Canadian Virtual War Memorial

The Ravenna War Cemetery lies on a communal road 1 kilometre south of the SS16 from Ravenna to Ferrara near the village of Piangipane in the Commune and Province of Ravenna. The turning from the main road is at the 143 kilometres stone, 12 kilometres west of Ravenna. The turning is marked with a Commonwealth War Graves sign pointing in the direction of the cemetery, and a road sign marked 'Piangipane 4 kilometres'. Continue along the minor road until a further Commonwealth War Graves sign is seen. The entrance to the cemetery is located on the left hand side of the road.

The site for the cemetery was selected by the Army in 1945 for burials from the surrounding battlefields. Ravenna was taken by the Canadian Corps at the beginning of December 1944, and the burials in the cemetery there reflect the fighting for the Senio line and the period of relative quiet during the first three months of 1945. Many of the men buried there were Canadians; one of the last tasks of the Canadian Corps before being moved to north-west Europe was the clearing of the area between Ravenna and the Comacchio lagoon. Others are Indians from the 10th Indian Division, and New Zealanders. The Cemetery also contains the graves of 30, 1914-18 War casualties concentrated in March 1974 from Gradisca Communal Cemetery , Italy and 3 other burials concentrated from other minor cemeteries in Italy. There are now over 30 graves of the First World War and 956 graves plus one Special Memorial of the Second World War.