Ludwig Hans Fischer Fischerboote am Donaukanal Wien 1855

The Donaukanal ("Danube Canal") is a former arm of the river

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

, now regulated as a water channel (since 1598), within the city of

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. It is long and, unlike the Danube itself, it borders Vienna's city centre,

Innere Stadt The Innere Stadt (; Central Bavarian: ''Innare Stod'') is the 1st municipal Districts of Vienna, district of Vienna () located in the center of the Austrian capital. The Innere Stadt is the old town of Vienna. Until the city boundaries were expa ...

, where the

Wien River The Wien is a river that flows through Austria's capital Vienna. Geography The river Wien is long, of which are within the city. Its drainage basin covers an area of , both in the city and in the neighbouring Vienna Woods. Its source lies in ...

(''Wienfluss'') flows into it."Donaukanal", aeiou Encyclopedia (see below: External links). The Donaukanal bifurcates from the main river at the Nußdorf weir and lock complex, in

Döbling Döbling () is the 19th District A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, seve ...

, and joins it again just upstream of the "Praterspitz", at the

Prater The Prater () is a large public park in Leopoldstadt, Vienna, Austria. The Wurstelprater, an amusement park that is often simply called "Prater", lies in one corner of the Wiener Prater and includes the Wiener Riesenrad Ferris wheel. Name The n ...

park in

Simmering Simmering is a food preparation technique by which foods are cooked in hot liquids kept just below the boiling point of water (lower than ) and above poaching temperature (higher than ). To create a steady simmer, a liquid is brought to a boil, ...

. The island thus formed between the Donaukanal and the Danube holds two of the 23

districts of Vienna The districts of Vienna (German: ''Wiener Gemeindebezirke'') are the 23 named city sections of Vienna, Austria, which are numbered for easy reference. They were created from 1850 onwards, when the city area was enlarged by the inclusion of surround ...

Brigittenau Brigittenau () is the 20th district of Vienna (german: 20. Bezirk, Brigittenau). It is located north of the central districts, north of Leopoldstadt on the same island area between the Danube and the Danube Canal. Brigittenau is a heavily popula ...

(20th District) and

Leopoldstadt Leopoldstadt (; bar, Leopoidstod, "Leopold-Town") is the 2nd municipal district of Vienna (german: 2. Bezirk) in Austria. there are 103,233 inhabitants over . It is situated in the heart of the city and, together with Brigittenau (20th distr ...

(2nd District). The canal is crossed by fifteen road bridges and five rail bridges. Because in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, the name ''Kanal'', which has been used since about 1700, evokes associations of an open sewer, attempts at renaming the Donaukanal have been made (one suggestion was ''Kleine Donau''—''Little Danube'') but have not met with success.

History

The name ''"Donaukanal"'' ("Danube Canal"), has been used since 1686, for the southern branch of the River Danube in Vienna. Originally a natural branch, during 1598–1600, it was regulated for the first time by Baron von Hoyos. In the 19th century, the

Schwimmtor The Schwimmtor (''Floating gate''), also known as the Sperrschiff (''Blocking ship''), was a floating barrier designed to protect the areas along the Donaukanal in Vienna from flooding and ice. It was built by Wilhelm von Engerth, entered service on ...

, a movable floating barrier, was constructed near the upstream entrance to the canal. It was designed to protect the canal from floods and drift ice, and entered service in 1873. The Nußdorf weir and lock complex were constructed between 1894 and 1899, and provide a greater degree of flood control than the Schwimmtor. However the Schwimmtor remained in use until

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and was not scrapped until 1945.

Usage

In the early 1990s, work started in the southern section of the Donaukanal (between the 2nd and 3rd

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

) to create a recreation area along its banks. The paths on both sides of the Donaukanal are regularly used by

jogger Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...

cyclist Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

s and

skaters Skater may refer to: Sports *Someone who practices skateboarding *Someone who practices roller skating *Someone who practices inline skating * Someone who practices ice skating *An ice hockey player who is not a goaltender *Skater (subculture), ...

. Recently, there have been successful attempts during the summer months at turning the place into a more attractive

recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasur ...

al area (summer stages,

flea market A flea market (or swap meet) is a type of street market that provides space for vendors to sell previously-owned (second-hand) goods. This type of market is often seasonal. However, in recent years there has been the development of 'formal' ...

s, cafés, etc.). Boat rides circling Leopoldstadt and Brigittenau via the Donaukanal and Danube start at

Schwedenplatz Schwedenplatz (German for ''Sweden Square'') is a square in central Vienna, Austria. The Schwedenplatz station of the Vienna U-Bahn The Vienna U-Bahn (german: U-Bahn Wien), where ''U-Bahn'' is an abbreviation of the German term ''Untergrundba ...

, close to the city centre. The same location provides the Vienna terminal of the

Twin City Liner The catamaran Twin City Liner has been a link on the Danube river between the two capitals, Vienna, Austria and Bratislava, Slovakia since 1 June 2006. The path between the two European capitals takes approximately 75 minutes. History The fir ...

fast ferry service that links Vienna with

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

, transiting the Donaukanal to reach the Danube. The

Donaukanaltreiben Festival Donaukanaltreiben Festival in Vienna, Austria is one of the cultural festivals in Europe. It is held every year in June in several locations along the Donaukanal, in Vienna. Mainly Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austr ...

is held every year in June in several locations along the Donaukanal. Mainly Austrian professional and amateur bands are invited but from year to year the organisers invite bands from the neighbouring countries.

Cultural influences

The banks of the Donaukanal were immortalized by

Heinz Conrads Heinz Conrads (December 21, 1913 – April 9, 1986) was an Austrian actor, radio and television host, and Wienerlied performer. He appeared in more than thirty films during his career including the 1947 historical ''It's Only Love''. Selected film ...

in his song "A schräge Wiesn" ("A Sloping Lawn"; later

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Willi Resetarits Wilhelm Resetarits (21 December 1948 – 24 April 2022),Rainhard Fendrich Rainhard Jürgen Fendrich (born 27 February 1955) is an Austrian singer, composer, entertainer, and actor. He is one of the most successful Austropop musicians, and his songs are written in Viennese German. He is very popular in Austria, but less ...

), where the hero, Franz, chooses not to go on holiday. Instead, he spends his spare time napping on the grassy slopes next to the Donaukanal.

References

External links

*
"Donaukanal"
at the ''

aeiou Encyclopedia Austria-Forum is a freely accessible online collection of reference works in both German language, German and English language, English about Austria-related topics. Background The predecessor of Austria-Forum, the AEIOU project was launched in ...

'' {{Authority control Danube Tributaries of the Danube Tourist attractions in Vienna Rivers of Vienna Döbling Brigittenau Leopoldstadt Innere Stadt Landstraße Simmering (Vienna) Rivers of Austria