Bellu Cemetery — Attraction in Bucharest

Until the middle of the 19th century, the people of Bucharest buried their dead in churchyards. There were a few cemeteries outside the city, where the poor, the common people, or those who died from plagues were buried. To be in step with the modern world, the Bucharest legislators abolished these cemeteries and decided in 1831 "Legislation for burials outside the city". In 1852, a commission of the City Council discussed the creation of other cemeteries outside Bucharest. One of these was located on Șerban-Vodă Street, where there was a large orange garden belonging to Baron Barbu Bellu (1825-1900), Minister of Religions and Justice. The land of about 15 hectares was donated by Bellu to the City Council, which, on November 26, 1852, decided to start the construction of the cemetery. The architect Alexandru Orăscu draws up the plans for erecting the chapel on the site where the church of Bellu the Elder (1799-1853), the baron's father, had once been. The interior was made by the painter Constantin Lecca. In the fall of 1855, the landscaping of the land began, the first burials were in 1856, and in September 1858 the cemetery began to operate legally. In 1859 the government passed the law by moving the buried from the city to this new cemetery. C. A. Rosetti, the initiator of the organization of the Bellu Cemetery, is the first concessionaire that we can find in the Cemeteries Archive. In November 1859 he bought a permanent place here for his daughter, Elena. He was followed by the writer Cezar Bolliac who, in 1860, buried his wife, Arisita, the daughter of the Izvoranu nobleman, here.

Since 1862, the Bellu Cemetery has been under the wing of the Bucharest Municipality, so when the old chapel was falling down, the mayor Pache Protopopescu laid the foundation stone for the new chapel that will be built in the style of the Karlsbad cathedral. It will be painted at first by Mihail Popp, and later repainted by Dimitrie Belisarie and Arthur Verona. Bellu Cemetery was 17 hectares in 1859, and currently measures 28 hectares.

In the Bellu cemetery there is also the Alley of Artists, the perimeter where the artists are buried.

The ensemble "Șerban Vodă - Bellu Cemetery" is listed in the List of Historical Monuments 2010 - Bucharest Municipality - at no. crt. 22438, LMI code...

A visit during the tour, Dark Side of Bucharest. We had a very friendly and nice guide with us. She told many stories about the cemetery and some secrets about famous people beeing there.

The area has a very dark and sad history and not only for the ordinary reasons, also because of how some people has been handle by others.

You can get a lot of special photos and videos there.

There is also some nice view with arts, flowers and other plants.

One nice cat came to the group and...

Până la jumătatea secolului al XIX-lea bucureștenii își îngropau morții în curțile bisericilor. Existau câteva cimitire în afara orașului, unde erau înmormântați săracii, oamenii de rând sau cei morți în urma molimelor. Pentru a fi în pas cu lumea modernă, legiuitorii bucureșteni au desființat aceste cimitire și au hotărât în 1831 „Legiuirea pentru înmormântări afară din oraș”. În anul 1852 o comisie a Sfatului Orășenesc discută crearea altor cimitire în afara Bucureștiului. Unul dintre acestea era situat pe ulița Șerban-Vodă, unde se afla o grădină mare de portocali aparținând baronului Barbu Bellu (1825-1900), ministrul Cultelor și Justiției. Terenul de circa 15 hectare a fost donat de Bellu Sfatului Orășenesc care, la 26 noiembrie 1852, hotărăște începerea lucrărilor de amenajare a cimitirului. Arhitectul Alexandru Orăscuîntocmește planurile pentru ridicarea capelei pe locul unde fusese cândva biserica lui Bellu cel Bătrân (1799-1853), tatăl baronului. Interiorul era realizat de pictorul Constantin Lecca. În toamna lui 1855 încep amenajările terenului, primele înmormântări fiind în 1856, iar în septembrie 1858 cimitirul începe să funcționeze legal. În 1859 guvernul trece la aplicarea legii, prin mutarea celor înhumați din oraș în acest nou cimitir. C. A. Rosetti, inițiatorul organizării Cimitirului Bellu, este primul concesionar pe care îl putem găsi în Arhiva...