Honouring individuals with burials and memorials in Westminster Abbey has a long tradition.

History

Elizabeth I of England grave (left) 2013

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

in honour of the Royal Saint Edward the Confessor, whose relics were placed in a

shrine A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon, or similar figure of respect, wherein they ...

in the sanctuary and now lie in a burial vault beneath the 1268 Cosmati mosaic pavement, in front of the high altar. Henry III himself was interred nearby in a

chest tomb Funerary art is any work of art forming, or placed in, a repository for the remains of the dead. The term encompasses a wide variety of forms, including cenotaphs ("empty tombs"), tomb-like monuments which do not contain human remains, and comm ...

with effigial monument. Many of the

Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet () was a royal house which originated from the lands of Anjou in France. The family held the English throne from 1154 (with the accession of Henry II at the end of the Anarchy) to 1485, when Richard III died in ...

kings of England, their wives and other relatives, were also buried in the abbey. From the time of Edward the Confessor, until the death of

George II George II or 2 may refer to: People * George II of Antioch (seventh century AD) * George II of Armenia (late ninth century) * George II of Abkhazia (916–960) * Patriarch George II of Alexandria (1021–1051) * George II of Georgia (1072–1089) ...

in 1760, most kings and queens of England were buried here, although there are exceptions (most notably Edward IV, Henry VIII and

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, who are buried in St George's Chapel,

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original c ...

). All monarchs who died after

were buried in Windsor; most were laid to rest in St George's Chapel, although

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

and Edward VIII are buried at

Frogmore Frogmore is an estate within the Home Park, adjoining Windsor Castle, in Berkshire, England. It comprises , of primarily private gardens managed by the Crown Estate. It is the location of Frogmore House, a royal retreat, and Frogmore Cottage. ...

, where the royal family has a private cemetery. Since the Middle Ages, aristocrats were buried inside chapels, while monks and other people associated with the abbey were buried in the

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

s and other areas. One of these was Geoffrey Chaucer, who was employed as master of the King's Works and had apartments in the abbey. Other poets, writers and musicians were buried or memorialised around Chaucer in what became known as the

Poets' Corner Poets' Corner is the name traditionally given to a section of the South Transept of Westminster Abbey in the City of Westminster, London because of the high number of poets, playwrights, and writers buried and commemorated there. The first poe ...

. These include:

W. H. Auden Wystan Hugh Auden (; 21 February 1907 – 29 September 1973) was a British-American poet. Auden's poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in ...

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

John Dryden '' John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the per ...

George Eliot Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrot ...

, T. S. Eliot,

Thomas Gray Thomas Gray (26 December 1716 – 30 July 1771) was an English poet, letter-writer, classical scholar, and professor at Pembroke College, Cambridge. He is widely known for his '' Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard,'' published in 1751. G ...

, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Samuel Johnson, John Keats,

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

, Jenny Lind,

John Masefield John Edward Masefield (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate from 1930 until 1967. Among his best known works are the children's novels ''The Midnight Folk'' and ...

, John Milton, Laurence Olivier,

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...

, Nicholas Rowe, Percy Bysshe Shelley,

Thomas Shadwell Thomas Shadwell ( – 19 November 1692) was an English poet and playwright who was appointed Poet Laureate in 1689. Life Shadwell was born at either Bromehill Farm, Weeting-with-Broomhill or Santon House, Lynford, Norfolk, and educated at B ...

Alfred Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of his ...

and

William Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication '' Lyrical Ballads'' (1798). Wordsworth's ' ...

. Abbey musicians such as Henry Purcell were also buried in their place of work. Subsequently, it became one of Britain's most significant honours to be buried or commemorated here. The practice of burying national figures in the abbey began under

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three K ...

with the burial of Admiral

Robert Blake Robert Blake may refer to: Sportspeople * Bob Blake (American football) (1885–1962), American football player * Robbie Blake (born 1976), English footballer * Bob Blake (ice hockey) (1914–2008), American ice hockey player * Rob Blake (born 196 ...

, in 1657. The practice spread to include generals, admirals, politicians, doctors and scientists such as Sir

Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a " natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the grea ...

, buried on 4 April 1727 and

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended ...

, buried on 19 April 1882. British Prime Ministers buried in the abbey are: William Pitt the Elder,

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ire ...

, George Canning, Viscount Palmerston,

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...

, Bonar Law, Neville Chamberlain and Clement Attlee. During the early 20th century, for reasons of space, it became increasingly common to bury

cremated Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre i ...

remains rather than coffins. In 1905, the actor Sir

Henry Irving Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ( ...

was cremated and his ashes buried in the abbey, thereby becoming the first person ever to be cremated prior to interment. This marked a milestone as after the death of Sir

Joseph Dalton Hooker Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For twenty years he served as director of ...

in December 1911, the Dean and Chapter of Westminster Abbey chose to offer Hooker a grave near

's in the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, but also ''insisted'' that he be cremated before. His widow however declined and so Hooker's body was buried in the churchyard of

St Anne's Church, Kew St Anne's Church, Kew, is a parish church in Kew in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. The building, which dates from 1714, and is Grade II* listed, forms the central focus of Kew Green. The raised churchyard, which is on three side ...

. The majority of interments are of cremated remains, but some burials still take place – Frances Challen, wife of the Rev. Sebastian Charles, Canon of Westminster, was buried alongside her husband in the south choir aisle in 2014. Members of the

Percy family The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use ...

have a family vault, "The Northumberland Vault", in St Nicholas's Chapel, within the abbey. The ashes of physicist Stephen Hawking were interred in the Abbey on 15 June 2018, near the grave of Sir Isaac Newton. The memorial stone, bearing the inscription 'Here lies what was mortal of Stephen Hawking 1942–2018', includes a form of the Bekenstein–Hawking entropy equation relating to black holes. In the floor just inside the great west door, in the centre of the nave, is the tomb of

The Unknown Warrior The British grave of the Unknown Warrior (often known as 'The Tomb of the Unknown Warrior') holds an unidentified member of the British armed forces killed on a European battlefield during the First World War.Hanson, Chapters 23 & 24 He was gi ...

, an unidentified British soldier killed on a European battlefield during the First World War. He was buried in the abbey on 11 November 1920. There are many graves in the floors, but this is the only grave on which it is forbidden to walk.

Burials

* See also: :Burials at Westminster Abbey

British monarchs and consorts

The following English, Scottish and British monarchs and consorts are buried in the abbey: * Edward the Confessor, King of England, in 1066 *

Edith of Wessex Edith of Wessex ( 1025 – 18 December 1075) was Queen of England from her marriage to Edward the Confessor in 1045 until Edward died in 1066. Unlike most English queens in the 10th and 11th centuries, she was crowned. The principal source on h ...

, Queen consort of England; wife of Edward the Confessor * Henry III, King of England * Eleanor of Castile, Queen consort of England, in 1290 (

viscera In biology, an organ is a collection of tissues joined in a structural unit to serve a common function. In the hierarchy of life, an organ lies between tissue and an organ system. Tissues are formed from same type cells to act together in a f ...

at Lincoln Cathedral and heart at

Blackfriars, London Blackfriars is in central London, specifically the south-west corner of the City of London. Blackfriars Priory The name is first visible today in records of 1317 in many orthographies. Friar evolved from la, frater as french: frère has, mea ...

); wife of Edward I * Edward I, King of England, in 1307 *

Philippa of Hainault Philippa of Hainault (sometimes spelled Hainaut; Middle French: ''Philippe de Hainaut''; 24 June 1310 (or 1315) – 15 August 1369) was Queen of England as the wife and political adviser of King Edward III. She acted as regent in 1346,Stricklan ...

, Queen consort of England, in 1370; wife of Edward III * Edward III, King of England, in 1377 * Anne of Bohemia, Queen consort of England, in 1394; wife of Richard II * Richard II, King of England, in 1413 (reburial from King's Langley Priory) * Henry V, King of England, in 1422 *

Catherine of Valois Catherine of Valois or Catherine of France (27 October 1401 – 3 January 1437) was Queen of England from 1420 until 1422. A daughter of Charles VI of France, she was married to Henry V of England and gave birth to his heir Henry VI of Englan ...

