The war cemetery with the dead of the Second World War belongs to the forest cemetery (Meza Kapi) of the town of Valka (German: Walk), which lies directly on the border with Estonia.
Cemetery description
The 4,770 square meter war cemetery comprises three sections and borders a Latvian military cemetery from 1919/20 and a cemetery with civilian deaths. A boundary made of natural stone posts visually unites the individual areas into a single unit. Visitors enter the cemetery through a wrought-iron gate with the name of the cemetery written in German and Latvian. Nine groups of crosses made of natural stone make the cemeteries visible. They are located near the cemetery chapel.
A five-metre-high stone cross stands in the circular central square. Behind it are inscribed plaques on which the names of the dead are immortalized with dates of birth and death as well as their ranks.
Occupancy
After the First World War, the Baltic states gained independence. After the Estonian army drove out the Bolsheviks in the spring of 1919, Latvia also laid claim to Walk. The town was divided in 1920. A district in the south-west came to Latvia, while the center and the railroad station fell to Estonia. Valka was granted city rights in 1922.
During the Second World War, heavy fighting took place north of the town in 1944. Between 1943 and 1944, almost 400 German soldiers found their final resting place in Valka.
According to the German War Graves Commission, around 100,000 German soldiers lost their lives in Latvia during the Second World War and were buried in around 6,600 grave sites. The First World War resulted in 210 war cemeteries with around 30,000 grave sites.
History
Even before Latvia gained political independence, contact was established between the city administration of Riga and the German War Graves Commission (Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e. V.). As a result, a German prisoner of war cemetery was dedicated in Riga in 1991 - the first project that the Volksbund was able to realize in a part of the former Soviet Union. Since then, it has dedicated several military cemeteries from the Second World War - including the Valke war cemetery, which was opened to the public on September 19, 1998.
In addition, more than 30 war cemeteries from the First World War have been restored with the help of volunteers during work camps and Bundeswehr missions. The war graves agreement between Germany and Latvia dates from January 24, 1996. The Volksbund's partner is the "Brothers' Cemeteries Committee" in Riga.
Special feature
There is also a cemetery in Valka with 60 German dead from the First World War. It consists of a communal grave with a granite memorial bearing the inscription "GERMAN WAR GRAVE 1914 - 1918 | 46 GERMAN WARRIORS REST HERE | THEY ALL DIED IN FAITHFUL DUTY TO THEIR FATHERLAND | HONOR TO THEIR MEMORY. 1939"
Seven concrete slabs list names, troop units and dates of death and - in contrast to the memorial - 39 known and 21 unknown dead. The war cemetery, which was repaired in 1989, is part of the "Cimzes Kapi" cemetery, named after the Livonian educator and musician Jânis Cimze.
