Antakalnis Cemetery, Vilnius

Antakalnis Cemetery is an active cemetery located in the Antakalnis district. Established in 1809, it is also known as the Antakalnis Military Cemetery due to the many military graves found here. The cemetery is famous for being the final resting place for 12 of the 14 victims of the Soviet attacks during the January Events of 1991, as well as those killed in the Medininkai Massacre.

In addition to these graves, the cemetery also contains the remains of Polish soldiers who perished in 1919-1920, a memorial for Lithuanian, German, and Russian soldiers who died in World War I, and Red Army soldiers who fought in World War II. The monument to Soviet soldiers, however, was taken apart and transported to storage in December 2022 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

One of the most notable events in the cemetery's history was the reburial of over 3,000 French and other soldiers of the Grande Armée of Napoleon I who took part in the 1812 invasion of Russia. Their bodies were excavated from French-dug trenches which were used by the victorious Russians as mass graves due to the frozen state of the ground. French and Lithuanian diplomats participated in the interment ceremony held in 2003. In November 2010, the remains of 18 more soldiers from the same army were also found and reburied in a different area of the cemetery.

Aside from its military history, the Antakalnis Cemetery is also known for its beautiful grounds and the wide variety of monuments and grave markers. The cemetery is a reflection of Lithuania's religious, political, and cultural history, with sections dedicated to actors, poets, writers, as well as KGB officers and NKVD soldiers of the postwar period.