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124-525: The Upper Rhine Valley has been an important trade route from Central Europe to Switzerland and Italy since Roman times. With the development of railways in the early 1830s, considerations arose of building a railway from Mannheim to Basel in order to handle the movement of people and goods faster and cheaper than was possible with carts, especially as the Upper Rhine south of Mannheim only allowed restricted navigation. George Stephenson ’s locomotive and

248-651: A "strategic awakening" in the late 20th and early 21st century, with initiatives such as the Central European Defence Cooperation , the Central European Initiative , Centrope , and the Visegrád Four Group . This awakening was accelerated by writers and other intellectuals, who recognized the societal paralysis of decaying dictatorships and felt compelled to speak up against Soviet oppression. In

372-628: A Central European Danube Confederation to counter these countries against Germany and Russia. There were also plans to add Bavaria and Württemberg to an enlarged Austria. There were also various resistance movements around Otto von Habsburg that pursued this goal. The group around the Austrian priest Heinrich Maier also planned in this direction, which also successfully helped the Allies to wage war by, among other things, forwarding production sites and plans for V-2 rockets , Tiger tanks and aircraft to

496-549: A Geographical Term ) most Central European states were unable to preserve their political independence and became Soviet satellites . Besides Austria, Switzerland and Yugoslavia, only the marginal European states of Cyprus , Finland , Malta and Sweden preserved their political sovereignty to a certain degree, being left out of any military alliances in Europe. The opening of the Iron Curtain between Austria and Hungary at

620-656: A buffer zone between these regions. In the early nineteenth century, the terms "Middle" or "Central" Europe (known as "Mitteleuropa" in German and "Europe centrale" in French) were introduced in geographical scholarship in both German and French languages. At first, these terms were linked to the regions spanning from the Pyrenees to the Danube, which, according to German authors, could be united under German authority. However, after

744-640: A prominent power within the Holy Roman Empire, came to reign over the territories of Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina , Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia, alongside parts of Serbia , Germany, Italy , Poland and Switzerland. Since the Cold War the countries that make up Central Europe have historically been, and in some cases continue to be, divided into either Eastern or Western Europe. After World War II, Europe

868-641: A railway from Mannheim to the Swiss border near Basel at public expense, as had been called for on 31 July 1835 by the Freiburg historian Karl von Rotteck . The line would serve as the main line of Baden and would therefore have a generally straight route on the eastern edge of the Upper Rhine Valley. Baden was the only German state to choose initially to build its new rail network with 1600 mm broad gauge . Construction began as soon as September 1838 on

992-548: A railway line in another country. The route from Haltingen to Basel was opened on 20 February 1855, followed by the section to Bad Säckingen on 4 February 1856, continuing on 30 October 1856 to Waldshut, where, with the opening of the bridge over the Rhine on 18 August 1859, the first railway connection was made between Baden and Switzerland. While the focus during the construction of the Mannheim–Basel/Waldshut railway

1116-526: A route through Jestetten in Baden. It could not, however, insist on its preference and the continuation of the main line from Baden to Konstanz, opened on 13 June 1863, ran from Waldshut not through Jestetten, but via Erzingen and Beringen . This last section, directed by Robert Gerwig , completed the construction of the Baden main line. Already in the Act of 1838, the construction was planned for two branch lines:

1240-547: A second northern access to Strasbourg on the Graben-Neudorf–Karlsruhe–Rastatt– Rœschwoog route. Simultaneously this route relieved the Baden main line. In 1966, the Rastatt–Rœschwoog section was closed, but the section north of Rastatt continues to operate. During the construction phase of this strategic railway , Rastatt station was relocated and expanded. Due to the strong growth in traffic,

1364-611: A significant trade route, restoring ports and revitalising commercial activity. Before 1870, the industrialization that had started to develop in Northwestern and Central Europe and the United States did not extend in any significant way to the rest of the world. Even in Eastern Europe , industrialization lagged far behind. Russia , for example, remained largely rural and agricultural, and its autocratic rulers kept

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1488-650: A static spatial one. For example, a fair share of Belarus and Right-bank Ukraine are in Eastern Europe today, but 240 years ago they were in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . Johnson's study on Central Europe received acclaim and positive reviews in the scientific community. However, according to Romanian researcher Maria Bucur , this very ambitious project suffers from the weaknesses imposed by its scope (almost 1600 years of history). The World Factbook defines Central Europe as: Austria,

1612-494: A third platform track. The track is equipped with the latest signalling technology ( colour lights ) and equipped for speeds of up to 160 km/h. The “other needs” section of the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan ( Bundesverkehrswegeplan ) provides for the refurbishment of the track for a top speed of 200 km/h, but, so far, the top speed is 160 km/h. IC and ICE trains run on

1736-442: Is a part of Europe composed of Austria, Belgium , the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg , Netherlands , Poland, Romania and Switzerland, and northern marginal regions of Italy and Yugoslavia (northern states – Croatia and Slovenia ), as well as northeastern France. The German Ständige Ausschuss für geographische Namen (Standing Committee on Geographical Names), which develops and recommends rules for

1860-542: Is alternatively placed in Southeastern Europe. Additionally, Hungary and Slovenia are sometimes included in the region. Lithuania is alternatively placed in Northeastern Europe. Bad S%C3%A4ckingen station Bad Säckingen station ( German : Bahnhof Bad Säckingen ) is a railway station in the town of Bad Säckingen , Baden-Württemberg , Germany . The station lies on

1984-577: Is an ambiguous German concept. It is sometimes used in English to refer to an area somewhat larger than most conceptions of 'Central Europe'. According to Fritz Fischer Mitteleuropa was a scheme in the era of the Reich of 1871–1918 by which the old imperial elites had allegedly sought to build a system of German economic, military and political domination from the northern seas to the Near East and from

