The Old Jewish Cemetery on the south side of town abuts the revenue department on the west side of the cemetery, which was formerly a Hebrew schul - turned garrison. Some of the bitterest fighting occurred near and around these parts as the Soviets laid siege to the city, which fell after Berlin, and only three days before the end of the war itself.
There is evidence of fighting in the cemetery while soldiers were fired upon while taking cover behind and within monuments. Unexploded ordnance is present throughout, so you won’t see people mowing the grass. It’s overgrown, but not unkempt. It’s a well-tended cemetery, managed by the city. They even have decent restrooms (critical).
Interestingly, the cemetery wasn’t defaced or destroyed during Kristallnacht or at other times by the Third Reich. My assumption is that it was out of the footprint of Breslau-proper, so just wasn’t a priority for them to mess with. If this was located near the Rathaus, I think it would have been bulldozed. The last burials were in the early 1940’s, and the ones I saw were older people, so not sure if their deaths were Holocaust-related.
Damage came from two major sources: combat within the cemetery, and the decades after the war before the government took control of it. During those interveneing years, it was untended, and where hooligans would drink and get into trouble. It’s walled-off, so unless it’s supervised, it’s the sort of environment that invites troublemakers.
There are a number of notable burials in the cemetery, and the whole place has such a wonderful variety of monuments and shrubbery. Edith Stein (St. Teresa Benedica)’s parents are buried here, but in different areas. The father predeceased them by decades, which may explain why the mom was buried ~100m away. A chess master, as well as a philanthropist, some pioneering scientists, and many others are interred in this cemetery. The final cut of this video does not include everyone I stopped and discussed, but the Steins and the chess master are certainly included.
Arcades line the central walls, and are most interesting and tranquil on the west side. Many of them are in poor condition as a result of time and the war.
Final note, I had a hard time finding pebbles to place on markers, so if you are going to visit, consider arriving with a handful from the get-go!
-FT
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