Muzułmański Cmentarz Tatarski

Why is this cemetery split in two? You might ask. We are standing now at the entrance of the Muzułmański Cmentarz Tatarski. It’s a place with a poignant past, established in 1867 for Muslim soldiers who served in the Tsarist army. The Muzułmański Cmentarz Tatarski tells the story of a diverse community. Polish Tatars, with roots in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, found their final resting place here. You’ll find notable figures like Bekier Eksanow, the imam of Warsaw’s Muslim community, and Osman Achmatowicz, a professor at the University of Warsaw. However, the cemetery holds a somber reminder of wartime destruction. The empty expanse to our left bears witness to the devastating impact of World War II. In 1942, German tanks, hiding from a Soviet air raid, sought cover within the cemetery grounds, damaging a part of it. Yet, the worst was yet to come. During the Warsaw Uprising in 1944, the Germans deliberately destroyed the remaining gravestones and burned all documentation, leaving this side almost bare. As you walk through the Muzułmański Cmentarz Tatarski, take note of the gravestones with inscriptions on both sides. These reflect the cemetery’s role as a testament to the city’s multicultural heritage.