2108-657: Is no general agreement either on what geographic area constitutes Central Europe, nor on how to further subdivide it geographically. At times, the term "Central Europe" denotes a geographic definition as the Danube region in the heart of the continent, including the language and culture areas which are today included in the states of Bulgaria , Croatia , the Czech Republic , Hungary , Moldova , Poland , Romania , Serbia , Slovakia , Slovenia and usually also Austria and Germany. The terminology EU11 countries refer

2232-582: Is one of the busiest railway lines in Germany. It runs on the eastern edge of the Upper Rhine valley. While the line is mostly straight, it has, in the southern section between Schliengen and Efringen-Kirchen a winding route passing between the Rhine and the Isteiner Klotz ridge above the villages on the slopes of the Black Forest. A lower alignment similar to the A 5 autobahn was not possible at

2356-579: Is the oldest railway in southwestern Germany. It runs almost straight across the Upper Rhine Plain and originally only had a single intermediate station at the halfway point in Friedrichsfeld. Originally it was planned to build the line a little further to the north, which would have allowed a better connection with Seckenheim. However, these plans were thwarted by the resistance of the local population. The Main-Neckar Railway connects to

2480-592: Is very extensive. In addition to Deutsche Bahn AG, Swiss Federal Railways operates one third of all freight trains on this route, especially as combined transport . Following the development of railway crossings across the Alps in Switzerland, a sharp increase in freight traffic on the Rhine Valley Railway is expected in Switzerland. The Upper Rhine line runs from Basel initially on the right bank of

2604-406: Is widely used in German education and media without negative meaning, especially since the end of communism. Many people from the new states of Germany do not identify themselves as being part of Western Europe and therefore prefer the term "Mitteleuropa". During World War II, Central Europe was largely occupied by Nazi Germany. Many areas were a battle area and were devastated. The mass murder of

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2728-471: The Appenweier–Kehl line , connecting to Alsace, was opened on 1 June 1844 and the short branch line from Baden-Oos to Baden-Baden on 27 July 1845. On 11 February 1872 the bridge over the Rhine between Weil am Rhein and St. Louis was opened and the opening of the connection from Müllheim to Mulhouse on 6 February 1878 provided a further connections to Alsace. Connections to Switzerland were provided with

2852-528: The Baden-Kurpfalz-Bahn (Baden–Palatinate Railway), as Heidelberg was the historic capital of the Palatinate . The section of line between Heidelberg and Karlsruhe runs along the eastern edge of the Upper Rhine Valley from north to south. From Heidelberg station, the line runs south through the stations of Heidelberg-Kirchheim , St. Ilgen and Wiesloch-Walldorf and passes under the A 6 in

2976-684: The Carolingian Renaissance , limited to the territories that practised Western Christianity at the time. "European" as a cultural term did not include much of the territories where the Orthodox Church represented the dominant religion until the 19th century. Following the Christianization of various Central European countries, elements of cultural unity emerged within the region, specifically Catholicism and Latin . Eastern Europe remained Eastern Orthodox , and

3100-740: The Christianization of Lithuania . It also resulted in the Union of Krewo , signifying a personal union between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland. The union commenced an enduring political alliance between the two entities and laid the foundations for the later establishment of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569. Between the 15th and early 16th centuries, the Kingdom of Croatia, which

3224-679: The Czechoslovak , Hungarian and Polish presidents was hailed at the time as a major breakthrough in Central European cooperation, but the Visegrád Group became a vehicle for coordinating Central Europe's road to the European Union, while development of closer ties within the region languished. American professor Peter J. Katzenstein described Central Europe as a way station in a Europeanization process that marks

3348-849: The Eastern Bloc countries, as its every result proved the dissimilarity of Central Europe, which was inconsistent with the Stalinist doctrine. On the other hand, the topic became popular in Western Europe and the United States, much of the research being carried out by immigrants from Central Europe. Following the Fall of Communism , publicists and historians in Central Europe, especially the anti-communist opposition, returned to their research. According to Karl A. Sinnhuber ( Central Europe: Mitteleuropa: Europe Centrale: An Analysis of

3472-605: The Frankfurt Parliament , which was established in the wake of the March Revolution of 1848, there were multiple competing ideas for the integration of German-speaking areas, including the mitteleuropäische Lösung (Central European Solution) propagated by Austria, which sought to merge the smaller German-speaking states with the multi-ethnic Habsburg Empire, but was opposed by Prussia and others. An imperialistic idea of Mitteleuropa also became popular in

3596-618: The German Empire established in 1871, which experienced intensive economic growth. The term was used when the Union of German Railway Administrations established the Mitteleuropäische Eisenbahn-Zeit (Central European Railway Time) time zone , which was applied by the railways from 1 June 1891 and was later widely adopted in civilian life, thus the time zone name shortened to the present-day Central European Time . The German term denoting Central Europe

3720-596: The High Rhine Railway and the train services are operated by Deutsche Bahn . The station was formerly located on the Wehra Valley Railway to Schopfheim . Passenger service over that line ended in 1971, and the line itself was abandoned in 1994. As of the December 2023 timetable change, the following services stop at Bad Säckingen: This German railway station-related article is

3844-619: The Netherlands ) as its main aim. Another time, the term Central Europe became connected to the German plans of political, economic, and cultural domination. The "bible" of the concept was Friedrich Naumann 's book Mitteleuropa in which he called for an economic federation to be established after World War I. Naumann's proposed a federation with Germany and the Habsburg empire as its centre, eventually uniting all external European nations through economic prosperity. The concept failed after

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3968-665: The Pan-European Picnic on 19 August 1989 then set in motion a peaceful chain reaction, at the end of which there was no longer an East Germany and the Eastern Bloc had disintegrated. It was the largest escape movement from East Germany since the Berlin Wall was built in 1961. After the picnic, which was based on an idea by Otto von Habsburg to test the reaction of the USSR and Mikhail Gorbachev to an opening of

