Burial places of British royalty

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These burial places of British royalty record the known graves of monarchs who have reigned in some part of the British Isles (currently includes only the monarchs of Scotland, England, native princes of Wales to 1283, or monarchs of Great Britain, and the United Kingdom), as well as members of their royal families.

Monarchs of England (to 1603)[]

Pre-conquest[]

Name Death Place of burial Image
Egbert 839 Old Minster, Winchester bones now thought to be in one of the six mortuary caskets in Winchester Cathedral Winchester Cathedral
Æthelwulf 855 Steyning Church, then the Old Minster, Winchester bones now thought to be in one of the six mortuary caskets in Winchester Cathedral Ethelwulf's tombstone, from St Andrew's Church, Steyning
Æthelbald 860 Sherborne Abbey, Dorset Sherborne Abbey
Æthelbert 866
Æthelred I 871 Wimborne Minster, Dorset Wimborne Minster
Alfred the Great 899 originally Old Minster, Winchester

moved to New Minster then Hyde Abbey - current whereabouts are unknown

Hyde Abbey
Edward the Elder 924 New Minster, Winchester

moved to Hyde Abbey - current whereabouts are unknown

Æthelstan 939 Malmesbury Abbey, Wiltshire The (now empty) tomb of Athelstan in Malmesbury Abbey
Edmund I 946 Glastonbury Abbey Glastonbury Abbey
Eadred 955 Old Minster, Winchester bones now thought to be in one of the six mortuary caskets in Winchester Cathedral Winchester Cathedral
Eadwig (Edwy) 959 Bones now thought to be in one of the six mortuary caskets in Winchester Cathedral Winchester Cathedral
Edgar 975 Glastonbury Abbey Glastonbury Abbey
Edward the Martyr 978 Shaftesbury Abbey, Dorset. Bones reputed to be his now reside in the Church of St. Edward the Martyr, Brookwood. Shrine of St. Edward the Martyr
Æthelred the Unready 1016 Old St Paul's Cathedral. Tomb lost in the Great Fire of London, referenced as such on a plaque outside the crypt of the present church. Old St Paul's
Edmund Ironside 1016 Glastonbury Abbey Glastonbury Abbey
Sweyn Forkbeard 1014 Roskilde Cathedral, Denmark Roskilde Cathedral
Cnut the Great 1035 Old Minster, Winchester bones now thought to be in one of the six mortuary caskets in Winchester Cathedral Winchester Cathedral
Harold Harefoot 1040 St Clement Danes, London St Clement Danes
Harthacnut 1042 Bones now thought to be in one of the six mortuary caskets in Winchester Cathedral Winchester Cathedral
Edward the Confessor 1066 Westminster Abbey. Edward was the first king buried in the church. In the 13th Century, Henry III had his remains transferred to a shrine in the rebuilt abbey, in the new chapel named after him. Westminster Abbey.
Harold Godwinson 1066 Waltham Abbey, Essex (by repute) Waltham Abbey

Post-conquest[]

