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The Cemetery The Square (El Cuadrado) of the Grafen von Luxburg Fursten zu Carolath-Beuthen und Prinzen von Schoenaich-Carolath Family or short name The Square Luxburg-Carolath is a privately owned and operated cemetery of the Venezuelan, German Swiss, non-political and non -profit charitable Foundation of the Grafen von Luxburg Fursten zu Carolath-Beuthen und Prinzen von Schoenaich-Carolath Family. The cemetery is located on Las Delicias Avenue in the city of Maracaibo, capital of Zulia State, west of the South American country of Venezuela. It is one of the oldest operating historical cemeteries in the country and Latin America over all, being officially established on November 12 of 1879, but The Square is so unique that holds the dead of 1821. The cemetery had many names since foundation, starting with no name, later in 1925 New Cemetery, New Square, The Square due to its particular form. Since September 2019 it holds the new final name The Square Luxburg-Carolath.

History[edit]

In the State of Zulia as in all of Venezuela, there were different types of cemeteries and many cemeteries including local Indian burials pre-German foundation of the city. With the arrival of the Spanish after the German foundation of Maracaibo coro and other important cities of the future Zulia State, it was customary, as in the entire Christian world, to bury the deceased next to the same churches, convents and attached lands they established. The Spanish Crown, in 1698, orders to bury the deceased next to the parish churches. This law is changed by decree of the Liberator Simón Bolívar, in the year 1827, forcing the dead to be buried in special lands destined for such purposes. Thus began the specialized cemeteries separated from the Churches and city centers. Following these rules, the General Cemetery of Maracaibo, or “Old Cemetery”, was created in 1821, on land located behind the San Juan de Dios church, on El Transito street, which was closed in 1880. Original cemeteries existed three cemeteries main ancient The Colonial Cemetery (Old Cemetery or General Cemetery of Maracaibo) was inaugurated in 1821, the Cemetery of the Germans (1824) and the Cemetery of Saint Lucia (1881). These cemeteries were looted for the theft of their marbles and other materials or eliminated to perform civil works in the year of 1942. The remains of the deceased that were left were transferred to The Square, where Columbaries of 2 and 3 floors were made to accommodate them, they transferred them to The Square simply because it was the closest cemetery to transport the dead.

The foreign resident colony in Maracaibo, founded in 1824 and closed in 1942, what was known as the cemetery of English, Foreigners or Cementerio de Los Alemanes, (The name “English” (ingleses) name was actually at that time the same as Foreigners a synonym that today is also used as Gringos) the deceased of that cemetery were mostly English and German Protestants, also Jews because they did not have their cemetery and the Protestants got along with the Jews in Maracaibo and other plases, there was no religious antipathy at that time between them, was a neighbor of the Colonial cemetery also on El Transit street, on the grounds of the current Panorama Newspaper (one of biggest in Venezuela). The cemetery of foreigners was also actually the main cement maker of all Protestant Christians in Maracaibo, not only Protestant Germans but Protestant Englishmen and many other different european nationalities and beliefs were buried there. For the simple reason that at that time there was some “misunderstanding” of these religions of the great majority of Venezuelans who were devout Catholics to the Christianity of the Roman Catholic Church. We cannot say that there was religious persecution in Venezuela, but if a certain antipathy based on misunderstanding or simply little culture of the population. Maracaibo is a unique city in South America, it was founded by Germans, Ambrosio Alfinger in 8 September 1528. That date is today considered and officially celebrated as the day of the foundation of the city. After the independence of Venezuela, trade between Europe and mainly North Germany, Great Britain, France to Venezuela increased, mainly influenced by the favorable support of Germany France and Britain to Venezuelan independence war, many Germans and British participated militarily as officers and soldiers in the war of independence of Venezuela. Product of this fact an infinity of these and others that were progressively reaching Venezuela, Maracaibo and the port of La Guaira.

