Over 2,000 years ago, the Romans conquered much of the area around the Rhine River. The Rhine was very important to the Romans because it provided easy transport of trade and goods. It was also the only connection, by meeting various other rivers, from the Mediterranean to inland Germany. Over the next several hundred years, the Romans founded many fortresses and cities along the Rhine, including Mainz during the year 1 BCE. Since then, the Rhine region of Germany, known as the Rhineland, has become one of the country's most important industrial and agricultural areas. The area makes up parts of three modern German states, which are Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate.
The environment of the Rhineland is dominated by the Rhine River, which is the second longest river in Europe and is over 760 miles long. One of the most famous stretches of the Rhine, known as the Upper Middle Rhine Valley, is on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (more commonly known by the acrynom UNESCO) World Heritage List.
