Parlour Games

In Jane Austen's time pleasures were found in simple things such as composing short poems, inventing riddles, or simply taking a turn around the room. People gathered together on a regular basis for card games. Dancing took the form of a very elegant sort of line dancing or sometimes a simple but lively jig.

Parlours were similar to our family rooms. Bonnets were adorned, needlepoint was worked on, books were read and puzzles of all sorts were concocted.

This page will be our website's parlour. We will have a Trivia corner, a Crossword and Word Search corner, a "Guess the Character" corner and any other fun challenge our Parlour Game Committee can devise.

We welcome suggestions and contributions from all who are interested.

AUSTEN FAMILY PASTIMES
Writing verses was a popular pastime in the Austen family. Jane, her mother, her sister and four of her brothers all participated in writing charades and riddles. A popular word game with which the family liked to amuse themselves was the use of only one rhyme. Click here to read the result of one of these games, when Mrs. Austen, Jane and Cassandra were given the task of composing poems with the single rhyming word:

ROSE

Riddles, often called charades (as in Emma) were a popular guessing game in Regency England. Here are a few examples of riddles composed by Jane for entertainment around the family hearth:

Riddle 1

Divided I’m a gentleman
In public deeds and powers,
United, I’m a man who oft
That gentleman devours. ( Answer: An Agent )

Riddle 2

You may lie by my first, by the side of a stream,
And my second compose to the Nymph you adore,
But if when you’ve none of my whole her esteem
And affection diminish, think of her no more. (Answer: A Banknote )

For more Riddles go to:
The Charades and Riddles in Emma & Their Answers

Try this WORD SEARCH puzzle - "All Things Jane" (SOLUTION)

You may have to get out your copy of Pride and Prejudice to complete this crossword Puzzle. It is possible to do the puzzle online but would most likely be more satisfying to print off the crossword and clues.

"Pride & Prejudice: A Crossword" CLUES (SOLUTION)

CRYPTOQUOTES:

Cryptoquotes

SOLUTIONS

Think you're a real puzzler? Try these Cryptoquotes. We'll give you a clue.

They're both from

SENSE AND SENSIBILITY