Deedesveld Cemetary

Deedesveld Cemetary

Situated on the southernmost point of Zanderveldt Island in Kruiersmuur looking southward across the Doodkanaal to Heiligdom and the Vloedmuur and eastward towards the keep of Rompvanger Redoute and the Reik Towers, Deedesveld is a small burial ground dating back about seven centuries or so.

The site was originally occupied by a small fishing hamlet connected by cliff-steps to the Doodkanaal below, which was then a main avenue for ships. As Marienburg grew over the
centuries the area turned into the notorious Breedmoers slums, which became such a stronghold of lawlessness that the area was eventually cleared by the military in 1796 and demolished.

The site was acquired by the Cult of Morr and dedicated burial ground in 1798. From its earliest days as a graveyard, Deedesveld became the preferred place of final rest for the seamen of Suiddock, which has no graveyard of its own.

In a city like Marienburg where land is at a premium, few can afford the cost of a burial plot. The middle classes often pay for the “basic” interment, which involves placing the corpse in a sack or cheap coffin, filling it with quicklime, and then placing more quicklime atop the sack once it is placed in the grave. This way, the grave is soon ready for a new occupant. Markers tend to be temporary, replaced when someone else needs the space.

Wealthier Marienburgers or those who have performed some great service for the city can get a permanent plot with a formal headstone. Deedesveld has accumulated many of these over the centuries, and such burials have become very rare in recent times.