Abstract
Since the Treaty of Adrianople 1829 the Lower Danube underwent major political, economic and territorial transformations. It changed from a quasi-closed river entirely under Ottoman rule into a site of Great Power intervention. This new found international interest mobilised sustained efforts to make the Danube from the Iron Gates to the Black Sea navigable. Within a few years the Lower Danube turned into an important commercial and communication hub of continental dimensions. It also turned into a place of pilgrimage for politicians, diplomats, merchants and hydraulic engineers from all over Europe enabling a vivid exchange of ideas. The goal of this article is twofold: on one hand it sets out to give an overview over the existing body of historical literature that places the Lower Danube into a transnational framework, and on the other it makes several suggestions for further studies.
© 2014
