Deutscher Soldatenfriedhoff - Tirana

In WWII, some 2,400 German soldiers died or are missing in Albania, of these 1,800 are known by name. Their graves are scattered and located at 87 locations. As Albania was a closed country for many years, there were no diplomatic links between it and Germany. In the early 1990's first negotiations were begun and on April 14, 1994, the war grave agreement was signed between Germany and Albania and entered into force on 7 January 1995. Nevertheless, it was not possible to create a worthy military cemetery for the German war dead due to political unrest in the country. According to documentation, remains were located in larger cemeteries in Tirana, Shkodra, Elba Sani, Vlora and Korca. There were other smaller areas but many war graves in Albania have disappeared and remains could not be recovered. In 2002 it was finally possible to set up a German military cemetery on a small area in the middle of the town park of Tirana. The site was provided by the Albanian Government free of charge and is located in close proximity to a small British Commonwealth cemetery and a monument to important Albanians. Here, all remains of German war dead which are found will be interred. In the center of the walled 150 m2 area is a granite monument to the war dead and there are eight panels listing the names of the dead. There is a symbol before the names of the approximately 60 who have been recovered so far. 31 August, 2011