The DN1, the road between Brașov and Predeal, is littered with hairpin turns, white-knuckle bends that had me channelling my inner Rosemary Smith.
I spotted a cemetery off to the right on a particularly bad bend. I was too late to park on the verge as I was in mid-climb with cars behind me. But I made a note for next time, hoping there would be a next time. And that when that next time came, no one else would have stopped and taken the one spot to pull over.
There was a next time and we had the place to ourselves. Apart from the residents.
The cemetery is dedicated to soldiers who died in the First World War. Crosses mark the graves of Romanian, Hungarian, and German heroes, known or unknown. Oddly, it’s marked on the map as Cimitirul Ostașilor Necunoscuți din Bătălia de la Predeal – Cemetery of the Battle of Predeal’s Unknown Soldiers.
Some graves were inscribed with Aci odihnesc eroi Germani, which I think translates as German heroes rest here.
Those with candles and ribbons in Romanian colours are presumably Romanian soldiers. Others have Hungarian names like Béka Sándor and Lajos Szabó. Some German stones have names, too, like Valter Krause and Dietrich Ernst.
I’ll admit to being a little confused by the HONV. abbreviation. I think it stands for Honvéd which, in Hungarian, translates as defender of the homeland.
I was curious as to who was fighting with whom during the war.
The Battle of Predeal Pass (Hungarian: Tömösi-szorosi csata) was a military engagement during the Romanian Campaign of World War I. It consisted in an attempt by the Central Powers (Germany and Austria-Hungary) to cross the mountains to the south of Brassó (Brașov). Although the Central Powers captured the town of Predeal itself, the Romanian defenses in the pass prevented any further advances.
The battle raged from 12 October to 10 November 1916.
Inscription reads: Aici odihnesc ostasii necunoscutu cazuti pe aceste locuri in razboiul which translates as Here rest the unknown soldiers who fell on these places in the war.
On the side of the main monument is another inscription:
With the aid of a multitude of online translation tools, the most sense I can make of it is:
In this cemetery rest in eternity the brave heroes of the nation. They fell on duty defending the legacy of Burebista and Decebal. We, and the mountains of Predeal, will always mourn them. We wll light an enternal light in their soul and a pious thought will always go to them.
It goes on to say:
This plaque was erected through the work of Ioan Codleanu and Mayor Ionel Goidescu as a sign of gratitude for those who did not hesitate to sacrifice their youth, dreams, and future for their country and nation.
Sobering thoughts.
