Rakowicki Cemetery (English: ; pl, Cmentarz Rakowicki) is a historic

necropolis A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead". The term usually im ...

and a cultural heritage monument located on 26 Rakowicka Street in the centre of

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. It lies within the Administrative District No. 1 ''Stare Miasto'' meaning "Old Town" – distinct from the

Kraków Old Town Kraków Old Town is the historic central district of Kraków, Poland.Ingrid GustafsonLet's Go: Eastern EuropePublished by Macmillan, page 444. Let's Go Publications, 2008. It is one of the most famous old districts in Poland today and was the c ...

situated further south. Founded at the beginning of the 19th century when the region was part of

Austrian Galicia The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria,, ; pl, Królestwo Galicji i Lodomerii, ; uk, Королівство Галичини та Володимирії, Korolivstvo Halychyny ta Volodymyrii; la, Rēgnum Galiciae et Lodomeriae also known as ...

, the cemetery was expanded several times, and at present covers an area of about 42

hectares The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ab ...

. Many notable Cracovians, among them the parents of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

, are buried here. Gazeta Krakow.pl, October 29, 2008, A multilingual brochure available for the visitors, calle
"Zwiedzamy Cmentarz Rakowicki" (A visit to the Rakowicki Cemetery)
with a map describing a two-hour walk, is published by Zarząd Cmentarzy Komunalnych w Krakowie.

History

The Rakowicki Cemetery was set up in 1800–1802 at an estate in Prądnik Czerwony village, originally on an area of only 5.6 ha. It was first used in mid-January 1803. The new cemetery came into existence in relation to a public health-related government ban on burials in old church cemeteries within the city. The land was purchased for 1,150 zlotys from the monastery of the

Discalced Carmelites The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( la, Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carme ...

of Czerna, and built with funds from the city and the surrounding villages (including some future

Districts of Kraków The city of Kraków is divided into 18 administrative districts, each with a degree of autonomy within the municipal government. The Polish name for such a district is ''dzielnica''. The oldest neighborhoods of Kraków were incorporated into the ...

): Rakowice, Prądnik Czerwony and Biały, Olsza, Grzegórzki, Piaski, Bronowice, Czarna Village, Nowa Village,

Krowodrza Krowodrza is one of 18 districts of Kraków, located in the western part of the city. The name ''Krowodrza'' comes from a village of same name that is now a part of the district. According to the Central Statistical Office data, the district's ...

and Kawiory, all granted the right to bury their dead there. The first funeral took place on January 15, 1803, with the burial of an 18-year-old named Apolonia from the Lubowiecki family of Bursikowa estate. Karolina Grodziska
"Plan Cmentarza Rakowickiego,"
Gazeta.pl Krakow, 2002-10-30. In 1807, the first

wel The Wel () is a river in Poland. It flows out of the Great Dąbrowa and Little Dąbrowa lakes near Dąbrówno, following a course of 118 km first that goes southwest and then north. It is a tributary of the Drwęca river, ending at Brati ...

l was dug, and in 1812 the first big cross was built, paid for by public contributions. Rakowicki Cemetery was repeatedly enlarged over the years. The first expansion came in 1836 when 100% more land was bought from

Carmelite , image = , caption = Coat of arms of the Carmelites , abbreviation = OCarm , formation = Late 12th century , founder = Early hermits of Mount Carmel , founding_location = Mount Car ...

friars for 5,000 zloty. The design of the new part of the cemetery was commissioned from architect Karol R. Kremer, head of the department of urban construction, who gave it the form of a city park. The surrounding wall was made using bricks and stones obtained from the demolished Church of All Saints. The newly built cemetery was blessed on November 2, 1840. The first

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

was erected in 1862, six years after the Austrian permit was issued. In 1863 the city purchased more land from Carmelite friars – and from Walery Rzewuski – on the west side of the cemetery, and buried there victims of an epidemic of 1866. In 1877 the new administrative centre was built along with the mortuary. The next expansion took place ten years later, in the autumn of 1886. In this new section, the nominal painter

Jan Matejko Jan Alojzy Matejko (; also known as Jan Mateyko; 24 June 1838 – 1 November 1893) was a Poles, Polish painting, painter, a leading 19th-century exponent of history painting, known for depicting nodal events from Polish history. His works includ ...

was buried there, among other notables.Rakowicki Cemetery at cracow-life.com
/ref> Between 1933 and 1934 the cemetery was widened at its north end, across an old military base, with a city street eliminated. In 1976, it was finally entered into the list of local heritage sites, and in 1979 it was the last place visited by Pope John Paul II during his June 2–10 first papal visit to his native homeland.

