D H Lawrence's House, Eastwood, Nottinghamshire

At 8a Victoria Street, Eastwood, David Herbert Lawrence was born in September 1885, the third son of a coal mining family. The house, now attached to a museum, has been left pretty much as it would have been furnished when the Lawrence family occupied it, and presents a clear understanding of life in a small mining community towards the end of the 19th century. However, this is just one of several houses in the locality that D H Lawrence grew up in, as his mother was always trying to improve their social standing and consequently they moved frequently.

From the outset, D H Lawrence's life was fraught with problems. As a child he was very sickly, suffering from bronchitis, and spent a lot of time at home with his mother who encouraged him to read. However, in his leisure time, Lawrence loved to explore the countryside, and this no doubt fuelled his imagination because many of the observations made during those walks were incorporated in his novels and, to a lesser degree, his paintings. During his adolescence he spent many happy hours at Haggs Farm, the home of Jessie Chambers, and it was with her help and encouragement that D H Lawrence managed to get some of his earlier work published.

Soon after he qualified as a teacher in 1908, D H Lawrence left his beloved Eastwood to teach in Croydon, but only two years' later his mother died and this had a drastic effect on his health. Following a period of difficulty and intense suffering after his mother's death, he gave up teaching in favour of a full time literary career. This change of career was greatly enhanced when, in 1912, he suddenly eloped with a university professor's wife, Frieda Weekly, and they decided to wander through Europe for a couple of years.

With a broadening of his horizons, Lawrence's artistic talents flourished and it was during this period that he completed 'Sons and Lovers'. Touched with the variety that travel brought, and often spending time in climates better suited to his poor health, D H Lawrence spent the rest of his life permanently on the move. In 1930, whilst in France, he died of Tuberculosis.

Although D H Lawrence had a great affection for Eastwood, the place responsible for the early development of his creative mind, his vitality, and his characterisations, the local inhabitants did not quite feel the same about him and his work. The scandal of his elopement with an older, married woman, and the outrage caused by some of the extremely controversial material included in his books, was absolutely unforgivable in this staid, Victorian community.

This humble abode has retained its character and authenticity from the Lawrence family's time as a result of its last occupant, an elderly lady who lived in the house for some 70 years without touching the fabric of the place. For a more in-depth look at the notorious life of D H Lawrence, the museum makes a good starting point from which to follow the 'Blue Line' literary trail around Eastwood, where many old haunts and houses that provided the inspiration for Lawrence have been highlighted.