The Victorian Way of Death |
|
 |
Death was never very far away for the Victorians. Cholera, typhoid, tuberculosis - any number of contagious diseases could carry you away to a swift and early grave.
Death was talked about openly and was the topic of many children's stories - it was something to expect and prepare for. |
Glasgow Necropolis |
|
|
Christians believe that, after death, God judges people according to whether they have believed or ignored Jesus and his teachings. |
|
| A death in the family would mean a complete new set of clothes for everyone. The death of a close relative would mean, 'deep mourning' - black to be worn for weeks or months, depending on how close the relative was. If the relative was more distant, or time had passed, 'half mourning' would be worn - perhaps a solemn purple or dark green trimmed with black. After a suitable period of time a person would 'come out of mourning' and wear bright colours again.
When Queen Victoria's husband Albert died she never came out of 'deep mourning', and black became a fashionable colour to wear anyway! A corpse would be 'laid out' (washed and dressed) by the undertaker and placed in an open coffin in the parlour of the home to be visited by those wishing to pay their 'last respects'. |
 |
|
Victorian funeral |
| It would then be taken to the church for the funeral service and on to the cemetery. The coffin was carried in a black funeral carriage pulled by black plumed horses and followed on foot by the procession of mourners. At humbler funerals people would carry the coffin by hand, or pull it along on a funeral cart. Wealthy people marked the grave with a gravestone or monument - the grander the better. The graves of poorer people might be dug up and reused after a few years - a permanent resting place cost money. |  |
Victorian Cemetery |
 |
Go back to History |