, Queen consort of England; wife of Henry V * Possibly the

Princes in the Tower The Princes in the Tower refers to the apparent murder in England in the 1480s of the deposed King Edward V of England and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York. These two brothers were the only sons of King Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville sur ...

( Edward V, King of England, and his younger brother,

Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...

), sons of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville *

Anne Neville Anne Neville (11 June 1456 – 16 March 1485) was Queen of England as the wife of King Richard III. She was the younger of the two daughters and co-heiresses of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick (the "Kingmaker"). Before her marriage to Ric ...

, Queen consort of England, in 1485; wife of

Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales Edward of Westminster (13 October 1453 – 4 May 1471), also known as Edward of Lancaster, was the only son of King Henry VI of England and Margaret of Anjou. He was killed aged seventeen at the Battle of Tewkesbury. Early life Edward was born ...

and Richard III *

Elizabeth of York Elizabeth of York (11 February 1466 – 11 February 1503) was Queen of England from her marriage to King Henry VII on 18 January 1486 until her death in 1503. Elizabeth married Henry after his victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field, which mark ...

, Queen consort of England, in 1503; wife of Henry VII * Henry VII, King of England, in 1509 *

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

, King of England, in 1553 *

Anne of Cleves Anne of Cleves (german: Anna von Kleve; 1515 – 16 July 1557) was Queen of England from 6 January to 12 July 1540 as the fourth wife of King Henry VIII. Not much is known about Anne before 1527, when she became betrothed to Francis, Duke o ...

, Queen consort of England, in 1557; fourth wife of Henry VIII *

Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She ...

, Queen of England, in 1558 *

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, Queen of Scotland and Queen dowager of France, in 1612 (reburial from

Peterborough Cathedral Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Pau ...

); mother of

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

, Queen of England, in 1603 *

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...

, Queen consort of England and Scotland, in 1619; wife of James VI and I *

, King of England and Scotland, in 1625 * Charles II, King of England and Scotland, in 1685 * Mary II, Queen of England and Scotland, in 1695 * William III, King of England and Scotland, in 1702 * Prince George of Denmark, Duke of Cumberland, in 1708; husband of Anne, Queen of Great Britain *

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

, Queen of Great Britain, in 1714 * Caroline of Ansbach, Queen consort of Great Britain, in 1737; wife of George II *

, King of Great Britain, in 1760

Other royal relatives

* Edmund Crouchback, Earl of Leicester and Lancaster, in 1301; son of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence *

Katherine of England Katherine of England (Old English: ''Katerine''; 25 November 1253 – 3 May 1257) was the fifth child of Henry III and his wife, Eleanor of Provence. According to 13th-century chronicler Matthew Paris, when Katherine died she was deaf and may h ...

; daughter of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence * Henry of England, in 1274; son of Edward I and Eleanor of Castile * Alphonso of England, Earl of Chester, in 1284 (heart at

); son of Edward I and Eleanor of Castile * Eleanor of England, Countess of Bar, in 1298; daughter of Edward I and Eleanor of Castile * John of Eltham, Earl of Cornwall, in 1337; son of Edward II and

Isabella of France Isabella of France ( – 22 August 1358), sometimes described as the She-Wolf of France (), was Queen of England as the wife of King Edward II, and regent of England from 1327 until 1330. She was the youngest surviving child and only surviving ...

Elizabeth Tudor Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eliz ...

, in 1495; daughter of Henry VII and

* Edmund Tudor, Duke of Somerset, in 1500; son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York * Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby; mother of Henry VII * Henry Tudor, Duke of Cornwall, in 1511; son of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon *

Charles Stuart, 1st Earl of Lennox Charles Stuart, 5th Earl of Lennox (April or May 1557 – April 1576), was the fourth son of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox and Margaret Douglas, daughter of Margaret Tudor and granddaughter of King Henry VII of England. His brother was Hen ...

; great-grandson of Henry VII and paternal uncle to

* Lady Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox; daughter of

Margaret Tudor Margaret Tudor (28 November 1489 – 18 October 1541) was Queen of Scotland from 1503 until 1513 by marriage to King James IV. She then served as regent of Scotland during her son's minority, and successfully fought to extend her regency. Ma ...

and

Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus (c. 148922 January 1557) was a Scottish nobleman active during the reigns of James V and Mary, Queen of Scots. He was the son of George, Master of Angus, who was killed at the Battle of Flodden, and suc ...

* Henry Frederick Stuart, Prince of Wales, in 1612; son of

and

* Lady Arbella Stuart; great-great-granddaughter of Henry VII and paternal cousin to

* Charles James Stuart, Duke of Cornwall; infant son of

and

Henrietta Maria of France Henrietta Maria (french: link=no, Henriette Marie; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. She wa ...

* Anne Stuart, in 1640; infant daughter of Charles I and Henrietta Maria of France * Mary Stuart, Princess Royal and Princess consort of Orange, in 1660; daughter of Charles I and Henrietta Maria of France; mother of William III *

Henry Stuart, Duke of Gloucester Henry Stuart, Duke of Gloucester (8 July 164013 September 1660) was the youngest son of Charles I, King of England, Scotland, and Ireland, and his wife, Henrietta Maria of France. He is also known as Henry of Oatlands. From the age of two, Henry ...

, in 1660; son of Charles I and Henrietta Maria of France * Charles Stuart, Duke of Cambridge, in 1661; son of James II and

Anne Hyde Anne Hyde (12 March 163731 March 1671) was Duchess of York and Albany as the first wife of James, Duke of York, who later became King James II and VII. Anne was the daughter of a member of the English gentry – Edward Hyde (later created ...

* Elizabeth Stuart, Electress consort of the Palatinate and Queen consort of Bohemia, in 1662; daughter of

and Anne of Denmark; grandmother of

George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George I of Antioch (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dolgor ...

* James Stuart, Duke of Cambridge, in 1667; son of James II and Anne Hyde * Charles Stuart, Duke of Kendal, in 1667; son of James II and Anne Hyde *

(née Hyde), Duchess of York and Albany, in 1671; first wife of James II * Edgar Stuart, Duke of Cambridge, in 1671; son of James II and Anne Hyde * Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, in 1682; son of Elizabeth Stuart and Frederick V, Elector Palatine of the Rhine *

Prince William, Duke of Gloucester Prince William, Duke of Gloucester (24 July 1689 – 30 July 1700), was the son of Princess Anne (later Queen of England, Ireland and Scotland from 1702) and her husband, Prince George of Denmark. He was their only child to survive infanc ...

, in 1700; son of

Anne, Queen of Great Britain Anne (6 February 1665 – 1 August 1714) was Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland from 8 March 1702 until 1 May 1707. On 1 May 1707, under the Acts of Union, the kingdoms of England and Scotland united as a single sovereign state known as ...

and Prince George of Denmark * Other infant children of Anne, Queen of Great Britain * Prince George William of Great Britain, in 1718; infant son of

and Caroline of Ansbach *

Frederick, Prince of Wales Frederick, Prince of Wales, (Frederick Louis, ; 31 January 170731 March 1751), was the eldest son and heir apparent of King George II of Great Britain. He grew estranged from his parents, King George and Queen Caroline. Frederick was the fa ...

, in 1751; son of George II and Caroline of Ansbach; father of

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

Princess Caroline of Great Britain Princess Caroline Elizabeth of Great Britain (10 June 1713 – 28 December 1757) was the fourth child and third daughter of King George II of Great Britain and his wife Caroline of Ansbach. Early life Princess Caroline was born at Herrenhausen P ...

, in 1758; daughter of George II and Caroline of Ansbach * Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain, in 1759; daughter of Frederick, Prince of Wales and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg * Prince William, Duke of Cumberland, in 1765; son of George II and Caroline of Ansbach * Prince Frederick of Great Britain, in 1766; son of Frederick, Prince of Wales and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg *

Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany, (Edward Augustus;In ''The London Gazette'', the Prince is called simply 'Prince Edward'16 November 1756Princess Louisa of Great Britain, in 1768; daughter of Frederick, Prince of Wales and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg * Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Princess of Wales, in 1772; wife of

Prince Alfred of Great Britain A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

, in 1782 (later moved to St George's Chapel,

); son of

and

Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Sophia Charlotte; 19 May 1744 – 17 November 1818) was Queen of Great Britain and of Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until the union of the two kingdoms ...

