C.S. Lewis is best known for his Chronicles of Narnia, with “The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe”, being a perennial childhood favourite. He’s buried in a small church graveyard, tucked away in what was probably once a village but has now been swallowed up into the Oxford suburbs.
A handy sign points you to where he lies, although it’s not too hard to find. A large slab marks the spot as opposed to a gravestone and Lewis shares his resting place with his brother, Warren.
Born and brought up in Ireland, C.S. Lewis came over to England on a scholarship with University College, Oxford. And for all his connection to Christianity, Lewis actually turned away from his faith as a young man, partly driven by his experiences in the trenches of the First World War.
He was a close friend of J.R.R. Tolkien (who’s buried not far away) and both worked in the Oxford University English department. They were also active members of the famous “Inklings” group.
A bachelor for most of his life, he did marry the American writer Joy Davidman Gresham in his later years. Initially a meeting of minds, their relationship developed into a romantic one, but sadly she died of cancer four years after they married.
In a weird convergence of events, C. S. Lewis died on the same day as both the assassination of President Kennedy and the death of of Aldous Huxley (whose grave I visited over here). Now that’s a heck of a day.
What do you think? Have you ever visited this place? Please share in the comments.
Related reading
There are seven books in the Narnia chronicles – and you can get them all in this handy and affordable set. For some non-fiction, this is an interesting biography of The Inklings group that included Lewis, Tolkien and more. Lastly, C.S. Lewis’ Oxford, examines how the famous college and town influenced Lewis and his work.
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Interesting and informative post, Rachel. I didn’t know Lewis and Tolkien were contemporaries… and friends.
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