Maracaibo was the largest city in Venezuela in the north and Venezuela's "continental" guide. The first deep port of South America at the Atlantic Ocean. Citizens of many European countries began arriving to Venezuela. as well as from the United States of America, being mostly practitioners of religions and cults different from the main Venezuelan religion the Roman Catholic Church. We have to understand that there were also many Masons among all these people - who joined each other without differentiating race or nationality religion. At that time there was a lot of rivalry and negativity from the Venezuelan Catholic clergy to other religions or branches of Christianity.

For example, In Guaira the English Consul Sir Robert Kerr Porter, and C.D. Strohm, M. Wolff, Otto Winckelmann, H. Stall, C.C. Nolting and R. Roosen Runge founded the Aliens Cemetery Society in La Guaira. Mr. Robert Syers sold them land between the Guanapa River and Punta de Mulato, and that was part of his stay in Guanapa.

For example, In Guaira port the English Consul Sir Robert Kerr Porter, and C.D. Strohm, M. Wolff, Otto Winckelmann, H. Stall, C.C. Nolting and R. Roosen Runge founded the Foreigners Cemetery Society in La Guaira. Mr. Robert Syers sold them land between the Guanapa River and Punta de Mulato, and that was part of his stay in Guanapa. This cemetery was used only for foreigners to avoid all this misunderstandings with the Main Catholic Church people and their cemeteries.

The Square (El Cuadrado), officially founded on November 12, 1879, because it was baptized that date, founded it was some years before, built by private shareholders like many of the cemeteries in Venezuela, and so it is today, known as The Square(El Cuadrado), for having the perfect shape of a fairly proportional quadrilateral 200 x 200 meters. Hermes Romero made its architectural design. Here is a certain format for discussion, because we know that on November 12, 1879 it was actually baptized as a cemetery and the foundation was several years before. At first the cemetery was simply called the New Cemetery, because it was the newest in the city at that time, the Marabinos actually named it The Square which was officially registered in 1925 by the Troconis family in the official name. The Square lost its shape, almost perfect square, at the time of the President Rafael Caldera during the reconstruction of Maracaibo of its tracks - in part on its land two apartment buildings were built. The foundation of El Cuadrado coincided with the attack of the yellow fever epidemic on Maracaibo. The Square for the year 1900, is the urban limit of the city of Maracaibo. Many are the works of sculptural and historical value, there lie many of the Zulian characters of Independence and prominent Zulians, from other times. Jesús Enrique losada, Ismael Urdaneta, Francisco Ochoa, Jesús María Portillo, the Belloso family, Rincón, Osorio, Cook, Arria, Von Jess, Dr. José Antonio Borjas Romero, Juice, José Ramón Yépez, Manuel Dagnino, Antonio José Urquinaona, Manuel Trujillo Durán, Guillermo Quintero Luzardo, Eduardo Mathyas Lossada, Julio Árraga, Udón Pérez, families, as some of the best known men and families in Venezuela and Latin America. In addition to El Cuadrado, another of the old cemeteries, now disappeared, was the cemetery of Santa Lucia, opened on January 30, 1881 and also closed in 1942. And it is not a new claim, the Panorama newspaper in its edition of January 7 In 2006, he published a report where the journalist Paúl Ramírez Mora said that 40 antisocials were living there and that more than 96,000 souls rested on 800 square meters in El Cuadrado. The Luxburg-Carolath Square cemetery is made up of four cemeteries, which are the colonial cemetery, the English cemetery, the Saint Lucia cemetery and The Square Luxburg-Carolath itself. Which makes it unique in Venezuela and Latin America.

