The Alzette (; ; ) is a

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

with a length of in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

. It is a right tributary of the Sauer (a tributary to the

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

), and ultimately to the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

. It rises in Thil near the town Villerupt in the

Meurthe-et-Moselle Meurthe-et-Moselle () is a '' département'' in the Grand Est region of France, named after the rivers Meurthe and Moselle. Its prefecture and largest city is Nancy and it borders the departments of Meuse to the west, Vosges to the south, ...

'' département'', France. It crosses the border with Luxembourg after . At Lameschmillen (near Bergem) it is joined by the Mess. It flows through the Luxembourgish towns Esch-sur-Alzette,

Luxembourg City Luxembourg (; ; ), also known as Luxembourg City ( or ; ; or ), is the capital city of Luxembourg and the Communes of Luxembourg, country's most populous commune. Standing at the confluence of the Alzette and Pétrusse rivers in southern Luxe ...

and Mersch, and empties into the Sauer near Ettelbruck. The rocky cliffs above the Alzette in

are called ' Bock'. This name was given to the Casemates du Bock; a honeycomb of tunnels which runs under the ruins of the

Fortress of Luxembourg The Fortress of Luxembourg (Luxembourgish: ''Festung Lëtzebuerg''; French: ''Forteresse de Luxembourg''; German: ''Festung Luxemburg'') is the former fortifications of Luxembourg City, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, which were ...

. The fortress protected the city of Luxembourg for centuries until it began to be dismantled in 1867.

References

International rivers of Europe Rivers of the Ardennes (Luxembourg) Rivers of Luxembourg Rivers of France Rivers of Grand Est Rivers of Meurthe-et-Moselle Rivers of Ettelbruck Rivers of Luxembourg City Rivers of Mersch Esch-sur-Alzette {{Luxembourg-river-stub