The Bode () 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 ...

in the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

state of

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

, a left tributary of the

Saale The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale ( ) and Thuringian Saale (), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Fränkische Saale, Franconian Saale, a right-bank tributary of the M ...

. It rises in the

Harz mountains The Harz (), also called the Harz Mountains, is a Mittelgebirge, highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The nam ...

and drains them in a northerly direction. After it discharges into the Saale at Nienburg. The river is named after a legendary giant, the wild, rampaging, Bohemian, ''Prince Bodo'', who, according to the '' Rosstrappe'' legend, changed into a marauding dog that guarded the

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

of ''Princess Brunhilde'' in the ''Kronensumpf'' ("crown marsh") in the present-day Bode Gorge (). The gorge is the narrow section of the Bode valley between Treseburg and

Thale Thale () is a town in the Harz (district), Harz district in Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany. Located at the steep northeastern rim of the Harz mountain range, it is known for the scenic Bode Gorge stretching above the town centre. Geography The ...

The ''Bodo'' legend

According to tradition, there was once a giant called ''Bodo'' who came from

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

, in modern-day central Germany, to pursue ''Brunhilde'', the king's beautiful daughter, whom he wanted to marry against her will. ''Brunhilde'' fled on a white stallion (''Ross''), but they suddenly came to a deep ravine. With one bold leap she reached the rocks on the far side, but her pursuer fell into the abyss. The hoofprint of her horse can still be seen today as the so-called '' Rosstrappe''. Meanwhile, ''Bodo'' was turned into a dog. As her horse leapt the gorge, however, the princess lost her golden crown, which was now guarded by the dog ''Bodo'' in the valley of the river. The river was given the name ''Bode'' after the giant ''Bodo'' who was now under a spell.

Geography

Source and catchment areas

The Bode is heavily divided in its source region on the

Brocken The Brocken, also sometimes referred to as the Blocksberg, is a mountain near Schierke in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, between the rivers Weser River, Weser and Elbe. The highest peak in the Harz mountain range, and in Northern Germany, ...

, the highest peak in the Harz, but its two most important source streams are the: *

Kalte Bode The Kalte Bode is the left-hand headstream of the Bode in the High Harz Mountains in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is long. Name The names of the Warme and Kalte Bode ("Warm" and "Cold" Bode) come from their actual temperature differenc ...

, , which rises at ''Bodesprung'' in *

Warme Bode The Warme Bode is the right-hand headstream of the Bode (river), Bode in the High Harz mountains of central Germany in the states of Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt. It is long and is formed by the confluence of the Große Bode and Kleine Bode riv ...

, long, with its

headstream The headwater of a river or stream is the geographical point of its beginning, specifically where surface runoff water begins to accumulate into a flowing channel of water. A river or stream into which one or many tributary rivers or streams flo ...

, the ''Bodebruch'' The two rivers, which actually have a temperature difference of 2 °C, merge not far from the Königsburg Ruins immediately before flowing into the Königshütte Dam (a feeder dam or ''Überleitungssperre''). Other tributaries of the Bode include the Rappbode and the Luppbode. The Rappbode is impounded near

Wendefurth Wendefurth is a hamlet in central Germany that, since 1 July 2009, has been part of the borough of Thale district of Landkreis Harz, Harz. Previously it belonged to the municipality of Altenbrak which was incorporated into Thale. Geographical loc ...

by the Rappbode Dam. At the northern end of this reservoir, the Rappbode joins the Bode, which is impounded here by the Wendefurth Dam. Other tributaries of the Bode are the Goldbach, the Holtemme and the Selke.

Waterfalls

The

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

s in the Harz are not high. The Upper Bode Falls (''Obere Bode-Fall'') on the Warme Bode are really a fast-flowing stream (''Sturzbach'') with small steps about 1 metre in height. Likewise the Lower Bode Falls (''Untere Bode-Fall'') on the Warme Bode is simply ledge of similar height. The ''Bodekessel'' in the Bode Gorge is a former step in a large hollow, that was reduced in height in 1798 from 2 metres to 1 metre by explosive. The fourth waterfall is in the ''Kästental''.

