Category: Military
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Staring Into The Face of Death
It’s not on display any more, but one of my favourite objects in The British Museum is Napoleon’s death mask. Death masks were often used in an era before photography was widespread and captured likenesses which were used in sculpting busts of the decased post mortem. John Constable’s is on display at the Royal Academy…
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The Afterlives of the Rich & Famous
A young American’s journey to visit the graves of every U.S. president, vice president, and other notables “Just tweeted this, because it’s ruddy brilliant!” That’s what Sheldon commented on my February 16th Instagram post, which showcased the final resting place of Richard McDonald, co-founder of the McDonald’s fast food restaurant chain. Dick’s urn, nestled in…
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Irish at the South Pole
A continent so vast and desolate it contains 90% of the world’s sheet ice. Its discoverer? An Irishman, who rests in a cemetery on the English south coast… Brighton Extra Mural Cemetery. The monuments and tombs here are an everlasting festival of Victorian Sussex. I love it here; it’s one of my favourite cemeteries. I’ve…
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What Becomes of Us After Death?
…Hiram Maxim had an idea. Hiram Maxim is the dictionary definition of an eccentric. An American by birth, he was also an inventor – creating a type of inhaler and a machine gun. You could argue he’s responsible for filling up most of the world’s cemeteries with the latter device, although in his own lifetime when…
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The Grave of Captain Danny
As part of Remembrance Day, Cemetery Club looks into a forgotten hero whose grave in Stoke Newington has been forgotten…until now. Watch the clip below… Overseen by Field Marshal George Milne, 1st Baron Milne, the founder of a plucky band of soldiers was commemorated by his comrades. The Old Contemptibles is a name I’ve found…
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The Most Incredible Article About the Civil War You’ll Ever Read
by Sheldon The blazing hulk of the USS Tulip burnt ferociously as 29 year old John Davis gasped for breath; his head erupting from the surface of the dark waters of the Potomac. Embers rained down from the sky – shouting aloud, in part to let people know he was alive but also to see if any of…
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Scar of the Somme
One hundred years ago tomorrow, a terrible event happened that would change the face of British warfare, forever robbing the lives of men and boys, not to mention sons, daughters, nieces and nephews who would never get the chance to be born. This week, we invite Westminster Guide Charlie Foreman of London War Walks to give…
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The Creatives of Chiswick Old Cemetery
It’s long been an ambition of mine to go to the grave of William Hogarth. Unquestionably he is one of our greatest artists and political commentators. His works, from The Pilgrim’s Progress to his portraiture, offered social analysis that was as cutting as it was accessible and understandable by the British populace. With a free…
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Normandy in Colour – A Photo Post
by Christina Cemeteries can be quite bleak, somber places. Understandable, given what they are and what they symbolise. When I think about war cemeteries, this is the sort of thing I imagine – somewhere quiet and bleak and sombre. Recently I went to Normandy with Dan and we visited Bayeux War Cemetery and the…
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The Men in Scarlet
Mention the name ‘Chelsea’ and two things spring to mind; the iconic flower show or the Pensioners who reside in a fine building on the River Thames. Their distinctive red coats and tricorn hats are an iconic part of British culture and Pensioners are often seen sorting their uniform when out and about. In a…
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