Vestre Gravlund is a

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

in the

Frogner Frogner is a residential and retail borough in the West End of Oslo, Norway, with a population of 59,269 as of 2020. In addition to the original Frogner, the borough incorporates Bygdøy, Uranienborg and Majorstuen. The borough is named after ...

borough of

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. It is located next to the Borgen metro station. At , it is the largest cemetery in Norway. It was inaugurated in September 1902 and also contains a

crematorium A crematorium or crematory is a venue for the cremation of the dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator (also known as a crematory, retort or cremation chamber), a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a crematorium can also be ...

(''Vestre krematorium'') and chapel (''Gravkapellet''). The grave chapel was constructed in

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

and

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

stone and was designed by architect Alfred Christian Dahl (1857–1940). It was built in 1900 and consecrated in 1902. In the foundation wall, it has

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

that was designed by artist Oddmund Kristiansen (1920–1997) in 1970.

Notable interments

Sven Arntzen Sven Arntzen (4 April 1897 – 27 November 1976) was a Norwegian barrister. He was also the acting director general of the Norwegian Prosecuting Authority from 1945 to 1946, and played an important role in the legal purge in Norway after World Wa ...

(1897–1976), barrister *

Per Aabel Per Pavels Aabel (25 April 1902 – 22 December 1999) was a Norwegian actor, artist, dancer, choreographer and instructor.

(1902–1999), actor *

Eyvind Alnæs Eyvind Alnæs (29 April 1872 – 24 December 1932) was a Norwegian composer, pianist, organist and choir director. Personal life Alnæs was born in Fredrikstad, as the son of headmaster Johannes Jørgen Lauritz Alnæs (1835–1916) and Elise Ma ...

(1872–1932), composer * Finn Alnaes (1932–1991), novelist * Lasse Aasland (1926–2001), politician *

Gunnar Andersen Gunnar Andersen (18 March 1890 – 25 April 1968) was a Norwegian footballer and ski jumper. In 1918 he became the first to receive the Egebergs Ærespris, an award presented to Norwegian athletes who excel at two (or more) different sports. F ...

(1890–1968), footballer and ski jumper *

Karsten Andersen Karsten Anker Andersen (16 February 192015 December 1997) was a Norwegian conductor. Life Karsten Andersen was born in Fredrikstad. He graduated from the Oslo Music Conservatory (1938–39) and Accademia Musicale Chigiana (1947). He made his deb ...

(1920–1997), composer *

Johan Anker Johan August Anker (26 June 1871 – 2 October 1940) was a Norwegian sailor and yacht designer who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics, in the 1912 Summer Olympics, and in the 1928 Summer Olympics. Personal life He was born at Refne in Berg, ...

(1871–1940), sailor *

Kristian Birkeland Kristian Olaf Bernhard Birkeland (13 December 1867 – 15 June 1917) was a Norwegian scientist. He is best remembered for his theories of atmospheric electric currents that elucidated the nature of the aurora borealis. In order to fund his resea ...

(1867–1917), physicist and inventor *

André Bjerke Jarl André Bjerke (30 January 1918 – 10 January 1985) was a Norwegian writer and poet. He wrote a wide range of material: poems (both for children and adults), mystery novels (four of them under the pseudonym Bernhard Borge), essays, and arti ...

(1918–1985), writer and poet *

Trygve Bratteli (11 January 1910 – 20 November 1984) was a Norwegian newspaper editor and politician with the Norwegian Labour Party. He served as the 26th prime minister of Norway from 1971 to 1972 and again from 1973 to 1976. He was president of the No ...

(1910–1984), prime minister *

Edith Carlmar Edith Carlmar (born Edith Mary Johanne Mathiesen) (15 November 1911 – 17 May 2003) was a Norwegian actress and Norway's first female film director. She is known for films such as ''Aldri annet enn bråk'' (1954), ''Fjols til fjells'' (1957), an ...

(1911–2003), actress and director *

Lalla Carlsen Lalla Carlsen (née Haralda Petrea Christensen) (17 August 1889 – 23 March 1967) was a Norwegian singer and actress. She is regarded as one of the most legendary female revue artists in Norway. Personal life Lalla Carlsen was born in Svelvik ...

