Lahn
Encyclopedia
The Lahn River is a 245.6 kilometres (152.6 mi)-long, right (or eastern) tributary
of the Rhine River in Germany
. Its course passes through the federal states
of North Rhine-Westphalia
(23.0 km), Hesse
(165.6 km), and Rhineland-Palatinate
(57.0 km).
It has its source in the Rothaargebirge
, the highest part of the Sauerland
. It meets the Rhine at Lahnstein
, near Koblenz
. Important cities along the Lahn include Marburg
, Gießen
, Wetzlar
, Limburg an der Lahn
, Weilburg
and Bad Ems
.
Tributaries to the Lahn include the Dill, the Weil
and the Aar
Rivers. The lower Lahn has many dams
with locks
, allowing regular shipping from its mouth up to Runkel
. Riverboats are also used on a small section north of the dam in Gießen.
The Lahn River is a 245.6 kilometres (152.6 mi)-long, right (or eastern) tributary
of the Rhine River in Germany
. Its course passes through the federal states
of North Rhine-Westphalia
(23.0 km), Hesse
(165.6 km), and Rhineland-Palatinate
(57.0 km).
The Lahn originates at the Lahnhof, a locality of Nenkersdorf, which is a constituent community of Netphen
in southeastern North Rhine-Westphalia, near the border with Hesse. The source area is situated along the Eisenstraße scenic highway and the Rothaarsteig
hiking trail.
The river arises in the southeastern Rothaargebirge in the Ederkopf-Lahnkopf-Rücken ridge-line natural area. This ridge is the drainage divide between the Rhine and Weser, and, within the Rhine system, the watershed between the Lahn and Sieg
rivers.
The source is at an elevation of 600 metres (1,968.5 ft) and is located southwest of the 624 m (2,047.2 ft) high Lahnkopf. In the vicinity are also the origins of the Eder
(5.5 km northwest of the Lahnhof) and the Sieg (another 3 km north). Whereas the Sieg takes the shortest route to the Rhine (to the west), the Lahn first runs in the opposite direction, paralleling the Eder for many kilometers.
community of Feudingen, it turns primarily to the east.
: Ober Lahntal). Above Bad Laasphe, where the river flows between the Rothaargebirge on the left (i.e. to the north) and the Gladenbach Uplands
on the right, the Lahn Valley is simply considered part of these mountains.
Between Niederlaasphe (of Bad Laasphe) and Wallau (of Biedenkopf
), the river crosses the border between North-Rhine Westphalia and Hesse. It then flows in an easterly direction through some districts of Biedenkopf (but not the central town) and the towns of Dautphetal
and Lahntal
. It is joined from the right by the Perf
at Wallau and at Friedensdorf (of Dautphetal) by the Dautphe (which flows in a side valley to the south).
Shortly after the village of Caldern (of Lahn Valley), the ridgeline of the Rothaargebirge on the north ends with the Wollenberg and that of the Gladenbach Bergland with the Hungert. The Lahn leaves the Rhenish Slate Mountains for a long section and reaches the West Hesse Highlands
, where it flows through the extreme south of the Wetschaft Depression, north of the Marburger Rücken. Where the Wetschaft
flows into it from the Burgwald forest in the north (near the Lahntal village of Göttingen), the Lahn immediately changes direction by 90° to the right.
, the Ohm
enters from the left. Flowing from the Vogelsberg
, the Ohm is the Lahn’s longest tributary, with a length of 59.7 kilometres (37.1 mi).
The river then breaks through a sandstone
mesa
(the Marburger Rücken to the west and the Lahnberge to the east) into a valley which encompasses the entire territory of the city of Marburg
and its suburbs. The valley begins after the river passes the Marburger Rücken near Niederweimar
, where the Allna enters from the right. At the valley’s southern end, the Zwesten Ohm enters from the Lahnberge. The right (western) side of the valley is again formed by the Gladenbacher Bergland, from which the Salzböde
enters the Lahn. On the left rises the Lumda Plateau, from which the eponymous river Lumda flows into the Lahn near Lollar
. Gradually the valley widens into the Gießen Basin.
In Gießen
, after the inflow of the Wieseck from the left, the Lahn’s general direction of flow changes from the south to the west. The Gießen Basin extends a few more miles downstream to Atzbach, a suburb of Lahnau
. From the 1960s until the 1980s, there was extensive gravel
mining in this area. The area between Heuchelheim
, Lahnau, and the Wetzlar
borough of Dutenhofen was to be completely mined and a water sports center with an Olympic
-suitable rowing
course built. This plan was partly realized, and the Heuchelheim Lake and Dutenhofen Lake are now popular recreational destinations for the surrounding region. Nature conservation organizations, however, were able to prevent further gravel mining, so the area is now one of the largest nature reserves in Hesse. Dutenhofen Lake marks Kilometer 0 of the Lahn as a federal waterway.
The Gießen Basin is surrounded by the mountain peaks of the Gleiberg, the Vetzberg, the Dünsberg, and the Schiffenberg. At Wetzlar, the Lahn is joined by its second longest tributary, the Dill, which has a length of 55 kilometres (34.2 mi). At this location, the valleys of the Lahn and Dill separate three parts of the Rhenish Slate Mountains from each other: the Gladenbach Bergland, the Westerwald
to the northwest, and the Taunus
to the south.
In the upper area of the Weilburg Lahntal (the Löhnberg Basin) are mineral springs
, such as the famous Selters
mineral spring in the municipality of Löhnberg
. In the lower area, where the river turns again to the south, the Lahn is entrenched canyon-like below the level of the surrounding geographic trough.
The city of Weilburg
is wrapped by a marked loop of the river. The neck of this noose is traversed by a boat tunnel, unique in Germany. A little below Weilburg, the Weil River
, originating in the High Taunus, enters the Lahn.
, the course of the Lahn reverses to the west again and enters the fertile Limburger Basin, where the river is incised to a depth of about 50 metres (164 ft). Here the river is joined by two tributaries, the Emsbach
coming from the Taunus and the Elbbach from the Westerwald. In this area are frequent outcroppings of Devonian
limestone
, the so-called Lahn Marble (German: Lahnmarmor), such as at Limburg an der Lahn
, where the Limburg Cathedral
crowns such an outcropping. At Limburg, the river again enters a wider valley.
, it leaves the Limburger Basin and enters the Lower Lahntal. Its course is incised over 200 metres (656.2 ft) deep in the Slate Mountains. Near Obernhof
, the Gelbach enters the Lahn opposite Arnstein Abbey
. Then, after passing Nassau
and Bad Ems
, where, as in Fachingen, mineral springs (sources of Emser salt) can be found, it completes its 242 km (150.4 mi) run, entering the Rhine in Lahnstein
, located five kilometers south of Koblenz
at an elevation of 61 metres (200.1 ft).
, as shown by archeological finds near Diez, in Steeden in the community of Runkel
, and in Wetzlar. Recent discoveries in Dalheim on the western edge of Wetzlar show a ca. 7000 year old Linear Pottery culture
settlement. There are also remains a Germanic
settlement in the location, dated to around the time of Christ, situated above a bend of the Lahn.
In the Roman
Era, the Lahn presumably was used by the Romans to supply their fort at Bad Ems, Kastell Ems. Here the Limes Germanicus
on the borders of Germania Superior
and Rhaetia crossed the Lahn. Archaeological finds are known from Niederlahnstein, as well as from Lahnau. One Lahnau site, the Waldgirmes Forum
in the community of Waldgirmes, was discovered in the 1990s and had been the site of a Roman town. Another site in the community of Dorlar has the remains of a Roman marching camp (or castra
). These Lahnau sites have significant altered the current understanding of the history of the Romans east of the Rhine and north of the Limes.
During the Migration Period
, the Alamanni
settled in the lower Lahntal. They were later ousted by the Franks
.
The origin and meaning of the name Lahn are uncertain; it is possible that it is a pre-Germanic word. The form of the name changed over time; before 600, variations like Laugona, Logana, Logene or Loyn are typical. The oldest known use of the current spelling of the name dates to 1365.
