Austro-Hungarian Cemetery of Prosecco

Not far from the centre of Trieste lies the cemetery of Prosecco, today one of the most important Austro-Hungarian military cemeteries in Italy.

A large mass grave to the left of the entrance contains the remains of soldiers previously buried throughout the surrounding area. Other graves hold remains transferred from the cemeteries of Doberdò and Piedimonte del Calvario. In total, 5,050 men who fell during the First World War are buried here. The names still visible on the plaques attached to the crosses reflect the ethnic diversity of the Dual Monarchy: Germanic, Slavic, Hungarian, Polish and Italian surnames all appear side by side.

At the centre of the avenue, reached by descending the staircase, stands a stone cross bearing an inscription that is now no longer legible. It was once dedicated to Antonio Bernardis, a 49-year-old man from Trieste who died accidentally on 30 September 1917. Bernardis was an infantryman assigned to transport units, one of the many soldiers from the former Austrian Littoral who lost their lives during the war. Behind the mass grave, to the left of the staircase, several of the original headstones are still preserved.

As with the cemetery of Aurisina, responsibility for the site today lies with the Graz office of the Austrian Black Cross, in collaboration with the Italian Defence office Onorcaduti.