We have reached the end of our walk through the cemetery at Obotritenring. A large part of the biographies and reflections compiled here were written before the so-called turnaround in 1989, at a time when there was serious consideration given to transforming the cemetery into a folk culture park. Sporadic publications in newspapers at that time attempted to resist this senseless project. In Schwerin, especially, there were examples, such as the Old Cemetery of the Jewish Community and the old cathedral cemetery at Lobedanzgang, which demonstrated what happens when ideological ignorance questions the existence of cemeteries.

Fortunately, the Old Cemetery of the Jewish Community of Schwerin near Heidensee has now been restored to an appropriately dignified state after the senseless destruction of 1938, although it must be noted that irretrievable cultural heritage was also lost here. This observation applies particularly to the former cemetery of the cathedral community on Reiferbahn, where the cemetery grounds and the immediately adjacent property of the former municipal lyceum were used by units of the Soviet army after the end of World War II. The senseless destruction, especially of the cemetery area, cannot be undone. The bleak sight that this area presents to today's observer contrasts horribly with the almost idyllic image it presented to visitors before the war. Reference has already been made to the other cemeteries in the city of Schwerin. The Old Cemetery of the Schelf Community on Werderstraße was consecrated in 1778. This cemetery has now been converted into a small park, but there are still some tombstones there, including the gravestone for the pastor of the Nikolaigemeinde, Heinrich Alexander Seidel, the father of the poet Heinrich Seidel. The community cemetery of the Catholic community on Wismarsche Straße was consecrated in 1861. There, a memorial stone commemorates the French prisoners of war who died in Schwerin in 1870/71. Reference has already been made to the small on-site cemetery on the grounds of the psychiatric hospital in connection with the appreciation of the life's work of Rudolf Tarnow, Karl Hill, and Carl Friedrich Flemming.

The memories and interpretations presented in this publication do not claim to be exhaustive. They aim, from a very personal perspective, to draw attention to the fact that there are graves of significant scholars, poets, painters, artists, and politicians in Schwerin that have largely remained unknown. As the foreword to this booklet indicates, there was consideration given to closing the cemetery at Obotritenring in the foreseeable future during the development of the Schwerin Waldfriedhof in Krebsförden. However, the foreword also indicates that, in addition to many other parallel initiatives, the efforts of the author of this booklet have not fallen on deaf ears, and it can be expected that the cemetery at Obotritenring will be preserved. With appropriate care, the cemetery at Obotritenring could quickly develop into an ecological and cultural-historical monument, and would not need to shy away from comparison with cemeteries known nationally in Hamburg, Weimar, or Berlin. Above all, the death of being forgotten would be spared to all those whose graves we lingered at during our tour.