4092-630: The Württemberg Western Railway and the Bruhrain Railway terminate. The track then runs along the edge of the Kraichgau via Untergrombach and Weingarten to Karlsruhe-Durlach station and passes under the A 5 and reaches Karlsruhe Central Station . In 1911, the route in the area of Durlach changed as a result of the relocation of Durlach station to the west in order to increase the curve radii. Karlsruhe station

4216-468: The dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire around 1800, there was a consolidation of power among the Habsburgs and Hohenzollerns as the two major states in the area. They had much in common and occasionally cooperated in various channels, but more often competed. One approach in the various attempts at cooperation, was the conception of a set of supposed common features and interests, and this idea led to

4340-402: The 11th and 15th centuries, not only did Christianization influence the cultures within Central Europe, but well-defined social features were also implemented in the region based on Western characteristics. The keyword of Western social development after the turn of the millennium was the spread of Magdeburg rights in some cities and towns of Western Europe. These began to spread in the middle of

4464-642: The 13th century in Central European countries, bringing about self-governments of towns and counties. In 1335, the Kings of Poland , Bohemia and Hungary and Croatia met in the castle of Visegrád and agreed to cooperate closely in the field of politics and commerce, inspiring the post- Cold War Visegrád Group . In 1386, Jogaila , the Grand Duke of Lithuania , converted to Christianity (specifically Catholicism) and subsequently became King of Poland through marriage to Queen Jadwiga of Poland . This initiated

4588-503: The 414 km line. By comparison, trains from Mannheim to Konstanz via Basel takes about 4 hours today; those running over the Black Forest Railway take about 3.5 hours. The traffic on the Baden main line was rising rapidly, so duplication soon became necessary. Duplication was completed between Mannheim and Heidelberg in 1846, to Offenburg in 1847, to Freiburg in 1848 and to Basel in 1855. The Appenweier–Kehl branch line

4712-626: The Adriatic had not been approved by the Western Allied chiefs of staff. As a result of the military situation at the end of the war, Stalin's plans prevailed and much of Central Europe came under Russian control. Following World War II , parts of Central Europe became part of the Eastern Bloc . The boundary between the two blocks was called the Iron Curtain . Austria, Switzerland and Yugoslavia remained neutral. The post-World War II period brought blocking of research on Central Europe in

4836-551: The Baden line to the north and then veered to the west and ran to the Bosch factory. In Weingarten and Untergrombach tracks formerly branched off to quarries, which have since been converted into lakes for swimming ( Baggersee ). In Bruchsal freight sidings run to the south of the city, in addition, there are still sidings at Wiesloch-Walldorf station. During the introduction of the S-Bahn, stations were modernised and made accessible for

4960-701: The Baden main line was in sharp competition with the Alsatian railway, because the travel times between Basel and Frankfurt and between Basel and Mannheim were almost identical. During World War I, the fast trains ran only on the Baden main line as the Alsace lines in Mulhouse were within reach of the French artillery. After Alsace had returned to France after the First World War, all German trains ran to Basel on

5084-615: The Baden main line. After the founding of Deutsche Reichsbahn in 1920, the Baden main line along with the rest of the Grand Duchy of Baden State Railway became part of the Reichsbahn, so in addition to the Baden-built locomotives and locomotives built by the other former state railways, newly developed steam locomotives were used on the Baden main line. The assignment of Alsace-Lorraine to France after World War I meant that

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5208-616: The Baden main line. Rheingold trains were restored on the Baden main line after the Second World War and ran from 1951 to 1987 as Fernzug (long-distance express) or Trans Europ Express services. The Orient Express also operated over the Baden main line: coming from Strasbourg, it ran on the route on the section between Appenweier and Karlsruhe. During the Second World War, the Baden main line—like all major lines in Germany—was affected by heavy bombardment of railway junctions and

5332-523: The Baden railway network isolated. There were already connections to standard gauge lines to neighbouring states in Heidelberg (from 1846) and Bruchsal (from 1853). Through freight had to be reloaded at these points. Therefore, the lines were rebuilt to standard gauge during 1854/55. A total of 203 km of double track and 79 km of single-track were converted, as well as the existing 66 locomotives and 1,133 carriages and wagons. These measure allowed

5456-402: The Central European area is subject to debates. Very often, the definition depends on the nationality and historical perspective of its author. The concept of "Central Europe" appeared in the 19th century. It was understood as a contact zone between the Southern and Northern areas, and later the Eastern and Western areas of Europe. Thinkers portrayed "Central Europe" either as a separate region, or

5580-457: The Central, Eastern and Baltic European member states which accessed in 2004 and after: in 2004 Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, and Slovakia; in 2007 Bulgaria, Romania; and in 2013 Croatia. The choice of states that make up Central Europe is an ongoing source of controversy. Although views on which countries belong to Central Europe are vastly varied, according to many sources (see section Definitions )

5704-481: The Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. The German Encyclopaedia Meyers Grosses Taschenlexikon ( Meyers Big Pocket Encyclopedia ), 1999, defines Central Europe as the central part of Europe with no precise borders to the East and West. The term is mostly used to denominate the territory between the Schelde to Vistula and from the Danube to the Moravian Gate . According to Meyers Enzyklopädisches Lexikon , Central Europe

5828-453: The Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. The Columbia Encyclopedia includes: Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Switzerland. While it does not have a single article defining Central Europe, Encyclopædia Britannica includes the following countries in Central Europe in one or more of its articles: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,

5952-402: The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania and Yugoslavia. The main proposed regional definitions, gathered by Polish historian Jerzy Kłoczowski , include: Former University of Vienna professor Lonnie R. Johnson points out criteria to distinguish Central Europe from Western, Northern, Eastern and Southern Europe: He also thinks that Central Europe is a dynamic historical concept, not