The cemetery The Square Luxburg-Carolath when it was built had a perfect shape of 200 x 200 meters. It was built in a classic style (classicism) , due to the great influence of the European foreign colony in Maracaibo. But I migrate in their tomb styles. The cemetery is the most famous, oldest operational cemetery in Zulia and Venezuela, the most historical, not only because of its architecture, but also because the vast majority of the personalities that formed the splendor Maracaibo, Zulia and Venezuela that rest in peace there. Fine marble monuments brought from Italy each piece with spectacular details. Unique exquisite works composed of all known Architectural styles. The terrible “Spanish flu” or “el trancazo”, which in 1918 ended, according to data from the time with 800-1000 maracaiberos (citizens of Maracaibo), which represented in a population of about 36,000 souls, a mortality rate, from the flu, near 3%, similar to the world death rate. This was that of every 100 marabinos 50 were sick and about 3 died from the flu. It is understood because it prevented the procession of the Virgen de la Chiquinquirá from leaving the old Saladillo neighborhood miraculously. "Many souls received The Square in that epidemic." Actually, El Cuadrado is not just a historical treasure of Zulia or Maracaibo because of its architecture, it is mainly the only historical cemetery that houses 3 cemeteries in it and all possible major world religions. Catholics, Jews, Protestants and who knows who else. It is something unique in Venezuela.

The cemetery has about 1000 thombs wich hold 10,364 dead people among whose graves, niches and pantheons have been buried in Zulian illustrious as the hero of independence Antonio Pulgar; the immortal rector of University of Zulia, Jesús Enrique Lossada; the poet Udón Pérez; the doctor and scientist Humberto Fernández Morán; the precursor of the national cinema Manuel Trujillo Durán; the artist Julio Árraga; Dr. Jesús María Portillo; the creator of the university city, Antonio Borjas Romero; the magnate of the missing Bella Vista Castle, Lucas Evangelista Rincón; Don Manuel Belloso, founder of Cobeca and the "saint" Fray Junipero, whose body is said to remain intact in his coffin and becomes incredibly heavy if they try to move it. Isaiah chapter 14, verse 19 states: "But you have been cast out of your sepulcher as a rejected rod." Today in the cemeteries, no grave enjoys privacy; the holy rest is interrupted amorally. Nowadays many times life is not respected and less death.

Description[edit]

Jose Ferrer, counts that they have desecrated the great majority of the graves. “There is a depraved crime. There is no moral, there is no respect for the deceased, for values, ”he lamented. The buried body of a person takes 8 years to exhume and transfer the remains to the ossuary and the criminals opt for those that are more than 100 years old, that is, from 1920 onwards. Most are shattered. “The graves have very large marble vases, and they grab it to break the ossuaries. Mr Ferrer estimated that of the 10 thousand three hundred people buried in El Cuadrado, and about 15 thousand dead in a unique separate vault called “El Carnero” which is 50 meter deep, of which 40-50% are already abandoned, since “they have been lost because they are very old, or because relatives left them abandoned "

José Ferrer, current worker of the El Cuadrado cemetery, his family has a long history related to the cemetery since the first worker Heriberto Hernández for 45 years of service. He was the grandfather's father-in-law, José Antonio Ferrer, of Mr. José Ferrer. Then came the grandfather who was 72 years in total. When the grandfather dies, Pope Nilo Enrique Ferrer Hernández comes with 52 years of service, who died in 2011 and since that year Mr. Jose Ferrer is the queeping with the tradition.

José Ferrer supervised and organized all the works in the cemetery by the Foundation Luxburg-Carolath to the cemetery. He was, with all his coworkers, the most important human factor in the entire organization since day one of all works. He and the history of his family related to all the time that the cemetery exists since its foundation is a separate story of Marabinos dedicated to their work of a family dynasty.

Several tombs in the square have bars on top built by relatives who thought that would save them from thief and tomb raiders. They didn't help much. The bars were forced the desecrated tombs - the undergrowth emptied and they went into oblivion until the general cleaning. A common Venezuelan construction in our cemeteries that in our opinion have very few analogues in the world. By restoring cemeteries and putting all souls to rest in peace, we have in our opinion to leave as a memory to the time of tomb raiders and complete desolation. It didn't work, all the graves were perpetrated and stolen without any difference. Many activists and hired people worked during this work that seems simple at first but it was difficult task because it is not a simple work yard it is a cemetery.

