The British Cemetery

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Historic sites · Year: 1834

The British Cemetery is the oldest institution belonging to the British colony in the Canary Islands, with work starting on it back in 1834. The presence of many Britons on the island from the beginning of the 19th century meant there was a need to have their own cemetery, especially when the wife of Benjamin Walter died, their request to bury her at the Catholic Cemetery in the city was turned down. So on 9th February 1829 she was laid to rest, with all protestant rites, outside the city walls. As a consequence, around the beginning of 1830, several residents together with the Vice Consul decided to acquire a plot of land and turn it into a cemetery, a property to which the British Government donated 50 pounds, on condition that the island's residents put up the same amount. According to the file's documents, the land was finally passed over by the Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Town Hall, sited on a hillside in today's San José district, which back in those days was well outside the city's walls.

The first burial, featuring marine G. Williams, took place in 1835, while the last recorded burial here goes back to just 2005. This cemetery is the home for the tombs of the Miller family, alongside other well known figures including the Blandys, Fishers, Parks, Pilchers, etc.

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