ABSTRACT
Chapter 2 explains that before and during the Congress of Vienna in 1815 the Great Powers emphasised the significance of freely navigable rivers for European prosperity and lasting peace. However, the majority of the Rhine states were wary of impairing their recently regained sovereignty by the establishment of a powerful international executive body governing the navigable Rhine. These conflicting perspectives were clearly reflected in the ultimate result of the Congress: the proclamation of the freedom of navigation as a European principle and the establishment of the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine that consisted merely of the respective riparian states.
