Resignification of a Romantic Burial Place: Urban Context and Changing Roles at John Moore’s Tomb in Corunna, Spain

Abstract

The San Carlos Garden or Jardín de San Carlos (Corunna, Spain) is presided since 1809 as the last resting place of Lieutenant General Sir John Moore. In keeping with Moore’s wishes, after the battle fought on the outskirts of Corunna against the French the body of the fallen general was hastily interred in the city’s outer ramparts, and some months later transferred to a bastion in the old town. The first monuments and tomb built to pay homage to Moore paved the way for the idea of changing the appearance of the military enclave, remodelled in 1839 as a botanical garden. Since then, the burial site and the gardens have worked together to heighten the Romantic ambience of this melancholic spot, a rare example of a unique burial site converted into a public garden — listed as historic garden in 1944— just in the heart of an old town.

Keywords

• Tomb
• Hero, Romanticism
• Garden
• Old town