Cultural significance

Cmentarz Rakowicki w Krakowie - panoramio (3)

The

is a place of burial of the ordinary citizens of the city as well as national heroes: famous writers, scientists, representatives of noble families, independence fighters, political and social activists, leaders and participants of Polish independence movements and insurrections, and veterans of the 20th century's two

World War A world war is an international conflict which involves all or most of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World WarI (1914 ...

s, among others. The name Rakowicki Cemetery derives from the name of the Rakowicka street, once a suburban road leading to the village of Rakowice 2 km away.

Layout

Within the cemetery, there are special sections allocated to graves of the participants of Polish national uprisings such as the

November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in the heartland of partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. The uprising began on 29 November 1830 in W ...

, the

January Uprising The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...

, and the

Kraków Uprising The Kraków uprising (Polish: ''powstanie krakowskie'', ''rewolucja krakowska''; German: ''Krakauer Aufstand''; Russian: ''краковское восстание'') of 1846 was an attempt, led by Polish insurgents such as Jan Tyssowski and Edw ...

First World War 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 ...

casualties are buried there, including ethnically Polish soldiers conscripted into all three imperial armies: Austrian, Russian, and Prussian – most of whom died in local hospitals. There are members of Polish Legions; the participants of the Charge at Rokitna; the workers killed during strikes of 1936;

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

casualties including soldiers of the

Polish September campaign The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week af ...

of 1939. All

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

pilots shot down over Poland are buried here, including those originally buried in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, along with hundreds of

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

casualties and prisoners of war who died during the

German occupation German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...

; the latter brought together by the BAOR into a Commonwealth plot containing a

Cross of Sacrifice The Cross of Sacrifice is a Commonwealth war memorial designed in 1918 by Sir Reginald Blomfield for the Imperial War Graves Commission (now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission). It is present in Commonwealth war cemeteries containing 40 or ...

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

Krakow Rakowicki Cemetery
/ref>Szymon Madej
Kraków Military Cemetery
/ref> Polish partisans, the victims of Nazi crimes; and Soviet soldiers who died during their anti-German attack on Kraków in 1945, are buried here.
Sep 28, 2007. The

maintain Commonwealth graves.

National significance

The cemetery is a national monument of great historical and artistic value. Its selected gravestones and mausoleums are the work of well-known architects, among them, Teofil Żebrawski, Feliks Księżarski, Sławomir Odrzywolski, Jakub Szczepkowski, as well as sculptors such as

Konstanty Laszczka Konstanty Laszczka (born 3 September 1865 in Makowiec Duży; died 23 March 1956 in Kraków) was a Polish sculptor, painter, graphic artist, as well as professor and rector (academia), rector of the Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. Las ...

, Tadeusz Błotnicki, Wacław Szymanowski, Karol Hukana and others. In 1981 a Public Committee for the Preservation of Kraków was founded, with a special sub-committee for the saving of the cemeteries of Kraków and other regional heritage sites. OKRK is organizing an annual collection for the restoration of historic tombs and gravestones. Works are being conducted simultaneously at the Rakowicki Cemetery and the New Foothill Cemetery (with the cooperation of the Association Podgórze.pl). OKRK is organizing an annual donation drive, raising funds for the renovation of historic tombs and the public monuments. Public funds are used for the restoration of deteriorating tombs without owners.Obywatelski Komitet Ratowania Krakowa

Notable interments

Those buried at the Rakowicki Cemetery include: *

Teodor Axentowicz Teodor Axentowicz ( Armenian: Թեոդոր Աքսենտովիչ; 13 May 1859 in Brașov, Austrian Empire – 26 August 1938 in Kraków, Second Polish Republic) was a Polish- Armenian painter and university professor. A renowned artist of his times ...

(1859–1938), painter * Gabriela Balicka-Iwanowska (1871–1962), botanist, legislator *

Michał Bałucki Michał Bałucki, pseudonym ''Elpidon'' (September 29, 1837 in Kraków – October 17, 1901 in Kraków), was a Polish playwright and poet. Biography He studied at Saint's Ann gymnasium in Cracow, and then at the Jagiellonian University. He was ...

(1837–1901), playwright and poet *

Andrzej Bursa Andrzej Bursa (21 March 1932 – 15 November 1957) was a Polish poet and writer. Born in Kraków, he studied journalism, then Bulgarian at Jagiellonian University in Kraków. In 1954–1957 Bursa worked as a journalist and reporter for the Krak ...

