Golders Green Crematorium and the architectural expression of cremation

Abstract

The history of cremation in Britain is a story of struggle against conservatism, custom and prejudice in the attempt to reform the burial system. Two outstanding events were to make 1902 a milestone in cremation history: first, the Act of Parliament 'For the Regulation of burning of human remains and to enable burial authorities to establish crematoria'; second, the opening by Sir Henry Thompson, then President of the Cremation Society of England, of Golders Green Crematorium, designed by Ernest George and Yeates, one of the leading late Victorian architectural partnerships. Only the seventh crematorium to be built in Britain, Golders Green became the focus of attention among leading advocates of cremation. Designed in four phases, 1901-12, 1910-11, 1912-16 and 1922-28, and employing a modified version of the Northern Italian Lombard-Romanesque style, Golders Green raises a series of important issues. This paper examines the circumstances surrounding the commissioning of the architects and explores the crucial issue of the choice of an architectural style appropriate both for a new building type, for which there was no architectural precedent, and for a movement seeking official and public approval in the face of continued opposition.