Prince Octavius of Great Britain Prince Octavius of Great Britain (23 February 17793 May 1783) was the thirteenth child and eighth son of King George III and his queen consort, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Six months after the death of his younger brother Prince A ...

, in 1783 (later moved to St. George's Chapel,

); son of George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz *

Princess Amelia of Great Britain Princess Amelia Sophia Eleonore of Great Britain (10 June 1711 ( Old Style and New Style dates, New Style) – 31 October 1786) was the second daughter of King George II of Great Britain and Queen Caroline. Early life Princess Amelia was bor ...

, in 1786; daughter of George II and Caroline of Ansbach *

Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn (Henry Frederick;He is called simply "(His Royal Highness) Prince Henry" in the ''London Gazette'8 September 1761 nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

: * Field Marshal Edmund Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby * John André * The Right Reverend Francis Atterbury, Bishop of Rochester * Clement Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee * Sir

Charles Barry Sir Charles Barry (23 May 1795 – 12 May 1860) was a British architect, best known for his role in the rebuilding of the Palace of Westminster (also known as the Houses of Parliament) in London during the mid-19th century, but also respons ...

Ernest Bevin Ernest Bevin (9 March 1881 – 14 April 1951) was a British statesman, trade union leader, and Labour Party politician. He co-founded and served as General Secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union in the years 1922–194 ...

Angela Burdett-Coutts, 1st Baroness Burdett-Coutts Angela Georgina Burdett-Coutts, 1st Baroness Burdett-Coutts (21 April 1814 – 30 December 1906), born Angela Georgina Burdett, was a British philanthropist, the daughter of Sir Francis Burdett, 5th Baronet and Sophia, formerly Coutts, daught ...

* Neville Chamberlain * Admiral of the Red Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald and Marquess of Maranhão * Vice Admiral Charles Cornewall *

* Joost de Blank, Archbishop of Cape Town *

Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon (12 September 1866 – 12 August 1941), was a British Liberal politician and administrator who served as Governor General of Canada, the 13th since Canadian Confederation, and as Viceroy an ...

George Graham George Graham (born 30 November 1944), nicknamed "Stroller", is a Scottish former Association football, football player and manager (association football), manager. In his successful playing career, he made 455 appearances in England's Football ...

* Stephen Hawking * Sir John Herschel, 1st Baronet * Benjamin "Ben" Jonson (buried upright) * Andrew Bonar Law *

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, and pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, an explorer in Africa, and one of the most popular British heroes of t ...

(heart buried in

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

) * Sir Charles Lyell, 1st Baronet * Sir

* Field Marshal

Herbert Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer Field Marshal Herbert Charles Onslow Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer, (13 March 1857 – 16 July 1932) was a senior British Army officer of the First World War. After commanding V Corps at the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915, he took command o ...

Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, (30 August 1871 – 19 October 1937) was a New Zealand physicist who came to be known as the father of nuclear physics. ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' considers him to be the greatest ...

* Sir George Gilbert Scott *

Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson FRS HFRSE FRSA DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he built on the achievements of his father ...

* Ludovic Stewart, 2nd Duke of Lennox and 1st Duke of Richmond * George Edmund Street * Sir Joseph John "J.J." Thomson *

William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, (26 June 182417 December 1907) was a British mathematician, Mathematical physics, mathematical physicist and engineer born in Belfast. Professor of Natural Philosophy (Glasgow), Professor of Natural Philoso ...

Thomas Tompion Thomas Tompion, FRS (1639–1713) was an English clockmaker, watchmaker and mechanician who is still regarded to this day as the "Father of English Clockmaking". Tompion's work includes some of the most historic and important clocks and watc ...

(entombed in 1920) * Beatrice Webb, Baroness Passfield *

Sidney Webb, 1st Baron Passfield Sidney James Webb, 1st Baron Passfield, (13 July 1859 – 13 October 1947) was a British socialist, economist and reformer, who co-founded the London School of Economics. He was an early member of the Fabian Society in 1884, joining, like Ge ...

North Transept

The following are buried in the North Transept: * George Canning *

Charles Canning, 1st Earl Canning Charles Canning, 1st Earl Canning, (14 December 1812 – 17 June 1862), also known as The Viscount Canning and Clemency Canning, was a British statesman and Governor-General of India during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and the first Vice ...

* William Pitt the Elder, 1st Earl of Chatham *

Charles James Fox Charles James Fox (24 January 1749 – 13 September 1806), styled ''The Honourable'' from 1762, was a prominent British Whig statesman whose parliamentary career spanned 38 years of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was the arch-riv ...

Henry Grattan Henry Grattan (3 July 1746 – 4 June 1820) was an Irish politician and lawyer who campaigned for legislative freedom for the Irish Parliament in the late 18th century from Britain. He was a Member of the Irish Parliament (MP) from 1775 to 18 ...

* Major General Sir

John Malcolm Major-General Sir John Malcolm GCB, KLS (2 May 1769 – 30 May 1833) was a Scottish soldier, diplomat, East India Company administrator, statesman, and historian. Early life Sir John Malcolm was born in 1769, one of seventeen children of Ge ...

* David Murray, 2nd Earl of Mansfield and 7th Viscount of Stormont *

William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, PC, SL (2 March 170520 March 1793) was a British barrister, politician and judge noted for his reform of English law. Born to Scottish nobility, he was educated in Perth, Scotland, before moving to Lond ...

* Theodore Paleologus II *

Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865) was a British statesman who was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. Palmerston dominated British foreign policy during the period ...

* Sir Hugh Vaughan *

William Wilberforce William Wilberforce (24 August 175929 July 1833) was a British politician, philanthropist and leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780, eventually becom ...

South Transept

View of Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey 03

View of the west wall of Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey

The following are buried in the South Transept which is known as the

: *

Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his ...

* Robert Browning *

William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and the ''Ann ...

* Thomas Campbell * Geoffrey Chaucer *

William Congreve William Congreve (24 January 1670 – 19 January 1729) was an English playwright and poet of the Restoration period. He is known for his clever, satirical dialogue and influence on the comedy of manners style of that period. He was also a mi ...

Abraham Cowley Abraham Cowley (; 161828 July 1667) was an English poet and essayist born in the City of London late in 1618. He was one of the leading English poets of the 17th century, with 14 printings of his ''Works'' published between 1668 and 1721. Early ...

* Sir

William Davenant Sir William Davenant (baptised 3 March 1606 – 7 April 1668), also spelled D'Avenant, was an English poet and playwright. Along with Thomas Killigrew, Davenant was one of the rare figures in English Renaissance theatre whose career spanned b ...

* Sir John Denham *

Michael Drayton Michael Drayton (1563 – 23 December 1631) was an English poet who came to prominence in the Elizabethan era. He died on 23 December 1631 in London. Early life Drayton was born at Hartshill, near Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England. Almost nothin ...

* Adam Fox * David Garrick * John Gay *

Gabriel Goodman Gabriel Goodman (6 November 1528 – 17 June 1601) became the Dean of Westminster on 23 September 1561 and the re-founder of Ruthin School, in Ruthin, Denbighshire. In 1568 he translated the “First Epistle to the Corinthians" for the “Bi ...

* George Frideric Handel * Thomas Hardy (heart buried in Stinsford) * Sir

* Samuel Johnson *

Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, (; 25 October 1800 – 28 December 1859) was a British historian and Whig politician, who served as the Secretary at War between 1839 and 1841, and as the Paymaster-General between 1846 and 1 ...

* Anne Oldfield * Laurence Olivier, Baron Olivier * Thomas "Old Tom" Parr *

Richard Brinsley Sheridan Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan (30 October 17517 July 1816) was an Irish satirist, a politician, a playwright, poet, and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. He is known for his plays such as '' The Rivals'', '' The ...

