5,309 German soldiers who had previously been buried at 225 locations in the Haut-Rhin department were reburied at the Bergheim cemetery. Most of them had fallen in the fighting in southern Alsace.
Cemetery description
The commune of Bergheim is located in the Haut-Rhin department in the Grand Est region, which was called Alsace until 2015. The Bergheim cemetery is located on the Grasberg, a 337-metre-high hill in front of the Vosges mountains. The slope falls away steeply to the west. The cemetery covers four hectares and is divided into four burial plots. It is partly bordered by a retaining wall. The natural stone grave markers each bear the names and dates of three fallen soldiers. At the highest point, a six-meter high cross towers over the cemetery. In the entrance building with its covered entrance hall, there is an orientation map and an inscription with the number of occupants. The name book is available in the recreation room.
Occupancy
The 5,309 war dead buried in the Bergheim cemetery were originally buried in 225 locations in the Haut-Rhin department. Most of them fell in the winter of 1944/45 during the fighting in southern Alsace.
History
Allied and German troops fought heavy battles for the so-called Alsace bridgehead at the beginning of 1945. This was an area on the left bank of the Upper Rhine, which the Wehrmacht held against the advancing Allied forces at the end of 1944. At the beginning of 1945, a German counter-offensive was launched there under the name of Sonnenwende. The Allies succeeded in destroying the bridgehead at the beginning of February.
The Bergheim war cemetery was dedicated on June 7, 1975.
Special feature
Just 13 kilometers south of the German Bergheim war cemetery, the French burial service has established the Sigolsheim national cemetery. It is the resting place of 1,601 French soldiers.
