The old western entrance to Rosebank Cemetery

Rosebank Cemetery is a 19th-century

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. It is located at the junction of Pilrig Street and Broughton Road in the

Pilrig Pilrig is an area of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. The name probably derives from the long field (rig) on which a peel tower (pil/peel) stood. There is evidence of a peel tower situated on an area of higher ground above the Water of ...

area, close to the historical boundary of

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

. The cemetery is protected as a category C

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

The cemetery was developed by the Edinburgh and Leith Cemetery Company, with

David Cousin David Cousin (19 May 1809 – 14 August 1878) was a Scottish architect, landscape architect and planner, closely associated with early cemetery design and many prominent buildings in Edinburgh. From 1841 to 1872 he operated as Edinburgh’s C ...

as architect, and opened on 20 September 1846. It covers an area of . Originally known as the Edinburgh and Leith Cemetery, the cemetery proved popular and was extended eastwards around 1880. The main entrance was originally from the north-west (Broughton Road) but this has been sealed. The sole entrance is now from the north-east (Pilrig Street). The latter originally had an entrance lodge above the gate, but this was demolished around 1975. The cemetery was in independent private ownership until around 1980 when the

City of Edinburgh Council The City of Edinburgh Council is the local government authority for the city of Edinburgh, capital of Scotland. With a population of in mid-2019, it is the second most populous local authority area in Scotland. In its current form, the counci ...

then took over the grounds.

Memorials

A large memorial at the furthest point from the current Pilrig Street entrance, lying against Broughton Road wall near North Pilrig Heights, marks a mass grave and commemorates the Gretna rail disaster of 22 May 1915, in which 215 soldiers of the 1st/7th Battalion The

Royal Scots The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment), once known as the Royal Regiment of Foot, was the oldest and most senior infantry regiment of the line of the British Army, having been raised in 1633 during the reign of Charles I of Scotland. The regimen ...

were killed. The men, mostly from Leith, were on their way to board ship at Liverpool in order to travel to the battlefront at

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

. The handful of survivors were sent onwards the following day. The bodies of those killed in the railway disaster were returned to Leith and buried with great aplomb on 24 May with the 15th and 16th battalions Royal Scots serving as guard of honour. These are among 270

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

casualties and 36

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

casualties interred at Rosebank. The cemetery also houses the main war memorial to the two world wars, serving the Pilrig area, marked by a white cross designed by

Sir Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memoria ...

. Over and above this memorial and the Gretna Memorial there are several war graves scattered through the cemetery for individuals who died of wounds or disease on return from the war. A number of 19th-century merchants and ship-owners, shipbuilders and ship-masters from Leith are buried at Rosebank. There are also several 20th-century

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

and Islamic burials. The apparently high number of "pilots" refers to harbour pilots (the original meaning) rather than aircraft pilots. Unusual surnames found include Arcus, Carnie, Combe, Cormack, Eunson, Flucker, Goalen, Junner, Kellock, Ketchen, Spaven, Tilloch and Waldie. Those who are homeless and die on the street along with several stillborn children (Scots law requires burial not cremation) are buried at the cemetery. The latter are marked by a modern monument giving a place to remember them, in interlocking granite pieces representing mother and child. The inscription reads "to all those children never known but always loved". An abnormally high number of stones are noted as "drowned" or "lost at sea" (see Notable Interments).

Notable interments

Grave of Christian Salvesen, Rosebank Cemetery

The grave of Ida Bonanomi, Rosebank Cemetery, Edinburgh

Andrew Peebles Aitken Andrew Peebles Aitken FRSE FBSE (1843-1904) was a Scottish agricultural chemist remembered primarily for his research into fertiliser response times. He laid the foundations of modern understanding of increased crop yields through the use of ar ...

(1843–1904) biochemist * Thomas Aitken (1833–1912), Provost of

from 1887 to 1893 * James Bertram (1816–1861), engineer * Rev

William Garden Blaikie William Garden Blaikie FRSE (5 February 1820, in Aberdeen – 11 June 1899) was a Scottish minister, writer, biographer, and temperance reformer. Life His father James Ogilvie Blaikie was the first Provost of Aberdeen following its reformed ...

