Laid To Rest

You would think, due to all their fame, that these figures would get some of the grandest graves around. But the end of one’s life can be quite an equalizer, with many of the greats being put to rest in relatively mundane and average places. Whether they were emperors or literary greats, here are 20 famous figures who received peasant burials.

Richard Westall on Wikimedia

1. Lafayette

Lafayette was an instrumental part of the American Revolution, and although he was a French aristocrat, he valiantly supported the Continental Army. He was a firm believer of a constitutional monarchy and passed away at 76 years old after falling ill. He was buried in Picpus Cemetery. While it may appear to be nothing more than a random church, it is where the victims of the Reign of Terror are buried.

Joseph-Désiré Court on Wikimedia

2. Orson Welles

Orson Welles is a brilliant filmmaker and actor best known for his work in Citizen Kane, which is renowned as the greatest movie ever made. He passed away from a heart attack at the age of 70. His ashes were laid in an old well in Ronda, Spain, with one of his friends saying, “he did not want a funeral; he wanted to be buried quietly in a little place in Spain.”

Carl Van Vechten on Wikimedia

3. Doc Holiday

Doc Holiday is best known for his Wild West fame and was a gunslinger and a dentist who became legendary for his fight at the O.K. Corral. He was also known for his friendship with Wyatt Earp and would pass away from tuberculosis at the age of 36. He was buried in a small cemetery in Glenwood Springs, albeit the exact location is unknown.

Unknown authorUnknown author on Wikimedia

4. St. Valentine

St. Valentine is a 3rd century Roman martyr who is responsible for Valentine’s Day. He was well-liked by Claudius until he tried to convince him to convert to Christianity. Upset by this, Claudius ordered his death, and afterwards, St. Valentine was buried in a cemetery in St. Hippolitus, but then his remains were given as a gift to Whitefriar St. Church and placed at the altar.

Thesurvived99 on Wikimedia

5. General George Patton

General Patton is a brave, albeit at times controversial, U.S. general who led successful campaigns during World War II. He fought valiantly to the bitter end and as he was passing, he asked to be buried with his men. As such, he was laid to rest in Luxembourg where his headstone is identical to the thousands of soldier graves around him.

no data on Wikimedia

6. Ernest Hemingway

Hemingway is a brilliant author best known for his intensive works like The Old Man and the Sea. Hemingway was buried in Ketchum, and the only indicators that make it special are the shells and bottles decorating it. Arguably, it’s one of Ketchum’s best kept secrets.

Lloyd Arnold on Wikimedia

7. Lord Byron

Considered one of the greatest poets ever, Lord Byron hails from the British Romantic era and was both scandalous as he was popular. He was laid in a relatively remote town called Hucknall, and would eventually be joined by his daughter, Ada Lovelace. He was denied burial in Westminster Abbey, like the other literary geniuses of his time, due to his scandalous lifestyle.

Thomas Phillips on Wikimedia

8. Ada Lovelace

Ada Lovelace is none other than Lord Byron’s daughter and impressively was considered the first computer programmer due to her work on Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine. She passed away at the age of 36 from cervical cancer. During her illness, she fell into her mother’s care, and Lady Byron quickly isolated her from everyone, including her father. When she did pass, she chose to be buried next to her father in Hucknall.

Alfred Edward Chalon on Wikimedia

9. Genghis Khan

Genghis Khan briefly ruled the world and was the founder of the Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous empire in history. Despite the many wars he fought, Genghis actually passed from injuries after falling from his horse while hunting. He was then taken back to Mongolia and buried in the Khentii Mountains, but the exact location is unclear.

Jim Garamone, American Forces Press Service on Wikimedia

10. Winston Churchill

Churchill was an inspiring figure who served as British Prime Minister and unified the Allies during World War II. After passing, he was buried in a small village in Oxfordshire. The grave itself is quite humble, which is why many tourists tend to miss it if not for the poppy wreaths often laid on it.

Central Office of Information on Wikimedia

11. Antonio Vivaldi

Vivaldi is an Italian composer and violinist best known for his impeccable piece, The Four Seasons. Vivaldi, unfortunately, passed away poor from an internal infection shortly after arriving in Vienna. He was given a very simple grave funded by the public hospital fund.

Unidentified painter on Wikimedia

12. F. Scott Fitzgerald

Fitzgerald is an iconic American novelist who is often cited for developing the Jazz Age as we know it, especially through his work The Great Gatsby. He passed away due to a heart attack at 44 years old, but accomplished much in life nonetheless. The church denied the family’s request to have him buried in the Catholic Saint Mary’s Cemetery due to his non-practicing behavior, and so he was instead given a simple service at Rockville Cemetery.

Photographer unknown. The publicity photo was distributed by Fitzgerald's publisher, Scribner's (source: Curtis, William (April 15, 1922).

13. Al Capone

Capone may just be one of the most notorious gangsters in America, who practically ruled Chicago during the Prohibition era. He passed away due to syphilis in 1947. After which, he was buried in a small grave in Mount Carmel Cemetery just outside of Chicago.

Wide World Photos, Chicago Bureau (Federal Bureau of Investigation). on Wikimedia

14. Jimi Hendrix

Hendrix was best known as the world’s best guitarist and a groundbreaking rock musician. Hendrix’s death is a bit of a mystery, but definitely involves a bad turn with some substances. He was then buried in Renton, which is a remote suburb in Seattle.

A. Vente on Wikimedia

15. Constantine XI

Constantine XI was the last Byzantine emperor, and knowing that his reign was coming to an end, he perished valiantly defending Constantinople. As the battle was coming to an end, he removed anything identifying him as an emperor and perished alongside his men. After leading the final charge, he was buried in a mass grave somewhere.

ILoveHirasawaYui on Wikimedia

16. Karl Marx

Karl Marx is considered the father of communism and wrote the Communist Manifesto, which inspired a global socialist movement. Marx eventually succumbed to bronchitis and pleurisy in 1883. He was laid to rest in a relatively mundane cemetery in Highgate in North London, but impressively, many other famous people ended up being buried there too.

John Jabez Edwin Mayall on Wikimedia

17. Jane Austen

Jane Austen is cited for writing groundbreaking and influential novels from the female perspective, including works like Pride and Prejudice. She passed away in 1817 at the age of 41 years. She was laid to rest in Winchester Cathedral, and her grave in particular was marked by a very small plaque.

Cassandra Austen. Engraving by Lizars on Wikimedia

18. Amadeus Mozart

Mozart was a brilliant Austrian composer who helped define classical music as it is today. Mozart was buried in an unmarked pauper’s grave due to his poor finances at the end of his life. He often overspent, accrued debts, and had generally poor business sense.

Barbara Krafft on Wikimedia

19. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Interestingly, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was the inspiration for Sherlock Holmes. You would think with “Sir” in front of his name, he would have acquired a grand burial. But instead, he was laid to rest in a relatively ordinary church graveyard in the New Forest District in Hampshire, England.

Herbert Rose Barraud (1845-1896) on Wikimedia

20. Mark Twain

Mark Twain was an inspiring American author who captured the spirit of the century through works like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He was laid to rest in a family plot in Elmira, which seems relatively mundane compared to the fame and wealth he acquired throughout his life. Either way, he chose to be close to his family, and that in itself is worth something.

Photographer: A.F. Bradley in his studio. on Wikimedia