Magnificent Seven

The title of this article is ambiguous. For more meanings, see the disambiguation page for The Magnificent Seven .

The Magnificent Seven - in English the glorious seven or the great seven - are seven large commercial London cemeteries from the 19th century. The cemeteries got their name because of their elaborate landscape and architectural design in different styles.

background

Until the middle of the 19th century, burials in London took place in churchyards, and some hospitals and other institutions had their own burial places. In the meantime, however, the population of London had risen from 1 million to over 2.3 million. This high population density, together with the high mortality rate, led to catastrophic hygienic conditions in the capital, as there was no longer enough space for the burial of the dead. Wherever there was still a little space between the houses, poorly managed small cemeteries were built, some of which were illegal burials, some corpses were only sparsely buried, and the same grave was sometimes relocated after a few months. These graves emitted a bad smell, and they also contributed to the spread of new epidemics, which in turn led to an increase in deaths.

These permanently untenable conditions made the establishment of new cemeteries outside the city necessary. On the basis of the corresponding Act of Parliament ( Public Cemeteries Act of 1832 ), privately owned companies were given permission to do so between 1832 and 1841. As a result, cemetery companies such as the London Cemetery Company were founded , which bought up land around London and established a regulated burial culture there.

The "Magnificent Seven" are:

• Kensal Green Cemetery (1832) - Greek Revival
• West Norwood Cemetery (1837) - Neo-Gothic
• Highgate Cemetery (1839) - Neo-Gothic , Egyptian Revival ( historicism , classicism )
• Abney Park Cemetery (1840)
• Nunhead Cemetery (1840)
• Brompton Cemetery (1840)
• Tower Hamlets Cemetery (1841)

See also

• List of burial places of famous people

literature

• Hugh Meller, Brian Parsons: London Cemeteries: An Illustrated Guide & Gazetteer. The History Press, Stroud (Gloucestershire) 2011 ISBN 978-0-7524-6183-0

Web links

• The National Federation of Cemetery Friends
• Pictures of the Magnificent Seven

supporting documents

1. ↑ www.parliamentweek.org; P. 1 ( Memento of the original from July 8, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; English, accessed December 16, 2013 
2. ^ History of Highgate Cemetery, at highgatecemetery.org ; English, accessed December 13, 2013
3. ^ London Metropolitan Archives. Cemetery Records. P. 3; on www.cityoflondon.gov.uk ( memento of the original from September 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; English, accessed December 16, 2013 
4. ^ History of Highgate Cemetery, at highgatecemetery.org ; English, accessed December 13, 2013