Father to Reichsführer Adolf Hitler's thoughts of Drang nach Osten was Charlemagne, who late in the 8th Century had his eye on the throne of the Byzantine Empire. Charlemagne planned an arterial waterway from the North Sea to the Black Sea via the Rhine and the Danube, thence to the Eastern capital, Constantinople. But when his engineers tried to link up the Rhine and the Danube, rains and mountains stymied them.
One hundred years ago, Charlemagne's dream was realized by Ludwig I of Bavaria, who joined the Rhine's branch, the Main, with the Danube....
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