History

A parish, Roman-Catholic cemetery established in the first half of the 19th century, enlarged after 1945.

Description

A cemetery with an area of ca. 3 ha, situated in the eastern part of the village, near the forest, not far from the church. Circumscribed by a stone fencing with a gate on the main axis. Graves located in parallel rows; one alley planted with birches (survived only residually).

In the south-western part of the cemetery, there is a grave of Aspazja Świderska, killed during a fight of 31 March 1863. A gravestone in a form of a cast iron obelisk crowned with a cast, openwork cross. The obelisk base made of stone, rectangular, with a panel crowned with a Virtuti Militari cross and two crossed bayonets below. On the obelisk face, there is a convex inscription in antiqua: ASPAZJA ŚWIDERSKA / OF BLESSED MEMORY / IN THE PRIME OF LIFE / AND STRENGTH / CALLED BEFORE / THE THRONE OF THE ALMIGHTY / ON 31 MARCH / 1863. There is an engraved caption on a gravestone: KILLED / DURING A SKIRMISH / BY THE MUSCOVITES. A cast iron monument was probably made in 1883. Aspazja Świderska, daughter of Kalikst and Wiktoria nee Wnorowska, was born in Żebry village. Her death was portrayed by a diarist Izydor Bielicki: “The Muscovites rushed to the manor house and began a revengeful spree (...) They approached the house and fired several dozen shots at the door at once. This is how Wespazja Świderska fell victim of their barbarity. O! What a terrible view it must have been, when a sorrowful mother, seeing her daughter lying on the floor, lifted her by the shoulders to hide her from insult and took her to the garden where she passed out alike.” Unfortunately, the grave of insurgents has not survived. According to the relay, “insurgents stationed in the Toki wilderness near Białogrądy were attacked on 22 August 1863 by a squad of the border guards and 25 horse guards under captain Kowalewski’s command. An insurgent named Korzeniowski, a saddlery apprentice, was killed at that time. His body was found by Józef Jabłoński from Osowiec and taken to Białaszewo. A death certificate was prepared by rev. Jakub Pieniążek in the presence of J. Jabłoński (41) and Samuel Piotrochowski, a church governor (46). Korzeniowski’s body was buried in the graveyard in Białaszewo.”

In the south-eastern part of the cemetery, there is a burial plot from World War I. German soldiers who were killed on 20 February and 6 August 1915 are buried there. Burial sites are labelled by glacial erratic rocks with engraved inscriptions. The church cemetery includes a monument with commemorative plaques listing surnames of victims of the Osowiec Fortress siege of 1915.

The monument is freely available to the public.

compiled by Iwona Górska, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Bialystok

Bibliography

• Górska I. (red.), 1863. Katalog miejsc pamięci powstania styczniowego w województwie podlaskim, Białystok 2013, s. 47-48.
• Marczak J., Potyczka w folwarku Białaszewo, www.grajewiak.pl