Rhine River
Rhine River
Contents
Introduction……………………………………………………………………….…...…3
Rhine’s history………………………………………………………………………..….3
Rhine’s sections……………………………………………………………………….....3
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….4
Introduction
Rhine River flows from two small headways in the Switzerland Alps and passes northward between the border of France and Germany, then continues entirely in Germany and after than through the Netherlands until it flows into the North Sea. The Rhine River is the twelfth longest river in Europe with around 1230 km length. The Rhine is one of the most important arteries and key waterways of industrial transport in West Europe. It is also culturally and historically one of the outstanding rivers of the continent since the Roman Empire. Many castles and fortresses along the river testify to its importance as a waterway. Most of them are rather small, and a lot of them are in ruins, but there is a great variation of them. Furthermore there is no other river in Europe that has so many old and well-known cities on its banks like Basel, Switz.; Strasbourg, France; Worms, Mainz, and Cologne, Germany; and Nijmegen, Arnhem and Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Rhine’s history
Until the 19th century, just before the industrial revolution, the goods transported were of high value but relatively small in volume, but after the great industrial development at the beginning of the century, the importance of the river has increased significantly as the volume of goods carried on the river has raised greatly. The Rhine River helped to keep the price of raw materials and goods low as the water transport was cheap. This was one of the main factors that the river became a vital for the industrial production. Many manufactories were built along the river and they produced one-fifth of the world’s chemical industries. Those massive industrial investments next to the river caused some ecological problems. Pollution level has increased and even now it is still a
Contents
Introduction……………………………………………………………………….…...…3
Rhine’s history………………………………………………………………………..….3
Rhine’s sections……………………………………………………………………….....3
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….4
Introduction
Rhine River flows from two small headways in the Switzerland Alps and passes northward between the border of France and Germany, then continues entirely in Germany and after than through the Netherlands until it flows into the North Sea. The Rhine River is the twelfth longest river in Europe with around 1230 km length. The Rhine is one of the most important arteries and key waterways of industrial transport in West Europe. It is also culturally and historically one of the outstanding rivers of the continent since the Roman Empire. Many castles and fortresses along the river testify to its importance as a waterway. Most of them are rather small, and a lot of them are in ruins, but there is a great variation of them. Furthermore there is no other river in Europe that has so many old and well-known cities on its banks like Basel, Switz.; Strasbourg, France; Worms, Mainz, and Cologne, Germany; and Nijmegen, Arnhem and Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Rhine’s history
Until the 19th century, just before the industrial revolution, the goods transported were of high value but relatively small in volume, but after the great industrial development at the beginning of the century, the importance of the river has increased significantly as the volume of goods carried on the river has raised greatly. The Rhine River helped to keep the price of raw materials and goods low as the water transport was cheap. This was one of the main factors that the river became a vital for the industrial production. Many manufactories were built along the river and they produced one-fifth of the world’s chemical industries. Those massive industrial investments next to the river caused some ecological problems. Pollution level has increased and even now it is still a
References: Encyclopedia Britannica – http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/501316/Rhine-River Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhine Amsterdam University Press 2008, “The Netherlands in a Nutshell”, ISBN 978-90-8964-039-0. R.M. Frings, (1979), “From gravel to sand”, Utrecht : Faculteit Geowetenschappen Universiteit Utrecht, ISSN 0169-4839 ; 368 Number of words: 833