The oldest mention of the staple right
of Diez dates to the early 14th century and is an indication of significant shipping on the Lahn by that time. In 1559, John VI
of Nassau-Dillenburg laid out a towpath
on the lower Lahn. In 1606, for the first time, the Lahn was deepened to allow small scale shipping and the lower reaches became navigable for four to five months of the year. However, there were numerous weir
s with only narrow gaps, so the traffic remained restricted to small boats.
In the 17th and early 18th centuries, there were several initiatives of adjacent princes to further expand the Lahn as a waterway, but they all failed due to lack of coordination. In 1740, the Archbishopric of Trier
began construction to make the mouth of the Lahn passable for larger vessels. In winter of 1753/54, bank stabilization and creation of towpaths were done along the entire length of the river. Then the river was passable for vessels with up to 240 hundredweight
s of cargo downstream and up to 160 hundredweights upstream.
By the end of the 19th century, over 300 castles, fortresses, fortified churches, and similar buildings were built along the river.
Shipping on the Lahn during the Industrial Revolution
During the French occupation
, inspections of the river began in 1796, which were to be followed by a comprehensive expansion. Due to political developments, however, this expansion did not take place. The newly created Duchy of Nassau eventually began work from 1808 under the Chief Construction Inspector of Kirn
to make the Lahn fully navigable. In the first winter, the section of the riverside from the mouth to Limburg was stabilized, particularly so that the course could be narrowed in shallow places. It was planned in the long run to make the Lahn navigable as far as Marburg and from there to construct a canal
to Fulda
to connect it with the Weser. This would create a waterway from France to North Sea
via the states of the Confederation of the Rhine
. Upstream of Limburg, however, the work was slow, partly because the population pressed into emergency service only reluctantly cooperated. Large parts of the shore were only secured with fascine
s, which rotted shortly thereafter.
In 1816 the Duchy of Nassau and the Kingdom of Prussia
agreed to expand the Lahn as far as Giessen, where it joined the Grand Duchy of Hesse
. Little is known about the work that followed, but in the 1825 boatmen on the Lahn who shipped mineral water from springs in Selters and Fachingen addressed a letter of appreciation to the Nassau government in Wiesbaden
for the rehabilitation of river systems. Overall, however, there seems to have been only repairs and temporary works accomplished through the 1830s.
The earliest attempts to count ship traffic on the Lahn dated from 1827. At the lock
at Runkel, 278 vessels were counted in that year, with the state government of Nassau explicitly pointing out that most of the river traffic travelled from the mouth to Limburg, or with smaller boats from the upper reaches to Weilburg, and only a small part passed Runkel. In 1833, however, 464 vessels were counted. The main reason for the increase is likely the increase in iron ore mining in the surroundings of Weilburg. An estimate from 1840 placed the quantity of iron ore transported on the entire river at approximately 2000 boat loads, though the river was only navigable from the mouth to Weilburg. In addition, mainly cereals and mineral water were transported downriver. Upriver, the boats carried primarily coal, charcoal, gypsum, and colonial goods. Around 1835, about 80 larger shallow-draft
boats were in operation on the Lahn.
Given the increasing ore mining in the Lahn Valley, officials from Nassau and Prussia in 1841 made an inspection trip along the river from Marburg to the Rhine. The Prussians were the driving force behind river expansion projects, seeking to establish a connection between Wetzlar and their Rhine Province
and to secure the iron ore supply for the growing industry in the Ruhr Valley. Until 1844, Hesse-Darmstadt
also joined expansion efforts, while Hesse-Kassel
declined participation. The participating governments agreed to make the Lahn passable as far as Gießen for boats that were significantly larger than the existing vehicles on the river. In Prussian territory, the work was largely completed by 1847, including construction of locks in Dorlar, Wetzlar, Wetzlar-Blechwalze, Oberbiel and Niederbiel. In Nassau’s territory, locks were built at Löhnberg, Villmar, and Balduinstein, as well as the greatest technical achievement: the Weilburg ship tunnel. The river bank reinforcement and channel deepening along Nassau’s section of the Lahn, however, was slow. Moreover, when the lock at Limburg fell short of the width contractually agreed upon, Nassau refused an extension. This led to several clashes between Nassau and Prussia in the following years until Nassau had finally fulfilled its obligations in 1855.
Despite the expansion, boats on the Lahn could travel fully loaded only from Gießen to Löhnberg. There, they had to lighten their load in order to reduce their draft and continue the journey. Also, this was only during two to three months. In a further four to five months per year, the load had to be reduced even earlier due to the low water level. The rest of the year the Lahn was not passable. From Wetzlar to Lahnstein, where the freight was unloaded onto the large barges of the Rhine, the boats took three to four days. A trip from Wetzlar to the mouth and then towed back with horses lasted for about 14 days in good conditions. At that time, there were mainly two types of transport boats in use: those with a capacity of 350 hundredweights and a larger variant with a capacity of 1300 hundredweights.
In 1857 to 1863, the Lahn Valley Railway (Lahntalbahn) was built, with nine major bridges and 18 tunnels along the river. Afterward, Prussia and Nassau tried to keep shipping along the Lahn alive through the lowering of tariffs. Ultimately, however, rail gained acceptance as a means of transport and cargo shipping on the Lahn gradually declined. Several projects begun in 1854 to operate steamboats on the Lahn died in their infancy. In 1875, 1885 and 1897 the Prussian government discussed plans for the transformation of the Lahn into a canal, which would allow the passage for larger vessels, but these plans were never implemented. Only in places was the riverbed dredged, such as around 1880 near Runkel, from 1905 to 1907 from the mouth to Bad Ems, and from 1925 to 1928 from the mouth to Steeden.
In 1964, an expansion of the Lahn for 300-ton vessels was completed. In 1981, freight shipping on the Lahn came to an end. Today, the Lahn is used exclusively for recreational boats.
On February 7, 1984, the Lahn experienced a 100-year flood, which caused millions of German Marks in damage. This has since led to a central flood warning system and coordination of flood control efforts through the regional council of Giessen.
The middle and lower section of the Lahn is navigable and has a large number of locks. The waterway is used almost exclusively by smaller motor yachts for tourists, as well as paddled-
and rowboats
. For non-motorized watercraft, the Lahn can be used for the entire length between Roth (of Weimar
) and the Rhine.
From the mouth upwards to Dehrn (of Runkel
), Lahn-km 70 (above Limburg), the river is consistently passable for larger vessels, with locks operated by personnel. The Water and Shipping Administration guarantees a minimum water depth of 1.60 m in the navigation channel. There are stream gauge
s at Kalkofen (of Dörnberg
) (normal water level 1.80 m) and at Leun
. Above Dehrn there are manual locks and frequent shoals, making the passage of boats difficult. Two weirs in Wetzlar are an obstruction to shipping further upriver.
The Lahntal bike path leads through the Lahn Valley, along the Lahn Holiday Road. It is accessible from the Upper Lahn Valley Railway between Feudingen and Marburg, the Main-Weser Railway
between Marburg and Giessen, as well as the Lahn Valley Railway between Giessen and Friedrichssegen. For walkers there is the Lahnhöhenwege along both sides of the Lahn from Wetzlar to Oberlahnstein. The first partial section of a pilgrimage
route, the Lahn-Camino on the left side of the Lahn, leads from Wetzlar Cathedral to Lahnstein via Castle Lahneck and the Hospital Chapel.
There are 19 hydroelectric plants using the Lahn to generate electricity. Wine is producted in Obernhof and Weinähr. The wines of the Lahn region are marketed under the trade name Lahntal as Middle Rhine wines.
and the Dill. The Dill originates in the southwestern foothills of the Rothaargebirge
(the Haincher Höhe) and enters the Lahn from the right. The Ohm flows from the Vogelsberg
and enters from the left. It is notable that not only is the Ohm at the point of its confluence with the Lahn only 1 km shorter from its source than the Lahn itself, but the Ohm’s catchment area (984 km2) is significantly larger than that of the Lahn above the confluence (652 km2, or only 452 km2 before the inflow of the Wetschaft only 2 km upstream).
Between the Lahn’s source area in the Rothaargebirge and Gießen
, all of the left tributaries are from the less mountainous parts of the West Hessian Bergland. After the turn towards the west or southwest near Gießen, all the left tributaries flow from the Hochtaunus. The right tributaries between the source area and the confluence of the Dill near Wetzlar come from the Gladenbach Bergland, while downstream they originate in the (High) Westerwald. Much of the Westerwald, in contrast, has no significant watershed, so the streams are almost random in finding their direction.
Because the highest point of the Westerwald is near the Sieg
, and especially because the Taunus is very close to the Main, both Mittelgebirge
are each considerably more than half drained by the Lahn. Especially the left tributaries from the Taunus flow with a strong south-north orientation. The river Emsbach
runs through the Idstein Basin, which divides the (Hinter-) Taunus into two parts, while the Aar is central for the (Western and Eastern) Aartaunus.
Kreis
Landkreis Marburg-Biedenkopf
Landkreis Gießen
| width = "500" valign=top |
Landkreis Limburg-Weilburg
Rhein-Lahn-Kreis
Verbandsgemeinden
:
|}
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Rhine River in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Its course passes through the federal states
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
(23.0 km), Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
(165.6 km), and Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
(57.0 km).
It has its source in the Rothaargebirge
Rothaargebirge
The Rothaargebirge is a low mountain range reaching heights of up to 843.1 m in North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse, Germany....
, the highest part of the Sauerland
Sauerland
The Sauerland is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited...
. It meets the Rhine at Lahnstein
Lahnstein
Lahnstein is a verband-free town of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated at the confluence of the Lahn River with the Rhine, approximately south of Koblenz...
, near Koblenz
Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...
. Important cities along the Lahn include Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
, Gießen
Gießen
Gießen, also spelt Giessen is a town in the German federal state of Hesse, capital of both the district of Gießen and the administrative region of Gießen...
, Wetzlar
Wetzlar
Wetzlar is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany. Located at 8° 30′ E, 50° 34′ N, Wetzlar straddles the river Lahn and is on the German Timber-Framework Road which passes mile upon mile of half-timbered houses. Historically, the city has acted as the hub of the Lahn-Dill-Kreis on the north edge of...
, Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.-Location:Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn....
, Weilburg
Weilburg
Weilburg is, with just under 14,000 inhabitants, the third biggest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, after Limburg an der Lahn and Bad Camberg.- Location :...
and Bad Ems
Bad Ems
Bad Ems is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the county seat of the Rhein-Lahn rural district and is well known as a bathing resort on the river Lahn...
.
Tributaries to the Lahn include the Dill, the Weil
Weil River
The Weil is small 50 km long river in Hesse, Germany. It is a left tributary to the Lahn river and the city of Weilburg is located next to its mouth. The river flows exclusively through the Taunus mountain range with its source being located between the Kleiner Feldberg and Großer Feldberg...
and the Aar
Aar (Lahn)
The Aar is a river in western Germany, left tributary of the Lahn. It rises in the Taunus mountains, near Taunusstein. It flows generally north through the towns Taunusstein, Bad Schwalbach, Aarbergen and Hahnstätten...
Rivers. The lower Lahn has many dams
DAMS
Driot-Arnoux Motorsport is a racing team from France, involved in many areas of motorsports. DAMS was founded in 1988 by Jean-Paul Driot and former Formula One driver René Arnoux. It is headquartered near Le Mans, only 2 km from the Bugatti Circuit.- History :The year after its foundation,...
with locks
Lock (water transport)
A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a fixed chamber in which the water level can be varied; whereas in a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is...
, allowing regular shipping from its mouth up to Runkel
Runkel
Runkel is a town on the Lahn River in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany.- Location :Runkel lies in the Lahn Valley on both sides of the river between the Westerwald and the Taunus, some eight kilometres east of Limburg....
. Riverboats are also used on a small section north of the dam in Gießen.
Source area
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Rhine River in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Its course passes through the federal states
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
(23.0 km), Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
(165.6 km), and Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
(57.0 km).
The Lahn originates at the Lahnhof, a locality of Nenkersdorf, which is a constituent community of Netphen
Netphen
Netphen is a town in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It lies on the river Sieg, roughly 7 km northeast of Siegen.-Location:...
in southeastern North Rhine-Westphalia, near the border with Hesse. The source area is situated along the Eisenstraße scenic highway and the Rothaarsteig
Rothaarsteig
The Rothaarsteig is a 154.80 km long hiking trail along the crest of the Rothaargebirge mountain range in Germany in the border region between the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse...
hiking trail.
The river arises in the southeastern Rothaargebirge in the Ederkopf-Lahnkopf-Rücken ridge-line natural area. This ridge is the drainage divide between the Rhine and Weser, and, within the Rhine system, the watershed between the Lahn and Sieg
Sieg
The Sieg is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany named after the Sigambrer. It is a right tributary of the Rhine and 153 kilometres in length....
rivers.
The source is at an elevation of 600 metres (1,968.5 ft) and is located southwest of the 624 m (2,047.2 ft) high Lahnkopf. In the vicinity are also the origins of the Eder
Eder
The Eder is a 177 km long river in Germany, and a tributary of the Fulda River. It was first mentioned by the Roman historian Tacitus as the Adrana in the territory of the Chatti....
(5.5 km northwest of the Lahnhof) and the Sieg (another 3 km north). Whereas the Sieg takes the shortest route to the Rhine (to the west), the Lahn first runs in the opposite direction, paralleling the Eder for many kilometers.
Course
The Lahn first flows in a northeasterly direction through the southeastern Rothaargebirge and its foothills. From about the Bad LaaspheBad Laasphe
Bad Laasphe is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district.-Location:The town of Bad Laasphe lies in the upper Lahn Valley, near the stately home of Wittgenstein Castle in the former Wittgenstein district...
community of Feudingen, it turns primarily to the east.
Upper Lahntal and Wetschaft Depression
The section of the Lahn below the town of Bad Laasphe is geographically known as the Upper Lahn Valley (GermanGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: Ober Lahntal). Above Bad Laasphe, where the river flows between the Rothaargebirge on the left (i.e. to the north) and the Gladenbach Uplands
Gladenbach Uplands
The Gladenbach Uplands , named after their central town of Gladenbach, is a range of hills up to 609 m high in the Rhine Massif in Germany, on the junction of the Rothaargebirge , Westerwald , Hintertaunus and West Hesse Highlands in the east.It lies in Central Hesse within the districts of...
on the right, the Lahn Valley is simply considered part of these mountains.
Between Niederlaasphe (of Bad Laasphe) and Wallau (of Biedenkopf
Biedenkopf
Biedenkopf is a spa town in western Hessen, Germany with a population of 13,271.- Location :The town of Biedenkopf lies in the west of Marburg-Biedenkopf district. Ringed by mountains reaching up to 674 m above sea level – the Sackpfeife in the Rothaargebirge reaches this height – the town...
), the river crosses the border between North-Rhine Westphalia and Hesse. It then flows in an easterly direction through some districts of Biedenkopf (but not the central town) and the towns of Dautphetal
Dautphetal
Dautphetal is a community in Hesse, Germany, and is among the six larger communities of the 22 in Marburg-Biedenkopf district.-Geography:The community lies in the western part of the district about 37 km east of Siegen and about 15 km west of Marburg in the upper Lahn valley. It is...
and Lahntal
Lahntal
The community of Lahntal is found in the Marburg-Biedenkopf district in northwest Middle Hesse, Germany.-Geography:Lahntal lies on the upper Lahn about 83 km north of Frankfurt am Main and about 7 km northwest of Marburg...
. It is joined from the right by the Perf
Perf
-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse...
at Wallau and at Friedensdorf (of Dautphetal) by the Dautphe (which flows in a side valley to the south).