(1932–1957), poet and writer *

Adam Chmielowski Albert Chmielowski (20 August 1845 – 25 December 1916) - born Adam Hilary Bernard Chmielowski - was a Polish nobleman, painter, disabled veteran of the Uprising of 1863, a professed religious and founder of both the Albertine Brothers and Albe ...

(1845–1916), nobleman and painter * Hanna Helena Chrzanowska (1902–1973), Roman Catholic nurse *

Maximilian Cercha Maximilian (also spelled Maksymilian) Cercha (1818–1907) was a Polish painter and drawer. He was the nephew of Ezechiel Cercha (1790–1820) and the father of (1867–1919). Life Cercha was born in Kraków. He studied at the Jan Matejko Ac ...

(1818–1907), painter *

Emil Czyrniański Emilian (also Emil) Czyrniański (Lemko ''Емілиян Чырняньскій'') (1824–1888) was a Polish chemist of Lemko descent, science writer, rector of the Jagiellonian University and co-founder of the Polish Academy of Learning. He is r ...

(1824–1888), chemist *

Ignacy Daszyński Ignacy Ewaryst Daszyński (; 26 October 1866 – 31 October 1936) was a Polish socialist politician, journalist, and very briefly Prime Minister of the Second Polish Republic's first government, formed in Lublin in 1918. In October 1892 he co ...

(1866–1936), socialist politician and journalist * Józef Dietl (1804–1878), physician * Stanisław Estreicher (1869–1939), historian * Józef Andrzej Gierowski (1922–2006), historian *

Marek Grechuta Marek Michał Grechuta (10 December 1945 – 9 October 2006) was a Polish singer, songwriter, composer, and lyricist. Early life Grechuta was born on 10 December 1945 in Zamość, Poland. He studied architecture at Tadeusz Kościuszko University ...

(1945–2006), singer, songwriter, composer, and lyricist * Julian Gutowski (1823–1890), politician *

Henryk Hiż Henryk Hiż (8 October 1917 – 19 December 2006) was a Polish analytical philosopher specializing in linguistics, philosophy of language, logic, mathematics and ethics, active for most of his life in the United States, one of the youngest repre ...

(1917–2006), analytical philosopher * Antonina Hoffmann (1842–1897), theatre actress *

Emeryk Hutten-Czapski Emeryk Hutten-Czapski ( be, Эмерык Гутэн-Чапскі), Leliwa coat of arms (17 October 1828 – 23 July 1896) was a Polish Count, scholar, ardent historical collector and numismatist. Hutten-Czapski was born Emeryk Zachariasz Mikołaj ...

(1828–1896), nobleman, scholar, and numismatist *

Roman Ingarden Roman Witold Ingarden (; February 5, 1893 – June 14, 1970) was a Polish philosopher who worked in aesthetics, ontology, and phenomenology. Before World War II, Ingarden published his works mainly in the German language. During the war, he swi ...

(1893–1970), philosopher *

Tadeusz Kantor Tadeusz Kantor (6 April 1915 – 8 December 1990) was a Polish painter, assemblage and Happenings artist, set designer and theatre director. Kantor is renowned for his revolutionary theatrical performances in Poland and abroad. Laureate of ...

(1915–1990), theatre director *

Oskar Kolberg Henryk Oskar Kolberg (22 February 1814 – 3 June 1890) was a Polish ethnographer, folklorist, and composer active during the foreign Partitions of Poland.Apollo Korzeniowski Apollo Korzeniowski (21 February 1820 – 23 May 1869) was a Polish poet, playwright, translator, clandestine political activist, and father of Polish-English novelist Joseph Conrad. Life Apollo Korzeniowski was born on 21 February 1820 in the I ...

(1820–1869), poet, playwright, translator, and father of novelist

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and short story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in t ...

Juliusz Kossak Juliusz Fortunat Kossak (Nowy Wiśnicz, 15 December 1824 – 3 February 1899, Kraków) was an Austrian Polish historical painter and master illustrator who specialized in battle scenes, military portraits and horses. He was the progenitor of an ...

(1824–1899), painter *

Wojciech Kossak Wojciech Horacy Kossak (31 December 1856 – 29 July 1942) was a noted Poland, Polish Painting, painter and member of the celebrated Kossak family of artists and writers. He was the son of painter Juliusz Kossak, and twin brother of freedom figh ...

(1856–1942), painter * Stanisław Kutrzeba (1876–1946), historian and politician * Barbara Kwiatkowska-Lass (1940–1995), actress *

Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski (30 December 1888, Kraków – 22 August 1974, Kraków) was a Polish politician and economist, Deputy Prime Minister of Poland, government minister and manager of the Second Polish Republic. Biography He studied at the pr ...

