Graves of well-known Chess Masters
and Chess Personalities

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Overview

Adolf Anderssen
* 6 July 1818 Wrocław † 13 March 1879 Wrocław.
Anderssen's grave is situated in the cemetery Osobowice, Wrocław.

Photographs from the visit to Wrocław in 2008 (KWA Trip to Wroclaw).

Inscription on the back of the gravestone

Tassilo von Heydebrand und der Lasa
* 17 October 1818 Berlin  † 27 July 1899 Osieczna, Poland
Buried in the Evangelical Cemetery of Osieczna (Stork's Nest).

Photograph from the visit to Stork's Nest, 2007 in the course of the II International von der Lasa Conference at Kórnik: Excursion to Osieczna

Thomas Frère
* 8 December 1820 New York  † 19 January 1900 New York
Buried in the Greenwood Cemetery of New York.

Visit of the cemetery in the course of the KWA general meeting at New York, 2007 (The Ken Whyld Association in New York City).

Martin Hillyer at the grave of his forefathers

Daniel Harrwitz
* 22 February 1821 Wrocław  † 2 January 1884 Bolzano
Buried in the Jewish Cemetery of Bolzano.

Photographs received from Luca D'Ambrosio; see also Luca D'Ambrosio on Daniel Harrwitz' track.

Jean Dufresne  
* 14 February 1829 Berlin  † 15 April 1893 Berlin
Buried in the Jewish Cemetery of Berlin-Weißensee.

Photograph on the occasion of the plaque's inauguration in 2006 (see the report On the way to "mystic places"...)

Plaque at the back of the gravestone

Frank Hoppe: Ehrung am Grab von Jean Dufresne (in German only)






Wilhelm (William) Steinitz  
* 14(17?) May 1836 Prague † 12 August 1900 New York
Steinitz' resting-place is at the "Cemetery of the Evergreens" in Brooklyn, New York (Bethel Slope Section, Lot 5893).

A plaque in honor of Steinitz was inaugurated at Prague in 2004: www.chessville.com/...






Ignaz Freiherr von Kolisch
* 6 April 1837 Bratislava  † 30 April 1889 Vienna
Buried in Vienna's Zentralfriedhof.

Photographs from the regional KWA meeting at Vienna, 2010 (Visiting an Old Chess Metropolis).

Inscription: Sein klarer Geist, sein edles Herz Ward frueh des Todes Raub. Verweht die Zeit auch seinen Staub Besteht doch fort der Seinen Schmerz.

Johannes Hermann Zukertort  
* 7 September 1842 Lublin   † 20 June 1888 London
Buried in the Brompton Cemetery of London.

The grave had considerably sunk into the ground and was overgrown with grass, this year it was digged up by the English GM Stuart Conquest. Currently there is a project running with the Polish Heritage Society to restore the grave completely, and it will be re-dedicated next year (2012). Stuart Conquest has published an article on Zukertort (and Vincent van Gogh) in CHESS, October 2011 (p30-32): Starry, Starry Knights also gives the history of his efforts concerning Zukertort's grave.
All contributions to support the a.m. project are most welcome, please contact Stuart Conquest (sconquest@hotmail.com) or the Polish Heritage Society via their website www.polishheritage.co.uk if you would like to make a donation.
Presumably the Ken Whyld Association will support this project as well.

PS (22/10/2011): Tomasz Lissowski informed us that the Polish Chess Federation as well collects money for the restoration of the grave. The appeal was signed by the Historical Comitee of the Federation which is headed by Tomasz. Moreover it should be mentioned that the Polish Heritage in the UK has called Zukertort "the best Polish sportsman of the XIX century".


PPS (26/10/2011): Stuart Conquest still informed us about a detail not included in his a.m. article: «... according to the cemetery supervisor, the Zukertort plot contains two earlier burials, which, however, have nothing to do with him. In other words, there would have been two "deeper" coffins beneath his. It appears this was not unusual at that period, at least at Brompton. Presumably this was a "cheaper" funeral option. The legal rights to a stone or slab always belonged to the last (most recent) burial, in this case Zukertort.»


Photographs by Stuart Conquest:

Update (09/03/2012)

Again Stuart Conquest has informed us about the current developments concerning the JHZ project at Brompton:
The official permission has now been granted by the Royal Parks Commission for the proposed work to go ahead. So things will now be moving much faster.

The project is two-fold: the restoration of the existing ledger (raising, supporting, cleaning, re-lettering), but also the placing of a new headstone alongside, with a suitable inscription in both English and Polish.
Below the proposed design of the new stone as submitted to the stonemasons:

The work may be completed as soon as July. There will definitely be a ceremony organised at that time (when the work is finished) to re-dedicate the grave.

If people wish to donate, now is the time to do so!
Stuart Conquest is accepting private donations at his personal bank account:
S CONQUEST, IBAN GB77 BARC 2013 3440 2808 52. All contributions, however small, are most welcome. Many thanks.
It is also possible to make a donation via the Polish Heritage Society.
Whichever way, he would ask people to please contact him privately and let him know if they have made a donation. His email is conquest@hotmail.com.

This month, in London, Stuart Conquest will be meeting with members of the Polish Heritage Society. They are all agreed on carrying out this project to the highest possible standards.

There is also a project to affix a memorial plaque at Simpson's-in-the-Strand - this is definitely going ahead too. As we all know, it was here that Zukertort played his last game.

Below a recent photo of the grave, from Stuart Conquest's last visit to London:

Leopold Trebitsch
* 10 May 1842  † 12 December 1906 Vienna
Buried in Vienna's Zentralfriedhof.

Photographs from the regional KWA meeting at Vienna, 2010.

Grave of the Trebitsch family; Leopold Trebitsch is "eternalized" top right (see picture below).