Soldiers of the Second World War rest at the German war cemetery in Krakow (Polish: Kraków). The site is part of the Rakowicki Cemetery - the oldest and one of the largest cemeteries in the city. Polish, Russian, British and German war dead are buried in the military section, which adjoins the area with civilian graves.
Description of the cemetery
The German section consists of two 1,500 square meter cemeteries. Symbolic crosses divide the lawns. A path runs between the cemeteries, which is extended halfway to form a memorial square. There is a high cross in front of which is a memorial plaque. The names of the buried are listed on horizontal plaques.
Occupancy
Around 478,000 German soldiers lost their lives in Poland during the Second World War. The German War Graves Commission (Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e. V.) has been notified of the names of around 300,000 dead. More than 4,000 German war dead are buried at the Krakow war cemetery.
History
The War Graves Agreement concluded between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Republic of Poland in 2003 forms the basis of the Volksbund's work. It receives support for reburials, construction and maintenance measures from the German-Polish "Remembrance" Foundation, which was founded in 1994.
The German war cemetery in Krakow was inaugurated on October 16, 1993. At that time, more than 2,500 victims of the Second World War were buried there. The Volksbund was aware that around 4,000 German soldiers had been buried at the military cemetery immediately after the end of the war. It was also known that many of the German soldiers had been exhumed in the post-war years and reburied elsewhere, either in mass graves or in individual graves. However, the exact location of the graves was not known.
in 2018 and 2019, Polish workers discovered bones and identification marks of German soldiers during construction work at the cemetery. The Volksbund then explored the area, recovered more than 1,000 war dead and reburied them. This work was completed in 2020.
Special feature
The park-like grounds were created at the beginning of the 19th century. Many artists, scientists and literary figures rest there. Well-known architects and sculptors created many of the graves and sculptures. Around 1920, the cemetery was extended to an area north of Prandoty Street. This part of the necropolis is known as a military cemetery, as initially only soldiers were laid to rest there. There are now also civilian graves here. The parents and brother of Pope John Paul II are buried in a family grave near the German war cemetery.
