Arthur Bell Nicholls managed to charm Charlotte, and they went on to marry on June 29, 1854. Charlotte Brontë was the only Brontë sibling to get married.

15. Father Patrick Brontë was initially against this marriage…

Charlotte’s father was adamantly opposed to the marriage, claiming that a modest Irish pastor should never be so audacious as to propose marrying his famous daughter. The nerve! Patrick believed Charlotte Brontë deserved better than some lowly nobody assistant curate, and perhaps he was also concerned about who would care for him in his old age if his sole surviving daughter left. Gradually, her father came to terms with the marriage.

16. …and so were Charlotte’s friends

It’s actually been theorized that Charlotte Brontë and her two close friends, Ellen Nussey and Mary Taylor, had some sort of “No Marriage” pact and that they’d agreed to live as three old spinsters together, kinda like the Golden Girls. Her two friends lived long without ever getting married and when Charlotte agreed to marry Reverend Arthur Bell Nicholls, Ellen Nussey was initially furious. Their daily messaging was cut off but eventually, Ellen agreed to be Charlotte Brontë’s bridesmaid.

17. Charlotte’s father Patrick Brontë didn’t make it to the wedding

While Patrick Brontë had given Charlotte and her husband his blessings, he wasn’t one of the people attending the ceremony because he was too ill to travel. The Brontë family was nothing if not dramatic, so it remains unknown whether Patrick Brontë was actually incapable of attending — or if he was still carrying some grudge against the marriage. However, due to his poor health at the time, it’s not unlikely that he did intend to be there.

18. Margaret Wooler gave Charlotte Brontë away on her wedding day

Margaret Wooler was the headmistress and part-owner of the Roe Head School, where Charlotte studied and later on became a teacher. She was very fond of the Brontë sisters so it wasn’t a surprise when she decided to step up into her father’s place and walk Charlotte down the altar on her wedding day.

What books did Charlotte Brontë write?

19. Charlotte Brontë and her sisters wrote under male pseudonyms

Unfortunately, female authors were only taken so seriously when the Brontë sisters were writing. It wasn’t until 1850 — two years after Anne and Emily Brontë’s death — that Charlotte Brontë revealed all three of them to be women in the prologue of the combined edition of Emily’s work Wuthering Heights and Anne’s novel Agnes Grey.

20. When was Jane Eyre published?

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë was published on October 16, 1847 by the Smith, Elder & Co. publishing company in London. The next year, it was published in America by Harper & Brothers in New York.

21. What was Charlotte Brontë’s first book?

The Professor was the first book Charlotte Brontë wrote and her favorite, and it’s a thinly-veiled portrait of the time she spent in Brussels. Charlotte spoke fondly of her first book saying, “The middle and latter portion of The Professor is as good as I can write…It contains more pith, more substance, more reality, in my judgment, than much of Jane Eyre.” 

Click to buy Shirley and The Professor by Charlotte Brontë!

22. The Professor was rejected by every publisher in England

Although the three sisters planned to have their first novels published together, Agnes Grey and Wuthering Heights quickly found their publishers and nobody wanted Charlotte’s novel. On the bright side, she got an encouraging response from Smith, Elder & Co., who expressed an interest in any longer works she might wish to send. Charlotte Brontë completed a second manuscript in 1847, which is how she created the iconic Jane Eyre.

23. The Professor was only published in 1857 after Charlotte Brontë’s death

While Charlotte Brontë published many other books later in her life, she never attempted to publish The Professor again, and it was only published posthumously in 1857. Her father and husband decided to publish it after her death and her husband was in charge of reviewing and editing the text.

24. Charlotte Brontë was the last of her sisters to find a publisher but her book was the first to be published

While it’s true that she was the last to find a publisher between her sister, but Jane Eyre was the first to be published in 1847. Many believe the work to be ahead of its time because of Jane’s individualistic character and how the novel handles the subjects of class, sexuality, religion, and feminism.

25. Charlotte Brontë based the school in Jane Eyre on her experience in Cowan Bridge School…

It’s no secret that Charlotte abhorred Cowan Bridge School where she and her sisters suffered terrible living conditions, leading to the death of her two elder sisters after they contracted tuberculosis. Many aspects of Jane Eyre were modeled after her first school, including Jane Eyre’s friend, Helen, who was based on Charlotte’s older sister, Maria.

26. …. and Charlotte Brontë almost got sued for it

The way Charlotte Brontë based the school in Jane Eyre on Cowan Bridge school wasn’t exactly subtle, especially with the character Mr. Brocklehurst, who was based on the Headmaster of Cowan Bridge, the Reverend William Carus-Wilson. He eventually tried to sue Charlotte Brontë for misrepresenting his school. In response to this, Charlotte edited Jane Eyre and sent it to him. However, this updated manuscript was never found.

27. Was the madwoman in the attic from Jane Eyre real?

Another thing in Jane Eyre that might’ve been inspired by Charlotte’s real-life was the madwoman in the attic. In 1839, Charlotte Brontë visited Norton Conyers at a 16th-century home with a real hidden staircase going up to a secret attic room, where a “crazy woman” had been locked for 60 years. The “insane woman” was most likely epileptic or pregnant out of wedlock.

