The Central Cemetery in Szczecin is a municipal cemetery in

Szczecin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...

, Poland. With an area of over 167.8 hectares, and still expanding, it is officially the largest cemetery in Poland and the third largest cemetery in

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History

The Central Cemetery in Szczecin was established in 1901 as a new and modern cemetery in what was then Stettin in German Pomerania. It was formerly called the ''Hauptfriedhof Stettin'' (Stettin Main Cemetery) and was modeled on the

Ohlsdorf Cemetery Ohlsdorf Cemetery ( or (former) ) in the Ohlsdorf, Hamburg, Ohlsdorf quarter of the city of Hamburg, Germany, is the biggest rural cemetery in the world and the fourth-largest cemetery in the world. Most of the people buried at the cemetery are c ...

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Even though it has been operating for more than 100 years, it is still in use, and it is a legally protected national monument. The first part of the new cemetery was located in the fields on the eastern outskirts of the city. It was designed by Wilhelm Meyer-Schwartau, a prolific architect of Stettin. The composition of the greenery was designed by landscape architect Georg Hanning. Wilhelm Meyer-Schwartau planned the layout of the new cemetery, and also designed a neo-romanesque central chapel and a monumental 77-meter-long main entrance gate. In total, there are eleven gates leading to the cemetery. The Central Cemetery was intended as a picturesque park or memorial-garden. This goal was achieved through utilizing the natural features of the landscape. Most of the roads in the old part of the cemetery are curved and form a net of small circles. The main road, leading from the central gate to the central chapel, is flanked by old

plane trees ''Platanus'' ( ) is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae. All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. The type ...

. The main chapel was destroyed in the fire of 1981 and took 13 years to rebuild. In 1925, a

crematory A crematorium, crematory or cremation center 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 cremat ...

was constructed next to it. Today there is only one chapel in the cemetery, facing a big decorative pool with a fountain. It forms the main axis connecting the east and west part of the cemetery. The new – west part of the cemetery was created about 1930, on a site which had been used as a military training area. Most roads in this part of the cemetery are straight, running parallel to two natural streams which flow through the whole terrain. In this part of the cemetery in the 1930 there was also a chapel, modern in style, but it was demolished during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and eventually pulled down in 1984. After Stettin became Polish in 1945 and renamed Szczecin, the authorities rechristened the cemetery to its present Polish name. On the site of the Central Cemetery there are many places of historical interest, such as a

lapidarium A lapidarium is a place where stone (Latin: ) monuments and fragments of archaeological interest are exhibited. They can include stone epigraphy, epigraphs; statues; architectural elements such as columns, cornices, and acroterions; bas relief ...

with old gravestones and grave sculptures, and an old

windmill A windmill is a machine operated by the force of wind acting on vanes or sails to mill grain (gristmills), pump water, generate electricity, or drive other machinery. Windmills were used throughout the high medieval and early modern period ...

(today converted into a garden centre). One of the quarters houses graves of notable individuals, such as artists and politicians. There are also monuments devoted to

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in an job, occupation or Craft, field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in the military, armed forces. A topic o ...

s, people who died at sea, unborn fetuses and concentration camps victims.

Monuments

The best known monument is ''Pomnik Braterstwa Broni'' (Monument of Brothers in Arms) made in 1967 and designed by Sławomir Lewiński. It is a military monument which looks like hussar wings. The monument is situated on the hill on the main axis. From this place there is a beautiful view on the main chapel. The Central Cemetery in Szczecin is like a huge park in the centre of the city, with many old and different kind of trees and high shaped hedges made of deciduous or coniferous bushes. It is similar to a big botanical garden but not everyone, even in Szczecin, knows about this original collection of trees and bushes. Some parts of the cemetery are very natural, there are thickets and meadows, especially the green belts located parallel to the streams. It is a very important ecological space for many little animals, birds and insects such as foxes, hares, hedgehogs, red squirrels, wilds ducks etc. In the cemetery there is also one educational board with photos of these wild animals and some information about them.

Gallery

File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny brama glowna.jpg File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny kwatera wojenna pol.jpg File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny nagrobek Hakena.jpg File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny nagrobek rodziny Ziegler.jpg File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny nagrobek rodziny Kissling.jpg File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny nagrobek rodziny Dewitz.jpg File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny nagrobek rodziny Meister.jpg File:Szczecin Cmentarz Centralny fontanna.jpg

References

{{Authority control Cemeteries in Szczecin Parks in Poland History of Szczecin Monuments and memorials in Szczecin Buildings and structures in Szczecin Tourist attractions in West Pomeranian Voivodeship Religious buildings and structures in West Pomeranian Voivodeship