The Necropolis Glasgow

Glasgow's city of the dead

Gill from Glasgow

""The Necropolis" in Glasgow, or a cemetery, is perhaps not the most obvious suggestion for a picnic place, but for many in the city it's just another park."

A graveyard is perhaps not the obvious suggestion for a picnic place, but for many Glaswegians and visitors, the Necropolis is another park.

Behind Glasgow Cathedral, close to the City Centre, this beautiful Victorian garden cemetery is the city's very own version of Père Lachaise in Paris. You won't find anyone as famous as Jim Morrison or Oscar Wilde buried here, however. The Necropolis is the resting place of the great and the good of Victorian Glasgow, although there are also many thousands of ordinary Glaswegians buried here in unmarked graves.

Look out for gravestones and monuments designed by famous local architects, Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Alexander 'Greek' Thomson.

There's a fantastic view of Glasgow from the summit. It's marked by a monument to John Knox, leader of the Protestant Reformation in Scotland in the 1500s. He's not buried here, however, he's underneath a car park in Edinburgh.

I would strongly suggest booking a tour from The Friends of the Glasgow Necropolis. Check out their website for details. Tours are free (although it would be good to leave a donation which goes towards the upkeep of the Necropolis) and the volunteer tour guides have fantastic stories to tell.

A word of warning: don't venture into the Necropolis alone at night. You might bump into a vampire or, more likely, people drinking their carry-out amongst the graves.

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Glasgow Spotter Gill

About me Born and brought up in Helensburgh on the Clyde Coast, I've lived in Glasgow for 18 years. Worked for Radio 4 in London for 7 years then moved back to Scotland to work in radio and online for BBC Scotland. Escaped after twenty years to freelance as a media producer and write a novel (which I'm still writing). Why Glasgow? Because: You'd be hard-pushed to find friendlier people than Glaswegians. It's got one of the best, if not the best music scene in the UK. It's hoaching with quality independent bars and restaurants You won'...

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Oct 9, 2025

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