The ''Rhein–Main'' was an

express train An express train is a type of passenger train that makes a small number of stops between its origin and destination stations, usually major destinations, allowing faster service than local trains that stop at most or all of the stations alo ...

that linked

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

with Dortmund in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and later with

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The train was named after the two rivers, the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

and the

Main Main may refer to: Geography * Main River (disambiguation) **Most commonly the Main (river) in Germany * Main, Iran, a village in Fars Province *"Spanish Main", the Caribbean coasts of mainland Spanish territories in the 16th and 17th centuries ...

, that join west of Frankfurt. For most of its life, it was a

Trans Europ Express The Trans Europ Express, or Trans-Europe Express (TEE), was an international first-class railway service in western and central Europe that was founded in 1957 and ceased in 1995. At the height of its operations, in 1974, the TEE network compri ...

(TEE).

F-Zug

The ''Rhein–Main'' was launched in May 1953 as train number F 31 northbound and F 32 southbound. TEE Züge in Deutschland, p. 79. The service was operated by

Deutsche Bundesbahn The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB (German Federal Railway) was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) on 7 September 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG). The DB remaine ...

(German Federal Railways) with diesel multiple units.

Trans Europ Express

On 2 June 1957, the ''Rhein–Main'' was one of the initial

TEE A tee is a stand used in sport to support and elevate a stationary ball prior to striking with a foot, club or bat. Tees are used extensively in golf, tee-ball, baseball, American football, and rugby. Etymology The word tee is derived from the ...

services. The rolling stock was given TEE signage on front but the use of VT 08 continued for a few months, because the German TEE trainsets planned for it were not available for the ''Rhein–Main'' until 1 December 1957. Das grosse TEE Buch, p. 74 With the start of the TEE network the northern terminus was changed from Dortmund to

, and the

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

– Dortmund portion of the ''Rhein–Main'' became part of the '' TEE Saphir''. During the summer of 1958 and the winter of 1958–59 the ''Rhein–Main'' and ''Saphir'' ran coupled between Frankfurt and Cologne after the ''Saphir''s eastern terminus was changed from Dortmund to Frankfurt. After 31 May 1959, the ''Saphir'', using the east bank of the Rhine, and the ''Rhein–Main'' using the west bank of the Rhine calling at the West-German capital

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...

, ran as separate trains again. On 28 May 1967, the Oberhausen–Arnhem railway

electrification Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic histor ...

works were completed and ''Rhein–Main's'' rolling stock was replaced by electric-locomotive-hauled trains. La Légende des TEE, p. 186. Because of poor loading figures on the evening service between Bonn and Frankfurt the southbound service was shortened to Bonn on 26 September 1971. The northbound route continued to start in Frankfurt. On 28 May 1972, the service was renamed '' TEE Van Beethoven''."Summer services, 1972" (changes taking effect). '' Cooks Continental Timetable'' (May 1–27, 1972 edition), p. 466. London: Thomas Cook Publishing.

References

Works cited

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhein-Main (train) International named passenger trains Named passenger trains of Germany Named passenger trains of the Netherlands Trans Europ Express Railway services introduced in 1953