Cemitério dos Ingleses


The Cemitério dos Ingleses is a cemetery in Recife, the capital of Pernambuco in Brazil. It was built in 1814, and at the time was named British Cemetery.

History

By order of the Prince Regent of Portugal, the president of the province of Pernambuco donated a plot of land to the English Consul in Recife, upon which was built a cemetery.

Location

The cemetery is located in the neighborhood of Santo Amaro in Avenida Cruz Cabugá, between Recife and Olinda.
The cemetery appears to be permanently closed, though this is not the case. It is closed to casual visitors, as there are fewer burials there at this time. People who wish to enter the cemetery must schedule their visit, so that the cemetery can be opened.

Sepultura major

Although originally this was intended to be a cemetery for the burial of British residents in Recife, people of other nationalities are buried here, and even some Brazilians.
The most important Brazilian buried there is General José Inacio Abreu e Lima, who fought for the liberation of Spanish-held lands in the Americas, from Chile up through what is now the United States. As one of the leaders of Freemasonry, Bishop Cardoso Aires denied permission for burial of his body in the Cemitério de Santo Amaro, in Recife; this decision has been upheld by the British.
For similar reasons, some non-Catholic Brazilians, largely Protestant, were buried there, due to the Catholic Church's reluctance to permit their burial in land consecrated to that religion.

Maintenance

The cemetery is maintained by donations from members of the extant English community in Recife. It receives no financial help from the Brazilian government or the British crown.