Albert Canal

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Albert Canal

The Albert Canal () is a canal

Canal

Canals are artificial channels for water. There are two types of canals: Aqueduct canals, which are used for the conveyance and delivery of water, and waterways, which are navigable transportation canals used for passage of goods and people, often connected to existing lakes, rivers, or oceans....
located in northeastern Belgium

Belgium

* A small German-speaking Community of Belgium exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the history of Belgium and a complex Communities and regions of Belgium....
, named after King Albert I of Belgium

Albert I of Belgium

Albert I was the third King of the Belgians from 1909 until 1934....
. It connects the major cities Antwerp

Antwerp

||-||-||-||}Antwerp is a city and municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Antwerp in Flanders, one of Belgium's three regions....
and Liège

Liège (city)

Li?ge is a major Walloon Region city and Municipalities in Belgium in Belgium located in the Provinces of Belgium of Li?ge , of which it is the administrative capital....
and the Meuse

Meuse River

File:01-Namur-290305 JPG.jpgThe Meuse , is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea....
and Scheldt

Scheldt

The Scheldt is a 350 km long river in northern France, western Belgium and the southwestern part of the Netherlands. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to Old English sceald "shallow", English language shoal, Low German schol, Frisian languages skol, and Swedish language sk?ll "thin"....
rivers. It has a depth of 3.40 m, a free height of 6.70 m and a total length of 129.5 km. The maximum capacity is a barge

Barge

A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Most barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats....
of 10,000 tons.

The Albert Canal was dug from 1930-1939. The German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
construction firm Hochtief AG worked on the canal between 1930 and 1934.

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Encyclopedia

The Albert Canal () is a canal

Canal

Belgium

Albert I of Belgium

Albert I was the third King of the Belgians from 1909 until 1934....
. It connects the major cities Antwerp

Antwerp

||-||-||-||}Antwerp is a city and municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Antwerp in Flanders, one of Belgium's three regions....
and Liège

Liège (city)

Li?ge is a major Walloon Region city and Municipalities in Belgium in Belgium located in the Provinces of Belgium of Li?ge , of which it is the administrative capital....
and the Meuse

Meuse River

File:01-Namur-290305 JPG.jpgThe Meuse , is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea....
and Scheldt

Scheldt

Barge

Germany

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
the actual exploitation only started in 1946. Between Antwerp and Liège there is a height difference of 56 meter. A total of 6 canal locks were needed to overcome the difference. Five canal locks have a height difference of 10 meter (located in Genk

Genk

Genk is a city and Municipalities in Belgium located in the Belgium Provinces of Belgium of Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality only comprises the city of Genk itself....
, Diepenbeek

Diepenbeek

Diepenbeek is a municipality located in the Belgium province of Limburg near Hasselt. On January 1 2006 Diepenbeek had a total population of 17,706....
, Hasselt

Hasselt

||-||-||}Hasselt is a Belgium city and Municipalities in Belgium, and capital of the Flemish Region Provinces of Belgium of Limburg . The Hasselt municipality includes the city of Hasselt and the old communes of Sint-Lambrechts-Herk, Wimmertingen, Kermt, Spalbeek, Kuringen, Stokrooie, Stevoort and Runkst....
, Kwaadmechelen

Kwaadmechelen

Kwaadmechelen is a hamlet of Ham, Belgium...
and Olen), the canal lock of Wijnegem

Wijnegem

Wijnegem is a municipality located in the Belgium province of Antwerp . The municipality only comprises the town of Wijnegem proper. On January 1 2006 Wijnegem had a total population of 8,816....
has a difference of 5.45 meter.

In the 1930s, it took about 7 days to travel from Antwerp to Liege over water. These days the same distance is covered in 18 hours. Since the completion of the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal

Rhine-Main-Danube Canal

The Rhine-Main-Danube Canal , located in Bavaria, Germany, connects the Main and the Danube rivers across the European Watershed, running from Bamberg via Nuremberg to Kelheim....
in 1992, a barge can now travel from Antwerp all the way across Europe

Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
to the Black Sea

Black Sea

The Black Sea is an inland sea sea bounded by southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Anatolia and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean Sea and Aegean Seas and various straits....
. During the Second World War

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
the canal functioned as a defense line. It had to secure not only Belgium but also the northeastern arrondissements of France

France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
. The canal locks were used to control the water level.

In September 1944, the Second Canadian Division forged a bridgehead across the canal as the Allies fought to liberate Belgium and The Netherlands from Nazi occupation.