Course

The Bode winds its way between Treseburg and Thale through a long, narrow valley, the ''Bode Gorge''. Today, the valley is a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

. The Bode Gorge and its villages are the primary setting for

Theodor Fontane Theodor Fontane (; 30 December 1819 – 20 September 1898) was a German novelist and poet, regarded by many as the most important 19th-century German-language Literary realism, realist author. He published the first of his novels, for which he i ...

’s novel, '' Cécile''. The river then crosses the Harz Foreland in a curving and, in places, diked and canalised, course until it discharges into the Saale at Nienburg. Important Bode tributaries are the Selke and the Holtemme. Other towns on the Bode river are

Quedlinburg Quedlinburg () is a town situated just north of the Harz mountains, in the Harz (district), district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. As an influential and prosperous trading centre during the early Middle Ages, Quedlinburg becam ...

, Wegeleben, Gröningen,

Oschersleben Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000. History On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1235 ...

, Hadmersleben, Egeln and Staßfurt. The Bode gorge north of Thale is now a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

. File:bode_warme_grosse_herbst.jpg, The ''Große Bode'' (headstream of the ''Warme Bode'') above Braunlage File:BodeZusammenfluss.jpg, Confluence of the ''Warme Bode'' (left) and ''Kalte'' (right) ''Bode'' near Königshütte File:Wilde Bode.jpg, The ''Wilde Bode'' File:Stassfurt_Bodebruecke.jpg, View of the Bode bridge in Staßfurt

Catchment area and tributaries

The

catchment area A catchment area in human geography, is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...

of the Bode ist about 3000 km² in area. Important tributaries within the Harz are the Rappbode and the Luppbode. The Rappbode is impounded at

by the Rappbode Dam. At the northern end of the reservoir the Rappbode joins the Bode which is also impounded by the Wendefurth Dam. Other tributaries are the Goldbach, the Holtemme and the largest one, the Selke.

Dams

In a hydrological sense every source stream of the Bode has a specific

in the Harz, that is part of the catchment area of the Bode. The catchment areas of the various reservoirs are as follows: for the Wendefurth Reservoir, , for the Rappbode Pre-Dam and Rappbode Reservoirs, , and for the Königshütte Reservoir, . The Mandelholz Dam impounds the water of the ''Kalte Bode''. The total catchment area of the Bode is about .

History and culture

Middle Ages

In the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...

the Bode formed the border between the provinces of the ''Harzgau'' in the west and the ''Schwabengau'' in the east. The two most important Bode crossings at that time were the settlements of Ditfurt und Gröningen, mentioned frequently in the Fuldau annals.

Modern era

Heinrich Heine Christian Johann Heinrich Heine (; ; born Harry Heine; 13 December 1797 – 17 February 1856) was an outstanding poet, writer, and literary criticism, literary critic of 19th-century German Romanticism. He is best known outside Germany for his ...

depicts the romantic Bode valley in his 1826 travelogue ''Die Harzreise'':

Flood and low water

The 'most devastating' floods from the Bode occurred in the years 1539, 1667, 1730, 1740, 1772 and especially at Christmas in 1925.Vgl. 'Das Bode-Hochwasser Silvester 1925 in Quedlinburg: Festschrift zur Einweihung der Bahnhofsbrücke am 27. November 1926'. Herausgeben vom Magistrat der Stadt Quedlinburg, 1926. Only on the completion of the Rappbode Dam in 1959 could the risk of flooding be eliminated. The water quantities in the Bode can vary significantly: during the New Year flooding in 1925 a discharge of was recorded, whereas in the following summer of 1926 it fell to just .

Sources

* Monika Schönau/Edmund Werner: ''Die Bode: ein Fluss führt Hochwasser!'' Sachsen-Anhalt, Staatliches Amt für Umweltschutz Magdeburg, Magdeburg 2000.

References

External links

*
Further information
{{Authority control Rivers of Saxony-Anhalt Rivers of the Harz Rivers of Germany