The Great Cemetery (Latvian: Lielie kapi; German: Großer Friedhof) was formerly the principal cemetery of Riga in Latvia, established in 1773. It was the main burial ground of the Baltic Germans in Latvia.
Extensive damage and removal of many headstones and graves by the Soviet authorities governing the Latvian SSR after 1945 led to the suspension of burials and the eventual conversion of the burial ground to a public park. Despite this, a significant number of old graves have survived.
Mortuary of Pychlau family, Russian textile manufacturers
Between 1771 and 1772, Catherine the Great, empress of the Russian Empire, decreed that no-one, regardless of their social standing or class origins, was to be buried in a church crypt or churchyard; all burials were to take place in the new cemeteries to be built throughout the entire Russian empire, which were to be located outside town boundaries. These measures were intended to overcome the congestion of urban church crypts and graveyards, and were prompted by a number of outbreaks of highly contagious diseases linked to inadequate burial practices in urban areas, especially the black plague which had led to the Plague Riot in Moscow in 1771.
Against this background the Great Cemetery in Riga was founded in 1773. It served as a burial ground for over 170 years for almost all Baltic Germans who died in the city between 1773 and 1944. Additionally, numerous Latvians of upper social status were buried there as well. The cemetery was divided into three section: Lutheran, Roman Catholic, and Orthodox Christian.
One of the first to be (re-)buried there was the founder of the city, Albert of Riga, whose remains were exhumed from one of the city's main churches and transferred to the cemetery in 1773.
Final burials 1939–1944edit
Burials at the cemetery were drastically reduced after Hitler's forced transfer, under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, of tens of thousands of Baltic Germans from Latvia in late 1939 to occupied areas in western Poland.
Burials at the cemetery continued on a much smaller scale until 1944, principally among those Baltic Germans who had refused Hitler's call to leave the region.
In 1957 the cemetery was closed completely for any further burials and began to fall into disrepair.
In 1967 or 1969 the city council decided to bulldoze large sections of the cemetery in order to transform it into a public memorial park.
The Russian Orthodox section of the cemetery, later named Pokrov Cemetery, is the only area which was not added to the territory of the Memorial Park and therefore was the only part to remain well preserved.
Current statusedit
This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(August 2017)
Grave stone of Baltic-German Mailinger family
A significant number of Baltic German and Latvian graves and family plots, including a restored crypt built in 1777 and the graves of Krišjānis Barons and Krišjānis Valdemārs, have survived the post-war destruction. However, many of these graves are in an abandoned or neglected condition.[1]
The city of Riga is currently discussing exchanging St Peter's Church for the Great Cemetery so that the city can properly take over maintenance.[2]
Notable intermentsedit
Albert of Riga, founder of the city (his remains were transferred here in 1773)
^Rozenberga, Māra (May 6, 2016). "Graves of Latvia's greats see moss and decay at Great Cemetery". Public Broadcasting of Latvia. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
^Rīgas dome cer mainīt Pēterbaznīcu pret Lielajiem kapiem, retrieved June 6, 2008.
Sourcesedit
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great Cemetery.
