Monk’s House

The Monk’s house was the home of Virginia Woolf, one of the most prominent writers of the 20th century.

Woolf and her husband, the journalist and socialist activist Leonard Woolf, bought the 16th-century cottage in 1919 for 700 pounds. Over the years, the couple made many changes and additions to the house, including the writing lodge – Woolf’s “Room of Her Own.”

In that same lodge, she hosted members of the Bloomsbury Group and wrote many of her novels, including Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse, Orlando, The Years, and her final novel, Between the Acts, which she wrote with the inspiration she got from the village of Rodmell and the ways of lives of its residences.

Currently, the National Trust owns and operates the house as a historic house and museum. The visitors can access the sitting room, kitchen, dining room, and bedroom. Among the items on display are the couple’s art collection and personal items, such as her complete collection of Shakespeare books, her Stephen Tomlin bust, and many artworks by Woolf’s sister, Vanessa Bell, including Woolf’s portrait and the painted matching table and chairs.

On the way to Woolf’s writing lodge, visitors can stroll the English garden designed and nurtured by Leonard.

Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) was born in London into a wealthy family. She attended the Ladies’ Department of King’s College London, where she became familiarized with feminist views that influenced her.

During that time, Woolf became part of the Bloomsbury group, a weekly gathering of intellectuals and artists. After experiencing several personal losses, she turned to writing as a therapeutic source. Woolf experimented with her writing, breaking the norms of Victorian literature structure and creating new forms of expressions and narrative methods, today known as stream of consciousness.

At 30, she married Leonard Woolf, and three years later, she published her first novel, The Voyage Out. In 1919, the Woolfs moved to the village of Rodmell in East Sussex and wrote most of her work, including the groundbreaking essay A Room of One’s Own.

Over the years, she published eight novels, hundreds of short stories, dramas, essays, and autobiographic memoirs. Throughout her life, she struggled with her mental health, had numerous breakdowns, and tried to commit suicide several times.

On March 28th, 1941, at 51, she filled her coat pockets with stones, walked into the river behind Monk’s House, and drowned herself.

Consider visiting other historical sites in East Sussex, such as Anne of Cleves House in Lewes, the 4th century Pevensey Castle in Pevensey, the Royal Pavilion of King George IV in Brighton, and the medieval Bodiam Castle near Robertsbridge.

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