6076-415: The Early Modern period, the territories of Poland and Lithuania were part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . Meanwhile, the Archduchy of Austria , the Kingdom of Bohemia (Czech Republic), the Duchy of Carniola (part of present-day Slovenia), the various German Principalities and the Old Swiss Confederacy were within the Holy Roman Empire . By the end of the 18th century, the Habsburg monarchy ,

6200-408: The Federal government. After the founding of the Deutsche Bundesbahn in 1949, the operation of the line returned to single management. The second track of the line between Offenburg and Denzlingen was dismantled and transferred to the French occupation forces in 1946 as reparations . Since the single-track section became a bottleneck on this heavily used route, the second track was restored in 1950 at

6324-405: The Franco-Prussian war of 1870, the French began to exclude France from this area, and later the Germans also adopted this perspective by the end of World War I. The concept of "Central" or "Middle Europe", understood as a region with German influence, lost a significant part of its popularity after WWI and was completely dismissed after WWII. Two defeats of Germany in the world wars, combined with

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6448-441: The German defeat in World War I . The revival of the idea may be observed during the Hitler era . The interwar period (1918–1938) brought a new geopolitical system, as well as economic and political problems, and the concept of Central Europe took on a different character. The centre of interest was moved to its eastern part – particularly to the countries that had (re)appeared on the map of Europe. Central Europe ceased to be

6572-418: The Germans have not played an exclusively negative role in the region. Most Central European Jews embraced the enlightened German humanistic culture of the 19th century. Jews of turn of the 20th century Central Europe became representatives of what many consider to be Central European culture at its best, though the Nazi conceptualisation of "Mitteleuropa" sought to destroy this culture. The term "Mitteleuropa"

6696-427: The Heidelberg freight yard and the locomotive depot were closed and only one pair of tracks of the four-track railway between Friedrichsfeld and Wieblingen is currently in use. The line is used by Intercity (IC) or Intercity-Express (ICE) services every hour. S-Bahn services (since 2003), local services and freight trains run at high frequencies. For several years this section has been called for marketing purposes

6820-507: The High Rhine Railway between Konstanz and Singen was electrified as part of the electrification of the Black Forest Railway to Singen in 1977. The gap between Singen and Schaffhausen was electrified in 1990. Central Europe Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern , Southern , Western and Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in this region also share historical and cultural similarities. Whilst

6944-434: The Hochholz forest. This is followed by Rot-Malsch, Kislau castle on the western side of the line and Ubstadt-Weiher station. The Kraich Valley Railway and the Katzbach Railway connect to the line from the left, then it passes under that the Mannheim–Stuttgart high-speed line, which is connected to the east by curves to and from the Baden main line at Bruchsal Rollenberg junction . It continues to Bruchsal station , where

7068-402: The Höllental (Hell Valley), they did not provide a permanent alternative to the Baden main line. Nevertheless, the events showed the susceptibility of the Baden main line to French assaults. As a result, plans were made for developing a Germany–Switzerland–Italy transport corridor via the Gäu Railway and Zürich. From 1928 to 1939, the Rheingold luxury trains ran between Karlsruhe and Basel on

7192-599: The Jews depopulated many of their centuries-old settlement areas or settled other people there and their culture was wiped out. Both Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin diametrically opposed the centuries-old Habsburg principles of "live and let live" with regard to ethnic groups, peoples, minorities, religions, cultures and languages and tried to assert their own ideologies and power interests in Central Europe. There were various Allied plans for state order in Central Europe for post-war. While Stalin tried to get as many states under his control as possible, Winston Churchill preferred

7316-506: The Low Countries through the steppes of Russia to the Caucasus. Later on, professor Fritz Epstein argued the threat of a Slavic "Drang nach Westen" (Western expansion) had been a major factor in the emergence of a Mitteleuropa ideology before the Reich of 1871 ever came into being. In Germany the connotation was also sometimes linked to the pre-war German provinces east of the Oder-Neisse line . The term "Mitteleuropa" conjures up negative historical associations among some people, although

7440-447: The Mannheim–Heidelberg line in Friedrichsfeld at a “wye” junction. The first Mannheim station was built to the north of the existing facility at the current Tattersall tram stop and designed to allow an extension to the north, but this never came to pass. During the construction of the bridge over the Rhine to Mannheim (now the Konrad Adenauer Bridge ), the station was rebuilt at its present location with completion in 1876. A freight yard

7564-477: The Rhine Valley line is notable for its international long-distance passenger and freight traffic. Every hour one or two IC, EuroCity (EC) or ICE services run. Three times daily TGV services also run from Stuttgart via Karlsruhe to Strasbourg. Local services runs at least hourly as Regionalbahn (stopping) and Regional-Express or Interregio-Express services. Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft also operates Karlsruhe Stadtbahn services between Karlsruhe and Achern . In

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7688-424: The Rhine to Waldshut, where it leaves the Rhine valley and crosses the northern Klettgau to Schaffhausen and it then runs through southern Hegau to Radolfzell on the Untersee . The railway then follows the banks of the Untersee to Konstanz, where it crosses a bridge over the Rhine. The terminus of the Baden main line at Konstanz station is on the left (south) bank of the Rhine between the old town of Konstanz and

7812-500: The Soviet sphere of influence in the late 1940s–1980s. For the most part, this geographical framework lost its attraction after the end of the Cold War. A number of Post-Communist countries rather re-branded themselves in the 1990s as "Central European.", while avoiding the stained wording of "Middle Europe," which they associated with German influence in the region. This reinvented concept of "Central Europe" excluded Germany, Austria and Switzerland, reducing its coverage chiefly to Poland,

