Great Cemetery | |
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Latvian: Lielie kapi | |
Details | |
Established | 1773 |
Location | |
Country | Latvia |
Coordinates | 56°58′14″N 24°08′35″E / 56.97056°N 24.14306°E |
Type | Closed, 1957 |
Owned by | Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia |
Size | 22 hectares (54 acres) |
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 property is owned by the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church.