Margravine Cemetery, also known as Hammersmith Cemetery, is in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The closest London Underground station is Barons Court.

History

Designed by local architect George Saunders, Margravine Cemetery was opened in 1868 on a site previously occupied by market gardens and orchards, known as Fulham Fields. The first burial took place on 3 November 1869.London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, Margravine Cemetery Management Plan 2009–2014, 2008, "" viewed 13 January 2013 Margravine closed for new burials in 1951, when the 16.5 acres of cemetery land were restored by the council and designated a 'Garden of Rest'.

Notable burials and monuments

J Lyons and Company war memorials, Margravine Cemetery 01

Blake's Munitions memorial, Margravine Cemetery

The cemetery contains a number of distinctive monuments, three of which are

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 I ...

s. Most striking is the green bronze memorial to George Broad, who owned the foundry which made the Eros statue at Piccadilly Circus. Nearest

Charing Cross Hospital Charing Cross Hospital is an acute general teaching hospital located in Hammersmith, London, United Kingdom. The present hospital was opened in 1973, although it was originally established in 1818, approximately five miles east, in central L ...

, the Young family mausoleum is a single-storey building in

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture (or pointed architecture) is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It ...

style. The third listed grave is that of an Australian gold prospector, with a

bas relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

of him, opposite the Young family mausoleum. A screen wall memorial erected by the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations m ...

(who list it as Hammersmith Old Cemetery) in Section 31 lists all 191 Commonwealth service personnel buried in registered war graves in the cemetery – 186 from

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

and 5 from

World War II 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Two J. Lyons and Co. war memorials were relocated from their factory at Greenford to the cemetery in 2002. The World War I memorial is Grade II listed. There is a memorial to the 13 people killed – 11 of them women – in a 1918 explosion at Blake's munitions factory, Wood Lane. It was unveiled in 1920 and Grade II listed in 2017.

Notable burials

* George Broad, brass and bronze founder * Sir William Bull, 1st Baronet, solicitor and Conservative politician * Sir Henry Foreman (1852–1924),

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

politician * Peter Leitch (1820–1892), winner 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 previousl ...

Thomas Nicholas (antiquary) Thomas Nicholas (17 February 1816 The 1894 DNB gives his birth year as 1820. The DWB gives it as 1816. It is more recent and is more precise, and therefore seems more likely to be right. - 14 May 1879) was a Welsh antiquary and educator. Biogr ...

(1816–1879), Welsh antiquary and educator *

Edward Charles Williams Edward Charles Williams (10 July 1807 – 25 July 1881) was an English landscape painter during the Victorian Era, and a member of the Williams family of painters. Early life, family and education Edward Charles Williams was born in Lond ...

(1807–1881), English landscape painter *

George Wimpey (businessman) George Wimpey (1855–1913) was an English stonemason, builder and founder of the house building and construction company George Wimpey, which became one of the largest construction companies in the United Kingdom. Career George Wimpey was born a ...

(1855–1913), founder of the construction firm of that name Margravine Cemetery in London, spring 2013 (15)

Conservation

The cemetery is now a part of the Barons Court Conservation Area, designated in April 1989. Hammersmith and Fulham council states in its 2008 management plan that the site is designated a Nature Conservation Area of Local Importance. It is a particularly useful space for viewing migrating songbirds, bees and butterflies.

References

External links