This article shows how personalized funerals, pre-planned by the deceased, did not first occur in the later twentieth century, but had already appeared in England between 1689 and 1823. Twenty-six interments are surveyed, revealing who had unusual burials, why they did so, and what influenced them in their choices. All but two were male, mainly elderly, and most were professionals with sufficient wealth for their wills, which are a major source in this study, to be proved in the highest of the probate courts. These unusual burials have not previously been analysed collectively and doing so provides insights into a period less studied by historians of death in England. Some key factors emerge. One is the desire to challenge the concept of burial in consecrated ground. Emphasis on earthly memorial is another, though a minority deliberately chose oblivion. Differing views of how identity is embodied appear through choices such as heart burial, dissection, embalming, or destruction with quicklime. The inspirations of these 26 interments reflect some important eighteenth-century themes: a feeling for nature and a sense of place, Biblical references, classical models, and traditional secular customs. That these people faced little opposition reflects the less regulated nature of eighteenth-century English burials, and provides some modern precedents.
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