Christianskirken - Refugee graves

In a separate section of Østre Kirkegård at Christianskirken in Sønderborg, the cross-shaped gravestones stand side by side with a total of 229 names, most of them German refugees, but also the names of seven German marines found after their execution on 5 May 1945 on board the minesweeper M216.

An agreement had been made between the occupying forces and the Danish government that wounded soldiers could be sent to Denmark, but at the end of the war, trains and ships with refugees began arriving in the country, so by the liberation in 1945 there were around 250,000 refugees in Denmark.

In Sønderborg, trains and ships arrived with women and children as well as elderly men. Initially, the refugees were placed in the private homes of the German minority, but as there was no room for more, schools were also taken into use.

The last ships to arrive are filled to capacity with refugees who have been fleeing the advancing Russian army for weeks and many of them are in a terrible state. It is the elderly and children in particular who are succumbing to the diseases, especially toddler diarrhoea taking its toll on the refugees and locals.

Every year, a group from the German minority places flowers on the large memorial plaque and the gravestones are maintained by Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge, which sends a group of German students to Sønderborg every 10 years to draw up all the names with paint.

Today, there are names and dates on a total of 186 refugees, 95 of whom are children. One of the most notable stones is that of the twins who died two days apart.