German War Cemetery Berru

17,556 German war dead from the First World War on this cemetery.

The German military cemetery Berru was created in April 1923 by the French military authorities as a collective cemetery. The dead now residing here were put together from an area stretching from Fismes (30 kilometers west of Reims) to the Argonne (80 kilometers east of Reims) and Chatillon on the Marne (25 kilometers southwest of Reims to Berry-au-Bac (20 Km northwest of Reims) and covers the area of more than 150 municipalities and districts.

The number of casualties increased significantly with the German retreat from the Marne and the French major attack in the winter of 1914/1915, the autumn battle in Champagne in 1915, the French offensive in Champagne and Chemin-des-Dames in the spring 1917. Further casualties were demanded by the German attacking operations in July 1918 and the retreat battles in October of the same year. The fallen belonged to troop units whose homeland garrisons lay in all countries and provinces of the then German Reich.

Of the 17,556 dead, 4,498 rest in individual graves; 366 remained without a name.
In the two community graves with 13,058 victims 1,465 are known by name. For religious reasons, the 15 tombs of the fallen Jewish faith were given a natural stone stele instead of the cross.

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