Forest Cemetery ( lv, Rīgas Meža kapi) is an large cemetery in the northwestern part of

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

, the capital of

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

, between the neighbourhoods of

Mežaparks Mežaparks (german: Kaiserwald) is a neighbourhood of Northern District in Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The ...

and

Čiekurkalns Čiekurkalns (german: Schreienbusch) is neighbourhood of Northern District in Riga, the capital of Latvia. It is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Ķīšezers. In April 2014, the new building of the State Revenue Service of Latvia w ...

. Formally, the cemetery is divided between 1st Forest Cemetery, with entrance from Aizsaules Street, and 2nd Forest Cemetery, with entrance from Gaujas Street. In 1904, German Lutheran congregations in Riga inquired the

Riga City Council Riga City Council ( lv, Rīgas dome) is the government of the city of Riga, the capital of Latvia. Its meeting place is in the Riga Town Hall (''Rīgas rātsnams)'' at the Town Hall Square (''Rātslaukums'') in the very heart of Riga. The Riga C ...

for allotment of land for a cemetery in the Mežaparks neighbourhood. It was planned to become a new large cemetery after the

Great Cemetery The Great Cemetery ( lv, 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 heads ...

, that was established 1773 in Riga and had exhausted its potential. The prominent Baltic-German

landscape architect A landscape architect is a person who is educated in the field of landscape architecture. The practice of landscape architecture includes: site analysis, site inventory, site planning, land planning, planting design, grading, storm water manageme ...

Georg Kuphaldt Georg Friedrich Ferdinand Kuphaldt ( lv, Georgs Frīdrīhs Ferdinands Kūfalts) (6 June 1853 in Plön, Holstein – 14 April 1938 in Berlin, Germany) was an influential German landscape architect, gardener and dendrologist of the Russian Em ...

was author of the original construction project presented 1908, which should have appeared as a park with a central via funeralis, with many small and lateral paths along the graves with low fences and small monuments. The Forest Cemetery was established 29 July 1910 following a decision made by the 3rd Imperial Duma, and it was inaugurated 19 June 1913. All burial ceremonies were conducted in a building erected 1913 after blueprints by the Baltic-German architect

Wilhelm Neumann Carl Johann Wilhelm Neumann ( lv, Kārlis Johans Vilhelms Neimanis; russian: Карл Иоганн Вильгельм Нейман; born 5 October 1849 in Grevesmühlen – died 6 March 1919 in Riga) was a Baltic German architect and art histori ...

. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, when the front closed in on Riga in 1916, the Forest Cemetery was receiving many fallen Latvian Riflemen. After a lengthy debate with local congregations, the Imperial Duma sanctioned the construction of a military cemetery, on land transferred from the Forest Cemetery, a cemetery that later was named

Brothers' Cemetery Brothers' Cemetery or Cemetery of the Brethren ( lv, Brāļu Kapi), also sometimes referred to in English as the Common Graves or simply as the Military Cemetery, is a military cemetery and national monument in Riga, capital of Latvia. The ceme ...

. The Forest Cemetery has many sculptural memorials and tombstones created by notable sculptors. Many notable Latvian politicians, military, and public figures are buried at the Forest Cemetery.

Burials

References

External links

* {{Authority control Monuments and memorials in Latvia Cemeteries in Riga 1910 establishments in the Russian Empire

Burials

See also

References

External links