Name Death Place of burial Images
William I 1087 Abbaye-aux-Hommes, Caen, Normandy (remains destroyed in 1562, 1793) Men's abbey, St Etienne church, chevet
William II 1100 Winchester Cathedral Winchester Cathedral
Henry I 1135 Reading Abbey, Berkshire
His remains were lost after the ruin of the Abbey.[1] 		Reading Abbey HenryBeauclerc Plaque.JPG
Stephen 1154 Faversham Abbey, Kent The abbey was demolished after the Reformation and Stephen's grave was destroyed. Ruins Of Faversham Abbey, Stukeley, 1722.jpg
Matilda 1167 Rouen Cathedral, Normandy, France Remains transferred from Bec Abbey in Normandy. Rouen Cathedral
Henry II 1189 Fontevraud Abbey, Anjou, France The grave no longer exists and was probably destroyed during the French Revolution. The effigies survived. Henry II
Richard I 1199 Tomb of Richard I and Isabella of Angoulême
John 1216 Worcester Cathedral Tomb in Worcester Cathedral
Henry III 1272 Edward the Confessor's Chapel, Westminster Abbey[2] Tomb in Westminster Abbey
Edward I 1307 Tomb in Westminster Abbey
Edward II 1327 Gloucester Cathedral Tomb in Gloucester Cathedral
Edward III 1377 Edward the Confessor's Chapel, Westminster Abbey[3] Tomb in Westminster Abbey
Richard II 1400
Henry IV 1413 Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral
Henry V 1422 Westminster Abbey
Henry VI 1471 Windsor Castle (reburied in St George's Chapel 1484) St George's Chapel
Edward IV 1483 St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle
Edward V ?1483 Traditionally believed to have been murdered and buried secretly in the Tower of London. Bones presumed to be his and those of his brother Richard, Duke of York were unearthed in the Tower in 1674 and re-buried in Westminster Abbey four years later.
Richard III 1485 Leicester Cathedral. Originally buried across the street in Greyfriars, but the original tomb was lost when the friary was demolished in 1538. The remains of Richard III were recovered by an archaeological dig in 2012 and re-interred in 2015.[4] Tomb of Richard III, Leicester Cathedral.jpg
Henry VII 1509 Henry VII Lady Chapel, Westminster Abbey[5]
Henry VIII 1547 St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle
Edward VI 1553 Henry VII Lady Chapel, Westminster Abbey
Jane 1554 St Peter ad Vincula, Tower of London St Peter ad Vincula - resting place of those executed for treason
Mary I 1558 Henry VII Lady Chapel, Westminster Abbey[5]
Elizabeth I 1603 Elizabeth I of England grave (left) 2013.jpg

Monarchs of Scotland (to 1603)[]

Name Death Place of burial Image
Kenneth MacAlpin 858 Iona Abbey Iona Abbey
Donald I 862
Constantine I 877
Áed 878
Eochaid Unknown Unknown[6]
Giric 889 Iona Abbey[6][7]
Donald II 900
Constantine II 952 Culdee monastery at St Andrews (probable)[8]
Malcolm I 954 Iona Abbey
Indulf 962
Dub 967
Cuilén 972
Kenneth II 995
Constantine III 997
Kenneth III 1005
Malcolm II 1034
Duncan I 1040
Macbeth 1057
Lulach 1058
Malcolm Canmore 1093 Tynemouth, then moved to Dunfermline Abbey[9] Dunfermline Abbey
Donald III after 1097 Iona Abbey
Duncan II 1094 Dunfermline Abbey
Edgar 1107
Alexander I 1124
David I 1153
Malcolm IV 1165
William I 1214 Arbroath Abbey[10] Arbroath Abbey
Alexander II 1249 Melrose Abbey[11] Melrose Abbey
Alexander III 1286 Dunfermline Abbey
Margaret, Maid of Norway 1290 Christ's Kirk, Bergen Christ's Kirk, Bergen
John Balliol 1313 France?[12]
Robert the Bruce 1329 body interred at Dunfermline Abbey

His heart was removed, taken on Crusade, then buried at Melrose Abbey

Marker for Heart burial of Bruce
David II 1371 Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh
Robert II 1390 Scone Abbey[13]
Robert III 1406 Paisley Abbey[14] Paisley Abbey
James I 1437 Perth Charterhouse, Perth[15][16]
James II 1460 Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh[15]
James III 1488 Cambuskenneth Abbey[17] The tomb of James III, funded by Queen Victoria
James IV 1513 probably displayed at Monastery of Sheen, London

afterwards unknown[18]

James V 1542 Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh
Mary I 1587 Peterborough Cathedral (1588–1612) then Westminster Abbey a replica of Mary's tombstone in Westminster abbey at the Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

Native princes of Wales (to 1283)[]

Name Death Place of burial Image
Owain Gwynedd 1170 Bangor Cathedral
Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd (prince of north Wales only) 1203 England?
The Lord Rhys (prince of south Wales only) 1197 St. David's Cathedral
Llywelyn ab Iorwerth 1240 body interred at Aberconwy Abbey; later (apparently) removed to Maenan Abbey; sarcophagus now found at parish church of Llanrwst
Dafydd ap Llywelyn 1246 body interred at Aberconwy Abbey; current whereabouts unknown
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd 1282 Cwmhir Abbey
Dafydd ap Gruffudd 1283 Hanged, drawn and quartered at Shrewsbury

