Gliwice Canal
Encyclopedia
The Gliwice Canal is a canal
connecting the Oder (Odra) River to the city of Gliwice
in Silesian Voivodeship
(Upper Silesian Industrial Region
), Poland
. Also known as the Upper Silesia Canal (Kanał Górnośląski, Oberschlesischer Kanal), it was built from 1935 to 1939 and replaced the Kłodnicki Canal.
. The canal is accessible from 15 March to 15 December (270 days a year).
Locks:
The canal starts in Kędzierzyn-Koźle
on the Oder and ends in the port of Gliwice. The canal passes through Opole Voivodeship
and Silesian Voivodeship
in Poland.
The water in the canal comes from the Kłodnica River as well as lakes and reservoirs such as Dzierżno Duże and Dzierżno Małe.
within Germany
. Because the Klodnitz (Kłodnicki) Canal had become obsolete, it was decided in 1934 that construction of a new canal was more feasible than modernization of the older Klodnitz Canal, which closed in 1937. The new canal, known as the Gleiwitz Canal , in honor of Adolf Hitler
, during the inauguration ceremony by Rudolf Hess
. There were also plans to make it a part of the Danube-Oder-Canal
project. After World War II
, the canal and the surrounding territories (see Regained Territories) were placed under Polish administration according to the 1945 Potsdam Conference
.
About fifty people are employed in maintaining the canal. About 700 000 tonne
s of material are shipped each year through the canal (mostly coal
). The Polish government is considering modernizing the canal.
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
connecting the Oder (Odra) River to the city of Gliwice
Gliwice
Gliwice is a city in Upper Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. Gliwice is the west district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union – a metropolis with a population of 2 million...
in Silesian Voivodeship
Silesian Voivodeship
Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province , is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centering on the historic region known as Upper Silesia...
(Upper Silesian Industrial Region
Upper Silesian Industrial Region
The Upper Silesian Industrial Region is a large industrial region in Poland. It lies mainly in the Silesian Voivodeship, centered around Katowice....
), Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. Also known as the Upper Silesia Canal (Kanał Górnośląski, Oberschlesischer Kanal), it was built from 1935 to 1939 and replaced the Kłodnicki Canal.
Structure
The canal length is approximately 41.6 kilometres (26 mi); maximum depth is 3.5 metres (11 ft); canal width is 38 metres (125 ft); allowed speed for ships is 6 kilometres per hour (4 mph), and the difference in height in water levels between its ends is 43.6 metres (143 ft). It has six locksLock (water transport)
A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a fixed chamber in which the water level can be varied; whereas in a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is...
. The canal is accessible from 15 March to 15 December (270 days a year).
Locks:
- in Łabędy district of Gliwice
- in DzierżnoDzierznoDzierzno is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Świedziebnia, within Brodnica County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It lies approximately west of Świedziebnia, south-east of Brodnica, and east of Toruń....
district of PyskowicePyskowicePyskowice is a town in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. Borders on the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union - metropolis with the population of 2 millions. Located in the Silesian Highlands.... - in RudziniecRudziniecRudziniec is a village in Gliwice County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Rudziniec. It lies approximately north-west of Gliwice and west of the regional capital Katowice....
village - in Sławięcice district of Kędzierzyn-KoźleKedzierzyn-KozleKędzierzyn-Koźle is the capital city of Kędzierzyn-Koźle County, Silesia, Poland. Kędzierzyn-Koźle is a place of a major river port, has rail connections with all major cities of Poland and serves western outskirts of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union....
- in Nowa WieśNowa Wies, Gliwice CountyNowa Wieś is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Sośnicowice, within Gliwice County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately south-west of Sośnicowice, south-west of Gliwice, and west of the regional capital Katowice....
village - in Kłodnica district of Kędzierzyn-KoźleKedzierzyn-KozleKędzierzyn-Koźle is the capital city of Kędzierzyn-Koźle County, Silesia, Poland. Kędzierzyn-Koźle is a place of a major river port, has rail connections with all major cities of Poland and serves western outskirts of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union....
The canal starts in Kędzierzyn-Koźle
Kedzierzyn-Kozle
Kędzierzyn-Koźle is the capital city of Kędzierzyn-Koźle County, Silesia, Poland. Kędzierzyn-Koźle is a place of a major river port, has rail connections with all major cities of Poland and serves western outskirts of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union....
on the Oder and ends in the port of Gliwice. The canal passes through Opole Voivodeship
Opole Voivodeship
- Administrative division :Opole Voivodeship is divided into 12 counties : 1 city county and 11 land counties. These are further divided into 71 gminas.The counties are listed in the following table .- Economy :...
and Silesian Voivodeship
Silesian Voivodeship
Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province , is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centering on the historic region known as Upper Silesia...
in Poland.
The water in the canal comes from the Kłodnica River as well as lakes and reservoirs such as Dzierżno Duże and Dzierżno Małe.
History
The Gliwice Canal was originally built in the Province of Upper SilesiaProvince of Upper Silesia
The Province of Upper Silesia was a province of the Free State of Prussia created in the aftermath of World War I. It comprised much of the region of Upper Silesia and was eventually divided into two administrative regions , Kattowitz and Oppeln...
within Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. Because the Klodnitz (Kłodnicki) Canal had become obsolete, it was decided in 1934 that construction of a new canal was more feasible than modernization of the older Klodnitz Canal, which closed in 1937. The new canal, known as the Gleiwitz Canal , in honor of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, during the inauguration ceremony by Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Walter Richard Hess was a prominent Nazi politician who was Adolf Hitler's deputy in the Nazi Party during the 1930s and early 1940s...
. There were also plans to make it a part of the Danube-Oder-Canal
Danube-Oder-Canal
The Danube-Oder Canal is a planned and partially constructed artificial waterway in the Lobau floodplain of the Danube at Vienna, that was supposed to stretch along the Morava River to the Oder at the city of Kędzierzyn-Koźle in Poland.- Overview :...
project. After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the canal and the surrounding territories (see Regained Territories) were placed under Polish administration according to the 1945 Potsdam Conference
Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference was held at Cecilienhof, the home of Crown Prince Wilhelm Hohenzollern, in Potsdam, occupied Germany, from 16 July to 2 August 1945. Participants were the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States...
.
About fifty people are employed in maintaining the canal. About 700 000 tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s of material are shipped each year through the canal (mostly coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
). The Polish government is considering modernizing the canal.