(1888–1974), politician and economist *

Tadeusz Lehr-Spławiński Tadeusz Lehr-Spławiński (September 20, 1891 – February 17, 1965) was a Polish linguist, scholar, and professor of Slavonic studies. He was twice elected rector of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków before and after the Nazi German occupat ...

(1891–1965), linguist *

Juliusz Leo Juliusz Franciszek Leo (15 September 1861 - 21 February 1918) was a Polish politician and academic from Kraków, Poland, while the city was part of the Austrian Empire, then Austria-Hungary. Leo was a professor of economics and law at Jagiellonia ...

(1861–1918), politician and academic * Anatol Lewicki (1841–1899), historian * Zygmunt Marek (1872–1931), socialist politician *

(1838–1893), painter *

Józef Mehoffer Józef Mehoffer (19 March 1869 – 8 July 1946) was a Polish painter and decorative artist, one of the leading artists of the Young Poland movement and one of the most revered Polish artists of his time. Life Mehoffer was born in Ropczyce, ...

(1869–1946), painter and decorative artist *

Piotr Michałowski Piotr Michałowski (July 2, 1800 – June 9, 1855) was a Polish painter of the Romantic period, especially known for his many portraits, and oil studies of horses. Broadly educated, he was also a social activist, legal advocate, city administr ...

(1800–1855), painter *

Helena Modrzejewska Helena Modrzejewska (; born Jadwiga Benda; 12 October 1840 – 8 April 1909), known professionally as Helena Modjeska, was a Polish actress who specialized in Shakespearean and tragic roles. She was successful first on the Polish stage. After e ...

(1840–1909), actress *

Tadeusz Pankiewicz Tadeusz Pankiewicz (November 21, 1908, in Sambor – November 5, 1993, buried in Kraków), was a Polish Roman Catholic pharmacist, operating in the Kraków Ghetto during the Nazi German occupation of Poland. He was recognized as "Righteous ...

(1908–1993), pharmacist * Stefan Pawlicki (1839–1916), philosopher *

Henryk Reyman Henryk Tomasz Reyman (28 July 1897 – 11 April 1963) was a Polish footballer, sports official and military officer. He fought in World War I in the Austrian Army, then in the Polish Army in the Polish-Soviet War, and also participated in the ...

(1897–1963), footballer * Lucjan Rydel (1870–1918), playwright and poet * John Segrue (1884-1942), English journalist * Klemens Stefan Sielecki (1903–1980), engineer * Maciej Słomczyński (1922–1998), translator and writer * Ignaz Sowinski (1858–1917), architect * Władysław Szafer (1886–1970), botanist * Józef Szujski (1835–1883), politician, historian, and poet * Wislawa Szymborska (1923–2012), poet, essayist, translator, and Nobel Prize winner * Adolf Szyszko-Bohusz (1883–1948), architect * Rafał Taubenschlag (1881–1958), historian of law * Georg Trakl (1887–1914), Austrian poet * Adam Vetulani (1901–1976), historian * Jerzy Vetulani (1936–2017), neuroscientist * Tadeusz Vetulani (1897–1952), agriculturalist * Rudolf Weigl (1883–1957), biologist * Bolesław Wieniawa-Długoszowski (1881–1942), general, politician, freemason, diplomat, and poet * Wiktor Zin (1925–2007), architect and graphic artist * Mikołaj Zyblikiewicz (1823–1887), politician and lawyer

Points of interest

File:Cmentarz Rakowicki 2.jpg, Funerary statue File:Cmentarz Rakowicki 1.jpg, Funerary statue File:Rakowicki Cemetery, Cracow, Poland 2.jpg, Lasocki family tomb File:Cmentarz Rakowicki Grob Dietla.jpg, Dietl family tomb File:Kaplica Zmartwychwstania Pańskiego w Krakowie 2.jpg, Chapel of Resurrection File:POL Kraków Janina Gałowa grave 02.jpg, Tomb of Janina Gałowa, statue by Józef Gosławski (Polish sculptor), Gosławski File:Pomnik ofiar komunizmu.jpg, Monument to Polish victims of Communism

Notes and references

Internetowy lokalizator grobów Zarządu Cmentarzy Komunalnych w Krakowie

Galeria zdjęć Cmentarza Rakowickiego

External links

Online grave locator in Krakow
( pl, Internetowy lokalizator grobów w Krakowie) * * {{Authority control Roman Catholic cemeteries in Poland Cemeteries in Kraków Military memorials and cemeteries in Poland Tourist attractions in Kraków Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Poland 1803 establishments in Poland 1803 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire