Online Encyclopedia

Search over 40,000 articles from the original, classic Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition.

RHINE PROVINCE, or RHINELAND

Online Encyclopedia
Originally appearing in Volume V23, Page 243 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
» Make a correction to this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Spread the word: del.icio.us del.icio.us it!

See also:

RHINE See also:PROVINCE, or RHINELAND , the most See also:westerly province of the See also:kingdom of See also:Prussia, bounded on the N. by See also:Holland, on the E. by the Prussian provinces of See also:Westphalia and See also:Hesse-See also:Nassau, and the See also:grand duchy of Hesse-See also:Darmstadt, on the S.E. by the Bavarian See also:Palatinate, on the S. and S.W. by See also:Lorraine, and on the W. by See also:Luxemburg, See also:Belgium and Holland. The small See also:district of See also:Wetzlar in the midst of the province of Hesse also belongs to the Rhine Province, which, on the other See also:hand, surrounds the See also:Oldenburg principality of See also:Birkenfeld. The extent of the province is 10,423 sq. m.; its extreme length, from See also:north to See also:south, is nearly 200 m., and its greatest breadth is just under 90 m. It includes about 200 m. of the course of the Rhine, which forms the eastern frontier of the province from See also:Bingen to See also:Coblenz, and then flows through it in a north-westerly direction. ' The See also:southern and larger See also:part of the Rhine province, belonging geologically to the Devonian formations of the See also:lower Rhine, is hilly. On the See also:left See also:bank are the elevated plateaus of the Hunsruck and the See also:Eifel, separated from each other by the deep valley of the See also:Mosel, while on the right bank are the spurs of the Westerwald and the See also:Sauerland, the former reaching the See also:river in the picturesque See also:group known as the Seven Mountains (See also:Siebengebirge). The highest See also:hill in the province is the Walderbeskopf (2670 ft.) in the Hochwald, and there are several other summits above 2000 ft. on the left bank, while on the right there are few which attain a height of 1600 ft. Most of the hills are covered with trees, but the Eifel (q.v.) is a barren and See also:bleak See also:plateau. To the north of a See also:line See also:drawn from See also:Aix-la-Chapelle to See also:Bonn the province is See also:flat, and marshy districts occur near the Dutch frontier. The See also:climate varies considerably with the configuration of the See also:surface. That of the See also:northern lowlands and of the sheltered valleys is the mildest and most equable in Prussia, with a mean See also:annual temperature of 50° Fahr., while on the hills of the Eifel the mean does not exceed 44 The annual rainfall varies in the different districts from 18 ; to 32 inches. Almost the whole province belongs to the See also:basin of the Rhine, but a small district in the north-See also:west is drained by affluents of the See also:Meuse.

Of the numerous tributaries which join the Rhine within the province, the most important are the See also:

Nahe, the Mosel and the See also:Ahr on the left bank, and the Sieg, the See also:Wupper, the See also:Ruhr and the See also:Lippe on the right. The only See also:lake of any See also:size is the Laacher See, the largest of the maare " or See also:extinct See also:crater lakes of the Eifel. Of the See also:total See also:area of the Rhine province about 45% is occupied by arable See also:land, 16% by meadows and pastures, and 31% by forests. Little except oats and potatoes can be raised on the high-lying plateaus in the south of the province, but the river-valleys and the northern lowlands are extremely fertile. The See also:great bulk of the See also:soil is in the hands of small proprietors, and this is alleged to have had the effect of somewhat retarding the progress of scientific See also:agriculture. The usual cereal crops are, however, all grown with success, and See also:tobacco, hops, See also:flax, See also:rape, See also:hemp and beetroot (for See also:sugar) are cultivated for commercial purposes. Large quantities of See also:fruit are also produced. The See also:vine-culture occupies a space of about 30,000 acres, about See also:half of which are in the valley of the Mosel, a third in that of the Rhine itself, and the See also:rest mainly on the Nahe • and the Ahr. The choicest varieties of Rhine See also:wine, however, such as Johannisberger and Steinberger, are produced higher up the river, beyond the limits of the Rhine province. t In the hilly districts more than half the surface is sometimes occupied by forests, and large plantations of See also:oak are formed for the use of the bark in tanning. Considerable herds of See also:cattle are reared on the See also:rich pastures of the lower Rhine, but the number of See also:sheep in the province is comparatively small, and is, indeed, not greatly in excess of that of the goats. The wooded hills are well stocked with See also:deer, and a stray See also:wolf occasionally finds its way from the forests of the See also:Ardennes into those of the Hunsruck. The See also:salmon See also:fishery of the Rhine is very productive, and See also:trout abound in the See also:mountain streams.