7936-412: The USA. Otto von Habsburg tried to relieve Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and northern Yugoslavia (particularly the territories of present-day Croatia and Slovenia) from Nazi German, and Soviet, influence and control. There were various considerations to prevent German and Soviet power in Europe after the war. Churchill's idea of reaching the area around Vienna before the Russians via an operation from

8060-478: The area of German aspiration to lead or dominate and became a territory of various integration movements aiming at resolving political, economic, and national problems of "new" states, being a way to face German and Soviet pressures. However, the conflict of interests was too big and neither Little Entente nor Intermarium ( Międzymorze ) ideas succeeded. Hungarian historian Ádám Magda wrote in her study Versailles System and Central Europe (2006): "Today we know that

8184-635: The area roughly corresponding to the Carpathian Basin was part of the Avar Khaganate, the realm of the Pannonian Avars . While the Avars dominated the east of what is now Austria, its north and south were under Germanic and Slavic influence, respectively. Meanwhile, the territories now comprising Germany and Switzerland were under the influence of the Merovingian dynasty , and later the Carolingian dynasty . Various Slavic tribes that inhabited eastern Central Europe established settlements during this period, primarily in present-day Croatia, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. The territory of Lithuania

8308-471: The bane of Central Europe was the Little Entente , military alliance of Czechoslovakia , Romania and Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia), created in 1921 not for Central Europe's cooperation nor to fight German expansion, but in a wrong perceived notion that a completely powerless Hungary must be kept down". The events preceding World War II in Europe —including the so-called Western betrayal / Munich Agreement were very much enabled by

8432-420: The beginning. Baden later also moved to this system. Trains in Baden operated on the left on two track sections until 1888 and later switched to the right in stages. The first sections of track on the Baden main line were built to a broad gauge of 1,600 mm ( 5 ft 3 in ). It soon became apparent, however, that the other Central European states had chosen standard gauge, which would have left

8556-432: The border, tens of thousands of media-informed East Germans set off for Hungary. The leadership of the GDR in East Berlin did not dare to completely block the borders of their own country and the USSR did not respond at all. This broke the bracket of the Eastern Bloc and Central Europe subsequently became free from communism. According to American professor Ronald Tiersky , the 1991 summit held in Visegrád attended by

8680-447: The construction of the Gotthard Railway in 1882 emphasised the continuing importance of the Mannheim–Basel line. In contrast, the Upper Rhine line between Basel and Konstanz did not benefit from this development as the building of the Basel Connecting Line (1873) and the Bözberg line (1875) provided a direct route between Baden and central Switzerland, so that the border crossing in Waldshut lost its importance and international traffic

8804-416: The course of the line was damaged at several points by guerrillas. The completion of the section to Haltingen was delayed to 22 January 1851. Once it became clear that all the neighbouring countries had chosen standard gauge for their railways, the Grand Duchy of Baden State Railway ( Großherzogliche Badische Staatsbahn ) rebuilt its lines and rolling stock to standard gauge within a year in 1854/55. While

8928-659: The destruction of bridges and buildings. After the war, the line was divided into two parts: the Mannheim–Karlsruhe section was in the American occupation zone, the Rastatt–Konstanz section was in the French zone and under the management of the Betriebsvereinigung der Südwestdeutschen Eisenbahnen (Southwestern Railways Association). The sections within Switzerland were operated under a trust administered by

9052-713: The disabled and the signalling and interlockings were renewed. In Weingarten, Untergrombach and Bruchsal Bildungszentrum, the platform heights were raised to 55 cm for step-free access to the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn trains. At all stations between Bruchsal and Heidelberg the platform heights were raised to 76 cm for step-free access to the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn trains. At Karlsruhe-Durlach and Bruchsal stations there are platform at both heights, as they are served by both networks. Several stations (e.g., Bad Schönborn Süd and Walldorf-Wiesloch) also have

9176-549: The division of Germany, an almost complete disappearance of German-speaking communities in these countries, and the Communist-led isolation of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland and Yugoslavia from the Western world, turned the concept of "Central/Middle Europe" into an anachronism. On the other side, the non-German areas of Central Europe were almost universally regarded as "Eastern European" primarily associated with

9300-560: The early 1980s, a series of stations were abandoned, especially between Rastatt and Offenburg. After the quadruplication of the line, Stadtbahn stations in Haueneberstein, Sinzheim , Steinbach (now Baden-Baden-Rebland) were put back into operation and a new station was established in Sinzheim Nord. Local services between Basel and Freiburg are to be integrated into the future Basel Regional S-Bahn network. Freight transport

9424-471: The early Middle Ages, Central Europe had a diverse landscape, with various ethnic groups inhabiting the region. Germanic tribes , among them the Franks , Alemans and Bavarians , were predominantly situated in the west, while Slavic tribes were predominantly in the east. However, the region encompassed a wide spectrum of additional tribes and communities. From the late 6th century to the early 9th century,

9548-550: The efficiency of the line. Due to its largely straight alignment, speeds on the line could be increased on most sections to 160 km/h. The Upper Rhine line between Basel and Konstanz, however, remained unelectrified. The Singen–Konstanz section was electrified on 24 September 1977 as part of the electrification of the Black Forest Railway. In 1990, the Singen–Schaffhausen section was electrified as part of

9672-513: The entire line has also been part of the Rhine-Neckar S-Bahn. During the introduction of the S-Bahn, stations were modernised and made barrier-free and the signalling and interlocking systems were renewed. Each hour S-Bahn line S 4 operates between Heidelberg and Bruchsal and line S 3 runs between Heidelberg and Karlsruhe, together providing a service every half-hour between Heidelberg and Bruchsal. The line between Karlsruhe and Basel

9796-510: The financial resources to build the line, so the license lapsed. Only the Baden-Swiss treaty signed on 27 July 1852 could achieve a durable solution for the continuation of the Baden main line: the treaty provided for the further construction from Haltingen on the east bank to Basel and continuing through Bad Säckingen to Waldshut. This led to the unusual situation, which still persists, of a German state railway company building and operating

