Trafalgar Cemetery The Trafalgar Cemetery is a cemetery in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar . Formerly known as the Southport Ditch Cemetery , it occupies a small area of land just to the south of the city walls , in what had been a defensive ditch during the period of Spanish rule of Gibraltar . Although it is named for the Battle of Trafalgar of 21 October 1805 , only two victims of the battle are buried there . The remainder of the interments are mostly of those killed in other sea battles or casualties of the yellow fever epidemics that swept Gibraltar between 1804 and 1814 . In addition , tombstones were transferred to the Trafalgar Cemetery from St . Jago ' s Cemetery and Alameda Gardens . The cemetery is no longer used for burials and was abandoned for many years , but was restored in the 1980s . In 1992 , a memorial to the Battle of Trafalgar was erected in the cemetery . The graveyard is the site of an annual commemorative ceremony on Trafalgar Day , the Sunday nearest to the anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar . Trafalgar Cemetery is listed with the Gibraltar Heritage Trust . Location . The Trafalgar Cemetery is in Gibraltar , the British Overseas Territory at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula . It is a triangular parcel of land whose boundaries are formed by the Charles V Wall to the north , Prince Edward ' s Road to the east , and Trafalgar Road to the southwest . Prince Edward ' s Gate is at the northeast corner of the cemetery ; the Southport Gates are at the northwest corner . The cemetery is just outside the old city walls , in a section of the Southport Ditch , part of the southern defences of the city . The Southport Ditch was a large trench which extended on the south side of Charles V Wall from the South Bastion to the Flat Bastion . It was depicted in a 1627 map of Gibraltar by Spanish engineer Luis Bravo de Acuña . On the map held by the British Museum , it is labeled in Spanish as " Fosso " ( ) . Early history . The cemetery was formerly known as the Southport Ditch Cemetery . It was consecrated in June 1798 , seven years prior to the Battle of Trafalgar , which took place on 21 October 1805 . The cemetery was sometimes considered to be part of St . Jago ' s Cemetery , the larger burial ground just to the north , on the opposite side of Charles V Wall . St . Jago ' s , also known as Deadman ' s Cemetery , was the only cemetery within the walls of the city of Gibraltar . In addition , it may have represented Gibraltar ' s oldest known cemetery . It was incorporated into St . Jago ' s Barracks playground in 1929 , and repurposed as a rifle range and " ball alley . " There exists little evidence of the former cemetery . Interments . The Southport Ditch Cemetery was used for interments between 1798 and 1814 , after which it fell into disuse . The only exception was the grave from 1838 at the northeast corner of the cemetery , near Prince Edward ' s Gate . The renaming of the graveyard to commemorate the Battle of Trafalgar apparently did not occur until many years after the victory . Only two of the interments are of those who died of wounds sustained during the battle . One of the victims was Captain Thomas Norman of the Royal Marine Corps and , who died in the Naval Hospital on 6 December 1805 at the age of 36 . The other was Lieutenant William Forster of , who died of the wounds that he received in battle on 21 October 1805 at the age of 20 . A plaque mounted by the Southport Gates reads : " Trafalgar Cemetery - Here Lie The Remains Of Some Who Died Of Wounds At Gibraltar After Nelson ' s Great Victory In October , 1805 , Those Killed During The Battle Having Been Buried At Sea . Other Graves Date From 1798 . " Most of those who were killed during the battle were buried at sea . , Horatio Nelson ' s former flagship , was towed into Rosia Bay on 28 October 1805 . Later , Nelson ' s remains were transported to England , where he was buried in a crypt in St Paul ' s Cathedral . Casualties of the battle were brought to Gibraltar ; those who died later of their injuries were interred in St . Jago ' s Cemetery , north of Charles V Wall . Many of the graves in Trafalgar Cemetery represent the victims of three yellow fever epidemics . Those epidemics in Gibraltar had been most severe during the years 1804 , 1813 , and 1814 . Also interred at Trafalgar Cemetery were the sailors who died in other battles of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , including the First Battle of Algeciras in 1801 and conflicts off Cádiz and Málaga in 1810 and 1812 , respectively . Transfer of headstones . In 1932 , more than a century after the Trafalgar Cemetery fell into disuse , gravestones from St . Jago ' s Cemetery were mounted on the east wall of Trafalgar Cemetery . The oldest tombstone on the wall dates to 1738 . The transfer of headstones was undertaken on the order of General Sir Alexander Godley , the Governor of Gibraltar . In addition , over the years , several tombstones were transferred from the Alameda Gardens ; some of the free - standing gravestones date back to the 1780s . Recent history . For years , an annual ceremony has been held on Trafalgar Day , the Sunday closest to the 21st of October . On that day , the ceremony in the cemetery commemorates those who died in the Battle of Trafalgar . A general restoration of the Trafalgar Cemetery was undertaken in the 1980s . In 1990 , responsibility for the maintenance of the cemetery was transferred to the Gibraltar Heritage Trust , which completed repairs of the gates and walls . Gibraltar celebrated its tercentenary anniversary of British rule in 2004 . That year , some veterans who had served there were invited to Gibraltar . The July 2004 schedule for the veterans included events at the Trafalgar Cemetery , Gibraltar Cross of Sacrifice , Gibraltar Museum , and St . Michael ' s Cave . In 1992 , a monument was unveiled at the cemetery by the Governor of Gibraltar , Admiral Sir Derek Reffell . The memorial included an anchor donated by the Royal Navy , as well as an inscription . The quote was that of Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood , who reported both the victory at Trafalgar and the demise of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson . Outside of the cemetery stands a life - size , bronze statue of Lord Nelson by British sculptor John Doubleday . It was erected in 2005 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar . In addition , a small plaque was mounted at the former area of St . Jago ' s Cemetery to commemorate the site of interment of those sailors who later died of wounds inflicted during the battle . Trafalgar Cemetery is listed with the Gibraltar Heritage Trust .