The great See also:

mineral See also:wealth of the Rhine province probably furnishes its most substantial claim to the See also:title of the " richest See also:jewel in the See also:crown of Prussia." Besides parts of the carboniferous See also:measures of the See also:Saar and the Ruhr, it also contains important deposits of See also:coal near Aix-la-Chapelle. See also:Iron ore is found in abundance near Coblenz, the Bleiberg in the Eifel possesses an apparently inexhaustible See also:supply of See also:lead, and See also:zinc is found near See also:Cologne and Aix-la-Chapelle. The mineral See also:pro-ducts of the district also include See also:lignite, See also:copper, See also:manganese, See also:vitriol, See also:lime, See also:gypsum, volcanic stones (used for millstones) and slates. By far the most important See also:item is coal. Of the numerous mineral springs the best known are those of Aix-la-Chapelle and See also:Kreuznach. The mineral resources of the Prussian Rhine province, coupled with its favourable situation and the facilities of transit afforded by its great waterway, have made it the most important manufacturing district in See also:Germany. The See also:industry is mainly concentrated See also:round two See also:chief centres, Aix-la-Chapelle and See also:Dusseldorf (with the valley of the Wupper), while there are naturally few manufactures in the hilly districts of the south or the marshy flats of the north. The largest iron and See also:steel See also:works are at See also:Essen, See also:Oberhausen, See also:Duisburg, Dusseldorf and Cologne, while See also:cutlery and other small metallic wares are extensively made at See also:Solingen, See also:Remscheid and Aix-la-Chapelle. The See also:cloth of Aix-la-Chapelle and the See also:silk of See also:Crefeld See also:form important articles of export. The chief See also:industries of See also:Elberfeld-See also:Barmen and the valley of the Wupper are See also:cotton-See also:weaving, See also:calico-See also:printing and the manufacture of See also:turkey red and other dyes. See also:Linen is largely made at See also:Gladbach, See also:leather at See also:Malmedy, See also:glass in the Saar district and beetroot sugar near Cologne. Though the Rhineland is See also:par excellence the See also:country of the vine, See also:beer is largely produced; distilleries are also numerous, and large quantities of sparkling Moselle are made at Coblenz, chiefly for exportation to See also:England.

See also:

Commerce is greatly aided by the navigable See also:rivers, a very extensive network of See also:rail-ways, and the excellent roads constructed during the See also:French regime. The imports consist mainly of raw material for working up in the factories of the district, while the See also:principal exports are coal, fruit, wine, dyes, cloth, silk and other manufactured articles of various descriptions. The See also:population of the Rhine province in 1905 was 6,435,778, including 4,472,058 See also:Roman Catholics, 1,877,582 Protestants and 55,408 See also:Jews. The Roman Catholics See also:muster strongest on the left bank, while on the right bank about half the population is See also:Protestant. The great bulk of the population is of See also:Teutonic stock, and about a See also:quarter of a million are of Flemish See also:blood. On the north-west frontier reside about ro,000 See also:Walloons, who speak French or Walloon as their native See also:tongue. The Rhine province is the most thickly populated part of Prussia, the See also:general See also:average being 617 persons per sq. m. The province contains a greater number of large towns than any other province in Prussia. Upwards of half the population are sup-ported by See also:industrial and commercial pursuits, and barely a quarter by agriculture. There is a university at Bonn, and elementary See also:education is especially successful. For purposes of See also:administration the province is divided into the five districts of Coblenz, Dusseldorf, Cologne, Aix-la-Chapelle and See also:Trier. Coblenz is the See also:official See also:capital, though Cologne is the largest and most important See also:town.

