Bath Abbey Cemetery, Bath

Bath Abbey Cemetery, Bath

Visited February 2018

A mile or more away from the Abbey itself and a bit of a walk away from the city centre and railway station, is Bath Abbey Cemetery. On a sunny day it probably has stunning views over the city, perched as it is on a hillside, but as you can see it was a grey, misty and damp late winter day when I visited. Whether due to the weather, or the location, I had the entire place to myself for the hour I was there.

The cemetery was opened in 1844 due to there being no more room for burials at Bath Abbey itself, and it was closed in 1995. The chapel also dates from 1844 - it seems a peculiar shape, with more tower than body, as it was meant to have cloisters at both sides but these were never built.

There are some interesting graves scattered around the cemetery - the Bath Archives website has a fascinating page about the cemetery including the names and grave locations of the great and the good buried there. There's also a Crimean War memorial, to those of Bath who died in the war. 

Areas of the cemetery are quite overgrown, and the lack of visitors makes this a wonderful place to visit even on a dismal day. Should you be in or near Bath, this is well worth a visit - it's an easy walk or bus ride from the Abbey, but easily done in a morning (I fitted in the cemetery, Abbey, Roman Baths, 2 churches and a long lunch, all in a day trip!)