Great Cemetery
| Great Cemetery | |
|---|---|
Latvian: Lielie kapi | |
Mausoleum of C. H. Berg in Riga's Great Cemetery | |
| Details | |
| Established | 1773 |
| Closed | 1957 |
| Location | |
| Country | Latvia |
| Coordinates | 56°58′14″N 24°08′35″E / 56.97056°N 24.14306°E |
| Type | Closed, 1957 |
| Owned by | City of Rīga |
| Size | 22 hectares (54 acres) |
| No. of graves | unknown |
| Find a Grave | Great Cemetery |
The Great Cemetery (Latvian: 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 headstones and graves by the Soviet authorities governing the Latvian SSR after 1945 led to the suspension of burials and the eventual conversion of the burial ground to a public park. Despite this, a significant number of old graves have survived.
The 22-hectare (54 acres) property is currently owned by the Rīga City Council, located in the Vizdeme suburb of Rīga, and crossed by Senču street.
It is somewhat impossible to accurately determine the exact number of interred due to damaged records, particularly by Soviet authorities. Despite damage throughout, combined with lack of tending to the property, many artistically valuable gravestones still survive, and reflect various artistic styles of their eras.