Milltown Cemetery

Cur Síos

In the heart of Belfast City lies Milltown Cemetery – a graveyard which has serviced the Catholic population of the city for almost 150 years. Within its grounds lies a wealth of fascinating individuals – from actors and artists to political activists. Home Rulers, nationalists, republicans and British Army soldiers all lie at peace together. this is their story. Historian Tom Hartley takes the reader on a journey through Milltown Cemetery, examining the lives of the people buried there and, through them, telling the complex story of the city of Belfast population.

Tom Hartley was born in Belfast in 1945 and has been active in politics for over forty years. He was both the General Secretary and National Chairperson of Sinn Féin, and in May 1993 he was elected to Belfast City Council. From 2008 to 2009 he was lord mayor of Belfast. He works to highlight the importance of our burial sites as a repository of the political, social and economic history of Belfast.