The final resting place of many heads of state and other dignitaries, Hietaniemi Cemetery is culturally and historically the most important cemetery not only in Helsinki but also in the whole of Finland. Established in 1829, this cemetery consists of a number of separate areas, all with their individual characteristics that reflect various periods in the history of Helsinki and Finland. Hietaniemi Cemetery also represents the nation’s memory: numerous Finnish and foreign visitors come to its war heroes’ graves and other monuments to pay their respect to past generations.

History

The old cemetery

In February 1828, the City of Helsinki Registry Office handed over a plot of land to “local adherents of the Lutheran Christian faith” that has since become known as the old Hietaniemi cemetery. It is situated between the Lapinlahti district and the old Russian Orthodox cemetery, established in 1815. There was a clear need for a new cemetery as Helsinki, recently made the capital of the country, was growing rapidly and the old cemeteries located in the present-day centre were being cleared to make space for the expanding city. The cemetery was established in October 1829.

The new cemetery

In just under three decades’ time, the cemetery was suffering from a shortage of space, so a committee was set up in 1856 to look into the possibility of expanding it. A decision was made to expand the cemetery to incorporate the land belonging to the Sandudd and Sandnäs villas, lying northwest of the cemetery. The new cemetery was established in September 1854.

The Hietaniemi area

The next time the cemetery acquired new land was in the 1930s when the city gave it a plot between the new cemetery and the Taivallahti district. This area was inaugurated in 1931, with the work on the new chapel completed in 1933.

The Second World War saw the establishment of Finland’s largest heroes’ cemetery at Hietaniemi, which is the final resting place of 3,164 Helsinki-born and 121 German war heroes. The area now houses a notable collection of the nation’s wartime memorials.

The Urn Grove

The latest addition to the cemetery took place in 1949, when a burial site for urns was inaugurated to the north of Hietaniemenkatu. Next to the Urn Grove, you can find the chapel of the privately run Finnish Cremation Foundation, which was designed by the architect Bertel Liljeqvist and consecrated in 1926.

The Cemetery of the Guard of Finland

The cemetery area is completed by the old cemetery of the Guard of Finland, located towards the Lapinlahti side of the area, west of the Orthodox Cemetery. Inaugurated in 1833, this cemetery originally belonged to the Guard’s own parish, with mostly soldiers buried there. Today, this historic cemetery, now run by the Parish Union of Helsinki, is reserved for the descendants of the members of the Guard parish and the White Guard Regiment.