How long had Bertha Mason been in the attic at the point of the events in Jane Eyre?

Question

**I am trying to work out how long Bertha Mason had been locked up by the time we reach Thornfield in the story.** This is part of an argument I am working for work and I haven't been able to find a definite amount of time. Adding to this variations in timeline if we add *Wide Sargasso Sea* I have had some trouble working it out.It can be assumed it's at the least around ten years since we know Adèle is just under ten years old. Mr. Rochester's travels that led to him meeting Celine were likely started after he had returned to England, with Bertha having already exhibited signs of her maladies back in Jamaica. From what I could gather it seems he locked her up as soon as he returned after the deaths of his father and brother.**Is this about right as accurate time for how long she had been in the attic? Anything else that I can look at to work out the timelines?** I would prefer the answers mainly from the *Jane Eyre* text but will also accept anything that can help from *Wide Sargasso Sea*.

Answer 1

In Jane Eyre,, Volume 1, Chapter 13, Mrs. Fairfax mentions that Rochester has owned Thornfield for about nine years. Rochester, after his failed attempt at a sham marriage, confesses in Volume 3, Chapter 1, to keeping Bertha in the third story room for ten years, indicating that with the passage of time between Jane's arrival at Thornfield and the wedding day, Bertha has been imprisoned at Thornfield for ten years. The solicitor also mentioned that she and Rochester married fifteen years before. Given the way Rochester describes his voyage to England and even the early years of his marriage (how quickly he discovered Bertha's madness and how the marriage was kept secret by his father and brother), it is likely that he kept Bertha locked up for at least a significant part of their time in Jamaica as well.