The British Cemetery

This is the first major study of the British cemetery. Written by acknowledged experts, it traces the rise from early modern times onwards of these new landscapes of remembrance. Victorian cemeteries drew on the Georgian churchyard tradition and a long-established interest in the burial customs of antiquity. New commercial opportunities were seized as church controls ended, with fast-growing urban populations demanding space for their dead.

The results were magnificent: new combinations of layout, planting and myriad memorials arose, reflecting the eclectic taste and religious mood of the times. Virgin land on the edge of towns was adapted to receive mass burials, and the mason's trade expanded rapidly to supply the growing market for family memorials. Chapters based on new research look at the evolution of buildings, planting and tombs. Contemporary comments are extensively cited, and a picture emerges of these complex places, seething with family loss and communal memory. From grand mausoleum to humble burial plot, this survey casts light on all varieties of grave, and brings the story up to the present day.

The British Cemetery looks at a larger range of British cemeteries than any previous book on the subject, and reveals the history of their landscapes and monuments.