Main
For other uses, see Main (disambiguation).For the Wikipedia main page, see Main Page. |
Map showing the position of the Main in Germany |
The
Main (pronounced in
German like the
English word
mine) is a river in
Germany, 524 km long (including White Main 574 km), and one of the more significant tributaries of the
Rhine river. It flows through the
German states of
Bavaria,
Baden-Württemberg (forming the border to Bavaria for some miles) and
Hessen. Its catchment basin competes with the
Danube for water; as a result, much of its boundaries are identical with those of the
European Watershed.
The Main is formed near
Kulmbach by the joining of its two headstreams, the
Red Main and the
White Main. The former rises from the
Frankish Alb, 50 km in length, and runs through
Creussen and
Bayreuth. The latter's source is located in the mountains of the
Fichtelgebirge; it is 41 km long. Major tributaries of the Main are the
Regnitz, the
Fränkische Saale, the
Tauber, and the
Nidda River.
The largest city along the Main is
Frankfurt am Main (ford of the Franks). After the junction of its headstreams, the Main passes the following towns and cities:
Burgkunstadt,
Lichtenfels,
Staffelstein,
Schweinfurt,
Volkach,
Kitzingen,
Marktbreit,
Ochsenfurt,
Würzburg,
Karlstadt,
Gemünden,
Lohr,
Marktheidenfeld,
Wertheim am Main,
Miltenberg,
Obernburg,
Aschaffenburg,
Seligenstadt,
Hanau,
Offenbach,
Frankfurt,
Hattersheim,
Flörsheim,
Rüsselsheim. By the time it flows into the
Rhine opposite
Mainz, it is a formidable river.
|
Shipping on the Main, Frankfurt |
Extensive works have made the Main navigable for river shipping from its mouth at the Rhine, via the
Rhine-Main-Danube Canal and the highly regulated
Altmühl river, all the way to the
Danube. The river has been canalized with 34 large locks (300 m x 12 m) to allow vessels of so-called CEMT class V (110 m x 11.45 m) to navigate the total length of the river. The 16 locks in the adjacent Rhine-Main-Danube Canal are of the same dimensions, as are the locks on the Danube.
The river's mouth is 384 kilometers away from the junction with the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal. The winding course is the main reason for this considerable length; if the river was straight, it would be probably less than half its current length. Because the river is rather narrow for much of the upstream stretches, navigation with the larger vessels and push convoys that navigate it, requires great skills.
The river has gained enormous importance as a vital part of European "
Corridor VII", the inland waterway link from the North Sea to the Black Sea [
1].
*
NoorderSoft Waterways Database
