Ruhe in Frieden

During World War 2, although Ireland was neutral, members of the German Luftwaffe were killed over our air space due to foul weather, damage in action or simply running out of fuel. In 1959 The German war graves commission constructed this cemetery to remember these souls in what was once a granite quarry for the nearby military barracks. It contains 134 bodies of which 53 have identities and 28 will never be known. The only person with an individual memorial is Dr. Hermann Gortz, a spy, who took his own life to avoid arrest. He was buried in Deansgrange Cemetry with a full swastika flag but was exhumed discretely and re-interred to a grave in Glencree. German Remembrance Day is commemorated here each November and there is a poem at the entrance by Professor Stan O’Brien who was a supporter of the Irish German Society. A large Celtic cross now overlooks the grounds and there is also a mosaic called the ‘Hall of Honour’ designed by Berlze.