(1889–1967), actress and singer *

Johan Castberg Johan Castberg (21 September 1862 – 24 December 1926) was a Norwegian jurist and politician best known for representing the Radical People's Party (Labour Democrats). He was a government minister from 1908 to 1910 and 1913 to 1914, and also se ...

(1862–1926), politician and jurist *

Halfdan Christensen Halfdan Christensen (12 December 1873 – 17 September 1950) was a Norwegian stage actor and theatre director. Biography Christensen was born at Porsgrunn in Telemark, Norway. His family moved to Kristiania (now Oslo) where he attended Aar ...

(1873–1950), actor and director * Sven Elvestad (1884–1934), journalist and author *

Alfred Eriksen Alfred Eriksen (nicknamed "Karlsøypresten", 30 August 1864 – 4 May 1934) was a Norwegian priest, politician, newspaper editor and non-fiction writer. Personal life He was born as Alfred Eriksen in Christiania as the son of the watchm ...

(1918–1991), Olympic fencer *

Erling Falk Erling Falk (12 August 1887 – 31 July 1940) was a Norwegian politician, ideologist and writer. He was active in the Norwegian Students' Society, the Norwegian Labour Party and the Communist Party, but is best known as a leading figure in the ...

(1887–1940), author and politician *

Kirsten Flagstad Kirsten Malfrid Flagstad (12 July 1895 – 7 December 1962) was a Norwegian opera singer, who was the outstanding Wagnerian soprano of her era. Her triumphant debut in New York on 2 February 1935 is one of the legends of opera. Giulio Gatti-Casaz ...

(1895–1962), opera singer (unmarked headstone) *

Ragnar Frisch Ragnar Anton Kittil Frisch (3 March 1895 – 31 January 1973) was an influential Norwegian economist known for being one of the major contributors to establishing economics as a quantitative and statistically informed science in the early 20th ce ...

(1895–1973), economist *

Erland Frisvold Erland Frisvold (May 13, 1877 – August 22, 1971) was a Norwegian colonel, civil engineer, and mayor of Harstad. Frisvold was born at the farm Kjæstad in Lom, Norway, the eldest child of Pål Erlandsson Frisvold (1846–1912) and Anne Rolvsdotte ...

(1877–1971), politician and colonel *

Einar Gerhardsen Einar Henry Gerhardsen (; 10 May 1897 – 19 September 1987) was a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party of Norway. He was the 22nd prime minister of Norway for three periods, 1945–1951, 1955–1963 and 1963–1965. With totally 17 years i ...

(1897–1987), prime minister *

Gregers Gram Gregers Winther Wulfsberg Gram (15 December 1917 – 13 November 1944) was a Norwegian resistance fighter and saboteur. A corporal and later second lieutenant in the Norwegian Independent Company 1 ( no, Kompani Linge) during the Second World ...

(1917–1944), resistance fighter and saboteur * Kjell Hallbing (1934–2004), writer *

Gunvor Hofmo Gunvor Hofmo (30 June 1921 – 17 October 1995) was a Norwegian writer, often considered one of Norway's most influential modernist poets. Background Gunvor Hofmo was born in Oslo, Norway. Her parents were Erling Hofmo (1893–1959) and Bertha B ...

(1921–1995), poet and writer *

Leif Juster Leif Juster (born Leif Normann Nilsen) (14 February 1910 – 25 November 1995) was a Norwegian comedian, singer and actor, arguably the most popular of his generation in Norway. Juster started out as a variety show performer, and for a period he ...

(1910–1995), comedian * Franciszek Kawa (1901–1985), Polish cross-country skier * Janina Zagrodzka-Kawa (1918–2020), Polish poet *

Casey Kasem Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem (April 27, 1932 – June 15, 2014) was an American disc jockey, actor, and radio personality, who created and hosted several radio countdown programs, notably '' American Top 40''. He was the first actor to voice Nor ...

(1932–2014), actor, voice actor and radio celebrity (unmarked headstone) *

Otto Richard Kierulf Otto Richard Kierulf (29 January 1825 – 7 January 1897) was a Norwegian military officer, politician and sports administrator. Biography Otto Richard Kierulf was born in Christiania (now Oslo). Kierulf was the son of Lieutenant Colonel Chr ...

