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The Danube is conventionally taken to be formed by the confluence of the two streams Brigach and Breg just east of Donaueschingen. Known as the source of the Danube (Donauquelle) is the source of the Donaubach in Donaueschingen itself. Hydrologically, the source of the Danube is the source of the Breg as the larger of the two formative streams, which rises near Furtwangen.
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Map of Danube
There was an active rivalry between the municipalities of Furtwangen and Donaueschingen for the claim of being home to the "official" source of the Danube since the 1950s, sometimes with the involvement of the government of the state of Baden-Württemberg. Thus, in 1981 the state government granted Donaueschingen the request that the source in Furtwangen should no longer be labelled Donauquelle in official maps. The history of the dispute was documented by Claudio Magris in his Danubio (1986).
Meaning of the Danube
The waters of rivers collect in a barely comprehensible number of headwaters, which gradually merge. The numerous merger points of each greater upstream river build the backbone of this type of drainage system and with that the source of the entire river. The main point or backbone of a river is sometimes defined by further features such as length, drainage area or steady flow direction. For a long time, unique springs which differed in size or the starting point of a certain headwater also had a mythological meaning. This was reflected in holy springs/ water sanctuaries or in the worship of Naiads. This was also the case with the source of the mightiest river in the Roman Empire. The Danube river emanating from the Abnoba mountains was considered to be a river or spring goddess. In contrast to the more mythological role, the hydrological significance of the source of the Danube is uncommonly small. This is because the Danube gives an important part of its water to the Rhine both above and below Tuttlingen. As a consequence, it dries up most time of the year. Near Ulm, in terms of hydrology, the Danube gets a tributary to the Iller which is more water-rich. It even gets surpassed by the Inn.
Research and political importance
In 1949 Franz Burgert from Furtwagen argued for the spring near St. Martin’s Church being the origin of the Breg, instead of the spring near Briglirain. This was also underpinned in the 1950s by the investigations of geologist Irma Öhrlein, which were later meticulously continued by Ludwig Öhrlein. The question of what is the spring of the Danube also interested the oceanographer Jacques Cousteau, who in 1987 filmed a documentary about the Danube around St. Martin's Church. The discussion about the true spring of the river was also picked up by Claudio Magris in his book "Donau - Biographie eines Flusses aufgegriffen" (engl. "The Danube - Discussion concerning the biography of a river" - not translated into English)
For centuries, the two cities Furtwangen and Donaueschingen compete for an official status which declaires their own source as the official source of the Danube. The city Furtwangen is located along the upper river Breg, while the city Donaueschingen is located at the symbolic source of the Danube. At times, the issue even involves the government of Baden-Württemberg. After the city council Donaueschingen intervened in 1981, for example, the Ministry of the Interior in Stuttgart announced that "the source of the Breg is not anymore displayed as the source of the Danube on ministerial maps. The land surveying office was instructed to act accordingly." However, the former minister for agriculture and forestry confirmed in a document addressed to Prof. Öhrlein in 1982: "Getting back to the issue regarding the source of the Danube, I can once again confirm that the so-called source of the Danube in Donaueschingen is certainly not the real source of the river Danube, if analysed with geographical and hydrological criteria. The river Breg can rightly be called the main stream of the Danube."