Shortly after the village of Caldern (of Lahn Valley), the ridgeline of the Rothaargebirge on the north ends with the Wollenberg and that of the Gladenbach Bergland with the Hungert. The Lahn leaves the Rhenish Slate Mountains for a long section and reaches the West Hesse Highlands
West Hesse Highlands
The West Hesse Highlands , also known as the West Hessian Lowlands and Highlands , refers to a heavily forested region of the Central Uplands in Germany that lies mostly within the state of Hesse, between those elements of the Rhine Massif right of the Rhine in the west, the Weser Uplands to the...
, where it flows through the extreme south of the Wetschaft Depression, north of the Marburger Rücken. Where the Wetschaft
Wetschaft
Wetschaft is a river of Hesse, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse...
flows into it from the Burgwald forest in the north (near the Lahntal village of Göttingen), the Lahn immediately changes direction by 90° to the right.
Marburg-Gießen Lahntal
The now southward-flowing Lahn then enters the Marburg-Gießen Lahntal. Shortly before CölbeCölbe
Cölbe is a community in Marburg-Biedenkopf district in Hesse, Germany.- Location :Cölbe's municipal area lies on the southern edge of the Burgwald, a low mountain range and part of the Hessisches Bergland , and borders directly on the university city of Marburg to the south...
, the Ohm
Ohm
The ohm is the SI unit of electrical resistance, named after German physicist Georg Simon Ohm.- Definition :The ohm is defined as a resistance between two points of a conductor when a constant potential difference of 1 volt, applied to these points, produces in the conductor a current of 1 ampere,...
enters from the left. Flowing from the Vogelsberg
Vogelsberg
Vogelsberg is a municipality in the Sömmerda district of Thuringia, Germany....
, the Ohm is the Lahn’s longest tributary, with a length of 59.7 kilometres (37.1 mi).
The river then breaks through a sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
mesa
Mesa
A mesa or table mountain is an elevated area of land with a flat top and sides that are usually steep cliffs. It takes its name from its characteristic table-top shape....
(the Marburger Rücken to the west and the Lahnberge to the east) into a valley which encompasses the entire territory of the city of Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
and its suburbs. The valley begins after the river passes the Marburger Rücken near Niederweimar
Weimar (Lahn)
Weimar is a community in the south of Marburg-Biedenkopf district in Gießen administrative region, Hesse, Germany. The community's administrative seat is the centre of Niederweimar.- Geography:...
, where the Allna enters from the right. At the valley’s southern end, the Zwesten Ohm enters from the Lahnberge. The right (western) side of the valley is again formed by the Gladenbacher Bergland, from which the Salzböde
Salzböde
Salzböde is a river of Hesse, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse...
enters the Lahn. On the left rises the Lumda Plateau, from which the eponymous river Lumda flows into the Lahn near Lollar
Lollar
Lollar is a town in the district of Gießen, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated on the river Lahn, 7 km north of Gießen. The biggest production site of is located in Lollar....
. Gradually the valley widens into the Gießen Basin.
In Gießen
Gießen
Gießen, also spelt Giessen is a town in the German federal state of Hesse, capital of both the district of Gießen and the administrative region of Gießen...
, after the inflow of the Wieseck from the left, the Lahn’s general direction of flow changes from the south to the west. The Gießen Basin extends a few more miles downstream to Atzbach, a suburb of Lahnau
Lahnau
Lahnau is a community in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis in Hesse, Germany, and lies about midway – about 6 km each way – between the towns of Wetzlar and Gießen.-Neighbouring communities:...
. From the 1960s until the 1980s, there was extensive gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
mining in this area. The area between Heuchelheim
Heuchelheim
Heuchelheim is a municipality in the district of Gießen, in Hesse, Germany. Since April 1, 1967 it includes the district Kinzenbach. The approximately 8,000 residents spread across two districts Heuchelheim and Kinzenbach .- History :Until 1967 the indepent villages of Heucheleim and Kinzenbach...
, Lahnau, and the Wetzlar
Wetzlar
Wetzlar is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany. Located at 8° 30′ E, 50° 34′ N, Wetzlar straddles the river Lahn and is on the German Timber-Framework Road which passes mile upon mile of half-timbered houses. Historically, the city has acted as the hub of the Lahn-Dill-Kreis on the north edge of...
borough of Dutenhofen was to be completely mined and a water sports center with an Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
-suitable rowing
Rowing (sport)
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
course built. This plan was partly realized, and the Heuchelheim Lake and Dutenhofen Lake are now popular recreational destinations for the surrounding region. Nature conservation organizations, however, were able to prevent further gravel mining, so the area is now one of the largest nature reserves in Hesse. Dutenhofen Lake marks Kilometer 0 of the Lahn as a federal waterway.
The Gießen Basin is surrounded by the mountain peaks of the Gleiberg, the Vetzberg, the Dünsberg, and the Schiffenberg. At Wetzlar, the Lahn is joined by its second longest tributary, the Dill, which has a length of 55 kilometres (34.2 mi). At this location, the valleys of the Lahn and Dill separate three parts of the Rhenish Slate Mountains from each other: the Gladenbach Bergland, the Westerwald
Westerwald
The Westerwald is a low mountain range on the right bank of the River Rhine in the German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a part of the Rhine Massif...
to the northwest, and the Taunus
Taunus
The Taunus is a low mountain range in Hesse, Germany that composes part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. It is bounded by the river valleys of Rhine, Main and Lahn. On the opposite side of the Rhine, the mountains are continued by the Hunsrück...
to the south.
Weilburg Lahntal
After Wetzlar, the valley of the Lahn gradually narrows and at Leun enters the Weilburger Lahntal. The Weilburger Lahntal belongs to the larger Gießen-Koblenzer Lahntal physiographic province, considered part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains.In the upper area of the Weilburg Lahntal (the Löhnberg Basin) are mineral springs
Mineral Springs
Mineral Springs is the name of several locations in the United States:* Mineral Springs, Arkansas* Mineral Springs, North Carolina* Mineral Springs Township, North Dakota* Mineral Springs at Green Springs, Ohio...
, such as the famous Selters
Selters (Lahn)
Selters is a village in the district Limburg-Weilburg, Hesse, Germany. It is situated at the Taunus side of the river Lahn and belongs to the municipality Löhnberg. The village has a total population of about 400 inhabitants....
mineral spring in the municipality of Löhnberg
Löhnberg
Löhnberg is a community north of Weilburg in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany.- Neighbouring communities :Löhnberg borders in the north on the community of Greifenstein, in the east on the towns of Leun and Braunfels , in the south on the town of Weilburg, and in the west on the...
. In the lower area, where the river turns again to the south, the Lahn is entrenched canyon-like below the level of the surrounding geographic trough.
The city of Weilburg
Weilburg
Weilburg is, with just under 14,000 inhabitants, the third biggest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, after Limburg an der Lahn and Bad Camberg.- Location :...
is wrapped by a marked loop of the river. The neck of this noose is traversed by a boat tunnel, unique in Germany. A little below Weilburg, the Weil River
Weil River
The Weil is small 50 km long river in Hesse, Germany. It is a left tributary to the Lahn river and the city of Weilburg is located next to its mouth. The river flows exclusively through the Taunus mountain range with its source being located between the Kleiner Feldberg and Großer Feldberg...
, originating in the High Taunus, enters the Lahn.
Limburger Basin
At Aumenau in the municipality of VillmarVillmar
Villmar is a market town in the Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany. The community is the centre for quarrying and processing the so-called Lahn Marble.-Location:...
, the course of the Lahn reverses to the west again and enters the fertile Limburger Basin, where the river is incised to a depth of about 50 metres (164 ft). Here the river is joined by two tributaries, the Emsbach
Emsbach
Emsbach is a river of Hesse, Germany....
coming from the Taunus and the Elbbach from the Westerwald. In this area are frequent outcroppings of Devonian
Devonian
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, the so-called Lahn Marble (German: Lahnmarmor), such as at Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.-Location:Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn....
, where the Limburg Cathedral
Limburg Cathedral
The Catholic Cathedral of Limburg, also known as Georgsdom or Limburger Dom in German after its dedication to Saint George, is located above the old town of Limburg in Hesse, Germany. Its high location on a rock above the Lahn provides its visibility from far away...
crowns such an outcropping. At Limburg, the river again enters a wider valley.