Monarchs since 1603[]

(of England, and Scotland (1603–1707); of Great Britain (1707–1801); of United Kingdom (1801–present))

Name Death Place of burial Image
James VI and I 1625 Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey[5]
Charles I 1649 St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle
Interregnum. As Lords Protector the Cromwells served as heads of state and exercised monarchical power
Name Death Place of burial Image
Oliver Cromwell (Protector) 1658 Tyburn, London. Moved from Westminster Abbey in 1660 and dumped in a pit after posthumous execution.
Richard Cromwell (Protector) 1712 All Saints Church, Hursley, Hampshire
Restored monarchy
Name Death Place of burial Image
Charles II 1685 Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey[5]
James II and VII 1701 Chapel of St Edmund, Church of the English Benedictines, Rue St. Jacques, Paris

(lost at the French Revolution)[19]

Mary II 1694 Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey[5]
William III and II 1702
Anne 1714
George I 1727 Chapel of Leine Castle in Hanover, Germany; moved from the crypt to the  [de] at Herrenhausen on 5 December 1957.[20][21] He was the last British monarch buried outside of the British Isles. Welfenmausoleum
George II 1760 Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey[5]
George III 1820 St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
George IV 1830
William IV 1837
Victoria 1901 Frogmore, Windsor Mausoleum in Frogmore Gardens, Windsor of Queen Victoria and her consort Prince Albert
Edward VII 1910 St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
George V 1936
Edward VIII 1972 Royal burial ground at Frogmore, Windsor Edward is buried with the Duchess of Windsor, at Frogmore
George VI 1952 St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle King George VI memorial chapel

Jacobite pretenders[]

Name Death Place of burial Image
James Stuart ("Old Pretender")

Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie")

Henry Benedict Stuart

1766

1788

1807

St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican (see also Monument to the Royal Stuarts) Tomb of James Francis Edward Stuart, Charles Edward Stuart and Henry Benedict Stuart, "grotte vaticane"

monument to the Royal Stuarts, Rome

Other Royal burials (by place)[]

Name Cemetery image Person interred Grave image
Duchess of Kent's Mausoleum, Frogmore Duchess of Kent's Mausoleum Princess Victoria, Duchess of Kent (1861)
Royal Mausoleum, Frogmore Royalmausoleum.jpg Prince Albert (1861)
St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle St George's Chapel Garter Day.jpg
Queen Elizabeth Woodville (1492)

Queen Jane Seymour (1537) Princess Amelia (1810) Princess Augusta, Dowager Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1813) Princess Charlotte (1817) Queen Charlotte (1818) Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (1820) Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (1827) Princess Augusta (1840) Queen Adelaide (1849) Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany (1884) Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence (1892) Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge (1897) Prince Francis, Duke of Teck (1900) Queen Alexandra (1925) Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge (re-interred 1930) Princess Augusta, Duchess of Cambridge (re-interred 1930) Queen Mary (1953) Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon (ashes 2002) Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother (2002)

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (2021)
Royal burial ground, Frogmore Royal Burial Ground
Princess Helena

Prince Arthur of Connaught Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught Princess Louise Prince William of Gloucester (1972) Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester Prince George, Duke of Kent Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent (1968) Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (1986) Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone The Earl of Athlone Viscount Trematon Lady May Abel Smith

Sir Henry Abel Smith
St Ninian's Chapel, Braemar St Ninian's Chapel
Althorp The Lake at Althorp with the Diana memorial beyond - geograph.org.uk - 1174863.jpg Diana, Princess of Wales (1997)
Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey
Peterborough Cathedral

Catherine of Aragon (1536)

St Peter ad Vincula, Tower of London St Peter ad Vincula is the resting place of those executed in the Tower
Anne Boleyn (1536)

Catherine Howard (1542) Lady Jane Grey (1554)

Guildford Dudley (1554)
Sudeley Castle

Catherine Parr (1548)

