Rudolf Hess's Grave Destroyed



The gravestone as it was

The grave containing the remains of Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess has been destroyed to end it being used as a pilgrimage site.

Hess's bones were exhumed at dawn on July 21 at the graveyard in the Bavarian town of Wunsiedel.

The administrator of the graveyard, Andreas Fabel, said the remains were cremated and the ashes will be scattered at sea.

Because of NS supporters paying homage, including performing Hitler salutes in the churchyard, the Lutheran church's council refused a request by Hess's descendants to extend a lease on the plot.

Hess was captured in 1941 after he flew to England and jailed for life at the Nuremberg trials in 1946.

He was found hanged in his cell in Berlin's Spandau Prison in 1987 at the age of 93.

The vacant place of the memorial stone