, (1820–1899) *

Alan Brebner Alan Brebner MInstCE () was a Scottish civil engineer, primarily associated with the Stevenson family who designed and built the majority of lighthouses in and around Scotland over several generations. Early life Brebner was born in Edinburg ...

(died 1890), civil engineer and an associate of lighthouse designers

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

and

Thomas Stevenson Thomas Stevenson PRSE MInstCE FRSSA FSAScot (22 July 1818 – 8 May 1887) was a pioneering Scottish civil engineer, lighthouse designer and meteorologist, who designed over thirty lighthouses in and around Scotland, as well as the Stevenson sc ...

. *Shipowner Robert Cook (drowned in wreck of SS Roslin in 1888) bronze head by

William Brodie William Brodie (28 September 1741 – 1 October 1788), often known by his title of Deacon Brodie, was a Scottish cabinet-maker, deacon of a trades guild, and Edinburgh city councillor, who maintained a secret life as a housebreaker, partly for ...

* George Craig (1852–1927) architect. His wife, Annie Blackie is the oldest person in the cemetery (105). * Monument to the three illegitimate children of Sir

George de la Poer Beresford George Beresford may refer to: *George Beresford, 1st Marquess of Waterford (1735–1800), Irish peer *George Beresford (bishop) (1765–1841), Bishop of Kilmore and Ardagh, nephew of the above *George Beresford (provost of Tuam) (died 1842), Provo ...

* Frederick Andrew Fitzpayne (1878–1935) creator of the Leith tram system (Scotland's first electric tram) and then in charge of the combined Edinburgh/Leith tram system * A rare female war grave from World War I to E.G.Elder of the

Women's Royal Naval Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in 1939 at the ...

d.7.7.1918, plus a female war grave from World War II to E.W.L.Fruish, also

Women's Royal Navy Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in 1939 at the ...

* M.P. Galloway (1843–1919), shipbuilder * William Gilmour JP

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

(1843–1905) * James Douglas Allan Gray (1902–1993) pathologist * Rev Prof James Harper (1795–1879) * Dr John Henderson (1819–1901) Provost of Leith 1875 to 1881 and creator of the Leith Improvement Scheme and Henderson Street * Lady Elizabeth Campbell Honyman (1784–1874) * James Campbell Irons (1840–1910) legal author and geologist * Andrew Leslie (1818–1894), shipbuilder * Robert Lindsay, pharmacist, co-founder of Lindsay & Gilmour * James Logan Mack (d.1939) author * Charles Mackinlay (1809–1867) whisky blender * George Melrose (d.1896) founder of Melrose-Drover *

Sydney Mitchell Arthur George Sydney Mitchell (7 January 1856 – 13 October 1930) was a Scottish architect. He designed a large number of bank branches, country houses, churches, and church halls. His most significant commissions include the housing develop ...

(1856–1930), architect and his father Sir Arthur Mitchell (1826–1909) *

James Campbell Noble James Campbell Noble (22 July 1845 – 25 September 1913) was a Scottish painter. He signed his paintings, mostly in the left hand bottom corner, as J.C. Noble or as J.Campbell Noble. Education He initially studied at the board of manufa ...

RSA (1846–1913), artist *

William Notman William Notman (8 March 1826 – 25 November 1891) was a Scottish-Canadian photographer and businessman. The Notman House in Montreal was his home from 1876 until his death in 1891, and it has since been named after him. Biography Notman ...

(1809–1893) architect * Thomas Peddie (1844–1911), railway and civil engineer * Francis George Pentland (1866–1910) actor better known under the stage name of

Frank Worthing Frank Worthing (October 12, 1866 – December 27, 1910) was a Scottish born American stage actor. He was well respected on the Broadway stage and his early death at 44 brought considerable mourning from his fellow actors and costars. He work ...

