Visiting Rīga's Lielie kapi (Great Cemetery)Our 2003 trip

A short history

Lielie kapi, the Great Cemetery, owes its origins to an outbreak of the plague from 1770 to 1772 in Russia. A tsarist decree banned burials in and adjoining churches. That decree was received in Rīga on February 23, 1773. It detailed that the dead had to be buried at least 640 meters (modern measurement)1 distance from the city. Lielie kapi was established that same year, two kilometers away from the then city boundary. The city's various congregations were designated their individual sections. The Church of the Annunciation was also built, of wood, on cemetery grounds in 1773, and Pokrov Church in 1777.

Map of Lielie kapi, the now relocated German soldiers' cemetery appears in the far right corner

As they years progressed, various projects were either proposed or undertaken to beautify the cemetery. In 1825, a half-circle area lined with aspen trees in front of the Miera iela (Quietude street) gate was established as the main entrance. There were also guards quarters, waiting quarters for mourners and visitors, and greenhouses for flowers. Pokrov Church burned down in 1875, replaced in 1879 — that church still standing today.

The cemetery was the final resting place for all Rīga's notables, whether Latvian, German, or Russian, including Rīga's largely Baltic German aristocracy. While numerous graves have survived to today, many more were lost when in 1964 Soviet authorities simply bulldozed the cemetery to create a park. This was not only an outright act of sacrilege, but an act of destruction wrought upon the culture and history of Latvia. The graves of many contributors to the life blood of pre-WWII cosmopolitan Rīga and of Latvia have been lost forever, such as that of the famous Russian impressionist Sergei Vinogradov (painter). All records of as many as a third of those buried here have also been lost.

The construction of Senču iela (Ancestor street) in the late 1970's was the final insult, carving a path across the heart of the cemetery, linking Zirņu iela (Pea street) on the west to Pērnavas iela (Pärnu street) on the east.

German soldiers' cemetery

Lielie kapi also included a cemetery dedicated to German soldiers who died during WWII while POWs of the Russians. Following a decision in 2011 to close the cemetery, all its graves were exhumed in 2012 with remains relocated to the German soldiers' cemetery in Bebernieki. Current Bundeswehr (German military) members assisted in the relocation effort.

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At first glance, the Great Cemetery, Lielie kapi, appears a bucolic setting, like any park

At first glance, the Great Cemetery, Lielie kapi, appears a bucolic setting, like any park

At first glance, the Great Cemetery, Lielie kapi, appears a bucolic setting, like any park

More than one surviving mausoleum is adorned with a makeshift door

More than one surviving mausoleum is adorned with a makeshift door

More than one surviving mausoleum is adorned with a makeshift door

Albrecht von Oprotkovitsch, April 1757 - February 21, 1821, Field Hospital Chief Surgeon, and if we understand correctly, knighted by the tsar

Albrecht von Oprotkovitsch, April 1757 - February 21, 1821, Field Hospital Chief Surgeon, and if we understand correctly, knighted by the tsar

Albrecht von Oprotkovitsch, April 1757 - February 21, 1821, Field Hospital Chief Surgeon, and if we understand correctly, knighted by the tsar

Here rests Carl Reinhold Baron Schilling, died on 19 September 1855, if you look closely, this is the mausoleum at the center of our initial bucolic view

Here rests Carl Reinhold Baron Schilling, died on 19 September 1855, if you look closely, this is the mausoleum at the center of our initial bucolic view

Here rests Carl Reinhold Baron Schilling, died on 19 September 1855, if you look closely, this is the mausoleum at the center of our initial bucolic view

An echo of Rīga's aristocratic past

An echo of Rīga's aristocratic past

An echo of Rīga's aristocratic past

In everlasting peace here sleeps Nikolajs Mārtiņš Senbergs, June 3, 1916 - June 12, 1943, his grave still tended to

In everlasting peace here sleeps Nikolajs Mārtiņš Senbergs, June 3, 1916 - June 12, 1943, his grave still tended to

In everlasting peace here sleeps Nikolajs Mārtiņš Senbergs, June 3, 1916 - June 12, 1943, his grave still tended to

Most mausoleums, like this of Nicolai Pychlau, lie open, looted, and vandalized

Most mausoleums, like this of Nicolai Pychlau, lie open, looted, and vandalized

Most mausoleums, like this of Nicolai Pychlau, lie open, looted, and vandalized

One can see Nicolai Pychlau's mausoleum must have been among the grandest. Nicolai was the middle son of a textile factory owner. Since 1880, he and his family supported the Rīga society and institute for the blind. Family members continued to support, and lead, the institute until just before the First World War.