Pastors' memorial Photos of memorial to German and Latvian pastors killed by communists in 1919 at sites-of-memory.de
January 01, 1970
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This article relies excessively on references to primary sources Please improve this article by adding secondary or tertiary sources Find sources Great Cemetery news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2017 Learn how and when to remove this message The Great Cemetery Latvian Lielie kapi German Grosser Friedhof was formerly the principal cemetery of Riga in Latvia established in 1773 It was the main burial ground of the Baltic Germans in Latvia Great CemeteryLatvian Lielie kapiMausoleum of C H Berg in Riga s Great CemeteryDetailsEstablished1773LocationRigaCountry LatviaCoordinates56 58 14 N 24 08 35 E 56 97056 N 24 14306 E 56 97056 24 14306TypeClosed 1957Owned byEvangelical Lutheran Church of LatviaSize22 hectares 54 acres Find a GraveGreat Cemetery Extensive damage and removal of many headstones and graves by the Soviet authorities governing the Latvian SSR after 1945 led to the suspension of burials and the eventual conversion of the burial ground to a public park Despite this a significant number of old graves have survived The 22 hectare property is owned by the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church Contents 1 Origins 2 Final burials 1939 1944 3 Situation after 1944 4 Current status 5 Notable interments 6 See also 7 References 8 Sources 9 External linksOrigins edit nbsp Mortuary of Pychlau family Russian textile manufacturers Between 1771 and 1772 Catherine the Great empress of the Russian Empire decreed that no one regardless of their social standing or class origins was to be buried in a church crypt or churchyard all burials were to take place in the new cemeteries to be built throughout the entire Russian empire which were to be located outside town boundaries These measures were intended to overcome the congestion of urban church crypts and graveyards and were prompted by a number of outbreaks of highly contagious diseases linked to inadequate burial practices in urban areas especially the black plague which had led to the Plague Riot in Moscow in 1771 Against this background the Great Cemetery in Riga was founded in 1773 It served as a burial ground for over 170 years for almost all Baltic Germans who died in the city between 1773 and 1944 Additionally numerous Latvians of upper social status were buried there as well The cemetery was divided into three section Lutheran Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian One of the first to be re buried there was the founder of the city Albert of Riga whose remains were exhumed from one of the city s main churches and transferred to the cemetery in 1773 Final burials 1939 1944 editBurials at the cemetery were drastically reduced after Hitler s forced transfer under the Molotov Ribbentrop Pact of tens of thousands of Baltic Germans from Latvia in late 1939 to occupied areas in western Poland Burials at the cemetery continued on a much smaller scale until 1944 principally among those Baltic Germans who had refused Hitler s call to leave the region Situation after 1944 editHundreds of headstones and graves were removed or destroyed by the Soviet authorities during the second occupation of the Baltic states In 1957 the cemetery was closed completely for any further burials and began to fall into disrepair In 1967 or 1969 the city council decided to bulldoze large sections of the cemetery in order to transform it into a public memorial park The Russian Orthodox section of the cemetery later named Pokrov Cemetery is the only area which was not added to the territory of the Memorial Park and therefore was the only part to remain well preserved Current status editThis section needs to be updated Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information August 2017 nbsp Grave stone of Baltic German Mailinger family A significant number of Baltic German and Latvian graves and family plots including a restored crypt built in 1777 and the graves of Krisjanis Barons and Krisjanis Valdemars have survived the post war destruction However many of these graves are in an abandoned or neglected condition 1 The city of Riga is currently discussing exchanging St Peter s Church for the Great Cemetery so that the city can properly take over maintenance 2 Notable interments editAlbert of Riga founder of the city his remains were transferred here in 1773 Christoph Haberland one of Riga s chief architects Johann Christoph Brotze pedagogue and ethnographer Krisjanis Barons Latvian folklorist Janis Fridrihs Baumanis Latvian architect Andrejs Pumpurs Latvian poet and writer Johann Daniel Felsko architect Jazeps Grosvalds Latvian painter Karlis Milenbahs Latvian linguist and lexicographer Wilhelm Ostwald Baltic German chemist and Nobel laureate Heinrich Scheel Baltic German architect Georg August Schweinfurth Baltic German botanist explorer and ethnologist Krisjanis Valdemars leader of the Young Latvians movement George Armitstead Mayor of Riga from 1901 to 1912See also editBrothers Cemetery Riga Kopli cemetery Nazi Soviet population transfers List of cemeteries in LatviaReferences edit Rozenberga Mara May 6 2016 Graves of Latvia s greats see moss and decay at Great Cemetery Public Broadcasting of Latvia Retrieved March 6 2017 Rigas dome cer mainit Peterbaznicu pret Lielajiem kapiem retrieved June 6 2008 Sources editHistory of the cemetery in Latvian External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great Cemetery Pastors memorial Photos of memorial to German and Latvian pastors killed by communists in 1919 at sites of memory de Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Great Cemetery amp oldid 1174351974, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