9920-659: The first West Slavic states to be founded in Central Europe. In the late 9th Century, the Hungarian tribes , originating in the Ural Mountains and Western Siberia , settled in the Carpathian Basin and established the Principality of Hungary . The earliest recorded concept of Europe as a cultural sphere (instead of simply a geographic term) was formed by Alcuin of York in the late 8th century during

10044-412: The first discussions of a Mitteleuropa in the mid-nineteenth century, as espoused by Friedrich List and Karl Ludwig Bruck . These were mostly based on economic issues. Mitteleuropa may refer to a historical concept or a contemporary German definition of Central Europe. As a historical concept, the German term Mitteleuropa (or alternatively its literal translation into English, Middle Europe )

10168-542: The first section between the two new terminal stations in Mannheim and Heidelberg . After two years of construction, this section was officially opened on 12 September 1840. The continuation of the line to the south took place in the following stages: Heidelberg– Bruchsal – Karlsruhe on 10 April 1843, Karlsruhe– Ettlingen – Rastatt on 1 May 1844, Rastatt–Oos (now Baden-Baden station ) on 6 May 1844, Oos– Offenburg on 1 June 1844 and Offenburg– Freiburg on 1 August 1845. All

10292-474: The harbour. The line is continued by two curves connecting to Kreuzlingen and Kreuzlingen Hafen, but the latter is currently only used for freight. The line between Basel and Waldshut was duplicated during the 1980s, with the exception of the Laufenburg – Laufenburg-Ost section. There is also double track line between Beringen and Konstanz-Petershausen, the other sections are single track. The section of

10416-604: The increased traffic with a new freight yard in 1905 and a new passenger station and a new marshalling yard in 1913. The marshalling yard is partly on German and partly on Swiss territory. The railways of three counties cooperated in building extensive rail infrastructure in Basel connecting the Baden station for trains arriving from Germany to the Central station and the adjacent French station (part of SNCF since 1938). In addition to

10540-548: The insistence of Switzerland, which considered that the congestion endangered the approach to the Gotthard Pass. As early as the 1950s, Deutsche Bundesbahn began the electrification of the Mannheim–Basel route. The electrification was carried out in several stages: Associated with the electrification was also the relocation of Heidelberg Central Station in 1955. The electrification shortened travel times and increased

10664-484: The international connection between Stuttgart and Zürich. In the 1980s, the Basel–Waldshut section of the line was duplicated to provide improved local services on an integrated regular interval timetable. The heavy traffic of the Baden main line led to plans from the 1970s to upgrade the line as a multi-track route. Congestion was relieved on the northern section of the main line between Mannheim Baden and Bruchsal with

10788-568: The larger railway stations had to be expanded in the early 20th century. So a new Karlsruhe freight bypass was completed in 1895 together with the extension of the Rhine Railway to Rastatt, allowing the main line through the Karlsruhe urban area to be relieved of freight trains. A new Karlsruhe station was opened in 1913. In 1911, Offenburg station was rebuilt and extended with a marshalling yard. The railway tracks in Basel were adapted for

10912-458: The law of 1838 only referred to the construction of a route "from Mannheim to the Swiss border at Basel," discussions turned to the question of an appropriate end point and the connection to the Swiss rail network. While the city of Basel called for a connection to Basel, there were other suggestions in Baden. There was scepticism about a foreign end point for the line, so the Baden town of Lörrach or even Waldshut were preferred. The political debate

11036-513: The legal development or the social, cultural, economic, and infrastructural developments in these countries. The avant-garde movements of Central Europe contributed to the evolution of modernism, reaching its peak throughout the continent during the 1920s. The Sourcebook of Central European avantgards (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) contains primary documents of the avant-gardes in the territories of Austria, Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania and Yugoslavia from 1910 to 1930. With

11160-534: The line and connect Heidelberg, Karlsruhe and Stuttgart. Since 2007, TGV trains on the Paris – Strasbourg – Stuttgart route run on the southern section between Karlsruhe and Bruchsal. The line is supplemented by S-Bahn services between Heidelberg and Karlsruhe and Karlsruhe Stadtbahn services operated by Albtal-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (Alb Valley Transport Company) between Karlsruhe and Bruchsal, so that at least two trains operate each hour in each direction. Since 1994,

11284-462: The marshalling yard at the Baden station, there is another, larger marshalling yard in Muttenz . The passenger trains on the Baden main line usually end at Basel Baden station, only the international trains continue through to Basel Central Station. The importance of the line meant that it was duplicated between 1847 and 1855 and electrified between 1952 and 1957. The quadruplication of the tracks and

11408-674: The opening of the Mannheim–Stuttgart high-speed railway in stages between 1987 and 1991. The Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan ( Bundesverkehrswegeplan ) of 1985 also listed the quadruplication of the Karlsruhe–Offenburg section and the addition of a third track between Offenburg and Basel as part of the construction of a Neu- und Ausbaustrecke Karlsruhe–Basel (i.e. a mixture of new high-speed line and upgraded line) as urgently needed. The railways of Baden main line can be categorised as follows: The Mannheim–Heidelberg section

11532-826: The opening of the Rhine Bridge at Waldshut in 1859, the Konstanz–Kreuzlingen link in 1871 and the Basel Connecting Line , connecting the Baden station in Basel with the Basel central station in 1873. In the north connections were established in Heidelberg to the Main-Neckar Railway towards Darmstadt and Frankfurt in 1846 and in Mannheim to Ludwigshafen , Mainz and Cologne in 1867. The first section between Mannheim and Heidelberg