One can see Nicolai Pychlau's mausoleum must have been among the grandest. Nicolai was the middle son of a textile factory owner. Since 1880, he and his family supported the Rīga society and institute for the blind. Family members continued to support, and lead, the institute until just before the First World War.

One can see Nicolai Pychlau's mausoleum must have been among the grandest. Nicolai was the middle son of a textile factory owner. Since 1880, he and his family supported the Rīga society and institute for the blind. Family members continued to support, and lead, the institute until just before the First World War.

A mausoleum sunken into anonymity

A mausoleum sunken into anonymity

A mausoleum sunken into anonymity

The Vanags family plot. Aleksandrs Vanags was an accomplished architect practicing in the Art Nouveau (Jugendstil) style, his handiwork still stands in Rīga. Vanags was killed by the Bolsheviks in 1919

The Vanags family plot. Aleksandrs Vanags was an accomplished architect practicing in the Art Nouveau (Jugendstil) style, his handiwork still stands in Rīga. Vanags was killed by the Bolsheviks in 1919

The Vanags family plot. Aleksandrs Vanags was an accomplished architect practicing in the Art Nouveau (Jugendstil) style, his handiwork still stands in Rīga. Vanags was killed by the Bolsheviks in 1919

Artist Kārlis Jurjāns, 1884-1951

Artist Kārlis Jurjāns, 1884-1951

Artist Kārlis Jurjāns, 1884-1951

At a far corner of Lielie kapi, Peters ran across a curious little cemetery

At a far corner of Lielie kapi, Peters ran across a curious little cemetery

At a far corner of Lielie kapi, Peters ran across a curious little cemetery

A closer look reveals German names, deceased during WWII

A closer look reveals German names, deceased during WWII

A closer look reveals German names, deceased during WWII

Exiting, Peters found the sign at the entrance, the Rīga German Soldiers' Cemetery, 1939-1945

Exiting, Peters found the sign at the entrance, the Rīga German Soldiers' Cemetery, 1939-1945

Exiting, Peters found the sign at the entrance, the Rīga German Soldiers' Cemetery, 1939-1945

The German Soldiers' Cemetery entrance, the cemetery is now gone, the remains relocated to an existing German Soldiers' Cemetery in Beberbeķi. That cemetery was established in 2007, anticipated to house some 12,000 remains of soldiers formerly buried in forests, marshes, roadside graves, and other places not appropriate for a final resting place

The German Soldiers' Cemetery entrance, the cemetery is now gone, the remains relocated to an existing German Soldiers' Cemetery in Beberbeķi. That cemetery was established in 2007, anticipated to house some 12,000 remains of soldiers formerly buried in forests, marshes, roadside graves, and other places not appropriate for a final resting place

The German Soldiers' Cemetery entrance, the cemetery is now gone, the remains relocated to an existing German Soldiers' Cemetery in Beberbeķi. That cemetery was established in 2007, anticipated to house some 12,000 remains of soldiers formerly buried in forests, marshes, roadside graves, and other places not appropriate for a final resting place

We close our gallery having strolled through another day, passing by the gravesite of poet Andrejs Pumpurs, author of the Latvian epic poem Lāčplēsis, the Bear Slayer

We close our gallery having strolled through another day, passing by the gravesite of poet Andrejs Pumpurs, author of the Latvian epic poem Lāčplēsis, the Bear Slayer

We close our gallery having strolled through another day, passing by the gravesite of poet Andrejs Pumpurs, author of the Latvian epic poem Lāčplēsis, the Bear Slayer