28. Jane Eyre had a large fanbase, including some celebrities

Members of the Jane Eyre fan club included Queen Victoria, who referred to it as “that intensely interesting novel,” and Vanity Fair writer William Makepeace Thackeray, who said he had “lost (or won if you like) a whole day in reading it.”

29. Charlotte Brontë was asked to draw illustrations for Jane Eyre

While Charlotte’s brother, Branwell Brontë was the one known for his artistic pursuits, Charlotte was the real artist of the family. Two of her drawings were included at an art exhibition in Leeds in 1834 and her talents were so well regarded that when the second edition of Jane Eyre was published, her publisher asked her if she would supply the illustrations.

30. Charlotte Brontë popularized the name Shirley for girls

Before Charlotte Brontë wrote Shirley, which was published in 1849, the name was usually reserved for boys. Interestingly, the lead character of the novel was given that name because her parents had wanted to have a boy instead. However, after 1849, the name is said to have become more common among women.

31. Many people believe that Villette was superior to Jane Eyre, including Virginia Woolf and George Eliot

Villette features a withholding narrator and a protagonist so disoriented that at some point, she loses the track of her own story, which apparently, a lot of people admired. George Eliot noted that it exceeds Jane Eyre in its influence and that “There is something almost preternatural in its power.” Virginia Woolf had a similar opinion stating that: “It is her finest novel. All her force, and it is the more tremendous for being constricted, goes into the assertion, ‘I love. I hate. I suffer.'”

Click to buy Villette by Charlotte Brontë!

32. After the death of her sisters, Charlotte Brontë changed Villette’s ending

Many of Villette’s characters were based on people Charlotte Brontë knew, including the main characters Shirley Keeldar and Caroline Helstone, who were based on her sisters Emily and Anne Brontë. When Charlotte Brontë began writing Villette, her sisters appeared to be in decent health but halfway through, both Emily and Anne had passed away. This was believed to have altered the plot as Caroline’s character was supposed to die in the novel; Charlotte had been unable to save Anne in real life, but in the novel, she granted Caroline a miraculous recovery and a happy ending.

Charlotte Brontë: Her Death & Legacy

33. Charlotte Brontë was the only Brontë to not die of tuberculosis

In what seems like a miracle due to the disease’s infectious nature, Charlotte Brontë was the only one of the three Brontë sisters to not die of tuberculosis.

34. How did Charlotte Brontë die?

Charlotte Brontë basically died of morning sickness. Hyperemesis gravidarum is known as severe morning sickness that’s considered a serious complication of pregnancy. Although it’s rarely fatal today, it’s believed that it’s what led to Charlotte’s death.

35. When did Charlotte Brontë die?

Charlotte Brontë passed away on March 31, 1855, along with her unborn child, three weeks before her 39th birthday. Charlotte Brontë was buried in the family vault in the Church of St. Michael and All Angels at Haworth.

36. A close friend wrote Charlotte Brontë’s biography…

The Life of Charlotte Brontë, written by Elizabeth Gaskell, was published in 1857, barely two years after her death, and was an important step for a leading female novelist to write a biography of another. The two women had previously met in 1850 and instantly became friends. Charlotte wrote of Elizabeth that she was “a woman of whose conversation and company I should not soon tire. She seems to me kind, clever, animated and unaffected.”

Click to buy The Life of Charlotte Bronte by Elizabeth Gaskell!

37. …but the biography remains controversial

Although it received early recognition, it brought the author plenty of issues. Many of the people featured in it were offended by her representation of them, and with legal action looming, Elizabeth was obliged to make changes to the manuscript. Gaskell also gave false and misleading information on Patrick Brontë, stating that he did not allow his children to eat meat. One of Emily Brontë’s diary entries contradicts this, in which she mentions preparing meat and potatoes for supper at the parsonage.

38. Jane Eyre has been adapted for film/television at least 25x

The very first movie adaptation of Jane Eyre was the 1910 film starring Irma Taylor — but that version is now presumed to be lost. There have been a bunch of versions since then, including a 1943 version directed by Robert Stevenson, written by Aldous Huxley, and starring Orson Welles. Meanwhile, the title character has been played by a range of actors from Anna Paquin to Samantha Morton, and Susannah York to Mia Wasikowska.

Click to buy Cary Fukunaga’s Jane Eyre (2011) on Blu-ray!

Final Thoughts about Charlotte Brontë

Even hundreds of years after they were written, Charlotte Brontë’s works and characters continue to live on, holding their place on the shelves of countless readers all through time. The name Jane Eyre has become an instantly recognized classic, among her other works as well. Charlotte’s life, on the other hand, remains as a tale powered by a strong sense of individuality and feminist concepts that were way ahead of their time. She battled doubt and navigated her way through the discrimination towards female authors to become an iconic writer that will forever be remembered.

Curious to read more about the Brontë family? Check out our list of facts about the Brontë sisters — as well as our list on Emily Brontë and Anne Brontë! Also see our list of facts from other literary superstars like Mary Shelley, Philip K. Dick, and Oscar Wilde.

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