The old German cemetery in Moscow

So the world is arranged that life and death have always been and will be there. That is why many millennia ago humanity began to create necropolises, where the deceased found their last refuge.

Since Moscow has existed for more than 860 years, many surrounding cemeteries have appeared and disappeared in its environs. With the growth of the territory of the capital, many necropolises were located within the city and from time to time became historical. Among them is the German cemetery in Moscow, which today is more commonly known as Vvedenskoe.

History

Vvedenskoe German cemetery in Moscow was founded in 1771, during a terrible epidemic of plague. Since several hundred townspeople died every day, it was not possible to bury them in existing cemeteries, the authorities had to urgently allocate plots for burial. One of them was in the Lefortovo district and got its name from Vvedensky Hill, located on the left bank of the Yauza River. In addition, it was often called German. The fact is that at the Vvedensky cemetery Catholics and Lutherans were often buried. In the 18th century, the simple people of all of them, regardless of nationality, called the Germans, so this new nickname was fixed for a new churchyard.

German cemetery in Moscow: a list of burials

Among the celebrities who found their last shelter at the Vvedensky cemetery, many representatives of various professions. Of the most famous personalities whose tombstones can be seen, if you visit the German cemetery in Moscow, you can not help but be called:

• The closest associate and friend of Peter the Great Franz Lefort ;
• General Admiral Patrick Gordon;
• Artists Victor and Apollinaria Vasnetsovs;
• Composer Alexander Gedike;
• Academician N. Koltsov;
• Metropolitan Trifon (Turkestan);
• Writer Valery Agranovsky;
• Satirist Arcady Arkanov;
• Poetess Vera Inber;
• Film director Yuri Ozerov;
• The writer Mikhail Prishvin;
• Director Mikhail Kozakov;
• Actress M. Zubarev;
• Senator B. Hermes;
• The poet-parodist Alexander Ivanov;
• Actress Tatyana Peltzer;
• Sports commentator Nikolai Ozerov;
• Scout Rudolph Abel;
• Writer Irakly Andronnikov;
• And many others.

Legends

The old German cemetery in Moscow (see the address below) is interesting and its legends. For example, there is the tomb of Fyodor Haaz or, as it was also called, the "holy doctor". According to legend, it was built on the money of prisoners in the capital's prisons, as shown by the shackles that adorn the monument. The fact is that Haas was the chief doctor of the Moscow correctional institutions and did much to alleviate the sufferings of the prisoners. In particular, it was he who succeeded in replacing heavy shackles with light ones, kept his prison at his money and opened a school for the children of prisoners. The gratitude of the prisoners was unlimited, therefore more than 20,000 Muscovites came to the final path of Fyodor Haaz, which was much more than the number of people who ever went after the hearings of kings.

And they say that on the Vvedensky cemetery the recipe of a real salad Olivier is buried. And with his author, or rather with his grave, a real detective story is connected. It turns out that the burial place of the famous chef Lucien Olivier was discovered only in 2008, although the tombstone stood in the cemetery since 1883. How could they not notice the monument with such a famous name for so many years? It's not very clear, but today there is an even more interesting situation: famous restaurants in the capital are fighting for the right to take care of Olivier's grave, since this circumstance can be used for advertising purposes.

Another interesting legend tells us that the body of Petrovsky General Gordon, who during his lifetime was a famous drunkard, was transported for a long time from the cemetery to the cemetery, until they betrayed the land on Vvedensky. After some time, the grave mysteriously disappeared, and pages from the cemetery book showed the place of burial. After that, the general's ghost began to appear among the graves, knock on the slab heels of his boots and frighten the visitors.

Interesting Facts

Not many people know that the German cemetery in Moscow became the burial place of the French military army of Napoleon and the aviation division of Normandy-Neman, who fought with the fascists in close cooperation with the Soviet troops. In the 50s of the last century, the ashes of the pilots were transported to their homeland, but the tombs were preserved. And the area on which they are located is recognized as the territory of the French Republic. In addition, the Vvedensky cemetery has a mass grave of German soldiers who died in captivity from wounds during the First World War.

Monument to the railwaymen in the German cemetery in Moscow

On one of the avenues you can see the monument, which is a large granite banner. It reads: "For the power of the Soviets - 1905-1917". It turns out that this monument was erected at the burial site of railway workers V. Solodukhin, V. Lebedev, E. Kukhmistrov and S. Terekhov and is dedicated to all the revolutionaries who died from 1905 to 1917.

Temples and Chapels

Today in the cemetery you can see several religious buildings. For example, the Lutheran prayer house was recently reopened there, under which a church built in 1911 was taken. Also in the cemetery is an Orthodox chapel in the Gothic style with elements of Art Nouveau. It was erected on the project of VA Rudanovsky.

The most famous among the religious buildings of the Vvedensky cemetery is the Erlanger chapel, erected in 1911-1914. It was designed by the famous architect F. Shekhtel, who managed to create a real masterpiece. This building is recognized as an object of cultural and historical significance of the all-Russian scale and invariably evokes interest of the visitors of the cemetery. The Erlanger chapel is the only active Orthodox chapel on the Vvedensky cemetery. For many years it was in desolation and began to collapse. Then Tamara Pavlovna Kronkoyan, who, having been left an orphan, took most of her life at this graveyard, taking care of the graves. She collected donations and began to clean up regularly in the chapel. As a result of her efforts, the chapel was revived. Its main decoration and shrine is a mosaic panel depicting the Christ-sower, created according to the sketch of the artist K. Petrov-Vodkin.

By the way, today, no one knows for sure where the custom to write on the walls of the Vvedensky chapels came from, but every day they receive new pleas of fate. And there you can see as requests for health for loved ones or for the birth of the long-awaited baby, and for the successful passing of the exam. And still recently there someone wrote "I want all the best!"

Address

Getting to the German cemetery in Moscow is quite simple. After all, it is located at ul. Cash, 1, in the Southeastern AO of the capital in the Lefortovo district. There excellent transport accessibility, so in the cemetery you can get on several routes. For example, after reaching the metro station "Aviamotornaya", you should use trams 46, 43, 32 and get off at the "Sputnik" cinema (3 stops). Then you need to turn right and go to the gothic-style gate, on which there is a sign with the corresponding inscription.

Kinds of burial places and an operating mode

The old German cemetery in Moscow (Vvedenskoe) now continues to be active. There, relatives and family (ancestral) burials are made, as well as burial of urns in an open columbarium and in the ground.

From May to September, the cemetery is open for visits from 9 to 19 hours, and from October to April - from 9 to 17 hours. As for burials, in columbariums they are produced daily from 10 to 17 hours.

Now you know what the German cemetery in Moscow is known (how to get there, see above) and who is buried there.