* Edmund Spenser * Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson

Cloisters

The following are buried in the

Cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

s: * Edmund Ayrton * Aphra Behn * General

John Burgoyne General John Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British general, dramatist and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1761 to 1792. He first saw action during the Seven Years' War when he participated in several bat ...

Muzio Clementi Muzio Filippo Vincenzo Francesco Saverio Clementi (23 January 1752 – 10 March 1832) was an Italian composer, virtuoso pianist, pedagogue, conductor, music publisher, editor, and piano manufacturer, who was mostly active in England. Encourag ...

* Benjamin Cooke * Robert Cooke * Percival "Percy" Dearmer * Laurence of Durham, Abbot ''c.'' 1158 – 1173 *

Ian Fraser, Baron Fraser of Lonsdale William Jocelyn Ian Fraser, Baron Fraser of Lonsdale, (30 August 1897 – 19 December 1974) was a British Conservative Party politician, a Governor of the BBC, a successful businessman and the first person to be awarded a life peerage under t ...

* Jeremy Heywood, Baron Heywood of Whitehall * William de Humez, Abbot 1214 – 1222 *

Howard Nixon Howard Millar Nixon OBE (3 September 1909 – 18 February 1983) was a British librarian and historian of bookbinding. He was a librarian at the British Museum then Librarian of Westminster Abbey from 1974 until his death. Life Howard Millar Nixo ...

* John Parsons *

Johann Peter Salomon Johann Peter Salomon (20 February 1745 aptized– 28 November 1815) was a German violinist, composer, conductor and musical impresario. Although he was an accomplished violinist, he is best known for bringing Joseph Haydn to London and for c ...

William Shield William Shield (5 March 1748 – 25 January 1829) was an English composer, violinist and violist. His music earned the respect of Haydn and Beethoven. Life and musical career Shield was born in Swalwell near Gateshead, County Durham, the so ...

Herbert Thorndike Herbert Thorndike (1598 – 11 June 1672) was an English academic and clergyman, known as an orientalist and Canon of Westminster Abbey. He was an influential theological writer during the reigns of King Charles I and, after the Restoration, Kin ...

* John Thorndike * William Turner * James Wright

North Choir Aisle

The following are buried in the North Choir Aisle: *

John Blow John Blow (baptised 23 February 1649 – 1 October 1708) was an English composer and organist of the Baroque period. Appointed organist of Westminster Abbey in late 1668,Henry Purcell *

Almeric de Courcy, 23rd Baron Kingsale Almeric de Courcy, 23rd Baron Kingsale (1664–1720) was an Irish Jacobite. Birth and origins Almeric was born in May 1664, the second son of John de Courcy and his wife Ellen MacCarthy Reagh. His father was the 21st Baron Kingsale. His fa ...

* John Robinson * Admiral Sir Edward Spragge * Ralph Vaughan Williams * Sir

William Sterndale Bennett Sir William Sterndale Bennett (13 April 18161 February 1875) was an English composer, pianist, conductor and music educator. At the age of ten Bennett was admitted to the London Royal Academy of Music (RAM), where he remained for ten years. B ...

South Choir Aisle

The following are buried in the South Choir Aisle: * Andrew Bell * James Kendall * Sir Paul Methuen * Admiral of the Fleet Sir

Cloudesley Shovell Admiral of the Fleet Sir Cloudesley Shovell (c. November 1650 – 22 or 23 October 1707) was an English naval officer. As a junior officer he saw action at the Battle of Solebay and then at the Battle of Texel during the Third Anglo-Dutch Wa ...

* Dame Sybil Thorndike, Lady Casson *

Charles Whitworth, 1st Baron Whitworth Charles Whitworth, 1st Baron Whitworth (14 October 1675 – 23 October 1725) was a Great Britain, British diplomat. Early life and education Whitworth was possibly born at Blore Pipe, near Eccleshall, Staffordshire. He entered Westminster School ...

Ambulatory chapels

The following are buried in the ambulatory chapels:

St. John the Baptist Chapel

Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter, KG (5 May 1542 – 8 February 1623), known as Lord Burghley from 1598 to 1605, was an English politician, courtier and soldier. Family Thomas Cecil was the elder son of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, b ...

* Dorothy Cecil, Countess of Exeter; first wife of Thomas Cecil and daughter of

John Neville, 4th Baron Latimer John Neville, 4th Baron Latimer (1520 – 22 April 1577) was an English peer, and the stepson of Catherine Parr, later the sixth wife of King Henry VIII. Early life John Neville, born about 1520, was the only son of John Neville, 3rd Baron Lati ...

St. Nicholas' Chapel

Northumberland Vault: * George Seymour, Viscount Beauchamp; only son of

Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset General Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset (11 November 16847 February 1750), styled Earl of Hertford until 1748, of Petworth House in Sussex, was a British Army officer and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1708 until 17 ...

* General

Frances Seymour, Duchess of Somerset Frances Seymour, Duchess of Somerset (''née'' Devereux; 30 September 1599 – 24 April 1674) was an English noblewoman who lived during the reigns of Elizabeth I, James I, Charles I and Charles II. Her father was Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl o ...

; wife of Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset and paternal granddaughter of

Thomas Thynne, 1st Viscount Weymouth Thomas Thynne, 1st Viscount Weymouth (1640 – 28 July 1714) was a British peer in the peerage of England. Biography He was born the son of Sir Henry Frederick Thynne of Caus Castle, Shropshire, and Kempsford, Gloucestershire, and his wife, ...

* Lady Elizabeth Percy; only daughter of

Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland, (c. 17146 June 1786), was an English peer, landowner, and art patron. Origins He was born Hugh Smithson, the son of Lansdale Smithson (b. 1682) of Langdale and Philadelphia Revely. He was a grandson of ...

* Elizabeth Percy, Duchess of Northumberland and 2nd Baroness Percy; wife of Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland and daughter of Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset * Elizabeth Percy; second daughter of Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley * Lady Charlotte Percy; eldest daughter of

Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland Lieutenant General Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland (14 August 174210 July 1817) was an officer in the British army and later a British peer. He participated in the Battles of Lexington and Concord and the Battle of Long Island during t ...

* Lord Henry Percy; second son of Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland * Lady Louisa Percy; fifth daughter of Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley * Hon. Algernon Percy; eldest son of

George Percy, 5th Duke of Northumberland George Percy, 5th Duke of Northumberland PC (22 June 1778 – 22 August 1867), styled Lord Lovaine between 1790 and 1830 and known as the Earl of Beverley between 1830 and 1865, was a British Tory politician. He served as Captain of the Yeomen ...

* Hon. Henry Percy; second son of George Percy, 5th Duke of Northumberland * Hon. Margaret Percy; second daughter of George Percy, 5th Duke of Northumberland *

Isabella Percy, Countess of Beverley Isabella Susan Percy, Countess of Beverley (19 December 1750 – 24 January 1812), formerly Isabella Susan (or Susannah) Burrell, was the wife of Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley, and the mother of the 5th Duke of Northumberland.G.E. Cokay ...

; wife of Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley and daughter of Peter Burrell; sister of Frances Percy, Duchess of Northumberland * Lieutenant General

* Lady Elizabeth Percy; second daughter of Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland *

Frances Percy, Duchess of Northumberland Frances Julia Percy, Duchess of Northumberland ( Burrell; 21 December 1752 – 28 April 1820) was the second wife of Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland, and the mother of the 3rd and 4th Dukes. Frances was a daughter of the barrister Pet ...

; second wife of Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland and daughter of Peter Burrell; sister of Isabella Percy, Countess of Beverley *

Hugh Percy, 3rd Duke of Northumberland Hugh Percy, 3rd Duke of Northumberland (20 April 178511 February 1847), styled Earl Percy until 1817, was a British aristocrat and Tory politician who served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland under the Duke of Wellington from 1829 to 1830. Backgro ...

* Lady Agnes Buller; wife of Major General Frederick Thomas Buller and twin sister of Hugh Percy, 3rd Duke of Northumberland * Admiral

Algernon Percy, 4th Duke of Northumberland Admiral Algernon Percy, 4th Duke of Northumberland, (15 December 1792 – 12 February 1865), styled Lord Algernon Percy from birth until 1816 and known as The Lord Prudhoe between 1816 and 1847, was a British naval commander, explorer and Cons ...

