The IJssel Line (Dutch: IJssellinie ) was the Dutch portion of the NATO Cold War line of defence for Western Europe during the 1950s and 1960s. It consisted of anti-aircraft and four-barrel machine gun bunkers, command and hospital bunkers, and many Ram and Sherman tank bunkers encased in concrete, leaving the turrets exposed. These elements were placed along the IJssel river .
11-598: Movable floating dams were built in the Lower Rhine and Waal rivers. By diverting the flow of water from Germany into the IJssel River, the entire IJssel valley of 127 km (79 mi) could be inundated to form a line of defence against an anticipated Soviet invasion. Extensive flooding of the IJssel floodplains and the surrounding areas was intended as a substantial barrier between Nijmegen and Kampen. To ensure
22-501: A sufficient amount of water for the area north of Deventer, a third movable floating dam was added at Olst. Flood waters were to be released from the IJssel River by means of 15 water intake works and 750 other water regulating structures. The flood water would then inundate large areas inside the winter dikes. Behind the line of defence, five motorised infantry divisions of the Dutch field army were to be positioned. The IJssel line of defense
33-745: Is known as the Oude Rijn, flowing westward to the North Sea . In order to regulate the distribution of drainage between the different branches of the Rhine, several dams have been constructed. If the dams were to be closed, there would be little flow in the Nederrijn and most of the water would be drained by the IJssel. As for the Old Rhine, there is a pumping station near the North Sea that protects
44-759: The Limes Germanicus and border river of the Roman Empire ) carries the name "Rhine" towards the city of Utrecht . From the city of Utrecht, the Kromme Rijn forks into the Vecht to the north, and into the Oude Rijn (Utrecht and South Holland) to the west. The first part is channelised and known as the Leidse Rijn (Leiden Rhine). After the railway bridge near Harmelen (municipality Woerden ) it
55-678: The Pannerdens Kanaal (which was dug to form the new connection between the Waal and Nederrijn branches). The city of Arnhem lies on the right (north) bank of the Nederrijn, just past the point where the IJssel branches off. The Nederrijn flows on to the city of Wijk bij Duurstede , from where it continues as the Lek . The once-important but now small Kromme Rijn branch (in Roman times part of
66-716: The major Dutch cities and ports to the enemy. The new plan was developed by Captain Joop Haex , the later Dutch State Secretary for Defence. The line was abolished after 1968, when the NATO strategy of forward defence along the Inner German Border was adopted. Earlier, during the 16th and 17th century, and at the time of the German invasion of 1940 , fortified defensive lines along the IJssel had been created, which also were called IJssel Line. The IJssel Line Foundation
77-586: The river from sea tides and silting. Bridges over the Nederrijn are in Arnhem (railway and three road bridges), in Heteren ( A50 ) and Rhenen . Ferries are found near Doorwerth , Wageningen , Opheusden , Elst and Amerongen . In 1530, the Rhine near Arnhem was moved, a project that was completed in 1536. The city, which originated along the St. Jansbeek ("St. John's Brook'), could develop better now that it
88-484: Was closer to the river, and was also more easily defended against Habsburg expansionism into Guelders . Opheusden Opheusden is a village in the Dutch province of Gelderland . It is a part of the municipality of Neder-Betuwe , and lies some 5 km south-west of Wageningen . Opheusden (or "Heusden", as it was known then) was a separate municipality until 1818, when it was merged with Kesteren . The town
99-512: Was devastated in October 1944 during the failed German counterattack against the Nijmegen salient after Operation Market Garden had failed. The Opheusden statistical area, which includes the village centre, its outskirts, and the surrounding countryside, covers an area of 220 hectares. It had a resident population on 1 January 2018 of 5,630, living in 1,960 households. The built-up area of
110-471: Was formed as a voluntary body in 2003 to maintain the buildings and structures as historical monuments. Nederrijn The Nederrijn ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈneːdəˌrɛin] ; "Lower Rhine"; distinct from the Lower Rhine or Niederrhein further upstream) is the Dutch part of the Rhine from the confluence at the town of Angeren of the cut-off Rhine bend of Oude Rijn (Gelderland) and
121-678: Was intended to slow down a Soviet offensive, providing time for Allied support to reach the Netherlands. The IJssel Line would have been a northern extension of NATO main defences along the River Rhine, preventing an almost immediate occupation of the Randstad Holland as would have been the case in the original version of the NATO plan, envisaging a more southern defence in this area, along the Lower Rhine or Waal, abandoning
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