Alter Annenfriedhof, Dresden, Cemetery in Südvorstadt, Dresden, Germany

The Alter Annenfriedhof is Dresden's third Annen cemetery, laid out from 1847 on a 3.9-hectare site at the Hahneberg. Designed by Christian Gottlieb Spieß on the model of the Trinitatisfriedhof, it is a four-field cemetery with about 2,320 grave plots. Its 1863 entrance area and buildings were planned by Johann Friedrich Eichberg; the chapel was rebuilt in 2009.

The third Annenfriedhof of Dresden was laid out from 1847 on the Hahneberg despite protests from residents, and consecrated on 2 June 1848 at the Chemnitzer Straße; the first burial took place the same day. Christian Gottlieb Spieß designed it as a four-field layout modelled on the Trinitatisfriedhof. In 1863 it was extended with an entrance area, mortuary hall, chapel and morgue by Johann Friedrich Eichberg. Bombing in February 1945 destroyed large parts, and the chapel was rebuilt in 2009.

The cemetery's name comes from the Annenkirche, and the Annengemeinde used it as its burial ground. The obelisk erected in 1849 commemorates 53 victims of the May Uprising in Dresden. A field redesigned in 2006 holds more than 800 victims of the February 1945 air raids, 592 of them unnamed; the obelisk quotes a lament that Rudolf Mauersberger set in his motet on the city's destruction.

The cemetery can be explored on foot with well-maintained pathways running through all areas. Visitors should be aware of weather conditions, as the surrounding vegetation can make paths slippery during wet periods.

The cemetery holds a memorial field redesigned in 2006 for more than 800 victims of the February 1945 air raids on Dresden, 592 of them unidentified. An obelisk there quotes Lamentations; cantor Rudolf Mauersberger used the same lines in his motet on the city's destruction.