Charlotte Percy, Duchess of Northumberland Charlotte Florentia Percy, Duchess of Northumberland (''née'' Lady Charlotte Florentia Clive; 12 September 1787 – 27 July 1866), was governess of the future Queen Victoria. Family Born as the younger daughter and third child of the politi ...

; wife of the Hugh Percy, 3rd Duke of Northumberland and daughter of

Edward Clive, 1st Earl of Powis Edward Clive, 1st Earl of Powis, (7 March 1754 – 16 May 1839), known as the Lord Clive between 1774 and 1804, was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1774 to 1794 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Clive. Earl ...

; governess of Princess Alexandrina Victoria of Kent (the future

) *

* General

Lord Henry Percy General Lord Henry Hugh Manvers Percy, (22 August 1817 – 3 December 1877) was a British Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwe ...

; fifth son of George Percy, 5th Duke of Northumberland and recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

* Lady Louisa Percy; eldest daughter of George Percy, 5th Duke of Northumberland * Louisa Percy, Duchess of Northumberland; wife of Algernon Percy, 6th Duke of Northumberland and daughter of Henry Drummond *

Algernon Percy, 6th Duke of Northumberland Algernon George Percy, 6th Duke of Northumberland, (20 May 1810 – 2 January 1899), styled Lord Lovaine between 1830 and 1865 and Earl Percy between 1865 and 1867, was a British Conservative politician. He held office under the Earl of Derby as ...

Alan Percy, 8th Duke of Northumberland Alan Ian Percy, 8th Duke of Northumberland, (17 April 1880 – 23 August 1930) was a British peer, army officer, and newspaper proprietor. Military career Percy was a second lieutenant of the 2nd Volunteer Battalion the Queen's (Royal West S ...

* Helen Percy'','' Duchess of Northumberland; wife of Alan Percy, 8th Duke of Northumberland and daughter of

Charles Gordon-Lennox, 7th Duke of Richmond Charles Henry Gordon-Lennox, 7th Duke of Richmond and Lennox, 2nd Duke of Gordon, (27 December 1845 – 18 January 1928), 7th Duke of Aubigny ( French peerage in the French nobility), styled Lord Settrington until 1860 and Earl of March between ...

Hugh Percy, 10th Duke of Northumberland Hugh Algernon Percy, 10th Duke of Northumberland (6 April 1914 – 11 October 1988), styled Lord Hugh Percy between 1918 and 1940, was a British landowner, soldier and peer. He was the son of Alan Percy, 8th Duke of Northumberland, and Lady He ...

Elizabeth Percy, Duchess of Northumberland Elizabeth Percy, Duchess of Northumberland (née ''Seymour''; 26 November 1716 – 5 December 1776), also ''suo jure'' 2nd Baroness Percy, was a British peer. Life Percy was the only daughter of Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset, and hi ...

(ashes); wife of Hugh Percy, 10th Duke of Northumberland and daughter of Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 8th Duke of Buccleuch; paternal niece of

Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, (born Lady Alice Christabel Montagu Douglas Scott; 25 December 1901 – 29 October 2004) was the wife of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, the third son of King George V and Queen Mary. She was the mothe ...

St Paul's Chapel

* Katherine Percy, Countess of Northumberland; wife of

Henry Percy, 8th Earl of Northumberland Henry Percy, 8th Earl of Northumberland, 2nd Baron Percy (153221 June 1585) was an English nobleman and conspirator. Origins He was born in about 1532 at Newburn Manor (Northumberland), the second of two sons of Sir Thomas Percy (c. 1504–15 ...

and daughter of

* Sir Lewis de Robessart, Baron Bourchier *

Elizabeth Bourchier, 4th Baroness Bourchier Elizabeth Bourchier, 4th Baroness Bourchier (c.1399–1432) was an English noblewoman and landowner. She was the daughter of Bartholomew Bourchier, 3rd Baron Bourchier. She married twice, and both husbands acquired the title of Baron Bourchie ...

Other ambulatory chapels

* Sir Robert Aytoun *

Eleanor de Bohun Eleanor de Bohun ( – 3 October 1399) was the elder daughter and co-heiress (with her sister, Mary de Bohun), of Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford (1341–1373) and Joan Fitzalan, a daughter of Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel a ...

, Duchess of Gloucester *

Lionel Cranfield, 1st Earl of Middlesex Lionel Cranfield, 1st Earl of Middlesex (1575 – 6 August 1645) was an English merchant and politician. He sat in the House of Commons between 1614 and 1622 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Cranfield. Life He was the second son ...

* Sir Rowland Hill *Frances, Lady Ingram; wife of Sir Thomas Ingram and daughter of Thomas Belasyse, 1st Viscount Fauconberg *Mary Ingram; daughter of Sir Thomas Ingram *Sir Thomas Ingram * Simon Langham * Edward Talbot, 8th Earl of Shrewsbury *

William de Valence, 1st Earl of Pembroke {{Infobox noble, name=William de Valence, christening_date=, noble family=, house-type=, father= Hugh X of Lusignan, mother=Isabella of Angoulême, birth_name=, birth_date=, birth_place=, christening_place=, styles=, death_date=13 June 1296, death ...

* George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham * Katherine Villiers, Duchess of Buckingham and 18th Baroness de Ros of Helmsley; wife of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham and daughter of

Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland, KG (1578–1632) was an English nobleman. Despite a brief imprisonment for his involvement in the Essex Rebellion of 1601, he became prominent at the court of James I. He lived at Belvoir Castle in Leices ...

Henry VII's Lady Chapel

The following are buried in the

Henry VII's Chapel The Henry VII Lady Chapel, now more often known just as the Henry VII Chapel, is a large Lady chapel at the far eastern end of Westminster Abbey, paid for by the will of King Henry VII. It is separated from the rest of the abbey by brass gates a ...

: * Antoine Philippe d'Orléans, Duke of Montpensier; brother of Louis Philippe I of France *

Joseph Addison Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 June 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richar ...

(a white marble statue in Poets' Corner) * Air Chief Marshal

Hugh Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding Air Chief Marshal Hugh Caswall Tremenheere Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding, (24 April 1882 – 15 February 1970) was an officer in the Royal Air Force. He was Air Officer Commanding RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain and is generally c ...

* George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle *

George Savile, 1st Marquess of Halifax George Savile, 1st Marquess of Halifax, (11 November 1633 – 5 April 1695), was an English statesman, writer, and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1660, and in the House of Lords after he was raised to the peerage in 1668. Backgr ...

* Marshal of the Royal Air Force

Hugh Trenchard, 1st Viscount Trenchard Marshal of the Royal Air Force Hugh Montague Trenchard, 1st Viscount Trenchard, (3 February 1873 – 10 February 1956) was a British officer who was instrumental in establishing the Royal Air Force. He has been described as the "Father of the ...

* Major General

Charles Worsley Charles Worsley (24 June 1622 – 12 June 1656) was an English soldier and politician. He was an ardent supporter of Oliver Cromwell and was an officer in the Parliamentary army during the English Civil War and the Commonwealth of England. H ...

(no memorial remains) Unknown location * Sir Arthur Ingram (omission from the main burial register during the English Civil War)

Memorials

The following are commemorated in the abbey and/or had their memorial service in the abbey, but were buried elsewhere:

Individuals

Monument to James Cornewall, Westminster Abbey

Monument to Captain Edward Cooke, missing dedecation

* Christopher Anstey — buried at St. Swithin's Church, Bath, Somerset * Dame

Peggy Ashcroft Dame Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft (22 December 1907 – 14 June 1991), known professionally as Peggy Ashcroft, was an English actress whose career spanned more than 60 years. Born to a comfortable middle-class family, Ashcroft was deter ...

— cremated at

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), ...

, London; ashes scattered in the Great Garden at

New Place New Place () was William Shakespeare's final place of residence in Stratford-upon-Avon. He died there in 1616. Though the house no longer exists, the site is owned by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, which maintains it as a specially-desig ...

, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire * Wystan Hugh "W. H." Auden — buried in Kirchstetten, Austria * Jane Austen — buried in

Winchester Cathedral The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...

, Hampshire * Lieutenant General Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell — buried in alongside the ashes of his wife, Olave Baden-Powell, Baroness Baden-Powell, in

Nyeri Nyeri is a town situated in the Central Highlands of Kenya. It is the county headquarters of Nyeri County. The town was the central administrative headquarters of the country's former Central Province. Following the dissolution of the former pr ...

, Kenya * Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley — cremated at

, London; ashes buried in

Worcester Cathedral Worcester Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Worcester, in Worcestershire, England, situated on a bank overlooking the River Severn. It is the seat of the Bishop of Worcester. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Bles ...

, Worcestershire * Admiral

— initially buried in the abbey, but moved to

St Margaret's, Westminster The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster ...

in 1661 *

William Booth William Booth (10 April 182920 August 1912) was an English Methodist preacher who, along with his wife, Catherine, founded the Salvation Army and became its first " General" (1878–1912). His 1890 book In Darkest England and The Way Out o ...

— buried in Abney Park Cemetery, Stoke Newington, London * Sir Adrian Boult — body willed to science * Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh — buried at St Peter and St Paul's Church,

Aldeburgh Aldeburgh ( ) is a coastal town in the county of Suffolk, England. Located to the north of the River Alde. Its estimated population was 2,276 in 2019. It was home to the composer Benjamin Britten and remains the centre of the international Alde ...

, Suffolk *

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

and Emily Brontë — buried in the family vault at St Michael and All Angels' Church,

Haworth Haworth () is a village in the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, in the Pennines, south-west of Keighley, west of Bradford and east of Colne in Lancashire. The surrounding areas include Oakworth and Oxenhope. Nearby villages inc ...

, West Yorkshire;

Anne Brontë Anne Brontë (, commonly ; 17 January 1820 – 28 May 1849) was an English novelist and poet, and the youngest member of the Brontë literary family. Anne Brontë was the daughter of Maria (born Branwell) and Patrick Brontë, a poor Irish cl ...

is buried in at St Mary's Church,

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, su ...

, North Yorkshire *

George Byron, 6th Baron Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

— buried at the Church of St Mary Magdalene,

Hucknall Hucknall, formerly Hucknall Torkard, is a market town in the Ashfield district of Nottinghamshire, England. It lies 7 miles north of Nottingham, 7 miles south-east of Kirkby-in-Ashfield, 9 miles from Mansfield and 10 miles south of Sutton-i ...

, Nottinghamshire * Sir

Henry Campbell-Bannerman Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman (né Campbell; 7 September 183622 April 1908) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. He served as the prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1905 to 1908 and leader of the Liberal Party from 1899 to 1 ...

— buried in

Meigle Meigle ( gd, Mìgeil, ) is a village in Strathmore, Scotland. It lies in the council area of Perth and Kinross in the Coupar Angus and Meigle ward. It lies on the A94 road between Perth and Forfar. Other smaller settlements nearby are Balk ...

, Perthshire * Sir

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

— buried at St Martin's Church,

Bladon Bladon is a village and civil parish on the River Glyme about northwest of Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, notable as the burial place of Sir Winston Churchill. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 898. Places of worship St Mart ...

, Oxfordshire *

John Clare John Clare (13 July 1793 – 20 May 1864) was an English poet. The son of a farm labourer, he became known for his celebrations of the English countryside and sorrows at its disruption. His work underwent major re-evaluation in the late 20th ce ...

— buried at St Botolph's Church, Helpston, Cambridgeshire * Captain

James Cornewall Captain James Cornewall (1698 – 11 February 1744) was an officer in the British Royal Navy who became a national hero following his death at the Battle of Toulon in 1744. His monument in Westminster Abbey was the first ever to be erected by P ...

— buried at sea off

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

; his monument was the first ever to be erected by Parliament at public expense * Captain Edward Cooke — buried in

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

, India * Sir Noël Coward — buried on the grounds of his home, Firefly Estate, Jamaica *

William Cowper William Cowper ( ; 26 November 1731 – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and sce ...

— honoured with a stained glass window unveiled by

George William Childs George William Childs (1829–1894) was an American publisher who co-owned the '' Public Ledger'' newspaper in Philadelphia with financier Anthony Joseph Drexel. Early life Childs was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on May 12, 1829, the illegitim ...

in 1875; buried in the St Thomas of Canterbury Chapel, at St Nicholas's Church, East Dereham, Norfolk *

— body buried at

Tyburn Tyburn was a manor (estate) in the county of Middlesex, one of two which were served by the parish of Marylebone. The parish, probably therefore also the manor, was bounded by Roman roads to the west (modern Edgware Road) and south (modern O ...

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it me ...

and head buried at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge * Diana, Princess of Wales — buried at

Althorp Althorp (popularly pronounced ) is a Grade I listed stately home and estate in the civil parish of Althorp, in West Northamptonshire, England of about . By road it is about northwest of the county town of Northampton and about northwest of ...

, West Northamptonshire *

Richard Dimbleby Frederick Richard Dimbleby (25 May 1913 – 22 December 1965) was an English journalist and broadcaster, who became the BBC's first war correspondent, and then its leading TV news commentator. As host of the long-running current affairs ...

— ashes buried at St. Peter's Church,

Linchmere Linchmere, also often spelled Lynchmere, is a village and a civil parish, the northernmost parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. As well as Linchmere village, the parish contains the settlements of Hammer and Camelsdale. Linc ...

, West Sussex *

Paul Dirac Paul Adrien Maurice Dirac (; 8 August 1902 – 20 October 1984) was an English theoretical physicist who is regarded as one of the most significant physicists of the 20th century. He was the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the Univer ...

— buried in

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...

, Florida *

Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a central role in the creation o ...

— buried at the Church of St. Michael and All Angels,

Hughenden Manor Hughenden Manor, Hughenden, Buckinghamshire, England, is a Victorian mansion, with earlier origins, that served as the country house of the Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield. It is now owned by the National Trust and o ...

, Buckinghamshire * Sir Francis Drake, buried at sea off Portobelo, Panama * Sir Edward Elgar, 1st Baronet — buried at

St Wulstan's Roman Catholic Church St Wulstan's Roman Catholic Church, Little Malvern, Worcestershire, England is a Benedictine parish church administered by the monks of Downside Abbey. The attached churchyard contains the grave of the composer Edward Elgar and of his wife, Alic ...

Little Malvern Little Malvern is a small village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England. It is situated on the lower slopes of the Malvern Hills, south of Malvern Wells, near Great Malvern, the major centre of the area often referred to as ''The Malverns' ...

, Worcestershire * Howard Florey, Baron Florey — buried in Marston, Oxfordshire * Sir

John Franklin Sir John Franklin (16 April 1786 – 11 June 1847) was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. After serving in wars against Napoleonic France and the United States, he led two expeditions into the Canadian Arctic and through t ...

— presumably buried at sea near King William Island, Canada Memorial to Robert Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury

Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (; 3 February 183022 August 1903) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom three times for a ...

— buried at St Etheldreda's Church, Hatfield * Sir

John Gielgud Sir Arthur John Gielgud, (; 14 April 1904 – 21 May 2000) was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the Brit ...

— ashes scattered in the garden of his home in

Wotton Underwood Wotton Underwood is a village and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England, north of Thame, Oxfordshire. The toponym is derived from the Old English for "farm near a wood". It is recorded in the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' of AD 848 as ''Wudotu ...

, Buckinghamshire *

Adam Lindsay Gordon Adam Lindsay Gordon (19 October 1833 – 24 June 1870) was a British-Australian poet, horseman, police officer and politician. He was the first Australian poet to gain considerable recognition overseas, and according to his contemporary, write ...

— buried in Australia * George Green — buried in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

John Harrison John Harrison ( – 24 March 1776) was a self-educated English carpenter and clockmaker who invented the marine chronometer, a long-sought-after device for solving the problem of calculating longitude while at sea. Harrison's solution revol ...