Lower Lahntal
Below Diez, the Lahn absorbs the Aar River from the south. At Fachingen in the municipality of BirlenbachBirlenbach
Birlenbach is a municipality in the district of Rhein-Lahn, in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany....
, it leaves the Limburger Basin and enters the Lower Lahntal. Its course is incised over 200 metres (656.2 ft) deep in the Slate Mountains. Near Obernhof
Obernhof
Obernhof is a municipality in the district of Rhein-Lahn, in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany....
, the Gelbach enters the Lahn opposite Arnstein Abbey
Arnstein Abbey
Arnstein Abbey is a former Premonstratensian abbey on the Lahn River, south of present-day Obernhof near Nassau, Germany...
. Then, after passing Nassau
Nassau, Germany
Nassau is a town located in the German Land of Rhineland-Palatinate. It lies in the Lahn River valley between the cities of Bad Ems and Limburg an der Lahn. Nassau is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde of Nassau. The town is on the German-Dutch holiday road, the Orange Route...
and Bad Ems
Bad Ems
Bad Ems is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the county seat of the Rhein-Lahn rural district and is well known as a bathing resort on the river Lahn...
, where, as in Fachingen, mineral springs (sources of Emser salt) can be found, it completes its 242 km (150.4 mi) run, entering the Rhine in Lahnstein
Lahnstein
Lahnstein is a verband-free town of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated at the confluence of the Lahn River with the Rhine, approximately south of Koblenz...
, located five kilometers south of Koblenz
Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...
at an elevation of 61 metres (200.1 ft).
Early history
The Lahn area was settled as early as in the Stone AgeStone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
, as shown by archeological finds near Diez, in Steeden in the community of Runkel
Runkel
Runkel is a town on the Lahn River in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany.- Location :Runkel lies in the Lahn Valley on both sides of the river between the Westerwald and the Taunus, some eight kilometres east of Limburg....
, and in Wetzlar. Recent discoveries in Dalheim on the western edge of Wetzlar show a ca. 7000 year old Linear Pottery culture
Linear Pottery culture
The Linear Pottery culture is a major archaeological horizon of the European Neolithic, flourishing ca. 5500–4500 BC.It is abbreviated as LBK , is also known as the Linear Band Ware, Linear Ware, Linear Ceramics or Incised Ware culture, and falls within the Danubian I culture of V...
settlement. There are also remains a Germanic
Germanic peoples
The Germanic peoples are an Indo-European ethno-linguistic group of Northern European origin, identified by their use of the Indo-European Germanic languages which diversified out of Proto-Germanic during the Pre-Roman Iron Age.Originating about 1800 BCE from the Corded Ware Culture on the North...
settlement in the location, dated to around the time of Christ, situated above a bend of the Lahn.
In the Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
Era, the Lahn presumably was used by the Romans to supply their fort at Bad Ems, Kastell Ems. Here the Limes Germanicus
Limes Germanicus
The Limes Germanicus was a line of frontier fortifications that bounded the ancient Roman provinces of Germania Inferior, Germania Superior and Raetia, dividing the Roman Empire and the unsubdued Germanic tribes from the years 83 to about 260 AD...
on the borders of Germania Superior
Germania Superior
Germania Superior , so called for the reason that it lay upstream of Germania Inferior, was a province of the Roman Empire. It comprised an area of western Switzerland, the French Jura and Alsace regions, and southwestern Germany...
and Rhaetia crossed the Lahn. Archaeological finds are known from Niederlahnstein, as well as from Lahnau. One Lahnau site, the Waldgirmes Forum
Waldgirmes Forum
The Roman Forum of Lahnau-Waldgirmes is a fortified Roman trading place, located at the edge of the modern village Waldgirmes, part of Lahnau on the Lahn, Hesse, Germany...
in the community of Waldgirmes, was discovered in the 1990s and had been the site of a Roman town. Another site in the community of Dorlar has the remains of a Roman marching camp (or castra
Castra
The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military defensive position. The word appears in both Oscan and Umbrian as well as in Latin. It may have descended from Indo-European to Italic...
). These Lahnau sites have significant altered the current understanding of the history of the Romans east of the Rhine and north of the Limes.
During the Migration Period
Migration Period
The Migration Period, also called the Barbarian Invasions , was a period of intensified human migration in Europe that occurred from c. 400 to 800 CE. This period marked the transition from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages...
, the Alamanni
Alamanni
The Alamanni, Allemanni, or Alemanni were originally an alliance of Germanic tribes located around the upper Rhine river . One of the earliest references to them is the cognomen Alamannicus assumed by Roman Emperor Caracalla, who ruled the Roman Empire from 211 to 217 and claimed thereby to be...
settled in the lower Lahntal. They were later ousted by the Franks
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
.
The origin and meaning of the name Lahn are uncertain; it is possible that it is a pre-Germanic word. The form of the name changed over time; before 600, variations like Laugona, Logana, Logene or Loyn are typical. The oldest known use of the current spelling of the name dates to 1365.
The oldest mention of the staple right
Staple right
The staple right was a medieval right accorded to certain ports, the staple ports, that required merchant barges or ships to unload their goods at the port, and display them for sale for a certain period, often three days...
of Diez dates to the early 14th century and is an indication of significant shipping on the Lahn by that time. In 1559, John VI
John VI of Nassau-Dillenburg
Count John VI of Nassau-Dillenburg was a Count of Nassau in Dillenburg. Other names he had were Jan VI or Jan de Oude....
of Nassau-Dillenburg laid out a towpath
Towpath
A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge...
on the lower Lahn. In 1606, for the first time, the Lahn was deepened to allow small scale shipping and the lower reaches became navigable for four to five months of the year. However, there were numerous weir
Weir
A weir is a small overflow dam used to alter the flow characteristics of a river or stream. In most cases weirs take the form of a barrier across the river that causes water to pool behind the structure , but allows water to flow over the top...
s with only narrow gaps, so the traffic remained restricted to small boats.
In the 17th and early 18th centuries, there were several initiatives of adjacent princes to further expand the Lahn as a waterway, but they all failed due to lack of coordination. In 1740, the Archbishopric of Trier
Archbishopric of Trier
The Archbishopric of Trier was a Roman Catholic diocese in Germany, that existed from Carolingian times until the end of the Holy Roman Empire. Its suffragans were the dioceses of Metz, Toul and Verdun. Since the 9th century the Archbishops of Trier were simultaneously princes and since the 11th...
began construction to make the mouth of the Lahn passable for larger vessels. In winter of 1753/54, bank stabilization and creation of towpaths were done along the entire length of the river. Then the river was passable for vessels with up to 240 hundredweight
Hundredweight
The hundredweight or centum weight is a unit of mass defined in terms of the pound . The definition used in Britain differs from that used in North America. The two are distinguished by the terms long hundredweight and short hundredweight:* The long hundredweight is defined as 112 lb, which...
s of cargo downstream and up to 160 hundredweights upstream.
By the end of the 19th century, over 300 castles, fortresses, fortified churches, and similar buildings were built along the river.
Shipping on the Lahn during the Industrial RevolutionIndustrial RevolutionThe Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
During the French occupationFirst French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
, inspections of the river began in 1796, which were to be followed by a comprehensive expansion. Due to political developments, however, this expansion did not take place. The newly created Duchy of Nassau eventually began work from 1808 under the Chief Construction Inspector of Kirn
Kirn
Kirn is a town in the district of Bad Kreuznach, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Nahe, roughly 10 km north-east of Idar-Oberstein and 30 km west of Bad Kreuznach....
to make the Lahn fully navigable. In the first winter, the section of the riverside from the mouth to Limburg was stabilized, particularly so that the course could be narrowed in shallow places. It was planned in the long run to make the Lahn navigable as far as Marburg and from there to construct a canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
to Fulda
Fulda
Fulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district .- Early Middle Ages :...
to connect it with the Weser. This would create a waterway from France to North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
via the states of the Confederation of the Rhine
Confederation of the Rhine
The Confederation of the Rhine was a confederation of client states of the First French Empire. It was formed initially from 16 German states by Napoleon after he defeated Austria's Francis II and Russia's Alexander I in the Battle of Austerlitz. The Treaty of Pressburg, in effect, led to the...
