Rhine River

The Rhine River is 765 miles long, making it the second-longest river in Central and Western Europe (following the Danube River). The Rhine River flows through Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Since the time of the Roman Empire, the Rhine River has been used as an important transport route in Europe to bring trade and goods inland.


The Rhine River is also a cultural icon for Germany. It was an important symbol in German nationalism in the 19th century. The German composer, Richard Wagner, used the Rhine as the setting for Das Rheingold, the first opera of his infamous three-part epic, Der Ring des Nibelungen (you might be familiar with a song from this epic-opera, ?Ride of the Valkyries?). In Wagner?s opera, the Rhine River is where the rheinmaidens protect their hoard of gold.