| Lower Rhine (Niederrhein) | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Lower Rhine atDüsseldorf | |
 Sections of the Rhine: Lower Rhine | |
| Location | |
| Country | Germany |
| States | North Rhine-Westphalia |
| Districts | Bonn,Cologne,Duisburg,Düsseldorf,Kleve,Krefeld,Leverkusen,Mettmann,Rhein-Erft,Rhein-Kreis Neuss,Rhein-Lahn,Rhein-Sieg,Wesel |
| Country | The Netherlands |
| Provinces | Gelderland,South Holland,Utrecht |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | BetweenBad Godesberg andBonn-Oberkassel, continuation of theMiddle Rhine |
| • coordinates | 50°42′20″N7°9′46.2″E / 50.70556°N 7.162833°E /50.70556; 7.162833 |
| • elevation | 61 m |
| Mouth | |
• location | Hook of Holland,North Sea |
• coordinates | 51°58′53.3″N4°4′50.99″E / 51.981472°N 4.0808306°E /51.981472; 4.0808306 |
• elevation | 0 m |
| Length | 373 km (232 mi), 205.5 km (127.7 mi) without theNederrijn |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Erft,Kalflack,Meuse |
| • right | Düssel,Emscher,Lippe,Ruhr,Sieg,Wupper |
Lower Rhine (German:Niederrhein,pronounced[ˈniːdɐˌʁaɪn]ⓘ; kilometres[a] 660 to 1,033 of theRhine)[2] is the section of the Rhine betweenBonn inGermany and theNorth Sea atHook of Holland in theNetherlands, including theNederrijn (English:Nether Rhine) within theRhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta; alternatively,Lower Rhine may also refer to just the part upstream ofPannerdens Kop (km 660–865.5),[2] excluding theNederrijn.[3][4]
It is the last of the four sections of the Rhine betweenLake Constance and the North Sea (the others being theHigh Rhine,Upper Rhine andMiddle Rhine).
Downstream of Bonn, the rivermeanders through theLower Rhine Bay (Niederrheinische Bucht), passing through the city ofCologne (Köln), and continues through theLower Rhine Plain (Niederrheinisches Tiefland). The German termNiederrhein refers both to the German section of the Lower Rhine as well as to parts of the surroundingLower Rhine region.
Almost immediately after entering the Netherlands, the Rhine splits into numerous branches. The main branch is called theWaal which flows fromNijmegen to meet theMeuse; after which it is calledMerwede. NearRotterdam the river is known asNieuwe Maas, and becomes theNieuwe Waterweg flowing into the North Sea at Hook of Holland.
The downstream Lower Rhine is a low-lying land. Up to the beginning ofindustrialization roughly one fifth of the land area could only be used as pasture: an endless meadow, which could not be farmed because of flooding and a high ground-water level. However, the remaining soils of the Lower Rhine were always very fertile. That can also be seen in the farmsteads. The houses are relatively large, with the intention of accommodating a plentiful harvest and many cattle. The Nederrijn refers to the more northern former main branch of the Rhine, which flows pastArnhem; splits off theIJssel which flows into theIJsselmeer and then splits into theLek and theKromme Rijn atWijk bij Duurstede. The Lek flows into the Merwede. The Kromme Rijn continues pastUtrecht, becomes theLeidse Rijn, thenOude Rijn and flows into the North Sea atKatwijk.
There are other minor branches such as theVecht,Hollandse IJssel and theNoord.