. Upstream of Limburg, however, the work was slow, partly because the population pressed into emergency service only reluctantly cooperated. Large parts of the shore were only secured with fascine
Fascine
A fascine is a rough bundle of brushwood used for strengthening an earthen structure, or making a path across uneven or wet terrain. Typical uses are protecting the banks of streams from erosion, covering marshy ground and so on.-Early military use:...
s, which rotted shortly thereafter.
In 1816 the Duchy of Nassau and the Kingdom of Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
agreed to expand the Lahn as far as Giessen, where it joined the Grand Duchy of Hesse
Grand Duchy of Hesse
The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine , or, between 1806 and 1816, Grand Duchy of Hesse —as it was also known after 1816—was a member state of the German Confederation from 1806, when the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt was elevated to a Grand Duchy, until 1918, when all the German...
. Little is known about the work that followed, but in the 1825 boatmen on the Lahn who shipped mineral water from springs in Selters and Fachingen addressed a letter of appreciation to the Nassau government in Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden is a city in southwest Germany and the capital of the federal state of Hesse. It has about 275,400 inhabitants, plus approximately 10,000 United States citizens...
for the rehabilitation of river systems. Overall, however, there seems to have been only repairs and temporary works accomplished through the 1830s.
The earliest attempts to count ship traffic on the Lahn dated from 1827. At the lock
Lock (water transport)
A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a fixed chamber in which the water level can be varied; whereas in a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is...
at Runkel, 278 vessels were counted in that year, with the state government of Nassau explicitly pointing out that most of the river traffic travelled from the mouth to Limburg, or with smaller boats from the upper reaches to Weilburg, and only a small part passed Runkel. In 1833, however, 464 vessels were counted. The main reason for the increase is likely the increase in iron ore mining in the surroundings of Weilburg. An estimate from 1840 placed the quantity of iron ore transported on the entire river at approximately 2000 boat loads, though the river was only navigable from the mouth to Weilburg. In addition, mainly cereals and mineral water were transported downriver. Upriver, the boats carried primarily coal, charcoal, gypsum, and colonial goods. Around 1835, about 80 larger shallow-draft
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
boats were in operation on the Lahn.
Given the increasing ore mining in the Lahn Valley, officials from Nassau and Prussia in 1841 made an inspection trip along the river from Marburg to the Rhine. The Prussians were the driving force behind river expansion projects, seeking to establish a connection between Wetzlar and their Rhine Province
Rhine Province
The Rhine Province , also known as Rhenish Prussia or synonymous to the Rhineland , was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822-1946. It was created from the provinces of the Lower Rhine and Jülich-Cleves-Berg...
and to secure the iron ore supply for the growing industry in the Ruhr Valley. Until 1844, Hesse-Darmstadt
Grand Duchy of Hesse
The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine , or, between 1806 and 1816, Grand Duchy of Hesse —as it was also known after 1816—was a member state of the German Confederation from 1806, when the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt was elevated to a Grand Duchy, until 1918, when all the German...
also joined expansion efforts, while Hesse-Kassel
Hesse-Kassel
The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel or Hesse-Cassel was a state in the Holy Roman Empire under Imperial immediacy that came into existence when the Landgraviate of Hesse was divided in 1567 upon the death of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. His eldest son William IV inherited the northern half and the...
declined participation. The participating governments agreed to make the Lahn passable as far as Gießen for boats that were significantly larger than the existing vehicles on the river. In Prussian territory, the work was largely completed by 1847, including construction of locks in Dorlar, Wetzlar, Wetzlar-Blechwalze, Oberbiel and Niederbiel. In Nassau’s territory, locks were built at Löhnberg, Villmar, and Balduinstein, as well as the greatest technical achievement: the Weilburg ship tunnel. The river bank reinforcement and channel deepening along Nassau’s section of the Lahn, however, was slow. Moreover, when the lock at Limburg fell short of the width contractually agreed upon, Nassau refused an extension. This led to several clashes between Nassau and Prussia in the following years until Nassau had finally fulfilled its obligations in 1855.
Despite the expansion, boats on the Lahn could travel fully loaded only from Gießen to Löhnberg. There, they had to lighten their load in order to reduce their draft and continue the journey. Also, this was only during two to three months. In a further four to five months per year, the load had to be reduced even earlier due to the low water level. The rest of the year the Lahn was not passable. From Wetzlar to Lahnstein, where the freight was unloaded onto the large barges of the Rhine, the boats took three to four days. A trip from Wetzlar to the mouth and then towed back with horses lasted for about 14 days in good conditions. At that time, there were mainly two types of transport boats in use: those with a capacity of 350 hundredweights and a larger variant with a capacity of 1300 hundredweights.
In 1857 to 1863, the Lahn Valley Railway (Lahntalbahn) was built, with nine major bridges and 18 tunnels along the river. Afterward, Prussia and Nassau tried to keep shipping along the Lahn alive through the lowering of tariffs. Ultimately, however, rail gained acceptance as a means of transport and cargo shipping on the Lahn gradually declined. Several projects begun in 1854 to operate steamboats on the Lahn died in their infancy. In 1875, 1885 and 1897 the Prussian government discussed plans for the transformation of the Lahn into a canal, which would allow the passage for larger vessels, but these plans were never implemented. Only in places was the riverbed dredged, such as around 1880 near Runkel, from 1905 to 1907 from the mouth to Bad Ems, and from 1925 to 1928 from the mouth to Steeden.
In 1964, an expansion of the Lahn for 300-ton vessels was completed. In 1981, freight shipping on the Lahn came to an end. Today, the Lahn is used exclusively for recreational boats.
Recent history
In 1960, gravel mining began in the broad plains of the Lahn Valley in Marburg and Giessen. This ended in 1996 and large sections of Lahn Valley in Hesse were set aside as a nature reserveOn February 7, 1984, the Lahn experienced a 100-year flood, which caused millions of German Marks in damage. This has since led to a central flood warning system and coordination of flood control efforts through the regional council of Giessen.
Boating
The Lahn, from a point between Lahnau and Dutenhofen (Wetzlar) to its confluence the Rhine, is designated as a federal waterway. In this area, it is subject to the Water and Shipping Administration of the federal government, with the responsible office being that at Koblenz.The middle and lower section of the Lahn is navigable and has a large number of locks. The waterway is used almost exclusively by smaller motor yachts for tourists, as well as paddled-
Watercraft paddling
Paddling with regard to watercraft is the act of manually propelling or navigating a small boat using a blade that is joined to a shaft, known as paddle, in the water. The paddle is also used to steer the vessel and may either be a single bladed or double bladed...
and rowboats
Watercraft rowing
Watercraft rowing is the act of propelling a boat using the motion of oars in the water. The difference between paddling and rowing is that with rowing the oars have a mechanical connection with the boat whereas with paddling the paddles are hand-held with no mechanical connection.This article...
. For non-motorized watercraft, the Lahn can be used for the entire length between Roth (of Weimar
Weimar (Lahn)
Weimar is a community in the south of Marburg-Biedenkopf district in Gießen administrative region, Hesse, Germany. The community's administrative seat is the centre of Niederweimar.- Geography:...
) and the Rhine.
From the mouth upwards to Dehrn (of Runkel
Runkel
Runkel is a town on the Lahn River in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany.- Location :Runkel lies in the Lahn Valley on both sides of the river between the Westerwald and the Taunus, some eight kilometres east of Limburg....
), Lahn-km 70 (above Limburg), the river is consistently passable for larger vessels, with locks operated by personnel. The Water and Shipping Administration guarantees a minimum water depth of 1.60 m in the navigation channel. There are stream gauge
Stream gauge
A stream gauge, stream gage or gauging station is a location used by hydrologists or environmental scientists to monitor and test terrestrial bodies of water. Hydrometric measurements of water surface elevation and/or volumetric discharge are generally taken and observations of biota may also be...
s at Kalkofen (of Dörnberg
Dörnberg
Dörnberg is a municipality in the district of Rhein-Lahn, in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany....