11656-499: The opening of the line between Liverpool and Manchester was first discussed in the Baden Parliament by the priest and liberal politician Gottlieb Bernhard Fecht (1771–1851) in the autumn of 1831. He was accused of being ahead of his time and his proposal received no support. The first real initiative for a railway was made in 1833 by the Mannheim businessman Louis Newhouse, but just like the suggestion of Friedrich List , it

11780-479: The operations of cross-border freight services. Construction of railways meant that Mannheim, the largest and most important commercial city of Baden, was now in a peripheral location, as most north–south traffic now ran from Frankfurt to Switzerland via the Main-Neckar Railway to Heidelberg and from there on the Baden main line to Basel. Therefore, Mannheim tried to provide a direct rail connection to

11904-403: The peasants in serfdom. The concept of Central Europe was already known at the beginning of the 19th century, but it developed further and became an object of intensive interest towards the 20th century. However, the first concept mixed science, politics, and economy – it was strictly connected with the aspirations of German states to dominate a part of European continent called Mitteleuropa . At

12028-448: The region includes some or all of the states listed in the sections below: Depending on the context, Central European countries are sometimes not seen as a specific group, but sorted as either Eastern or Western European countries. In this case Austria, Germany and Switzerland are often placed in Western Europe, while Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia are placed in Eastern Europe. Croatia

12152-465: The region is variously defined, it often includes Austria , Croatia , the Czech Republic , Germany , Hungary , Liechtenstein , Lithuania , Poland , Slovakia , Slovenia , Switzerland and Transylvania as part of Romania . From the early 16th century until the early 18th century, parts of present-day Croatia and Hungary were under Ottoman rule. During the 17th century, the empire also occupied southern parts of present-day Slovakia. During

12276-479: The rising nationalism and ethnocentrism that typified that period. The interwar period brought new elements to the concept of Central Europe. Before World War I, it embraced mainly German-speaking states, with non-German speaking territories being an area of intended German penetration and domination – German leadership was to be the 'natural' result of economic dominance. Post-war, the Eastern part of Central Europe

12400-714: The section between Karlsruhe and Bruchsal has been integrated in the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn network. Services were introduced over two years, to Menzingen on the Kraich Valley Railway in 1996 and to Odenheim on the Katzbach railway in 1998. In early 1996, the new Bruchsal Bildungszentrum station was opened between Untergrombach and Bruchsal stations, this station mainly serves the Bildungszentrum , an educational facility. Since December 2003,

12524-694: The south and sought to build a railway to Karlsruhe via Schwetzingen . The opening in 1870 of the Rhine Railway ( Rheinbahn ) attracted part of the railway traffic between the Rhine-Neckar region and Karlsruhe from the Baden main line and created an alternative line for the relief of the main line in this area, which had reached the limits of its capacity. This relief route was extended in 1895 for strategic reasons further south to Rastatt (via Durmersheim ), so that there are now also two lines between Karlsruhe and Rastatt. The ever-increasing traffic and

12648-582: The state of Baden, and with it the Baden main line, were now on the periphery of Germany. This also meant, according to military strategists, that it did not allow reliable operations. In particular, the line near the Isteiner Klotz ridge (near Istein) is within sight of the German-French border. During the occupation of the Ruhr , French troops occupied Offenburg and Appenweier in February 1923, so traffic

12772-477: The station buildings on the line from Mannheim to Freiburg, some of which have been preserved, were planned by the Baden architect Friedrich Eisenlohr . It was followed by the Freiburg– Müllheim section on 1 June 1847, Müllheim– Schliengen on 15 June 1847 and Schliengen– Efringen-Kirchen on 8 November 1848. The ongoing construction to the Swiss border was disrupted by the events of the March Revolution and

12896-414: The station was partially converted into a through station. A new freight yard was completed on the western outskirts of Heidelberg in 1914. Work was already underway for the relocation of Heidelberg's main station to the western suburbs, but this was interrupted by World War I and it continued until after World War II. The construction of the new station as a through station was completed in 1955. Meanwhile,

13020-413: The time of the construction of the railway, because the Rhine had not yet been straightened in this area so the areas below the villages were still in the flood plain of the Rhine. In 1895, another main line railway was opened between Karlsruhe and Rastatt next to the Baden main line, further to the west through Durmersheim . The reason for this was the demand of the German military for the construction of

13144-606: The trains ran over the Gäu Railway to Hochdorf and from there over the Nagold Valley Railway to Pforzheim and the Karlsruhe–Mühlacker line to Karlsruhe. Although these long-range detours were established in the first month of the occupation, they showed that, with trains having to be reversed in both Hochdorf and Pforzheim and the need to operate over single-track branch lines and the steep sections in

13268-446: The transformation process of the Visegrád Group countries in different, though comparable ways. According to him, in Germany's contemporary public discourse "Central European identity" refers to the civilizational divide between Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. He argued that there is no precise way to define Central Europe and that the region may even include Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia and Serbia. The issue of how to name and define

13392-411: The uniform use of geographical names, proposes two sets of boundaries. The first follows international borders of current countries. The second subdivides and includes some countries based on cultural criteria. In comparison to some other definitions, it is broader, including Luxembourg, Estonia, Latvia, and in the second sense, parts of Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Italy, and France. There

13516-522: The upgrading for a top speed of 250 km/h has been under way as part of the Karlsruhe–Basel new and upgraded line ( Neu- und Ausbaustrecke Karlsruhe–Basel ) project since the late 1980s. In 1971 there was an accident at Rheinweiler when an express train that was running too fast on the twisty section between Efringen-Kirchen and Schliengen road was derailed and crashed down the railway embankment. 23 people were killed and 121 injured. The traffic on

13640-579: Was at the time in personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary, served as a significant maritime gateway of Central Europe, with its ports facilitating key trade routes between Central Europe and the Mediterranean. The Republic of Ragusa emerged as a prominent hub for cultural exchange during this time. Following the Ottoman and Habsburg wars of the 16th and 17th centuries, the Kingdom of Croatia, under Habsburg rule , began to regain its position as

