German War Cemetery Dionyssos-Rapendoza, Greece

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Date of photos and videos: Monday, 3 March, 2025

This German war cemetery is located approximately 30 kilometres from downtown Athens.

There are 9,905 war graves of Germans killed in Greece during WW2 and another 68 graves dating from WW1, with all remains placed in large ossuaries, with the names carved in large granite blocks.

The remains were brought to this cemetery from all over Greece (except Crete, where another German cemetery is located on Hill 107, in Maleme).

Among the 9,973 Germans buried in the German graveyard in Dionysos, close to Athens, an infamous war criminal, Josef Salminger, is also buried there. On August 14th, 1943, Oberstleutnant Josef Salminger was ordered, as commanding officer of Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 98, to undertake a surprise attack on the Greek village of Kommeno. In the evening of August 15th, Salminger spoke to his men and at daybreak on August 16th, the 12. Kompanie under the command of Oberleutnant Willibald Röser attacked the village. In the bloodbath which followed a total of 317 civilians of Kommeno were murdered. The operational commander of the action was Major Reinhald Klebe. Josef Salminger was killed on 1st October 1943 in fightings with partisans in the Ipiros mountain range near Klissoura, northeast of Thesprotikon, Greece.

Among the Germans buried here, there are several hundred unknown soldiers.

Another 843 killed German soldiers were not found but, according to  the German War Graves Commission, (Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge), their names are also on several blocks.