Highgate Cemetery

Interesting facts

In 1862 Dante Gabriel Rossetti buried a handwritten book of his poems beside his wife Elizabeth Siddal; in 1869 he had her coffin opened to retrieve it.

Marx was first buried in a grave about 100 yards away; in 1954 the remains were moved to the present site.

The 12-foot bronze bust of Marx by Laurence Bradshaw, paid for by the Communist Party of Great Britain, was unveiled on 15 March 1956.

Marx's tomb also holds his wife, his daughter Eleanor, his grandson Harry Longuet and the family housekeeper Helene Demuth.

The bare-knuckle boxer Tom Sayers lies beneath a stone figure of his mastiff Lion, which walked as chief mourner at his funeral.

The first burial, on 26 May 1839, was of Elizabeth Jackson of Little Windmill Street in Soho, six days after the cemetery was consecrated.

The cemetery holds 318 Commonwealth war graves, 259 from the First World War and 59 from the Second.

The Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko, murdered by poisoning in London in 2006, is buried on the East side.

Its overgrown Gothic atmosphere drew horror film-makers, and it appears in Taste the Blood of Dracula (1970) and Tales from the Crypt (1972).

Why it is worth it

Highgate Cemetery climbs a south-facing hillside in north London just below the top of Highgate Hill, next to Waterlow Park. It opened in 1839 as one of the "Magnificent Seven" private cemeteries built around the edge of the city when the old churchyards had run out of room, and the architect Stephen Geary laid out the original western part. An eastern extension across Swain's Lane opened in 1860. Around 170,000 people lie in some 53,000 graves, and the grounds, long left to grow wild, are now as much woodland and nature reserve as burial ground. The cemetery is listed Grade I on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.

The West Cemetery holds the great Victorian set pieces. The Egyptian Avenue, a passage lined with vaults, leads to the Circle of Lebanon, a ring of sunken catacombs built around an old cedar of Lebanon; both are Grade I listed. The original cedar, around 280 years old, had to be felled in 2019 and has been replaced. Higher up are the Terrace Catacombs and the Julius Beer Mausoleum, and the paths wind among angels, draped urns and ivy-covered obelisks. Michael Faraday, Christina Rossetti and George Michael are buried on this side.

The East Cemetery is more open and more varied. Its best-known grave is that of Karl Marx, whose tomb is itself Grade I listed and has survived bombing attempts. Nearby lie George Eliot and George Henry Lewes, Douglas Adams, and a memorial to firefighters of the London Fire Brigade. Since 1975 the cemetery has been owned and cared for by the charitable Friends of Highgate Cemetery Trust, and both sides remain in use for burials.

Getting there

The main gates are on Swain's Lane, London N6. Archway Underground station is about 1 km away, and the C11 bus stops at Brookfield Park. London City Airport (LCY) is about 16 km away. There is no visitor parking.

Plan your visit

We have no confirmed visit data yet. Once it is confirmed, this block also carries the date it was checked.

From the encyclopaedia

Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in North London, England, designed by architect Stephen Geary. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East sides. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there either in coffins or urns as well as for its de facto status as a nature reserve. The Cemetery is designated Grade I on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.

Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Interesting facts

Why it is worth it

Getting there

Plan your visit

On these lists

From the encyclopaedia