Cannock Chase German Military Cemetery

The Cannock Chase German Military Cemetery stands on Cannock Chase in Staffordshire. It holds nearly 5,000 graves of German and Austrian soldiers from the First and Second World Wars, with a small number of Ukrainians among them. The cemetery was established after an agreement between the British and German governments in 1959. It was inaugurated in June 1967 and is maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. The site was chosen to centralise graves scattered across Britain. The cemetery contains a Hall of Honour with a bronze sculpture of a fallen warrior by Professor Hans Wimmer. A granite monument honours the crews of four airships shot down in the First World War. The graves are arranged on gentle slopes, separated into First and Second World War sections. Headstones are made of Belgian Petit Granit and often bear inscriptions for two individuals. The cemetery also holds notable graves, including those of Field-Marshal Ernst Busch and Zeppelin commander Heinrich Mathy. Visitors enter through a building with toilets and a visiting room where the cemetery register is kept. A plan of the plots is displayed, leading to a courtyard and covered passage to the Hall of Honour. Open passageways offer views of two terraces. The graves lie on either side of a valley, marked by simple headstones. The surroundings are peaceful, set within the wooded landscape of Cannock Chase.