The Ilse is a river 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 ...

and

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It rises at about above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...

on the northern slopes of 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, ...

. During its first few kilometres it flows as a narrow brook, almost invisible to the observer, down the side of the Brocken. Known here as the ''Verdeckte Ilse'' ("hidden Ilse") it gurgles its way under blocks of granite that hide the stream bed from above. The Ilse then rushes through the narrow

Ilse valley The Ilse valley () is the ravine of the Ilse (Oker), Ilse stream in the northern boundary of the Harz mountain range in Germany. Part of the Harz National Park, it runs from the town of Ilsenburg (Harz), Ilsenburg at the foot of the mountain range ...

, hemmed in to the east by the rugged, cross-topped Ilsestein, passes by

Ilsenburg Ilsenburg () is a town in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt in Germany. It is situated under the north foot of the Harz Mountains, at the entrance to the Ilse valley with its little river, the Ilse, a tributary of the Oker, about six nort ...

into the Harz Foreland, flows through

Veckenstedt Veckenstedt is a village and a former municipality in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the municipality Nordharz Nordharz (, literally "North Harz") is a municipality in the district of Harz ...

Wasserleben Wasserleben is a village and a former municipality in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the municipality Nordharz Nordharz (, literally "North Harz") is a municipality in the district of Harz ...

Osterwieck Osterwieck () is a historic town in the Harz (district), Harz district, in the Germany, German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Geography The municipal area stretches along the river Ilse (Oker), Ilse, north of Wernigerode and the Harz mountain range. The ...

and Hornburg and discharges into the

Oker The Oker () is a river in Lower Saxony, Germany, that has historically formed an important political boundary. It is a left tributary of the River Aller (Germany), Aller, in length and runs in a generally northerly direction. Origin and meanin ...

near Börßum together with the ''Schiffgraben'' from the

Großes Bruch The Großes Bruch ("Great Marsh") is a long wetland strip in Germany, stretching from Oschersleben in Saxony-Anhalt in the east to Hornburg, Lower Saxony in the west. The depression formed from a glacial valley. The lowland meadow landscape ...

. Its total length is around . Local folklore personifies the river as the beautiful ''Princess Ilse'', who has her home in the rocks of the Ilsestein. The Ilse is mentioned in literary works such as the ''

Die Harzreise ''Die Harzreise'' ("The Harz Journey") is a travel report by German poet and author Heinrich Heine on a journey to the Harz mountains. Compiled in autumn 1824, it was first published as a serial in January and February 1826 in the magazine ''Der ...

'' by

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 ...

See also