The Saldus war cemetery is the largest German cemetery in the Baltic States. Up to 30,000 dead can be laid to rest at the site in western Latvia.
Cemetery description
Five kilometers south of the town of Saldus (German: Frauenburg), the German War Graves Commission inaugurated a new cemetery on September 4, 1999. The information room is located in the entrance building, where the name books are on display. From there, a paved path leads to the memorial site. A stone map provides orientation. The graves are marked with natural stone crosses. A grave marker bears the names and dates of four fallen soldiers on the front and back. The names of the dead whose graves cannot be assigned are inscribed on pillar stones directly at the gravesite. The grave markers are constantly being added to.
Burial
Over 23,700 dead from the Second World War are buried at the Saldus war cemetery. Many of them have been reburied by the War Graves Commission from other sites. Most of them were killed in action in Courland, the south-western part of Latvia, from the end of 1944 to the beginning of 1945.
History
The former German military cemetery in the town of Saldus with around 2,000 dead had to be closed due to local construction work. In 1994, the local administration therefore gave the Volksbund permission to build a collective cemetery on the territory of the municipality of Novadnieku as an alternative.
Special features
Up to 30,000 dead can be buried on the more than six-hectare site. The Saldus war cemetery is the largest German collective cemetery in the Baltic States. German and Latvian soldiers rest there.
