The Dþûkste war cemetery is part of the civilian cemetery in the municipality of the same name in the Tukums district. Germans and Latvians are buried here.
Description of the cemetery
In the center of the war cemetery with the dead of the Second World War stands a stone high cross. The memorial plaque in front of it bears a bilingual inscription. The central square is surrounded by four separate lawns. these areas are marked by 24 granite grave crosses arranged in a ring around the high cross. The grave crosses bear the names and dates of those buried here. The names of the war dead, whose graves are located outside the military cemetery, are inscribed on two pillar stones at the edge of the grounds.
Burial
The Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e. V. (German War Graves Commission) assumes that around 100,000 Germans who died in the Second World War were originally buried at 6,600 grave sites in Latvia. In addition, there are 210 cemeteries with the dead of the First World War. Their exact number can no longer be determined. It is estimated that around 30,000 German soldiers died on Latvian territory during the First World War.
During the Second World War, the 290th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht buried around 400 soldiers in Dþûkste next to the municipal cemetery. Latvians who fought on the German side against the Soviet Union during the Second World War are also buried there.
After the end of the war, the German military cemetery, which was originally laid out in several rings, lost its outer segments when the municipal cemetery was extended - the soldiers' graves were overburied.
History
The Federal Republic of Germany and the Republic of Latvia concluded a war graves agreement on January 24, 1996 and in the same year the Volksbund received permission to redesign the grass-covered burial ground of the former military cemetery.
Only the three inner rows of graves remained from the original site. With the help of an occupancy plan from wartime, the individual grave locations of this part could be determined. The Volksbund placed granite crosses with names there.
The Dþûkste municipal administration maintains the site on behalf of the Volksbund, which was opened to the public on June 14, 1997. The Volksbund's partner in Latvia is the "Brothers' Cemetery Committee".
Special feature
The ruins of the Lutheran church of Dþûkste, which was destroyed in the Second World War, are located near the community cemetery. For a long time, it was a memorial against the war. A few years ago, a new church was built within the old church walls. The combination of old and new creates an interesting and impressive picture.
