Ruhr (river)

Last updated
Ruhr
River-ruhr-essen-kettwig.jpeg
The Ruhr in Essen-Kettwig
Location
Country Germany
State North Rhine-Westphalia
Physical characteristics
Source 
  location Kahler Asten
  elevation870 m (2,850 ft)
Mouth  
  location
Rhine
  coordinates
51°27′3″N6°43′22″E / 51.45083°N 6.72278°E / 51.45083; 6.72278 Coordinates: 51°27′3″N6°43′22″E / 51.45083°N 6.72278°E / 51.45083; 6.72278
Length219.2 km (136.2 mi) [1]
Basin size4,485 km2 (1,732 sq mi) [1]
Discharge 
  average79 m3/s (2,800 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Progression RhineNorth Sea
Tributaries 
  left Lenne, Volme
  right Möhne

The Ruhr is a river in western Germany (North Rhine-Westphalia), a right tributary (east-side) of the Rhine.

Contents

Description and history

The Ruhr valley near Bochum during a flood Ruhr-flut.JPG
The Ruhr valley near Bochum during a flood

The source of the Ruhr is near the town of Winterberg in the mountainous Sauerland region, at an elevation of approximately 670 metres (2,200 ft). It flows into the lower Rhine at an elevation of only 17 metres (56 ft) in the municipal area of Duisburg. Its total length is 219 km (136 mi), its average discharge is 79 cubic metres per second (2,800 cu ft/s) at Mülheim near its mouth. Thus, its discharge is, for example, comparable to that of the river Ems in Northern Germany or the River Thames in the United Kingdom.

The Ruhr first passes the towns of Meschede, Arnsberg, Wickede, Fröndenberg, Holzwickede, Iserlohn, and Schwerte. Then the river marks the southern limit of the Ruhr area, passing Hagen, Dortmund, Herdecke, Wetter, Witten, Bochum, Hattingen, Essen, Mülheim, and Duisburg.

The Ruhr area was Germany's primary industrial area during the early- to mid-20th century. Most factories were located there. The occupation of the Ruhr from 1923-24 by French forces, due to the Weimar Republic's failure to continue paying reparations from World War I, provoked passive resistance, which saw production in the factories grind to a halt. As a result, the German hyperinflation crisis grew even worse.

During World War II, two of the dams on the Ruhr, the Möhne Dam and the Sorpe Dam were targets for Operation Chastise, in which special "bouncing bombs" were developed to take out the dams and flood the valley, with the hope of seriously affecting the German industries there. The story was told in a 1951 book and the popular 1955 film made from it, The Dam Busters .

The drainage basin of the Ruhr Verlaufskarte Ruhr2.png
The drainage basin of the Ruhr

Lakes

There are five Ruhr reservoirs on the river, often used for leisure activities.

Tributaries

The main tributaries of the Ruhr are (from source to mouth):

See also

Related Research Articles

Ruhr Place in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

The Ruhr, also referred to as Ruhr area, Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km2 and a population of over 5 million (2017), it is the largest urban area in Germany. It consists of several large cities bordered by the rivers Ruhr to the south, Rhine to the west, and Lippe to the north. In the southwest it borders the Bergisches Land. It is considered part of the larger Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region of more than 10 million people, which is among the largest in Europe.

Herdecke Town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Herdecke is a town in the district of Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. It is located south of Dortmund in the Ruhr Area. Its location between the two Ruhr reservoirs Hengsteysee and Harkortsee has earned it the nickname Die Stadt zwischen den Ruhrseen.

Wetter (Ruhr) Town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Wetter (Ruhr) is a town in western Germany, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the district of Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis. The river Ruhr flows through the urban area, separating the district of Alt-Wetter from the districts of Esborn, Volmarstein and Wengern. The cities of Dortmund and Bochum are within 20 minutes by road or rail.

Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr Transit district in the Rhein-Ruhr area, Germany

The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr, abbreviated VRR, is a public transport association (Verkehrsverbund) in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It covers most of the Ruhr area, as well as neighbouring parts of the Lower Rhine region, including Düsseldorf and thus large parts of the Rhine-Ruhr conurbation. It was founded on 1 January 1980, and is Europe’s largest body of such kind, covering an area of some 5,000 km2 (1,900 sq mi) with more than 7.8 million inhabitants, spanning as far as Dorsten in the north, Dortmund in the east, Langenfeld in the south, and Mönchengladbach and the Dutch border in the west.

Bergisch-Markisch Railway Company

The Bergisch-Markisch Railway Company, also referred to as the Berg-Mark Railway Company or, more rarely, as the Bergisch-Markische Railway Company, was a German railway company that together with the Cologne-Minden Railway and the Rhenish Railway Company was one of the three (nominally) private railway companies that in the mid-19th century built the first railways in the Ruhr and large parts of today's North Rhine-Westphalia. Its name refers to Bergisches Land and the County of Mark.

