Overview
The cemetery opened in 1876 to bury soldiers from the nearby Marlborough Barracks (now McKee) and their families, at a time when the British Army did not bring its dead home. The result is a quiet rectangle of lawn off Blackhorse Avenue, kept to Commonwealth War Graves Commission standards by the Office of Public Works, with headstones that run from the Crimean War to the Second World War.
Most visitors come for one of two reasons: the war graves, or the trees. The grounds hold over 26 species, including copper beech and coastal redwoods, and the avenues are old enough to feel planted with intent rather than for shade.
The graves
The headstones cover several conflicts, and the spread is what makes the site unusual for its size.
- Crimean War (1854–1856) – veterans who died in Dublin years after the fighting, or whose remains were re-interred here once the cemetery opened.
- First World War – 613 Commonwealth burials, two of them unknown soldiers, including a row for those lost when the RMS Leinster was torpedoed on 10 October 1918.
- 1916 Easter Rising – British soldiers killed during the fighting, among them men of the Sherwood Foresters and South Staffordshire Regiment.
- War of Independence (1919–1921) and Second World War – a further dozen Commonwealth graves, one an unidentified RAF airman.
Two graves draw more attention than the rest. Five British officers killed in 1916 lay unclaimed for 46 years before being re-interred here, and the Victoria Cross recipient Martin Doyle (1891–1940) is buried among the ordinary rows rather than set apart. If you only have twenty minutes, find these and the Leinster row first; the arboretum rewards a longer visit but the graves are the reason the place matters.
The Screen Wall Memorial, a two-metre limestone slab raised in 1984, lists war casualties whose graves elsewhere in Ireland can no longer be maintained. Headstones transferred from Cork Military Cemetery flank it, alongside stones moved here from King George V Hospital, Trinity College and Portobello Barracks.
Visiting
Guided tours run on Thursdays at 14:00 from April to October, led by OPW staff over about an hour and focused on the most significant graves. They are free but must be booked by email in advance. The Anzac Day service on 25 April draws Australian and New Zealand communities; arrive at least 30 minutes early for it.
There is no café or toilet on site. The nearest facilities are at the Phoenix Park Visitor Centre, a short walk away, which also makes the cemetery easy to fold into a longer walk through the park. Mornings are quietest and the light is best then.
Getting there
The cemetery sits on the northern edge of Phoenix Park, about a 10-minute drive from the city centre, with free parking near the gate and bike racks beside it.
- Bus – Dublin Bus route 37 stops on Blackhorse Avenue a few minutes from the gate.
- Luas and train – Broombridge, on the Green Line and the Dublin–Maynooth commuter line, is roughly a 25-minute walk or a short bus ride away.
- Accessibility – the main paths are level and wheelchair-accessible, though some older sections have uneven walkways. Disabled parking is available near the entrance.
Practical information
| Day | Hours |
|---|---|
| Monday – Sunday | 10:00 – 16:00 |
Admission: free.
Contact:
- Phone: 01 821 3021
- General enquiries: superintendent.park@opw.ie
- Tour bookings: phoenixparkvisitorcentre@opw.ie
Website: Heritage Ireland – Grangegorman Military Cemetery
Nearby
- Phoenix Park – one of Europe’s largest enclosed urban parks, right next door.
- Arbour Hill – the burial place of the executed leaders of the 1916 Rising, about 2 km south-east.
- Irish National War Memorial Gardens – Lutyens-designed gardens roughly 1.5 km south.