Kevin Toolis

Death was everywhere for the Victorians, but it was never commonplace

In a society obsessed with the trappings of grief, funerals were often elaborate occasions, with commemorative medals struck and strict rules applied to the period of mourning

Funeral procession of James Braidwood in Abney Park Cemetery, Hackney. Braidwood, distinguished for his heroism, was chief of the London Fire Brigade and died fighting the Tooley Street fire at Cotton’s Wharf near London Bridge on 22 June 1861. [Getty Images]
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  • Rites of Passage: Death and Mourning in Victorian Britain

    Judith Flanders

    Picador, pp. 352, £25

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