S9 (Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn)

Line S 9 is an S-Bahn line on the Rhine-Ruhr network, operated by Abellio Rail NRW. It runs from Recklinghausen Hbf / Haltern am See in the north through Gladbeck West - Essen Hbf to Hagen (Westphalia) Main Station in the south. During the day two services per hour run between Wuppertal and Gladbeck West, one service per hour between Gladbeck and Recklinghausen Hbf and Gladbeck and Haltern am See and one service per hour between Wuppertal and Hagen, using FLIRT 3XL electric multiple units.

Arnsberg Forest Nature Park

The Arnsberg Forest Nature Park is a nature park in the districts of Hochsauerlandkreis and Soest within the administrictive region of Arnsberg in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The park was established in 1960 and covers an area of 482 km². Nearly 350 km² of the protection is forested and the park's wooded hills rise up to 581.5 m above sea level (NN).

Witten/Dortmund–Oberhausen/Duisburg railway

The Witten/Dortmund, Oberhausen/Duisburg railway is one of the most important railways in Germany. It is the main axis of long distance and regional rail transport on the east–west axis of the Ruhr and is served by Intercity-Express, InterCity, Regional-Express, Regionalbahn and S-Bahn trains.

History of the Ruhr Aspect of history

The actual boundaries of the Ruhr vary slightly depending on the source, but a good working definition is to define the Lippe and Ruhr as its northern and southern boundaries respectively, the Rhine as its western boundary, and the town of Hamm as the eastern limit.

Ruhr Valley Railway Railway line running from Düsseldorf-Rath to Warburg

The Ruhr Valley Railway is a partly abandoned railway line in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, running from Düsseldorf-Rath via Old Kupferdreh station, Bochum-Dahlhausen, Witten-Herbede, Hagen-Vorhalle and Schwerte to Warburg. It was built between 1872 and 1876 by the Bergisch-Märkische Railway Company, one of the three major private railway companies in the Ruhr area. The railway tracks that were built along the Ruhr river had a relatively uniform grade that was suitable for railway operations at the time.

North Rhine-Westphalia is home to 14 universities and over 50 partly postgraduate colleges, with a total of over 500,000 students. Largest and oldest university is the University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln), founded in 1388 AD.

Essen West station Railway station in Essen, Germany

Essen West station is situated in Essen on the Witten/Dortmund–Oberhausen/Duisburg railway in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is served by lines S1, S3 and S9 of the Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn.

The Düsseldorf-Derendorf–Dortmund Süd railway is a partially closed line in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia from Düsseldorf-Derendorf station to Dortmund South station. Parts of it are still busy, including two sections used for the Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn.

Mülheim-Styrum station

Mülheim-Styrum station is located in the district of Styrum in the German city of Mülheim in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is on the Witten/Dortmund–Oberhausen/Duisburg line and is classified by Deutsche Bahn as a category 3 station.

Essen-Steele Ost station Railway station in Essen, Germany

Essen-Steele Ost station is located in the district of Essen-Steele in the German city of Essen in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is on the Witten/Dortmund–Oberhausen/Duisburg line and is classified by Deutsche Bahn as a category 4 station. It is served by Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn lines S 1 and S 3.

Wattenscheid-Höntrop station

Wattenscheid-Höntrop station is a railway station in the district of Wattenscheid of the city of Bochum in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is on the 97 km-long (60 mi) route of Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn line S 1 from Dortmund to Solingen. Wattenscheid station, which is more than a kilometre to the northwest is only served by regional trains.

Osterath–Dortmund Süd railway

The Osterath–Dortmund-Süd railway is a historically significant line in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Parts of it are closed, much of it is now used for freight only, but several sections are still used for Regional-Express, Regionalbahn or Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn services.

Essen-Eiberg station Railway station in Essen, Germany

Essen-Eiberg station is a station in the district of Eiberg of the city of Essen in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is on the Witten/Dortmund–Oberhausen/Duisburg railway.

Rhine-Ruhr Stadtbahn

The Rhine-Ruhr Stadtbahn is an umbrella system of all of the Stadtbahn lines included in the integrated public transport network of the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr (VRR), which covers the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan area in western Germany. It does not include the Cologne and Bonn Stadtbahn systems, which are integrated in the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg (VRS).

The Bochum–Essen/Oberhausen railway was built by the Bergisch-Märkische Railway Company to the north of its main line through the central Ruhr to tap traffic from mines and factories in the northern Ruhr region, which is now in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

References

Notes

Sources