(memorial only) * George Ogilvy Reid (1851–1928), artist * Ornate monument to Thomas Reid, nurseryman (1805–1848) by Hector Heatly Orrock (1831–1862) * Prof

Edmund Ronalds Dr Edmund Ronalds FCS FRSE (18 June 1819 – 9 September 1889) was an English academic and industrial chemist. He was co-author of a seminal series of books on chemical technology that helped begin university teaching of chemical applications fo ...

(1819–1889) chemist * Lauchlan Rose (1829–1885) founder of

Rose's lime juice Rose's lime juice, often known simply as Rose's, is a sweetened concentrated fruit juice patented in 1867. This was the world's first commercially produced fruit concentrate. Background In 1753, James Lind discovered that consuming citrus fruits ...

Christian Salvesen Christian Salvesen was a Scottish whaling, transport and logistics company with a long and varied history, employing 13,000 staff and operating in seven countries in western Europe. In December 2007, it was acquired by French listed transport ...

(1827–1911), Norwegian merchant who settled at Leith and founded the company which now bears his name, also his older brother, Carl Emil Salvesen (1816–1877) opposite * James Simpson (Scottish architect) (1832–1894) creator of the Leith Improvement Scheme in 1888 * James Slight (1785–1854), assistant engineer to

Robert Stevenson Robert Stevenson may refer to: * Robert Stevenson (actor and politician) (1915–1975), American actor and politician * Robert Stevenson (civil engineer) (1772–1850), Scottish lighthouse engineer * Robert Stevenson (director) (1905–1986), Engl ...

in the building of the

Bell Rock Lighthouse The Bell Rock Lighthouse, off the coast of Angus, Scotland, is the world's oldest surviving sea-washed lighthouse. It was built between 1807 and 1810 by Robert Stevenson on the Bell Rock (also known as Inchcape) in the North Sea, east of the ...

and other lighthouse projects and his brother, Alexander Slight (1818–1885) also an engineer * Henry Stephens (1794–1874), author of ''The Book of the Farm'' * A pair of stones towards the southeast memorialise several members of the Stevenson family drowned in the

Eyemouth disaster The Eyemouth disaster was a severe European windstorm that struck the south-eastern coast of Scotland on 14 October 1881. One hundred and eighty-nine fishermen, most of whom were from Eyemouth, were drowned. Many citizens of Eyemouth call the ...

of 14 October 1881. One is noted as having been "interred 3 March 1882", his body having been washed ashore and identified five months later. * Rev Dr David Thorburn DD (1805–1893) minister of

South Leith Parish Church South Leith Parish Church, originally the Kirk of Our Lady, St Mary, is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. It is the principal church and congregation in Leith, in Edinburgh. Its kirkyard is the burial place for John Home (author of ''D ...

who defected at the

Disruption of 1843 The Disruption of 1843, also known as the Great Disruption, was a schism in 1843 in which 450 evangelical ministers broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. The main conflict was over whether the Church of S ...

Andrew Young Andrew Jackson Young Jr. (born March 12, 1932) is an American politician, diplomat, and activist. Beginning his career as a pastor, Young was an early leader in the civil rights movement, serving as executive director of the Southern Christian L ...

(1807–1889), author of the hymn ''

There Is a Happy Land ''There Is a Happy Land'' is a hymn by Andrew Young (1807–1889), a Scottish schoolmaster, and first published in 1838. It now may be sung to a tune arranged by Leonard P. Breedlove. Young's grave is on the western wall of Rosebank Cemetery i ...

'' At the dead centre of the main=east-west path lie three conterminous graves of servants of

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 Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

, each residsing at

Holyrood Palace The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace or Holyroodhouse, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinbu ...

: Ida Bonanomi (1818–1854)

's dresser; Owen Gough (1800–1872); and Charles Watty (1814–1889) the Queen's servant for 42 years. The three stones and lairs were paid for by the Queen.

References

External links

Rosebank Cemetery

Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) was an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government that was "sponsored" inanced and with oversightthrough Historic Scotland, an executive ...

Inscriptions of Tombstones in Rosebank Cemetery
{{Cemeteries in Scotland Cemeteries in Edinburgh Category C listed buildings in Edinburgh 1846 establishments in Scotland Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Scotland