Jewish Cemetery in Czeladź

The Jewish cemetery in Czeladź, at Będzińska 64, was a shared necropolis of the Jewish communities of Czeladź and Będzin. It covers 1.6 hectares, and about 3,200 gravestones and fragments of them survive on the site.

Where the necropolis came from

The cemetery was founded in 1916 as a shared one for both communities. Older sources give an earlier date, so the year of foundation is worth confirming with the cemetery's caretaker.

The time of the war

During the Second World War, victims of German crimes were buried here. These were about 100 Jews murdered during the burning of the synagogue in Będzin in 1939 and about 400 people killed during the liquidation of the ghetto in Kamionka in 1943. The history of the Będzin ghetto is connected with this.

The cemetery today

The site was fenced in 1988, and some of the matzevot were restored at the same time. In the cemetery there are mass graves and monuments commemorating the victims. Since 1987 the necropolis has been entered in the voivodeship register of historic monuments.

Practical information

• Address: Będzińska 64, Czeladź.
• This is a place of burial and remembrance, so seriousness is expected there. Check the rules of entry with the cemetery's caretaker.
• About 2 kilometres from here lies Będzin Castle.