The Red Baron's Grave

The Red Baron's Grave


Wiesbaden, Germany

Family plot Byrdmouse (Atlas Obscura User)

Baron Manfred von Richthofen—known simply as the ‘Red Baron’—was a famed fighter pilot in the German Air Force during World War I.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

Credited with 80 air combat victories, the Red Baron met his demise when he was shot by a soldier in April 1918.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

It is surmised that Gunner W. J.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

“Snowy” Evans—a soldier with the Royal Australian Artillery— is likely the one to have killed the famed pilot.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

Six pilots of a similar rank served as pallbearers at his first funeral.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

He was later moved to a cemetery in Berlin.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

There, a huge monument was placed on his grave by the Nazi government.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

After the war, it fell on the Soviet side of the line where the headstone and memorial were shot numerous times as people fled to West Berlin so in the early 1970s the family moved the Baron one last time to the family plot in Wiesbaden. Each year there is a memorial service around the anniversary of when he was shot down.

Headstone Byrdmouse (Atlas Obscura User)

The site is very easy to find even if you can't read German.

Entrance to Südfriedhof Byrdmouse (Atlas Obscura User)

After entering Südfriedhof, go right about 100 feet then follow the footpath around.

meisterbeckhart (Atlas Obscura User)

The site is to the left of the path but very near the outer wall.

Family plot Byrdmouse (Atlas Obscura User)

It is a large cemetery so reverence is expected.

Address: 23 Siegfriedring, Wiesbaden, Germany

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