St Mildred's Church, Whippingham, Isle of Wight StMildred'sChurch Whippingham IsleOfWight.jpg Princess Beatrice (1944) and Prince Henry of Battenberg (1896)
St Mary Magdalene Church, Sandringham, Norfolk St Mary Magdalene Church, Sandringham.jpg Prince John (1919)
Vadstena Abbey, Sweden Vadstena klosterkyrka.JPG Queen Philippa of Denmark, Norway and Sweden (1430) Philippa of Denmark, Norway & Sweden grave 2009 (1).jpg
The Royal Cemetery, Solna, Sweden Haga Friedhof 1.jpg Crown Princess Margareta of Sweden (1922) Gustaf VI Adolf, Margaret & Louise of Sweden grave 2009 (1).jpg
Ypres Town Cemetery and Extension, Ypres, Belgium. Gravestones in Ypres Town CWGC Cemetery.jpg Prince Maurice of Battenberg (1914) HH Maurice Battenberg in Ypres Town cemetery.jpg
Brunswick Cathedral, Braunschweig (Brunswick), Germany. Brunswick cathedral.JPG Caroline of Brunswick (1821)
Convent of the Visitations, Chaillot, near Paris Mary of Modena (1718)
Monastery of São Vicente de Fora (Pantheon of the House of Braganza), Lisbon, Portugal VicenteFora-IPPAR.jpeg Catherine of Braganza (1705/6)
Basilica of St Denis, Paris, France Saint-Denis - Basilique - Extérieur façade ouest.JPG Francis II of France (husband of Mary Queen of Scots) (1560) Henrietta Maria of France (1669)
El Escorial, San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain Vista aerea del Monasterio de El Escorial.jpg Philip II of Spain (widower of Mary I of England) (1598)
Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh, Scotland Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1567)
Church of St John, Mirow, Germany Church of St John, Mirow Princess Augusta of Cambridge (1916)

Sources[]

References and notes[]

  1. ^ "A search for bones of Henry I is planned in Reading". BBC News. 24 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  2. ^ Westminster Abbey Website (accessed 30 April 2015)
  3. ^ Westminster Abbey Website (accessed 30 April 2015)
  4. ^ Burns, John F. (26 March 2015). "Richard III Gets a Kingly Burial, on Second Try". The New York Times.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Abbey Tour - The Lady Chapel Westminster Abbey website (accessed 20 June 2007)
  6. ^ a b Eochaid & Giric Undiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  7. ^ Findagrave.com (accessed 20 June 2007)
  8. ^ Ross, David R (2003). Passion for Scotland. Dundurn. p. 37. ISBN 1842820192.
  9. ^ Malcolm III Canmore Undiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  10. ^ William I Undiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  11. ^ Alexander II Undiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  12. ^ John Balliol Undiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  13. ^ Robert II Undiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  14. ^ findagrave.com (accessed 20 June 2007)
  15. ^ a b Lundy, Darryl. "p. 10211". The Peerage.[unreliable source] (accessed 20 June 2007)
  16. ^ His queen – Jaon Beaufort – and Margaret Tudor (James IV's queen) are also buried there.find a grave.com (accessed 20 June 2007)
  17. ^ James III Undiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  18. ^ James IVUndiscovered Scotland (accessed 20 June 2007)
  19. ^ See main article on James: Miller, 240; Waller, 401; MacLeod, 349. MacLeod and Waller say all of James's remains were lost in the French Revolution. The English Illustrated Magazine's article on St. Germain from September 1903 says parts of his bowel interred at the parish church of St. Germain-en-Laye were rediscovered in 1824 and reburied. Hilliam, 205. Hilliam disputes that his remains were either scattered or lost, stating that when revolutionaries broke into the church, they were amazed at the body's preservation and it was put on public exhibition where miracles were said to have happened. Hilliam states that the body was then kept "above ground" until George IV heard about it and ordered the body buried in the parish church of St Germain-en-Laye in 1824.
  20. ^ Helmut Knocke and Hugo Thielen (2007). Mausoleum, in Dirk Böttcher, Klaus Mlynek (Eds.) Hannover Kunst- und Kultur-Lexikon. Handbuch und Stadtführer. Springe: zu Klampen Verlag. ISBN 978-3-934920-53-8 (p.92)
  21. ^ Weir, Alison (1996). Britain's Royal Families: The Complete Genealogy, Revised edition. Random House. pp. 272–276. ISBN 0-7126-7448-9.
  22. ^ Westminster Abbey Website (Accessed 1 December 2014)
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