Somme department
First World War
The German military cemetery was established in 1920 by the French military authorities, who brought together here the German war dead from 79 communal areas who had previously been buried in field graves or temporary burial sites or who had been found when clearing the battlefield. These were mainly in areas north of the Somme around Albert, Bapaume, Combles and Villers-Bretonneux, including the Ancre valley.
Around 1,000 of the dead date from the time of the first battles on the Somme from the end of August to late autumn 1914 and from the period of the war of position until June 1916. Around 10,000 of the soldiers resting here fell in the course of the summer battle from the end of June to mid-November 1916.among them was the famous German fighter pilot Manfred Frh. von Richthofen, who was fatally shot in an air battle on 21.04.1918 and buried near Bertrangles with military honors paid to him by his opponents. He was first transferred to Fricourt and then to Berlin in November 1925, where he was laid to rest in a grave of honor in the Invalidenfriedhof cemetery.
When the Invalidenfriedhof was largely leveled in 1975 by decision of the GDR Council of Ministers, the family managed to rebury his remains in time. He now rests next to his brother Karl-Bolko and his sister Elisabeth in the family grave at Wiesbaden South Cemetery.
The soldiers resting in Fricourt belonged to units whose home garrisons were located in almost all countries and provinces of the empire at the time.
Repair work between the wars
The first work to improve the condition of the cemetery was carried out by the Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e.V. from 1929 onwards on the basis of an agreement with the responsible French military authorities. The site was given a new entrance with steps and a wrought-iron gate, trees and shrubs were planted and the entire cemetery area was landscaped. The communal graves were edged with natural stone and planted with wild roses. A wooden high cross served as a central marker. However, due to a lack of foreign currency and the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, the problem of permanently marking the graves initially remained unresolved.
Final design
After the conclusion of the Franco-German War Graves Agreement of July 19, 1966, the Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e.V. (German War Graves Commission) was able to begin the final design of the German military cemeteries in France from the First World War. From 1977, the temporary wooden grave markers were replaced by metal ones with the names and dates of the dead cast in relief. The German Armed Forces were responsible for transporting the concrete foundations required to erect the metal crosses, most of which were laid by participants in Volksbund youth camps.
Of the 5,045 people buried in individual graves, 111 remained unknown. 11,986 fallen soldiers were buried in four common graves, of which only 5,419 are known by name.
For religious reasons, the 14 graves of fallen Jews were given a natural stone stele instead of a cross. The Hebrew characters read:
1. (above) "Here rests buried ... ."
2. (below) "May his soul be interwoven into the circle of the living."
A fundamental landscaping overhaul was carried out, mainly involving the renewal of the hedge and the brick border around the communal graves as well as the greening of the grave area. New trees and bushes were planted, and the existing trees and bushes underwent a thorough overhaul. The wooden high cross was replaced by one made of forged steel.
Maintenance
The cemetery is constantly maintained by the Volksbund's maintenance service.