13764-422: Was built in Mannheim harbour in 1854, which was followed by the building in 1906 of a marshalling yard south of Mannheim station, which is now Germany's second largest marshalling yard. The original Heidelberg station was at today's Adenauerplatz and designed as a railway terminus so that it could be built as close to town as possible. The terminus of the Main-Neckar Railway was directly adjacent. As early as 1862

13888-565: Was divided by the Iron Curtain into two parts, the capitalist Western Bloc and the socialist Eastern Bloc , although Austria, Switzerland and Yugoslavia (encompassing the territories of present-day Croatia, Slovenia and various other Balkans nations) declared neutrality. The Berlin Wall was one of the most visible symbols of this division. Respectively, countries in Central Europe have historical, cultural and geopolitical ties with these wider regions of Europe. Central Europe began

14012-671: Was dominated by Byzantine cultural influence. After the East–West Schism in 1054, significant parts of Eastern Europe developed cultural unity and resistance to Catholic Western and Central Europe within the framework of the Eastern Orthodox Church , Church Slavonic language and the Cyrillic alphabet . According to historian Jenő Szűcs , at the end of the first millennium Central Europe became influenced by Western European developments. Szűcs argued that between

14136-672: Was dominated by many national arguments and reservations. So, in 1846, Baden granted the Swiss Northern Railway Company ( Schweizerische Nordbahn , SNB) the concession to build a railway from Basel/Lörrach to Waldshut, continuing through Switzerland to Zürich in order to achieve a connection with the Swiss railway network in Waldshut in Baden rather than to Basel in Switzerland. However, the Swiss Northern Railway Company could not muster

14260-681: Was duplicated in 1846/1847. In contrast, the High Rhine Railway between Basel and Konstanz remained single track. On 22 July 1870, the mobilisation for the Franco-Prussian War made the main line unusable by the public at several points between Rastatt and Offenburg. The Baden State Railway's rolling stock fleet at that time mostly consisted of two-axle compartment coaches, while the Royal Württemberg State Railways had sets of open coaches from

14384-673: Was handled through the border crossing at Basel. Connections from the Lake Constance region have since 1873 primarily been over the shorter Black Forest Railway, so the Upper Rhine line has become a regional east–west route with no national significance. Due to the growing traffic between Mannheim and Basel and the growth of cities it had become necessary to remodel the major rail nodes. Thus between 1895 and 1914 new freight and marshalling yards were built at Karlsruhe, Mannheim, Basel, Freiburg and Heidelberg and new passenger stations were built in Karlsruhe and Basel. From about 1895 to 1914,

14508-558: Was inhabited by Baltic tribes. Amongst them were the Samogitians , Aukštaitians and Curonians . The Holy Roman Empire was founded at the turn of the 9th century, following the coronation of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III . At its inception, it incorporated present-day Germany and nearby regions, including parts of what is now Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Switzerland. Three decades later, Great Moravia , centred in present-day Czech Republic and Slovakia, became one of

14632-561: Was not supported by the Baden government. It was only when a railway company was founded in neighbouring Alsace in 1837 with the goal of building a west bank line between Basel and Strasbourg that Baden began to plan the building of a railway to avoid a shift of the traffic flow on the Rhine to the Alsace shore. A specially convened meeting of the Baden Assembly of the Estates ( Badische Ständeversammlung ) decided in 1838 to build

14756-478: Was on the international north–south traffic and the connection of the largest cities of Baden, the Baden-Swiss treaty already provided for its continuation with a rail connection towards the Lake Constance area and Konstanz . But disagreements on the route led to the delays on the approach to Schaffhausen: while the Swiss side preferred a route through the northern Klettgau on Swiss territory, Baden favoured

14880-420: Was on the southern edge of the city centre until 1913. Due to the limited capacity of this station, a new station was opened on the southern outskirts in 1913. In 1895, a marshalling yard was created on the southern outskirts of the city, but its operations were moved to Mannheim a few years ago. Approximately level with Durlach an industrial siding formerly branched off and ran for about a kilometre parallel with

15004-467: Was originally served by four daily passenger train pairs that took about 35–40 minutes each way. By comparison, the same route takes about 12–17 minutes now. Freight was added in 1845 and the first express train ran between Schliengen and Mannheim in 1847. With further extensions of the Baden main line this express was extended to Basel, Waldshut and Konstanz. From 1863, two pairs of expresses operated daily between Mannheim and Konstanz, needing 12–14 hours for

15128-697: Was placed at the centre of the concept. At that time the scientists took an interest in the idea: the International Historical Congress in Brussels in 1923 was committed to Central Europe, and the 1933 Congress continued the discussions. According to Emmanuel de Martonne , in 1927, Central Europe encompassed Austria, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Switzerland, northern Italy and northern Yugoslavia. The author uses both Human and Physical Geographical features to define Central Europe, but he doesn't take into account

15252-735: Was so fashionable that other languages started referring to it when indicating territories from Rhine to Vistula , or even Dnieper , and from the Baltic Sea to the Balkans . An example of this vision of Central Europe may be seen in Joseph Partsch 's book of 1903. On 21 January 1904, Mitteleuropäischer Wirtschaftsverein (Central European Economic Association) was established in Berlin with economic integration of Germany and Austria (with eventual extension to Switzerland, Belgium and

15376-686: Was stopped on the main line and trains had to be diverted over a large area. Both the Elz Valley Railway and the Murg Valley Railway had no connections to the rail network at this time. The bypass route from Freiburg ran by the Hell Valley Railway to Donaueschingen , continued on the Black Forest Railway to Hausach and from there over the Kinzig Valley Railway to Freudenstadt . From here,

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