West Ham Jewish Cemetery is a cemetery for Jews in West Ham in the London Borough of Newham, England. It was established in 1856 by the New Synagogue on Great St. Helen's, soon joined by the Great Synagogue in Duke's Place, both of them London congregations.[2] It has been closed to new burials since 2002[1]
| West Ham Jewish Cemetery | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Details | |
| Established | 1856 |
| Location | Buckingham Road, West Ham (London Borough of Newham), London E15 1SP |
| Country | England, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°33′10″N 0°00′44″E / 51.5528°N 0.0123°E – Mausoleum |
| Type | Closed (since 2002)[1] |
| Owned by | United Synagogue Burial Society |
| Website | Official website |
| Find a Grave | West Ham Jewish Cemetery |
There are a number of notable people buried here, in a graveyard visually dominated by the imposing Rothschild Mausoleum.[2] One section contains graves removed to this burial place from the former Hoxton burial ground of the Hambro Synagogue when that site underwent urban redevelopment. The oldest legible tombstone in this section dates from 1794.[2]
Rothschild Mausoleum
editThe Rothschild Mausoleum is circular, domed, mausoleum built in 1866 by Ferdinand James von Rothschild for his late wife Evelina de Rothschild who died in childbirth at age 27. The architect was Matthew Digby Wyatt. It is fashioned of marble in Renaissance revival style.[2][3] Nikolaus Pevsner notes the "dome of Eighteenth-century detail on attached Corinthian columns" and praises the ironwork and stone carving, calling it worthy of "the attention of the student of mid-Victorian detail."[4]
Vandalism
editIn 2005 a number of monuments were destroyed and graves desecrated in what the police described as an attack by anti-Semitic vandals. The doors of the mausoleum were pounded with heavy iron bars until they were bashed in, then they were torn from the building.[5][6]
Notable burials
edit- Evelina de Rothschild (1839–1866), socialite[6]
- Ferdinand James von Rothschild (1839–1898)[2][3][7]
- Sir David Salomons, 1st Baronet (1797–1873), a leading figure in the 19th-century struggle for Jewish emancipation in the United Kingdom. He was the first Jewish Sheriff of the City of London and Lord Mayor of London.[8][9]
- Philip Salomons (1796–1867), financier and High Sheriff of Sussex.[citation needed]
War graves
editThe cemetery has five Commonwealth service war graves, four from World War I and one from World War II. A German soldier (prisoner of war) and two German civilian internees from the former war are also buried here.[10]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "West Ham Cemetery: London". International Jewish Cemetery Project. International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies. 29 June 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ a b c d e Kadish, Sharman, Jewish Heritage in England: An Architectural Guide, English Heritage, 2006, p. 35
- ^ a b Pearson, Lynn F. Mausoleums, Osprey Publishing, 2001, p. 21
- ^ Pevsner, Nikolaus. "Studies in Art, Architecture, and Design",Victorian and after. Walker, 1908, v. 2, p. 101
- ^ Woolf, Marie (16 June 2005). "The shocking face of anti-Semitism". The Independent. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ a b Webb, Louis (16 June 2005). "Defaced, the Rothschild mausoleum that has stood for 140 years". The Independent. Archived from the original on 23 September 2009. Retrieved 1 July 2009.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Pevsner, Nikolaus. Studies in Art, Architecture, and Design: Victorian and after, Walker, 1908, v. 2, p. 101
- ^ "West Ham Cemetery". United Synagogue. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ "The Mayoralty". City of London. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
- ^ "West Ham Jewish Cemetery". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 25 June 2020.