) (normal water level 1.80 m) and at Leun
Leun
-Location:Leun lies some 10 km west of Wetzlar between the foothills of the northern Taunus and the Westerwald in the Lahn valley, at a height of 150 to 330 m above sea level.-Neighbouring communities:...
. Above Dehrn there are manual locks and frequent shoals, making the passage of boats difficult. Two weirs in Wetzlar are an obstruction to shipping further upriver.
Economy and tourism
Since the late 1980s, there have been increasing attempts to promote the Lahn for ecotourism and to coordinate and expand the existing uses. There were first tourism associations at the state level, and these have now joined together into the Lahntal Tourist Association.The Lahntal bike path leads through the Lahn Valley, along the Lahn Holiday Road. It is accessible from the Upper Lahn Valley Railway between Feudingen and Marburg, the Main-Weser Railway
Main-Weser Railway
The Main-Weser Railway is the railway line in central Germany that runs from Frankfurt am Main via Gießen to Kassel and named after the railway company that built the line and also operated it until 1880. It was opened between 1849 and 1852 and was one of the first railways in Germany.- Route...
between Marburg and Giessen, as well as the Lahn Valley Railway between Giessen and Friedrichssegen. For walkers there is the Lahnhöhenwege along both sides of the Lahn from Wetzlar to Oberlahnstein. The first partial section of a pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
route, the Lahn-Camino on the left side of the Lahn, leads from Wetzlar Cathedral to Lahnstein via Castle Lahneck and the Hospital Chapel.
There are 19 hydroelectric plants using the Lahn to generate electricity. Wine is producted in Obernhof and Weinähr. The wines of the Lahn region are marketed under the trade name Lahntal as Middle Rhine wines.
Fauna und Flora
In 1999, the Lahn was classified as Biological Grade II and Chemical Grade I. Overall it is considered natural. The migrations of fish such as salmon are hindered by the river’s weirs and water levels, but attempts have been made through the installation of fish ladders to reintroduce formerly native fish. After the end of gravel mining in mid-1990s, the river between Lahnau, Heuchelheim, and Dutenhofen (of Wetzlar) in the middle Lahn Valley has developed into one of the largest nature reserves in Hesse, known as the Lahnau Nature Preserve.Tributaries
The two most important tributaries of the Lahn, and those with the largest catchment inflows, are the OhmOhm River
The Ohm, the right tributary of the Lahn, is a river in Hesse, Germany, Its total length is 59 km. The Ohm originates in the Vogelsberg Mountains, east of the town Ulrichstein. It flows generally northwest through Ulrichstein, Mücke, Homberg , Amöneburg, and Kirchhain. The Ohm joins the Lahn...
and the Dill. The Dill originates in the southwestern foothills of the Rothaargebirge
Rothaargebirge
The Rothaargebirge is a low mountain range reaching heights of up to 843.1 m in North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse, Germany....
(the Haincher Höhe) and enters the Lahn from the right. The Ohm flows from the Vogelsberg
Vogelsberg
Vogelsberg is a municipality in the Sömmerda district of Thuringia, Germany....
and enters from the left. It is notable that not only is the Ohm at the point of its confluence with the Lahn only 1 km shorter from its source than the Lahn itself, but the Ohm’s catchment area (984 km2) is significantly larger than that of the Lahn above the confluence (652 km2, or only 452 km2 before the inflow of the Wetschaft only 2 km upstream).
Between the Lahn’s source area in the Rothaargebirge and Gießen
Gießen
Gießen, also spelt Giessen is a town in the German federal state of Hesse, capital of both the district of Gießen and the administrative region of Gießen...
, all of the left tributaries are from the less mountainous parts of the West Hessian Bergland. After the turn towards the west or southwest near Gießen, all the left tributaries flow from the Hochtaunus. The right tributaries between the source area and the confluence of the Dill near Wetzlar come from the Gladenbach Bergland, while downstream they originate in the (High) Westerwald. Much of the Westerwald, in contrast, has no significant watershed, so the streams are almost random in finding their direction.
Because the highest point of the Westerwald is near the Sieg
Sieg
The Sieg is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany named after the Sigambrer. It is a right tributary of the Rhine and 153 kilometres in length....
, and especially because the Taunus is very close to the Main, both Mittelgebirge
Mittelgebirge
A Mittelgebirge is a relatively low mountain range, a typical geographical feature of Central Europe, especially Central and Southern Germany; it refers to something between hill country and a proper mountain range...
are each considerably more than half drained by the Lahn. Especially the left tributaries from the Taunus flow with a strong south-north orientation. The river Emsbach
Emsbach
Emsbach is a river of Hesse, Germany....
runs through the Idstein Basin, which divides the (Hinter-) Taunus into two parts, while the Aar is central for the (Western and Eastern) Aartaunus.
Table of important tributaries of the Lahn
| Name |
Position |
Length [km] |
Drainage basin Drainage basin A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean... area [km2] |
Confluence [by Lahn-km] |
Mouth elevation [m above MSL Above mean sea level The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach... ] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feudinge (Rüppersbach) | left | 6.3 | 21.2 | 9.8 | 388 |
| Ilse Ilse (Lahn) Ilse is a river of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.... |
right | 8.4 | 11.8 | 10.5 | 382 |
| Banfe | right | 11.5 | 38.9 | 18.5 | 326 |
| Laasphe | left | 8.3 | 19.6 | 19.4 | 324 |
| Perf Perf -See also:*List of rivers of Hesse... |
right | 20.0 | 113.1 | 24.7 | 285 |
| Dautphe | left | 8.8 | 41.8 | 37.5 | 245 |
| Wetschaft Wetschaft Wetschaft is a river of Hesse, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse... |
left | 29.0 | 196.2 | 56.3 | 192 |
| Ohm Ohm River The Ohm, the right tributary of the Lahn, is a river in Hesse, Germany, Its total length is 59 km. The Ohm originates in the Vogelsberg Mountains, east of the town Ulrichstein. It flows generally northwest through Ulrichstein, Mücke, Homberg , Amöneburg, and Kirchhain. The Ohm joins the Lahn... |
left | 59.7 | 983.8 | 58.7 | 188 |
| Allna | right | 19.1 | 92.0 | 77.1 | 172 |
| Zwester Ohm Zwester Ohm Zwester Ohm is a river of Hesse, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse... |
left | 20.0 | 69.5 | 84.0 | 165 |
| Salzböde Salzböde Salzböde is a river of Hesse, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse... |
right | 27.6 | 137.8 | 87.4 | 164 |
| Lumda | left | 30.0 | 131.5 | 93.6 | 160 |
| Wieseck | left | 24.3 | 119.6 | 102.2 | 155 |
| Bieber | right | 13.6 | 34.7 | 105.1 | 151 |
| Kleebach | left | 26.9 | 164.6 | 106.2 | 150 |
| Wetzbach | left | 11.7 | 32.9 | 119.6 | 147 |
| Dill | right | 55.0 | 717.7 | 120.4 | 147 |
| Solmsbach Solmsbach Solmsbach is a river of Hesse, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse... |
left | 24.6 | 112.5 | 128.1 | 141 |
| Iserbach (Möttbach) | left | 19.2 | 31.2 | 131.4 | 139 |
| Ulmbach Ulmbach (Lahn) Ulmbach is a river of Hesse, Germany.... |
right | 22.9 | 60.9 | 138.2 | 135 |
| Kallenbach | right | 14.6 | 84.7 | 141.3 | 132 |
| Weil Weil River The Weil is small 50 km long river in Hesse, Germany. It is a left tributary to the Lahn river and the city of Weilburg is located next to its mouth. The river flows exclusively through the Taunus mountain range with its source being located between the Kleiner Feldberg and Großer Feldberg... |
left | 46.6 | 247.9 | 149.4 | 130 |
| Kerkerbach Kerkerbach Kerkerbach is a river of Hesse, Germany.... |
right | 20.7 | 70.2 | 176.0 | 112 |
| Emsbach Emsbach Emsbach is a river of Hesse, Germany.... |
left | 39.1 | 321.8 | 181.0 | 110 |
| Elbbach Elbbach (Lahn) Elbbach is a river of Hesse, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Hesse... |
right | 40.7 | 323.7 | 109 | |
| Aar Aar (Lahn) The Aar is a river in western Germany, left tributary of the Lahn. It rises in the Taunus mountains, near Taunusstein. It flows generally north through the towns Taunusstein, Bad Schwalbach, Aarbergen and Hahnstätten... |
left | 49.7 | 312.6 | 103 | |
| Dörsbach | left | 32.0 | 114.0 | 94 | |
| Gelbach (Aubach) | right | 39.7 | 221.2 | 93 | |
| Mühlbach | left | 32.1 | 171.9 | 85 | |
| Emsbach | right | 11.5 | 29.4 | 75 |
List of all tributaries of the Lahn
A list of all the tributaries of the Lahn, including their position relative to the main river (l = left; r = right) and length in kilometers, are listed in downstream order as follows:Source to Marburg:
|
Marburg to Wetzlar:
|
Wetzlar to Limburg:
|
Limburg to Lahnstein:
|
KreisDistricts of GermanyThe districts of Germany are known as , except in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein where they are known simply as ....
