Minden Aqueduct

The Minden Aqueduct is an aqueduct near Minden, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It actually consists of two parallel water bridges, that lead the Mittelland Canal over the Weser. The older of the two bridges is no longer used for shipping. After the Magdeburg Water Bridge, it is the second biggest aqueduct in Europe.The aqueduct is part of an intersection of waterways: the Mittelland Canal is connected with the Weser by two branch, or link, canals.Canal bridgeOld bridgeThe first canal bridge over the river Weser was built in 1914. It is a 370-metre-long concrete construction. At the end of World War II it was destroyed by the retreating Wehrmacht in 1945. In 1949, the renovated bridge was re-opened.New bridgeOver the years, ships became larger and so the canal grew too small. Thus in 1993, work began on a new bridge. This new bridge was made of steel and opened in 1998.