Being a frontier province the Rhine-land is strongly garrisoned, and the Rhine is guarded by the three strong fortresses., of Cologne with See also:

Deutz, Coblenz with See also:Ehrenbreitstein, and See also:Wesel. The province sends 35 members to the See also:German Reichstag and 62 to the Prussian See also:house of representatives. See also:History.—The See also:present Prussian Rhine province was formed in 1815 out of the duchies of See also:Cleves, See also:Berg, See also:Gelderland and Jiilich,243 the ecclesiastical principalities of Trier and Cologne, the See also:free cities of Aix-la-Chapelle and Cologne, and nearly a See also:hundred small See also:lord-See also:ships and abbeys. At the earliest See also:historical See also:period we find the territories between the Ardennes and the Rhine occupied by the Treviri, the Eburones and other See also:Celtic tribes, who, however, were all more or less modified and influenced by their Teutonic neighbours. On the right bank of the Rhine, between the See also:Main and the See also:Lahn, were the settlements of the Mattiaci, a See also:branch of the Germanic See also:Chatti, while farther to the north were the Usipetes and Tencteri. See also:Julius See also:Caesar conquered the tribes on the left bank, and See also:Augustus established numerous fortified posts on the Rhine, but the See also:Romans never succeeded in gaining a See also:firm footing on the right bank. As the See also:power of the Roman See also:empire declined the See also:Franks pushed forward along both See also:banks of the Rhine, and by the end of the 5th See also:century had regained all the lands that had formerly been under Teutonic See also:influence. The German conquerors of the Rhenish districts were singularly little affected by the culture of the provincials they subdued, and all traces of Roman See also:civilization were submerged in a new See also:flood of paganism. By the 8th century the Frankish dominion was firmly established in central Germany and northern See also:Gaul. On the See also:division of the Carolingian See also:realm the part of the province to the See also:east of the river See also:fell to the See also:share of Germany, while that to the west remained with the evanescent kingdom of Lotharingia. By the See also:time of See also:Otto I. (d.

973) both banks of the Rhine had become German, and the Rhenish territory was divided between the duchies of Upper and Lower Lorraine, the one on the Mosel and the other on the Meuse. Subsequently, as the central power of the German See also:

sovereign became weakened, the Rhineland followed the .general tendency and split up into numerous small See also:independent principalities, each with its See also:separate vicissitudes and See also:special See also:chronicles. The old Lotharingian divisions passed wholly out of use, and the name of Lorraine became restricted to the district that still bears it. In spite of its dismembered See also:condition, and the sufferings it underwent at the hands of its French neighbours in various periods of warfare, the Rhenish territory prospered greatly and stood in the foremost See also:rank of German culture and progress. Aix-la-Chapelle was fixed upon as the See also:place of See also:coronation of the German emperors, and the ecclesiastical principalities of the Rhine bulk largely in German history. Prussia first set See also:foot on the Rhine in 16o9 by the See also:joint occupation of Cleves; and about a century later Upper Gelderland and Mors also became Prussian. At the See also:peace of See also:Basel in 1795 the whole of the left bank of the Rhine was resigned to See also:France, and in 18o6 the Rhenish princes all joined the See also:Confederation of the Rhine. The See also:congress of See also:Vienna assigned the whole of the lower Rhenish districts to Prussia, which had the tact to leave them in undisturbed See also:possession of the liberal institutions they had become accustomed to under the republican See also:rule of the French.

End of Article: RHINE PROVINCE, or RHINELAND

Additional information and Comments

There are no comments yet for this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Please link directly to this article:
Highlight the code below, right click, and select "copy." Then paste it into your website, email, or other HTML.
Site content, images, and layout Copyright © 2006 - Net Industries, worldwide.
Do not copy, download, transfer, or otherwise replicate the site content in whole or in part.

Links to articles and home page are always encouraged.

[back]
RHINE (Lat. Rhenus, Ger. Rhein, Fr. Rhin, Dutch Rhy... 		[next]
RHINOCEROS

Site © 2006 - Net Industries