Characteristic of The Square Luxburg-Carolath Cemetery[edit]

In Maracaibo, the Colonial Cemetery (Old Cemetery or General Cemetery of Maracaibo) was opened in 1829, the Cemetery of the Germans opened 1834 and the Cemetery of Saint Lucia opened 1881. These cemeteries were sawn to perform civil works in the city in the year of 1942. The remains of the deceased who were left were transferred to the El Cuadrado cemetery simply because they were the closest to them. Columbariums were built in El Cuadrado to accommodate the deceased of the cemeteries. That is why the square cemetery is unique in Venezuela, it houses 3 other cemeteries since 1829, forming only one on 4, there are four cemeteries together in one. Like the city of Maracaibo. It is also called Athens of Latin America, the city of the 3 foundations. It is the most famous and ancient in Maracaibo and Zulia. The Columbarians today are in a total state of looting, deterioration and perpetration. The reconstruction project of the cemetery carries the historical inclusion of the 3 cemeteries and their families.

Mixed Unique Architecture[edit]

The Square (El Cuadrado) is considered as an outstanding work of Funeral and Religious Art. The one that shows how Maracaibo el Zulia and Venezuela lived and developed. It is common to say that countries/governments and their level of civilization are judged by how they treat their deceased and their jailed citizens. The development of cemeteries the style of their graves are a unique contribution to the entity of any community in the world. It has almost all styles of architecture made such as: Neoclassical, Classic, Naco (vulgar), Humble, Eclecticism, Gothic, Contemporary, Art Deco, Art Nuveau, with endless variations of their own given by family members. One of the few examples of different styles of architecture: Art Nueveau is represented Fernandez Moran, Coronell Francisco Aguirre. Pantheon Electico family Quintero designed by Hermes Romero (the same architect that designed The Square) Tomb of the Lossada family inspired by the temple of classical antiquity and others that will be described separately. All known styles in one way or another are presented in the cemetery.

Owner and Administration[edit]

The Grafen von Luxburg Family Foundation, Fürsten zu Carolath-Beuthen und Prinzen von Schoenaich-Carolath is a civil, charitable and non-profit foundation founded on June 14, 1940 by Karl von Luxburg ; She is the owner and administrator of the Cemetery Luxburg-Carolath Square since August 2019.

Karl Ludwig Graf von Luxburg, Fürst zu Carolath-Beuthen und Prinz von Schoenaich-Carolath, Minister and Ambassador of the German Empire during World War I.

KarlLudwig Graf von Luxburg, Fürst zu Carolath-Beuthen und Prinz von Schoenaich-CarolathThe Foundation was established by Karl Luxburg Carolath, One of the first board of directors was chaired by Walli Paula Luise countess of Luxburg a Venezuelan German citizen, known as “El Ángel de Trujillo” for her cultural charities at the Red Cross, the first woman to lead a charitable and cultural foundation in Latin America. ^[1], Currently the president of the Foundation is Friedrich Ulrich Count Luxburg-Carolath.

The Luxburg-Carolath Foundation has its main office: Carabobo Street, Quinta Luxburg-Carolath in the city of Maracaibo, Also offices in Switzerland, Germany and Poland.

Decorations for his career[edit]

Rafael Maria Baralt First Class Gold Band - Awarded by the Legislative Council of the State of Zulia, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. (highest recognition, medal of Zulia State)
Casique Nigale in only class (Gold Band) - Awarded by the City Hall of the City of Maracaibo, Zulia State, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Most important recognition, Medal of the city of Maracaibo.

