World War I cemetery no. 4 - Zabytek.pl
Address
Grab
Location
woj. podkarpackie, pow. jasielski, gm. Krempna
Architectural solutions of the cemetery are inspired by regional architecture and are characterised by perfect incorporation of the feature into the landscape of the Beskids. It serves to commemorate the dramatic events of World War I.
History
The war cemetery no. 4 in Grab was built in years 1915-1916 by the War Graves Department of the Imperial and Royal Military Command in Cracow. It belongs to the I Cemetery District “Żmigród”. The cemetery was designed by Dušan Jurkovič, a renowned Slovakian architect, who worked as the artistic director and designer at the “Żmigród” First War Grave District during the war. The cemetery serves as the final resting place for soldiers exhumed from the nearby battlefields, who lost their lives during the clashes for the control of the Carpathian mountain passes, which took place in winter 1914/1915, as well as during the counteroffensive aimed at freeing the Fortress of Przemyśl, which was besieged by the Russians at the time. The cemetery includes graves of: 106 Austro-Hungarian soldiers from the 18th infantry regiment (hereinafter: IR) from Sadowa (Czech Republic) and Nevesinja (Bosnia and Herzegovina), 36 IR from Brunico and Villabassa (Italy) and Mlada Boleslav (Czech Republic), 43 IR from Fehértemplon (currently Bela Crkva - Serbia) and Karánsebes (Hungary), 5 IR of Landwehr from Trieste (currently Italy), 11 IR of Landwehr from Jicin and Jaromĕř (Czech Republic), 27 IR of Landwehr from Lublana and Gorizia (Slovenia), 3rd regiment of Imperial Tirol Riflemen from Rovereto and Trieste (currently Italy), 27 IR of Lanndsturmu, 18th March Battalion of Landsturmu and 7th regiment of Field Artillery from Lublana as well as 37 Russian soldiers, among others, from 191th Largo-Kagul IR from the 48th Infantry Division. The cemetery underwent renovation in the years 1992-1995 and 2009-2010 when crucifixes on graves were refurbished.
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, central part of the cemetery, 6 individual graves of unknown Austro-Hungarian soldiers in the foreground, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera -
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, watercolour by Adolfa Kašpar to the incompletely executed design by Dušan Jurkovič. Broch R., Hauptmann H., Zachodniogalicyjskie groby bohaterów z lat wojny światowej 1914-1915, translated by Sznytka H., compiled by Drogomir J., T
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, plan of the cemetery. A non-marked temple is located in the place where a symbol of the north is placed. Website: Nationwide Online War Cemetery Database – World War I cemetery no. 4, http://groby.radaopwim.gov.pl/grob/12434/
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 11, view from the south from the access road to the cemetery, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, view from the south-east, entrance gate in the foreground, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, entrance gate, view from the north-west, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, temple, view from the south, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, a complex of graves in the northern bend, a sentence on a crucifix reads: “Lord showed mercy for the enormity of our sacrifice and sent down the sunrise over the winners’ graves.” view from the south, condition as of 2011, photo b
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, a group of graves in the eastern bend, view from the south-west, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, a complex of graves in the eastern bend, a sentence on a crucifix reads: “The fatherland is full of gratitude and pride for the faithful and heroic sons.” View from the south-west, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, a complex of graves in the southern bend, a sentence on a crucifix reads: “Faithful to the vow, faithful to love for the country, inflamed by anger, we became warriors and conquerors.” View from the north, condition as of 2011, ph
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, a complex of graves in the western bend, a sentence on a crucifix reads: “Stop! Maybe he is the one who was dear to you.” View from the east, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, a board with an inscription on the foundation of the temple as seen from the south-east, condition as of 2011, photo by Barbara Potera
-
Grab, war cemetery no. 4, a commemorative board dedicated to the founders of cemetery renovation on the temple’s foundation as seen from the south-east. A board with identical inscription in German is located in the south-west, condition as at 2011, photo
Description
The cemetery is located on the top of a hill, at a field road approx. 200 metres to the north-west from the Voivodeship road no. 992 from Jasło to Nižna Polianka, ca. 800 m from the intersection of roads in Grab, 1,5 km from the national border.
The surface of the cemetery is approximately 0.18 hectares.
The cemetery was established on a four-leaf clover plan with a square inscribed into it. The design by Dušan Jurkovič was executed in a simplified version. It is surrounded by an earthen rampart faced with stone. The entrance in the south-eastern corner of the square leads through a stone gate which consists of two massive posts and a triangular roofing made of large, flat stone blocks. The gable features a small stone crucifix. The entrance is locked by a two-wing, wooden wicket gate. A central element is a wooden, soaring chapel on a tall foundation made of stone, resting on a wider, low base. The temple is crowned with a large, wooden crucifix topped with a triangular roof made of sheet metal. Three smaller crucifixes with roofs were mounted in the lower part of the temple on three roof covers. On the front wall of the foundation there is a triangular stone plaque with an inscription reading: “WOLLT IHR DIE OPFER WÄGEN DIESES KRIEGES: ZU RUHM UND EHRE IN DIE ANDRE SCHALE DIE NEUGEBURT DER VÖLKERSEELE - UND DAS VERLORENE FEDERT LEICHT EMPOR!”. This means: “If you want to weigh all victims of this war: Add the reborn soul of the nation to the glory and honour - and the pan with what has been lost is still light.” Boards with inscriptions with Polish and German dedicated to funders of cemetery renovation are located on the north-eastern and south-western sides of the temple’s foundation. 31 group and 53 individual graves are located opposite the entrance in four semi-circular sections and in two corners of the cemetery. The graves include reconstructed larch crucifixes with roofs, which contain the names, military ranks and information on the specific unit which the given soldier belonged to, or, in other cases, just the soldier’s nationality. The cemetery is surrounded by voluntary deciduous trees.
The cemetery is accessible all year round. It is located along the trail of the eastern front of World War I and close to the blue tourist route.
compiled by Adam Sapeta, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Rzeszow, 20-08-2014.
Bibliography
- Broch r., Hauptmann H., Zachodniogalicyjskie groby bohaterów z lat wojny światowej 1914-1915, tłum. Sznytka H., oprac. Drogomir J., Tarnów 1996.
- Bańkosz R., Frodyma R., Sapeta A. Szlak frontu wschodniego I wojny światowej - teksty tablic informacyjnych, oprac. 2012 r.
- Strona internetowa: Cmentarze I wojny światowej, http://www.cmentarze.gorlice.net.pl/ dostęp 20.08.2014 r.
- Serwis internetowy: Ogólnopolska Komputerowa Baza Cmentarzy Wojennych - cmentarz z I wojny światowej Nr 4, http://groby.radaopwim.gov.pl/grob/12434/ dostęp 20.08.2014 r.
- Strona internetowa: Österreich-Ungarns bewaffnete Macht 1900-1914, http://www.malorenz.at/index.htm dostęp 20.08.2014 r.
Category: cemetery
Protection: Register of monuments, Monuments records
Inspire id: PL.1.9.ZIPOZ.NID_N_18_CM.1686, PL.1.9.ZIPOZ.NID_E_18_CM.53399
