The Rhine, its valley and history . hemost important was the last named. Mainz or Mogun-tiacum became the capital of the Roman Province ofGermania Superior. The advantages of the situation of Mainz are notexhausted by the facts that it lies nearly opposite to theconfluence of the Main and the Rhine, and that theRhine here changes its direction. There is firm groundclose to the waters edge, not only on the left bank butalso on the right. Therefore the river cannot just herespread in flood, and solid foundation is offered on eitherhand, not only for buildings and wharves, but also forthe approac
The Rhine, its valley and history . hemost important was the last named. Mainz or Mogun-tiacum became the capital of the Roman Province ofGermania Superior. The advantages of the situation of Mainz are notexhausted by the facts that it lies nearly opposite to theconfluence of the Main and the Rhine, and that theRhine here changes its direction. There is firm groundclose to the waters edge, not only on the left bank butalso on the right. Therefore the river cannot just herespread in flood, and solid foundation is offered on eitherhand, not only for buildings and wharves, but also forthe approach of roads, so that here is a natural bridgeplace. The foundations still exist of the Roman bridgeand of the Roman castle for its protection on the hillabove the city. From Mainz, Roman territory spread inthe days of the Emperor Domitian beyond the Rhine,and the suburb, Castel, was therefore built as a bridgehead on the east bank. The later Roman frontier was fixed by a line of en-trenchment in continuation of that which we have116. THE CATHEDRAL. .MAINZ (MAYENCE). The Rhei?iganstudied where it crosses from south to north the Neckarbasin. Thence for a space the Main was the frontier,but the Pfahlgraben recommences where the Mainemerges from the Spessart, and running northward en-closes the fertility of the Wetterau. Returning towardsthe Rhine, it follows for some distance the summitof the Taunus before bending again northward in suchmanner as to retain for the Empire the right bank ofthe Rhine gorge until beyond Coblenz. The remainsof this entrenchment, where they traverse the forestalong the height of the land, may be visited by themountain railway from Homburg north of within the line of mound at this point is the re-stored ruin of the Roman castle of the Saalburg. Wies-baden, four miles from Mainz beyond the Rhine,became, on account of its hot springs, a Roman suburbancentre. When the Roman organization broke down and thethe barbarians crossed the river, Worms
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