From Dust to Ashes

The Development of Cremation in England and Wales, 1874-2024
2. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-3-031-88410-8
Verlag: Palgrave Macmillan

Buch, Englisch, 402 Seiten, Format (B × H): 153 mm x 216 mm, Gewicht: 661 g

The second edition of   brings up-to-date this classic text investigating the replacement of burial by cremation in England and Wales. Cremation was promoted seriously in 1874 but the first cremation did not take place until eleven years later. The response by the public was cautious. Despite the provision of crematoria, by 1939, less than 4 percent of deaths were followed by cremation. The Second World War and the immediate post-war welfare state period brought drastic change to the extent that by 1967 the number of cremations first exceeded burials. Today, the proportion is just over 80 per cent. The final chapter addresses the enormous changes in the last twenty-five years in the disposal of our dead

This book discusses the activities of the Cremation Society, the establishment of early crematoria, and the promotion of cremation against the background of social and economic change before outlining the reasons why bereaved families chose to accept it and, finally, the social, economic and religious pressures that facilitated its adoption.

The book will therefore be of use to scholars of death studies, anthropology, sociology, health and medicine and church history, as well as members of the funeral professions.

Zielgruppe

Research

Autoren/Hrsg.

Parsons, Brian

Jupp, Peter C.

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Religionswissenschaft Allgemein Religionsgeschichte
• Medizin | Veterinärmedizin Medizin | Public Health | Pharmazie | Zahnmedizin Medizinische Fachgebiete Palliativmedizin
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Soziologie Allgemein
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaft und Gesellschaft | Kulturwissenschaften Kulturwissenschaften
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Spezielle Soziologie Religionssoziologie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Chapter 1: Cremation Considered: 1874-1884.- Chapter 2: The Early Years of Cremation: 1884-1914.- Chapter 3: The Development of Cremation: 1914-1939.- Chapter 4: The Advance of Cremation; Wartime and Reconstruction: 1939-1952.- Chapter 5: The Popularisation of Cremation in England: 1952-2000.- Chapter 6: Cremation in the Contemporary Period: 2000-2024.- Epilogue.- Bibliography.- Index.

Über Autor(innen)

Brian Parsons is an independent scholar who has worked in the funeral industry in London since 1982. His publications include:   (2005),   (2018), and with Hugh Meller  (sixth edition, 2018). He has also contributed chapters to a number of books, and has been a visiting lecturer at the University of Bath. www.brianparsons.org.uk

Peter C. Jupp is a minister in the United Reformed Church. He has written and co-edited a number of books on death studies and on the sociology of religion. With Glennys Howarth, he founded the quarterly journal ‘Mortality’ and the bi-annual conference on ‘Death, Dying and Disposal’. He served on the Council of the Cremation Society of Great Britain (Chairman 2001-2009) and was a director of The London Cremation Co PLC (2000-2021).