— buried at

St. John's Church St. John's Church, Church of St. John, or variants, thereof, (Saint John or St. John usually refers to John the Baptist, but also, sometimes, to John the Apostle or John the Evangelist) may refer to the following churches, former churches or other ...

, Hampstead, London *

Philip Larkin Philip Arthur Larkin (9 August 1922 – 2 December 1985) was an English poet, novelist, and librarian. His first book of poetry, ''The North Ship'', was published in 1945, followed by two novels, ''Jill'' (1946) and ''A Girl in Winter'' (1947 ...

— buried at the Cottingham Municipal Cemetery,

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire to t ...

* The Reverend Evelyn Levett Sutton, Prebendary of Westminster and Chaplain to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

(collapsed after reading the ninth commandment during Sunday services and died the next day) * Clive Staples "C. S." Lewis — buried at Holy Trinity Church,

Headington Headington is an eastern suburb of Oxford, England. It is at the top of Headington Hill overlooking the city in the Thames valley below, and bordering Marston to the north-west, Cowley to the south, and Barton and Risinghurst to the east. Th ...

, Oxfordshire * Jenny Lind — buried at the Great Malvern Cemetery, Worcestershire * David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor — buried beside the River Dwyfor in

Llanystumdwy Llanystumdwy is a predominantly Welsh-speaking village, community and electoral ward on the Llŷn Peninsula in Wales. It lies in the traditional county of Caernarfonshire but is currently administered as part of the unitary authority of Gwyned ...

, Gwynedd *

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely tran ...

— buried in the Mount Auburn Cemetery,

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston ...

George Herbert George Herbert (3 April 1593 – 1 March 1633) was an English poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England. His poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognised as "one of the foremost British devoti ...

— honoured in a stained glass window unveiled by

in 1875

Monument to General Wolfe in Westminster Abbey 01

* James Ramsay MacDonald — ashes buried at Holy Trinity Church,

Spynie Spynie was a seaport, burgh and ancient parish in Moray, Scotland, that survives as a small hamlet and civil parish. It is the location of the ruins of Spynie Palace, which was the principal residence of the Bishops of Moray between the 12th and ...

, Moray, Scotland *

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...

— buried in Cataraqui Cemetery, Kingston, Ontario * Sir Robert Menzies — ashes buried in the "Prime Ministers Garden" at

Melbourne General Cemetery The Melbourne General Cemetery is a large (43 hectare) necropolis located north of the city of Melbourne in the suburb of Carlton North. The cemetery is notably the resting place of four Prime Ministers of Australia, more than any other n ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, Australia * Admiral of the Fleet Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma — buried in

Romsey Abbey Romsey Abbey is the name currently given to a parish church of the Church of England in Romsey, a market town in Hampshire, England. Until the Dissolution of the Monasteries it was the church of a Benedictine nunnery. The surviving Norman-era c ...

, Hampshire *

Pasquale Paoli Filippo Antonio Pasquale de' Paoli (; french: link=no, Pascal Paoli; 6 April 1725 – 5 February 1807) was a Corsican patriot, statesman, and military leader who was at the forefront of resistance movements against the Genoese and later ...

— buried at Morosaglia, Corsica * Admiral Arthur Phillip — buried at Church of St Nicholas,

Bathampton Bathampton () is a village and civil parish east of Bath, England on the south bank of the River Avon. The parish has a population of 1,603. The Kennet and Avon Canal passes through the village and a toll bridge links Bathampton to Bathea ...

, Somerset *

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

— buried at Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site, Hyde Park, New York *

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

— buried at Church of the Holy Trinity, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire * Dylan Thomas — buried at St. Martin's Church,

Laugharne Laugharne ( cy, Talacharn) is a town on the south coast of Carmarthenshire, Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Tâf. The ancient borough of Laugharne Township ( cy, Treflan Lacharn) with its Corporation and Charter is a unique survival ...

, Wales * Rear Admiral Thomas Totty — buried at Portsmouth Garrison Chapel,

Old Portsmouth Old Portsmouth is a district of the city of Portsmouth. It is the area covered by the original medieval town of Portsmouth as planned by Jean de Gisors. It is situated in the south west corner of Portsea Island. The area contains many historic b ...

, Hampshire * Lieutenant General William Villettes — buried in Kingston, Jamaica * The Reverend

Charles Wesley Charles Wesley (18 December 1707 – 29 March 1788) was an English leader of the Methodist movement. Wesley was a prolific hymnwriter who wrote over 6,500 hymns during his lifetime. His works include "And Can It Be", "Christ the Lord Is Risen T ...

— buried at

St Marylebone Parish Church St Marylebone Parish Church is an Anglican church on the Marylebone Road in London. It was built to the designs of Thomas Hardwick in 1813–17. The present site is the third used by the parish for its church. The first was further south, near Ox ...

, London * The Reverend John Wesley — buried at

Wesley's Chapel Wesley's Chapel (originally the City Road Chapel) is a Methodist church situated in the St Luke's area in the south of the London Borough of Islington. Opened in 1778, it was built under the direction of John Wesley, the founder of the Metho ...

, London * Oscar Wilde — honoured in a stained glass window unveiled in 1995; buried in the

Père Lachaise Cemetery Père Lachaise Cemetery (french: Cimetière du Père-Lachaise ; formerly , "East Cemetery") is the largest cemetery in Paris, France (). With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Notable figure ...

, Paris * Major General

James Wolfe James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. ...

— buried at St Alfege Church,

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

, London

World War I poets

Sixteen Great War poets are commemorated on a slate stone unveiled on 11 November 1985, in the South Transept (Poets' Corner): WW1 Poets floorstone, Westminster Abbey

* Richard Aldington — buried in Sury, Ardennes, France * Laurence Binyon (author of "

For the Fallen "For the Fallen" is a poem written by Laurence Binyon. It was first published in ''The Times'' in September 1914. Over time, the third and fourth stanzas of the poem (usually now just the fourth) have been claimed as a tribute to all casualties ...

") — buried in

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...

, Berkshire *

Edmund Blunden Edmund Charles Blunden (1 November 1896 – 20 January 1974) was an English poet, author, and critic. Like his friend Siegfried Sassoon, he wrote of his experiences in World War I in both verse and prose. For most of his career, Blunden was a ...

— buried in Holy Trinity Church,

Long Melford Long Melford, colloquially and historically also referred to as Melford, is a large village and civil parish in the Babergh district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is on Suffolk's border with Essex, which is marked by the River Stour, ...

, Suffolk * Rupert Brooke (author of " The Soldier") — buried in

Skyros Skyros ( el, Σκύρος, ), in some historical contexts Latinized Scyros ( grc, Σκῦρος, ), is an island in Greece, the southernmost of the Sporades, an archipelago in the Aegean Sea. Around the 2nd millennium BC and slightly later, the ...

, Greece *

Wilfrid Gibson Wilfrid Wilson Gibson (2 October 1878 – 26 May 1962) was a British Georgian poet, associated with World War I but also the author of much later work. Early work Gibson was born in Hexham, Northumberland, and left the north for London in 1914 ...

(one of the Georgian poets) * Robert Graves (author of "

I, Claudius ''I, Claudius'' is a historical novel by English writer Robert Graves, published in 1934. Written in the form of an autobiography of the Roman Emperor Claudius, it tells the history of the Julio-Claudian dynasty and the early years of the Ro ...

" and the only poet of the sixteen, still alive at the time of the commemoration) — buried in Deià, Mallorca, Spain * Captain

Julian Grenfell Julian Henry Francis Grenfell (30 March 1888 – 26 May 1915) was a British soldier and a war poet of World War I. Early life Julian Grenfell was born at 4 St James's Square, London, the eldest son of William Grenfell, later Baron Desborough ...

— buried in Boulogne Eastern Cemetery,

Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the C ...

, Pas-de-Calais, France *

Ivor Gurney Ivor Bertie Gurney (28 August 1890 – 26 December 1937) was an English poet and composer, particularly of songs. He was born and raised in Gloucester. He suffered from bipolar disorder through much of his life and spent his last 15 years in ps ...

