From Passau the Danube flows through Austria for a distance of two
hundred and thirty-three miles. Closed in by mountains it flows past
Linz in an unbroken stream; below, it expands and divides into many arms
until it reaches the famous whirlpool near Grein, where its waters unite
and flow on in one channel for forty miles through mountains and narrow
passes. Between Linz and Vienna it is renowned not only for its
picturesque beauty, but for the numerous historic buildings and ruins
which crown its banks. The splendid Benedictine monastery of Melk, the
ruins of Durrenstein, and the prison of Richard the Lion-hearted are
among the most interesting.
Vienna, to defend the city against risk of inundation, the course of the
Danube skirting it was, in 1868-81, diverted into an artificial channel.
Similar works have been undertaken near Budapesth, in Hungary.