National, Regional and Municipal Historical and Cultural Heritage[edit]

The Square Luxburg- Carolath, is a unique cultural place in Venezuela, because of the importanse for all Venezuela and Latin America, of genealogical roots of the people that are buried there, it has Unique Government protection status among Cemeteries, is inserted in the law of protection and defense of the historical cultural heritage of Venezuela (Official Gazette of Venezuela No. 4,623) dated September 3, 1993. The Central Commission of the System of Protection and Defense of the Cultural Heritage of the Zulia State and Maracaibo Municipality, in use of the attribution conferred by Decree 94 dated July 2003, unanimously approved on date four (04) August 2005, the proposal of Declaration of Cultural Historical Heritage of the Zulla State of “CEMETERY THE SQUARE,” as well as the elaboration of a Management Plan or Management Proposal and the implementation of a Safety Plan to face the desecration of graves and the illicit traffic of works Sculptural in the Cemetery. That the "CEMETERY THE SQUARE" of Maracaibo, has been recognized by the Institute of Cultural Heritage and declared historical and cultural heritage of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela according to Administrative Providence No. 012/05 dated June 30, 2005; In 2007 decree From the Governor of the State of Zulia No. 630 April 4, 2007. Historical Cultural Heritage of the State of Zulia. The Fundacion Luxburg-Carolath has applied to enchase this status for even more high protection and recognition by the government and international organizations such as UNESCO world heritage status.

Reconstruction Project[edit]

The Luxburg-Carolath Foundation received the square in the form of a Donation in August 2019. In which the former owner insisted on adding the historical surnames of the German Venezuelan Switzerland dynasty Luxburg-Carolath to the name El Cuadrado, leaving the final name as Cemetery ' “The Square of the Grafen von Luxburg Fursten zu Carolath-Beuthen und Prinzen von Schoenaich-Carolath Family” Short “The Square Luxburg-Carolath” The state of the cemetery is of total deterioration and destruction. Perpetration of 95% of the graves. All columbarium destroyed and looted. The Luxburg-Carolath Foundation has already carried out the cleaning of the cemetery and began to prepare a plan for the recovery and reconstruction of the Cemetery together with the Governorate of Zulia and the Mayor's Office of Maracaibo. Because it is National, State and Municipal Heritage all works must be approved by the State. The reconstruction project ideology is mainly of preserving the cemetery for future generations, constructing a Church Inside the cemetery to return to historical heritage of having a cemetery build around a church. The Church will be called Leopold IX (Leo IX) for the recognition of Saint Pope Leo IX of the catholic roman Church – who was a German and of German Nobility. Reconstruction and Construction of new Columbarium, Security, entrance building, Contention walls, etc The Foundation will contract external companies and experts on cemetery administration and construction. To fully preserve old graves and the history of the cemetery. The stiles of architecture must flow and transport history to the 19th century when El Cuadrado was build first. This will be for the first time done in Venezuela cemetery – till today there was none architectural design done and Venezuelan cemeteries developed their own way of life and death.

Scoats of Arms Project[edit]

The Coats of Arms of the Luxburg-Carolath Family are the two official coats of arms of the cemetery since August 2019. A heraldic shield of the cemetery is being prepared which will have elements from Venezuela, the State of Zulia and others. The 3 cemeteries which are inside of El Cuadrado has been included in the coats of arms also the eagle wich is represented in the house of the Governor of Zulia. Here you can see the model of future Coats of Arms wich is being developed by heraldic specialists. Together with a specialized web page for interaction with almost 1000 families that have their relatives buried in their plots. The new slogan of the cemetery is in Spanish “Nuestros muertos viven” in English “Our Decedents Live” in Latin ‘Vivamus Nostris Mortuus Est”

Some of the personalities buried in The Square Luxburg-Carolath[edit]

References[edit]

^ Nagel von Jess, kurt (July 15, 2009). "Nuestra Primera Activista". Iconos Zulianos.

External links[edit]

Maracaibo travel guide from Wikivoyage

Category:National cemeteries Category:List of national cemeteries Category:Patrinomial Cemeteries of Venezuela Category:Maracaibo Cemeteries Category:Maracaibo| Category:Populated places established in 1529 Category:Populated places in Venezuela Category:1529 establishments in the Spanish Empire

[1] Nagel von Jess, kurt (July 15, 2009). "Nuestra Primera Activista". Iconos Zulianos.

[1]