The Mittelland Canal, also known as the Midland Canal, (, ) is a major canal in central

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 forms an important link in the waterway network of the country, providing the principal east-west inland waterway connection. Its significance goes beyond Germany as it links

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 ...

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and the Benelux countries with

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, the

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and the Baltic Sea. At in length,Elwis database WSD Mitte
an
WSD Ost
the Mittelland Canal is the longest artificial waterway in Germany.

Route

The Mittelland Canal branches off the Dortmund-Ems Canal at Hörstel (near Rheine, at ), runs north along the Teutoburg Forest, past

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

and meets with the Elbe River near Magdeburg (). Near Magdeburg it connects to the Elbe-Havel Canal, making a continuous shipping route to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and on to

. At Minden the canal crosses the river Weser over two aqueducts (completed in 1914 and 1998, respectively), and near Magdeburg it crosses the Elbe, also with an aqueduct. Connections by side canals exist at Ibbenbüren, Osnabrück, Minden (two canals connecting to the Weser),

-Linden, Hanover-Misburg,

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; or ; ) is a city in Lower Saxony, in north-central Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim (district), Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of t ...

and Salzgitter. West of Wolfsburg, the Elbe Lateral Canal branches off, providing a connection to Hamburg, and (via the Elbe-Lübeck Canal) to the Baltic Sea.

History

Construction of the Mittelland Canal was started in 1906, starting from Bergeshövede (municipality Hörstel) on the Dortmund-Ems Canal. The section to Minden on the Weser was opened in February 1915 and was initially named ''Ems-Weser-Kanal''. The section from Minden to Hanover was finished in the autumn of 1916. The section to Sehnde and the branch canal to Hildesheim were completed in 1928, Peine was reached in 1929, and Braunschweig in 1933. The final section to Magdeburg was opened in 1938, thus creating a direct link between Western and Eastern Germany. The branch canal to Salzgitter was opened in 1941. The planned canal bridge over the Elbe, necessary to avoid low water conditions in summer, was not built due to the Second World War. After partitioning of Germany following the Second World War, the Mittelland Canal was split between West Germany and East Germany, with the border to the east of Wolfsburg. To provide access from the western section of the canal to Hamburg and

Northern Germany Northern Germany (, ) is a linguistic, geographic, socio-cultural and historic region in the northern part of Germany which includes the coastal states of Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Lower Saxony and the two city-states Hambur ...

, avoiding both East Germany and the Elbe River's sometimes limited navigability, the Elbe Lateral Canal was opened in 1977. After the reunification of Germany, the importance of the Mittelland Canal as a link from the west to Berlin and the east was reinforced. The project to bridge the Elbe was therefore restarted, and the resulting Magdeburg Water Bridge opened in 2003, providing a direct link to the Elbe-Havel Canal. There are further plans to connect the channel to the Twentekanaal in the Netherlands to shorten the connection towards the Port of Rotterdam.Euregio: „Verbindung zwischen Mittellandkanal und Twentekanal nicht wirtschaftlich“. Stand: 2013. http://www.euregio.eu/de/pressemitteilungen/verbindung-zwischen-mittellandkanal-und-twentekanal-nicht-wirtschaftlich (retrieved on October 2, 2014).

Towns and cities

* Ibbenbüren * Osnabrück (via a branch) * Bramsche * Lübbecke * Minden * Garbsen * Hannover * Sehnde *

(via a branch) * Peine * Salzgitter (via a branch) * Braunschweig * Wolfsburg * Haldensleben * Magdeburg BS Hafen

Structures

* Minden Aqueduct () * Magdeburg Water Bridge ()

Gallery

Image:Midland canal.jpg, Old and new Mittelland Canal aqueducts near Minden Image:Wasserstrassenkreuz Minden.jpg, Aerial view of aqueducts and River Weser Image:Mittellandkanal near minden germany.jpg, The canal near Minden Image:Minden_Weser-Mittelland_Kanal_Lock_01.jpg, Mittelland Canal / River Weser Lock at Minden Image:Wolfsburg, Volkswagenwerk -- 2009 -- 0822.jpg, Part of the original Volkswagen plant on the canal

References

{{Authority control Canals in Germany Lübbecke Preußisch Oldendorf Wolfsburg Federal waterways in Germany Transport in Braunschweig Transport in Hanover Canals opened in 1938 CMittelland CMittelland CMittelland