— buried in St Matthew's Church,

Twigworth Twigworth is a small village near Gloucester in Tewkesbury (borough), the Borough of Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England. The population of Twigworth Parish was 340 people in mid-2014 in 170 households. A planning application for 725 new homes ...

, Gloucestershire * David Jones — buried in the Ladywell and Brockley Cemetery,

Lewisham Lewisham () is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in the London Plan as one of ...

, London * Robert Nichols — buried in St Mary's Church,

Lawford Lawford is a large village and civil parish in the Tendring district of northeast Essex, England. It is approximately northeast from the centre of Colchester and west of, and contiguous with, Manningtree. Mistley merges with the east side of M ...

, Essex * Second Lieutenant

Wilfred Owen Wilfred Edward Salter Owen MC (18 March 1893 – 4 November 1918) was an English poet and soldier. He was one of the leading poets of the First World War. His war poetry on the horrors of trenches and gas warfare was much influenced b ...

(author of "

Dulce et Decorum est "Dulce et Decorum est" is a poem written by Wilfred Owen during World War I, and published posthumously in 1920. The Latin title is taken from Ode 3.2 (''Valor'') of the Roman poet Horace and means "it is sweet and fitting". It is followed by ...

" and "

Anthem for Doomed Youth "Anthem for Doomed Youth" is a poem written in 1917 by Wilfred Owen. It incorporates the theme of the horror of war. Style Like a traditional Petrarchan sonnet, the poem is divided into an octave and sestet. However, its rhyme scheme is neither ...

", and recipient of the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

) — buried in the Ors Communal Cemetery, Ors, Northern France * Sir Herbert Read — buried in Stonegrave, North Yorkshire * Isaac Rosenberg — buried in the Bailleul Road East Cemetery, Saint-Laurent-Blangy, Pas-de-Calais, France * Captain Siegfried Sassoon — buried at St Andrew's Church, Mells, Somerset * Captain Charles Sorley — also commemorated at the Loos Memorial, in France * Corporal Edward Thomas — buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery,

Agny Agny () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. Geography A farming village located 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Arras, at the D3 and D60 road junction. History World War I 1914–1918. War broke out in August 1914 ...

, France

20th-century martyrs

Above the Great West Door, ten 20th-century

Christian martyrs In Christianity, a martyr is a person considered to have died because of their testimony for Jesus or faith in Jesus. In years of the early church, stories depict this often occurring through death by sawing, stoning, crucifixion, burning at th ...

from across the world are depicted in statues; from left to right: *

Maximilian Kolbe Maximilian Maria Kolbe (born Raymund Kolbe; pl, Maksymilian Maria Kolbe; 1894–1941) was a Polish Catholic priest and Conventual Franciscan friar who volunteered to die in place of a man named Franciszek Gajowniczek in the German death camp ...

* Manche Masemola *

Janani Luwum Janani Jakaliya Luwum (c. 1922 – 17 February 1977) was the archbishop of the Church of Uganda from 1974 to 1977 and one of the most influential leaders of the modern church in Africa. He was arrested in February 1977 and died shortly after. A ...

Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and co ...

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

Óscar Romero Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (15 August 1917 – 24 March 1980) was a prelate of the Catholic Church in El Salvador. He served as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of San Salvador, the Titular Bishop of Tambeae, as Bishop of Santiago ...

Dietrich Bonhoeffer Dietrich Bonhoeffer (; 4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and anti-Nazi dissident who was a key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have ...

* Esther John *

Lucian Tapiedi Lucian Tapiedi ( – 1942) was a Papua New Guinea, Papuan Anglicanism, Anglican teacher who was one of the "New Guinea Martyrs." The Martyrs were eight Anglican clergy, teachers, and medical missionaries killed by the Empire of Japan, Japanese in ...

* Wang Zhiming

Formerly buried (removed)

Harold I of England was originally buried in the abbey, but his body was exhumed, beheaded, and thrown into a

fen A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich Groundwater, ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as ...

, in June 1040. The body was later rescued and re-buried in the church of

St. Clement Danes St Clement Danes is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London. It is situated outside the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand. Although the first church on the site was reputedly founded in the 9th century by the Danes, the current ...

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

. A number of Cromwellians were also buried in the Abbey, but later removed, on the orders of Charles II, and buried in a pit in St Margaret's churchyard, adjoining the abbey. A modern plaque on the exterior wall of the church records the names of those who were disinterred: * Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector * Admiral

John Pym John Pym (20 May 1584 – 8 December 1643) was an English politician, who helped establish the foundations of Parliamentary democracy. One of the Five Members whose attempted arrest in January 1642 sparked the First English Civil War, his use ...

Marie Joséphine of Savoy , title = Countess of Provence , image = Portrait de Marie-Joséphine-Louise de Savoie, comtesse de Provence (1786)1.jpg , caption = Portrait by Joseph Boze, 1786 , birth_date = , birth_place = Royal Palace of Turin, Tur ...

, titular Queen of France and wife of

Louis XVIII of France Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. He spent twenty-three years in ...

, died in exile in England in 1810 and was buried in the Lady Chapel. In 1811, under her husband's orders, her body was exhumed and removed to

Cagliari Cathedral Cagliari Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Cagliari, Cattedrale di Santa Maria e Santa Cecilia) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy, dedicated to the Virgin Mary and to Saint Cecilia. It is the seat of the archbishop of Cagliar ...

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

. In November 1869, at the request of the

Dean of Westminster The Dean of Westminster is the head of the chapter at Westminster Abbey. Due to the Abbey's status as a Royal Peculiar, the dean answers directly to the British monarch (not to the Bishop of London as ordinary, nor to the Archbishop of Canterbu ...

and with the approval of

, the philanthropist

George Peabody George Peabody ( ; February 18, 1795 – November 4, 1869) was an American financier and philanthropist. He is widely regarded as the father of modern philanthropy. Born into a poor family in Massachusetts, Peabody went into business in dry g ...

was given a temporary burial in the abbey, but was later moved and buried in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

Proposed burials and memorials

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...

burial: Upon Carlyle's death in 1881,

Arthur Penrhyn Stanley Arthur Penrhyn Stanley, (13 December 1815 – 18 July 1881), known as Dean Stanley, was an English Anglican priest and ecclesiastical historian. He was Dean of Westminster from 1864 to 1881. His position was that of a Broad Churchman and he w ...

made an offer of burial in Westminster Abbey. Carlyle had anticipated and rejected this, taking issue with the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

's burial service as well as the spectacle of the event, saying that "Westminster Abbey would require a general

gaol A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, English language in England, standard English, Australian English, Australian, and Huron Historic Gaol, historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention cen ...

delivery of rogues before any man could be at peace there". In accordance with his will, he was buried with his family in Hoddam, Scotland. * Richard III burial: After the discovery of Richard III's remains in September 2012, a controversy arose as to whether or not he should be interred at Westminster Abbey or some other suitable location. His remains were ultimately buried in

Leicester Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Martin, Leicester, commonly known as Leicester Cathedral, is a Church of England cathedral in Leicester, England and the seat of the Bishop of Leicester. The church was elevated to a collegiate church in 192 ...

. * Captain Sir Thomas "Tom" Moore memorial: Following his death in February 2021, TV presenter

Carol Vorderman Carol Jean Vorderman, HonFIET (born 24 December 1960) is a Welsh media personality, best known for appearing on the game show ''Countdown'' for 26 years from 1982 until 2008, as a newspaper columnist and nominal author of educational and diet ...

suggested Moore should have a memorial stone placed in Westminster Abbey, in recognition of his fundraising efforts in the run up to his 100th birthday during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

References

Notes

{{notelist Religion in the City of Westminster Westminster Abbey World Heritage Sites in London Monuments and memorials in London Burial sites of British royal houses Burial sites of the House of Stuart Burial sites of the Pitt family Burial sites of the House of Stewart of Darnley Burial sites of the House of Orange-Nassau Burial sites of the House of Tudor Burial sites of the House of Hanover