The Brontë Family Timeline
On this page can be found a tabular timeline of Emily and her siblings' lives, showing their ages at important points in their lives.
| Date | Event | Patri | Maria | Charl | Branw | Emily | Anne |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 Mar 1777 | Patrick Brontë born, Co. Down, Ireland | B | — | — | — | — | — |
| 15 Apr 1783 | Maria Branwell born, Penzance | 6 | B | — | — | — | — |
| 29 Dec 1812 | Patrick and Maria marry | 35 | 29 | — | — | — | — |
| 23 Apr 1814 | Maria Brontë (eldest daughter) born | 37 | 31 | — | — | — | — |
| 8 Feb 1815 | Elizabeth Brontë born | 37 | 31 | — | — | — | — |
| 21 Apr 1816 | Charlotte born, Thornton | 39 | 33 | B | — | — | — |
| 26 Jun 1817 | Branwell born, Thornton | 40 | 34 | 1 | B | — | — |
| 30 Jul 1818 | Emily born, Thornton | 41 | 35 | 2 | 1 | B | — |
| 17 Jan 1820 | Anne born, Thornton | 42 | 36 | 3 | 2 | 1 | B |
| Apr 1820 | Family moves to Haworth parsonage | 43 | 37 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 15 Sep 1821 | Maria Brontë (mother) dies, likely of cancer | 44 | 38 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 |
| Aug 1824 | Maria, Elizabeth, Charlotte sent to Cowan Bridge School | 47 | — | 8 | 7 | 6 | 4 |
| Nov 1824 | Emily joins her sisters at Cowan Bridge | 47 | — | 8 | 7 | 6 | 4 |
| 14 Feb 1825 | Maria Brontë (daughter) sent home ill with tuberculosis | 47 | — | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
| 6 May 1825 | Maria Brontë (daughter) dies, aged 11 | 48 | — | 9 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
| 31 May 1825 | Elizabeth sent home ill | 48 | — | 9 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
| Early Jun 1825 | Charlotte and Emily withdrawn from Cowan Bridge | 48 | — | 9 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
| 15 Jun 1825 | Elizabeth Brontë dies, aged 10 | 48 | — | 9 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
| 1831 | Charlotte attends Roe Head School; meets Ellen Nussey | 54 | — | 14/15 | 13/14 | 12/13 | 10/11 |
| Jul 1835 | Charlotte becomes a teacher at Roe Head; Emily enrols as a pupil | 58 | — | 19 | 18 | 16 | 15 |
| Oct 1835 | Emily, homesick, returns home; Anne takes her place at Roe Head | 58 | — | 19 | 18 | 17 | 15 |
| 1836 | Branwell becomes a Freemason in Haworth | 59 | — | 19/20 | 18/19 | 17/18 | 16 |
| Sep 1837 | Emily becomes a teacher at Law Hill School, Halifax | 60 | — | 21 | 20 | 19 | 17 |
| Dec 1837 | Tabby Aykroyd breaks her leg; the children stage a brief hunger strike to protect her position | 60 | — | 21 | 20 | 19 | 17 |
| 1838–39 | Branwell goes to Bradford as a portrait painter | 61 | — | 21/22 | 20/21 | 19/20/21 | 17/18 |
| 1846 | The sisters self-publish Poems under the pseudonyms Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell, funded partly from their aunt's legacy; only two copies sell | 69 | — | 29/30 | 28/29 | 27/28 | 25/26 |
| 1847 | Charlotte publishes Jane Eyre; Emily publishes Wuthering Heights; Anne publishes Agnes Grey | 70 | — | 30/31 | 29/30 | 28/29 | 26/27 |
| Dec 1847 | Newby publishes Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey together as a three-volume set | 70 | — | 31 | 30 | 29 | 27 |
| 1848 | Anne publishes The Tenant of Wildfell Hall | 71 | — | 31/32 | 30/31 | 29/30 | 27/28 |
| 24 Sep 1848 | Branwell dies of chronic bronchitis and marasmus | 71 | — | 32 | 31 | 30 | 28 |
| 19 Dec 1848 | Emily dies of pulmonary tuberculosis | 71 | — | 32 | — | 30 | 28 |
| 28 May 1849 | Anne dies of pulmonary tuberculosis, at Scarborough | 72 | — | 33 | — | — | 29 |
| 9 Jun 1854 | Charlotte marries Arthur Bell Nicholls | 77 | — | 38 | — | — | — |
| 31 Mar 1855 | Charlotte dies, possibly of complications from pregnancy | 78 | — | 38 | — | — | — |
| 7 Jun 1861 | Patrick Brontë dies having outlived his entire family | 84 | — | — | — | — | — |
