About the cemetery

The Glasnevin cemetery encompasses 124 acres and 1.5 million burials. It has a great national heritage through the social and historical history of the people buried there from all walks of life over 178 years. Famous people interred there include the founder of the Cemetery - Daniel O’Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, O’Donovan Rossa, Eamon De Valera, Michael Collins, Countess Markiewicz, Maud Gonne McBride, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Brendan Behan, Christy Brown, Jimmy O’Dea, Luke Kelly, Alfred Chester Beatty, Michael Cusack and Liam Whelan. Less acclaimed people include victims of the Great Famine, the Cholera outbreaks and the Air India crash as well as the babies in the old Angels plot which was renovated and inaugurated by Presi dent McAleese in 2005. The new Angels plot (1970 to present day) is currently undergoing renovation.

The Cemetery’s most famous architectural feature is the 51 meters high O’Connell Tower, designed by George Petries and made of Wicklow granite, where the remains of Daniel O’Connell are interred in a family crypt directly below the tower. It is the highest round tower in Ireland. The crypt and tower have recently been restored in conjunction with the OPW and are open to the public for the first time since 1970.

The Mortuary Chapel, designed in the 1870s, is appointed with stone carvings by James Pearse (father of Padraig and Willie).

Design
The opening of Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris in 1815 provided much-needed inspiration for cemetery designers, who had hitherto designed fairly functional cemeteries. With Père Lachaise as an example, the garden cemeteries were initially informally landscaped, with sweeping roads wide enough for carriages, and smaller paths for strolling. Careful planting -- particularly of trees -- and architectural features that impressed or drew the eye were key features. The whole effect was that of a private, landscaped park, with a central chapel instead of a country house.

Garden Cemetery
Unlike churchyards, these cemeteries were independent of a parish church, were located outside the city in what were then suburbs. These cemeteries became known as 'garden cemeteries'.

Glasnevin Museum
Finglas Road
Dublin 11

P: + 353 (0) 1 882 6550
E: museum@glasnevintrust.ie

Office Opening hours:
Mon - Fri 10.00am to 5.00pm
Sat - Sun 11.00am to 5.00pm

Glasnevin Cemetery Monuments
Finglas Road
Dublin 11

P: +353 (0) 1 882 6520
M: + 353 (0) 86 331 3432
E: momuments@glasnevintrust.ie

Office Opening hours:
Mon - Fri 8.00am to 5.00pm
Sat 8.00am to 1.00pm

Glasnevin Cemetery
Finglas Road
Dublin 11
Ireland

P: + 353 (0) 1 882 6500
F: + 353 (0) 1 830 1594
E: info@glasnevintrust.ie

Access to Glasnevin Cemetery grounds:
Mon - Sun 9.00am to 6.00pm