Siegen-WittgensteinSiegen-WittgensteinSiegen-Wittgenstein is a Kreis in the southeast of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Olpe, Hochsauerlandkreis, Waldeck-Frankenberg, Marburg-Biedenkopf, Lahn-Dill, Westerwaldkreis, Altenkirchen.-History:...
, North Rhine-WestphaliaNorth Rhine-WestphaliaNorth Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
- NetphenNetphenNetphen is a town in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It lies on the river Sieg, roughly 7 km northeast of Siegen.-Location:...
- Bad LaaspheBad LaaspheBad Laasphe is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district.-Location:The town of Bad Laasphe lies in the upper Lahn Valley, near the stately home of Wittgenstein Castle in the former Wittgenstein district...
Landkreis Marburg-BiedenkopfMarburg-BiedenkopfMarburg-Biedenkopf is a Kreis in the west of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Waldeck-Frankenberg, Schwalm-Eder, Vogelsbergkreis, Gießen, Lahn-Dill, Siegen-Wittgenstein.- History :...
, HesseHesseHesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
- BiedenkopfBiedenkopfBiedenkopf is a spa town in western Hessen, Germany with a population of 13,271.- Location :The town of Biedenkopf lies in the west of Marburg-Biedenkopf district. Ringed by mountains reaching up to 674 m above sea level – the Sackpfeife in the Rothaargebirge reaches this height – the town...
- DautphetalDautphetalDautphetal is a community in Hesse, Germany, and is among the six larger communities of the 22 in Marburg-Biedenkopf district.-Geography:The community lies in the western part of the district about 37 km east of Siegen and about 15 km west of Marburg in the upper Lahn valley. It is...
- LahntalLahntalThe community of Lahntal is found in the Marburg-Biedenkopf district in northwest Middle Hesse, Germany.-Geography:Lahntal lies on the upper Lahn about 83 km north of Frankfurt am Main and about 7 km northwest of Marburg...
- CölbeCölbeCölbe is a community in Marburg-Biedenkopf district in Hesse, Germany.- Location :Cölbe's municipal area lies on the southern edge of the Burgwald, a low mountain range and part of the Hessisches Bergland , and borders directly on the university city of Marburg to the south...
- MarburgMarburgMarburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
- WeimarWeimar (Lahn)Weimar is a community in the south of Marburg-Biedenkopf district in Gießen administrative region, Hesse, Germany. The community's administrative seat is the centre of Niederweimar.- Geography:...
- FronhausenFronhausenFronhausen is a community in the south of Marburg-Biedenkopf district in the administrative region of Gießen in Hessen, Germany.The municipal area stretches along the district's southern boundary in the Lahn valley and its environs between Marburg and Gießen, and borders in the north on the...
Landkreis GießenGießen (district)Gießen is a Kreis in the middle of Hessen, Germany. Neighboring districts are Marburg-Biedenkopf, Vogelsbergkreis, Wetteraukreis, Lahn-Dill.-History:...
, Hesse
- LollarLollarLollar is a town in the district of Gießen, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated on the river Lahn, 7 km north of Gießen. The biggest production site of is located in Lollar....
- WettenbergWettenbergWettenberg is a municipality in the district of Gießen, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated 5 km northwest of Gießen....
- GießenGießenGießen, also spelt Giessen is a town in the German federal state of Hesse, capital of both the district of Gießen and the administrative region of Gießen...
- HeuchelheimHeuchelheimHeuchelheim is a municipality in the district of Gießen, in Hesse, Germany. Since April 1, 1967 it includes the district Kinzenbach. The approximately 8,000 residents spread across two districts Heuchelheim and Kinzenbach .- History :Until 1967 the indepent villages of Heucheleim and Kinzenbach...
| width = "500" valign=top |
Landkreis Limburg-WeilburgLimburg-WeilburgLimburg-Weilburg is a Kreis in the west of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Lahn-Dill, Hochtaunuskreis, Rheingau-Taunus, Rhein-Lahn, Westerwaldkreis.-History:...
, Hesse
- LöhnbergLöhnbergLöhnberg is a community north of Weilburg in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany.- Neighbouring communities :Löhnberg borders in the north on the community of Greifenstein, in the east on the towns of Leun and Braunfels , in the south on the town of Weilburg, and in the west on the...
- WeilburgWeilburgWeilburg is, with just under 14,000 inhabitants, the third biggest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, after Limburg an der Lahn and Bad Camberg.- Location :...
- WeinbachWeinbach- Location :Weinbach lies on the Lahn and the Weil between Wetzlar and Limburg an der Lahn.- Neighbouring communities :Weinbach borders in the north on the town of Weilburg, in the east on the community of Weilmünster, and in the west on the community of Villmar and the town of Runkel .-...
- RunkelRunkelRunkel is a town on the Lahn River in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany.- Location :Runkel lies in the Lahn Valley on both sides of the river between the Westerwald and the Taunus, some eight kilometres east of Limburg....
- Limburg an der LahnLimburg an der LahnLimburg an der Lahn is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.-Location:Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn....
Rhein-Lahn-KreisRhein-Lahn-KreisRhein-Lahn is a district in the east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Westerwaldkreis, Limburg-Weilburg, Rheingau-Taunus, Mainz-Bingen, Rhein-Hunsrück, Mayen-Koblenz, and the district-free city Koblenz.-History:With the Congress of Vienna the area was added to the duchy...
, Rhineland-PalatinateRhineland-PalatinateRhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
VerbandsgemeindenVerbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde is an administrative unit in the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.-Rhineland-Palatinate:...
:
- DiezDiez (Verbandsgemeinde)Diez is a Verbandsgemeinde in the Rhein-Lahn-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat is in Diez.The Verbandsgemeinde Diez consists of the following Ortsgemeinden :...
- NassauNassau (Verbandsgemeinde)Nassau is a Verbandsgemeinde in the Rhein-Lahn-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat is in Nassau.The Verbandsgemeinde Nassau consists of the following Ortsgemeinden :...
- Bad EmsBad Ems (Verbandsgemeinde)Bad Ems is a Verbandsgemeinde in the Rhein-Lahn-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat is in Bad Ems.The Verbandsgemeinde Bad Ems consists of the following Ortsgemeinden :# Arzbach...
- LahnsteinLahnsteinLahnstein is a verband-free town of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated at the confluence of the Lahn River with the Rhine, approximately south of Koblenz...
(Verband-free town)
|}
Sources
in: , pp. 1–17.- Landesamt für Umwelt, Wasserwirtschaft und Gewerbeaufsicht (National Office for the Environment, Water Management and Labor) (ed.): Hydrologischer Atlas Rheinland-Pfalz (Hydrological Atlas of Rhineland-Palatinate). Mainz, November 2005.
- Lahn River entry at the Encyclopedia Britannica