Cimetière des Rois

Cemetery in Geneva, Switzerland

The Cimetière des Rois (French: Cemetery of Kings) (officially Cimetière de Plainpalais) is a cemetery in Geneva, Switzerland. The cemetery is commonly named after la rue des Rois (French: Kings' Street) near which it is situated.^[1] The graveyard was established in 1482 for people who died from plague in the Middle Ages, during the second plague pandemic.^[1]

Personalities

The right to rest in the cemetery of Plainpalais is strictly limited. Under Article 30 (3) of the City of Geneva Cemeteries Regulations, only "magistrates and distinguished personalities, having contributed by their life and activity to the influence of Geneva"^[2] can claim a concession whose request must be made to the Administrative Council.

In the cemetery are buried John Calvin (the Protestant reformer), Jorge Luis Borges (the Argentine author), Sérgio Vieira de Mello (the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights), Ernest Ansermet (renowned Swiss conductor), and Jean Piaget^[3] (the noted developmental psychologist and epistemologist). The composers Frank Martin, Alberto Ginastera, Denis de Rougemont, Griselidis Real and Alice Rivaz, Jeanne de Salzmann, chemist Humphry Davy, editor François Lachenal, Robert Musil and actor François Simon are also buried there. Politicians are also buried there, such as Adrien Lachenal (President of the Confederation), Paul Lachenal, Antoine Carteret, Willy Donzé, and Gustave Moynier (President of the Red Cross). Max van Berchem (founder of Arabic epigraphy)

Gallery

Traditional grave of Calvin; the exact location of the grave in the cemetery is unknown
The grave of Jorge Luis Borges
Central pathway, Plainpalais cemetery
The grave of Swiss President Adrien Lachenal
The grave of notable British scientist Sir Humphry Davy
Map of the Kings Cemetery, Geneva

References

^ ^a ^b Harby, Bill (2 August 2021). "A stroll through Swiss history at Geneva's Cemetery of Kings". swissinfo. Archived from the original on 4 August 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
^ "Règlement des cimetières, du crématoire et du columbarium de la Ville de Genève" (PDF). ville-ge.ch. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2009., p. 6.
^ Burman, J. T. (n.d.). "Profiles of international archives: Les Archives Jean Piaget, University of Geneva, Switzerland". History of Psychology. 16: 158–61. doi:10.1037/a0031405. ISSN 1093-4510. PMID 23544355. A full-color version of the published photo of Piaget's grave can be found here, although this is covered by copyright and permission is required from the APA for its re-use.