Szczecin Main Cemetery

More than 300,000 graves on more than 160 hectares, countless paths, monuments, gravestones and places of silence await you when you visit the Szczecin Main Cemetery.

We were drawn to the largest cemetery in Poland and during a long walk we didn’t even come close to discovering the entire site, it’s so large and vast.

A large, outdoor informational sign displays a detailed, color-coded map of the Central Cemetery in Szczecin, the largest cemetery in Poland, featuring a legend and numbered points of interest.

The main cemetery in Szczecin was built in 1901 on the model of the Ohlsdorf cemetery in Hamburg, and burials still take place here today. Visually already recognizable on the plan of the cemetery, the grounds are divided into an older and a newer area.

An overgrown stone grave marker for the Ullrich family stands amidst a dense carpet of ivy and lush green trees in the Szczecin Central Cemetery, the largest cemetery in Poland.

The older area with its chapels and entrance gate was designed by an architect from Szczecin (Wilhelm Meyer-Schwartau). The landscape architect Georg Hannig was responsible for the horticultural design. A 77-meter-long entrance avenue lined with plane trees leads from the main gate to the chapel. A total of 11 avenues lead into the grounds, giving the impression of being rather in a park. On winding paths, which adapt to the course of the landscape, one passes the individual graves.

The newer part of the cemetery was built in 1930. On a former military area, which is crossed by two streams, paths have been laid out. These mostly run parallel to the water. If you are looking for graves of artists and politicians, you will certainly find them here.

A lush, green view of the Szczecin Central Cemetery (Cmentarz Centralny w Szczecinie) in Poland, showing numerous gravestones and crosses adorned with colorful flowers and lanterns amidst tall grass and a backdrop of dense trees.

Of monumental monuments and devious paths

In total the cemetery has 13 entrances. We probably entered the site through the least interesting entrance (number 13 on the plan). Via a forest path, where the noise of the adjacent main road could no longer be heard, we entered the old part of the cemetery. Before we had even seen a grave, we were standing in front of an impressive large monument. Who is being honored for what here, we could not tell, but to come across a monumental and such a large memorial in the middle of a forest section, even if it is a forest in a cemetery, is quite amazing.

A large, abstract concrete monument with wing-like extensions and a small bronze bust stands amidst lush green trees and shrubbery at the Szczecin Central Cemetery in Poland.

Continuing through the forest we finally reached the first grave fields, which are located in small clearings. The tombstones and gravestones all seemed quite new and a look at the dates showed quite quickly that there were only graves from the time after the Second World War to find

The forest thinned out and we came to paths lined on the sides by larger more open areas. Finally we caught sight of the chapel of the cemetery. The main chapel of the SSN cemetery was damaged by fire in 1981 and then demolished. Then 13 years later they had finished the new chapel in the old style. A really impressive building.

A wide-angle shot of the red brick chapel at the Szczecin Central Cemetery in Poland, featuring a prominent silver-colored spire under a dramatic, cloudy sky. The historic building is surrounded by lush green trees and manicured shrubbery along a paved path.

Directly in front of the chapel, separated only by a path and a small meadow, is a large basin, where normally a fountain can be seen. During our visit, however, no water was bubbling here and the basin was drained.

In the visual axis behind the fountain there was a monument called Pomnik Braterstwa Broni (Monument to the Brothers in Arms), which looked huge even from a distance. This was designed by Sławomir Lewiński in 1967 and placed on a small hill. The monument is supposed to represent a winged hussar.

A view of the Polish Army War Cemetery at the Central Cemetery in Szczecin, featuring a large concrete monument of stylized wings overlooking rows of graves and a field gun on a pedestal.

We were drawn around the main chapel to the old area of the cemetery. Somewhat surprised we discovered first a (drained) basin, around which some honorary graves were arranged. On an information board we could read that these were Szczecin personalities. If relatives wanted to be buried there and also the politics agreed to this place (one had to be a well-known personality), then there was the additional requirement not to show any religious features at the grave site.

A row of white stone honorary graves stands before a dense forest at the Szczecin Central Cemetery in Poland, featuring a wooden bench and a paved path in the foreground.

After that we finally reached the really old area of the cemetery. Here are beautiful old gravestones on partly naturally growing meadows between bushes and under old trees. Here, if you keep quiet, you can spot foxes, rabbits, hedgehogs, wild ducks and red squirrels. Numerous insects buzz around and you can hear the birds chirping. Over the years, a habitat has been created here next to the graves, which is a peaceful oasis for people and animals. There is even an established nature trail on the subject of wildlife in the cemetery.

Weathered, moss-covered gravestones stand amidst tall grass and lush green trees at the Szczecin Central Cemetery, the largest cemetery in Poland. The scene captures a peaceful, overgrown section of the historic Stettin Friedhof, where various stone monuments are scattered throughout the wooded landscape.

Address:

Ku Słońcu 125A,
71-080 Szczecin, Polen

Published 19 October 2022