(1825–1897), military officer, politician and sports administrator * Ada Kramm (1899–1981), actress *

Martin Linge Martin Jensen Linge, (11 December 1894 – 27 December 1941) was a Norwegian actor who, in World War II, became the commander of the Norwegian Independent Company 1 (NOR.I.C.1) (pronounced as ''Norisen'' by the Norwegians), formed in March 19 ...

(1894–1941), actor and army captain *

Gerda Ring Gerda Ring (11 May 1891 – 12 January 1999) was a Norwegian stage actress and stage producer. She was the daughter of writer Barbra Ring, and married actor and theatre director Halfdan Christensen in 1922. They were parents of the actors B ...

(1891–1999), stage actress and producer *

Inger Sitter Inger Solveig Sitter (18 October 1929 – 11 March 2015) was a Norwegian painter, graphic artist and art instructor. Personal life Sitter was born in Trondheim to Ingvar Sitter and Ebba Pelander. She grew up partly on her father's ships, which s ...

(1929–2015), painter and art instructor *

Adolf Bredo Stabell Adolf Bredo Stabell (19 November 1807 – 21 November 1865) was a Norwegian newspaper editor, banker and politician. He was born in Trondhjem (now Trondheim) as a son of Nicolai Bredo Stabell (1736–1817) and Karen Bolette Grøgaard (1769–1 ...

(1908–1996), diplomat *

Halvard Storm Halvard Storm (August 10, 1877 - May 7, 1964) was a 20th-century Norwegian artist. Biography Storm was born in Kristiania (Oslo) to professor Johan Storm and Louise Bruun and was christened on September 2, 1877. He immigrated to the United States ...

(1877–1964), 20th century artist/etcher of Norwegian landscapes *

Carl Stoermer Carl may refer to: *Carl, Georgia, city in USA *Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community *Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name *Carl², a TV series * "Carl", an episode of tel ...

(1874–1957), mathematician and geophysicist * Olav Sundal (1899–1978), Olympic gymnast *

Gunnar Tolnæs Gunnar Tolnæs (1879–1940)Database (undated)."Gunnar Tolnæs" ''Internet Movie Database''. Accessed 13 January 2010 was a Norwegian-born film actor who worked for most of his career in Denmark. Early life He was born in Oslo, Norway. ...

(1879–1940), actor * Egil Holst Torkildsen (1916–1979), Nazi editor and activist

British Commonwealth Graves

This cemetery is registered by the

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 ...

as "Oslo Western Civil Cemetery". Plot 60 contains war graves of 101 British Commonwealth service personnel of

World War II 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 ...

. Most were airmen shot down raiding the

occupied ' (Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 October ...

Oslo Airport at

Fornebu Fornebu (local form ''Fornebo'') is a peninsular area in the suburban municipality of Bærum in Norway, bordering western parts of Oslo. Oslo Airport, Fornebu (FBU) served as the main airport for Oslo and the country since before World War II and ...

. Most of the others were killed in air crashes during Allied landings, 43 lives being lost on Liberation Day alone (10 May 1945). CWGC Cemetery Report
Retrieved 7 January 2013. The Cross of Sacrifice monument was unveiled during November 1949. The presiding officer was by General

Otto Ruge Otto Ruge (9 January 1882 – 15 August 1961) was a Norwegian general. Ruge was Commander-in-chief of the Royal Norwegian Armed Forces after Nazi Germany's assault on Norway in April 1940. Early career Ruge grew up in Kristiania (Oslo) i ...

, who had commanded the Norwegian Army at the time of the German invasion in April 1940. Opposite to the cross the citizens of Oslo erected a memorial to Commonwealth servicemen who died on Norwegian soil during the liberation of Norway. The memorial is in form of a kneeling figure of a mourning naked woman and was unveiled during June 1960 by King

Olav V of Norway Olav V (; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was the King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was the only child of King Haakon VII of Norway and Maud of Wales. He became heir apparent to the Nor ...

References

External links

Vestre gravlund website
* {{cwgc cemetery, 2016202 1902 establishments in Norway Cemeteries in Norway Buildings and structures in Oslo Lutheran cemeteries Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Norway Cemeteries in Oslo