If you take a walk through Broager Churchyard, you will notice that some of the inscriptions on the gravestones are in German. This is connected to the fact that the area was German from 1864 to 1920. When Danish troops retreated from the Dannevirke in February 1864 and took up positions at the Dybbøl entrenchments, they were closely pursued by Prussian and Austrian forces.
The Prussians occupied Broagerland and converted the present rectory (which at that time was a newly built school) into a field hospital, together with a nearby older school building. They also prepared the church interior to receive the wounded ahead of the major engagements, especially the assault on the Dybbøl entrenchments on 18 April. The bell tower was used as an operating theatre throughout this period.
The war graves in the churchyard contain a total of about 300 soldiers from the 1864 war, including 73 Danes. They are buried in mass graves, shared graves, and individual graves. Here stands the memorial stone for the Danish soldiers and the iron crosses marking the Prussian officers and soldiers. There is also a memorial stone for the Prussian pioneer Karl Klinke, who, after the assault on the Dybbøl entrenchments, was declared a war hero.
In addition, immediately north of the church there are two graves from the First Schleswig War (1848–1851).
