The Mukhavets River in Belarus is the largest tributary of the Western Bug in the country. A description of this river, as well as a list of cities located on it, can be found in this article.
The Mukhavets River in Belarus: description
The river is a right tributary of the Western Bug - the largest river system in Eastern Europe. Mukhavets is a river that is completely located within the Brest region of the Republic of Belarus. It is small, its length is only 113 kilometers. The river collects its waters from an area of 6350 square kilometers.
Where does the Mukhavets river start in Belarus? The description of the watercourse should begin with this aspect.
The source of Mukhavets is located near the town of Pruzhany, where the Mukha stream merges with the Vets canal. Mukhavets is a river that flows completely within the plains of Polissia, so the magnitude of its fall, as well as its slope, is quite small. Thus, the difference between the source point and the mouth of Mukhavets is only 29 meters.
Zhabinka, Dakhlovka, Trostyanitsa, Osipovka, and Rita are the largest tributaries of the Mukhavets. Mukhavets flows into the Western Bug within the famous city of Brest.
The river valley of Mukhavets expands from 400 meters toupstream to two kilometers in the lower. The floodplain of the river is swampy in places, and its channel is artificially straightened and turned into a canal. In addition, through the Dnieper-Bug Canal, Mukhavets has a connection with the river of the Dnieper basin - the Pripyat.
The first hydrological studies of the river were carried out only in the 20s of the twentieth century. The maximum water level in Mukhavets is observed at the end of March, immediately after the opening. The river freezes over, usually in the first half of December.
Characteristics of the shores
Mukhavets is a river characterized by low banks (their height does not exceed two meters), steep in places. The slopes of the river valley are flat, which contributes to their active swamping. The entire southern and southeastern part of the catchment area of the river is occupied by lowland swamps, however, some of them are drained today. At the same time, there are few lakes on the banks of Mukhovets (no more than 2% of the territory).
Cities and prominent monuments along the river
On Mukhavets there are only three cities: Kobrin, Zhabinka and Brest. And where the mouth of the river is located, an outstanding monument of the history and architecture of Belarus, the Brest Fortress, has been preserved.
From recreational facilities on the river, there are several sanatoriums and he alth centers. In addition, a hockey club from the town of Pruzhany bears the name of the river.
Brest Fortress
The fortress is located near the mouth of the Mukhavets River. Its construction began in the 30s of the XIX century and continued, in fact, until 1914. At the initial stage, the construction work was supervised bymilitary engineer Karl Oppermann.
In 1921, according to the Riga Peace Treaty, the Brest Fortress passed to the Poles. And in September 1939, after the first battle for Brest, the stronghold and the city itself became part of the USSR.
But the Brest Fortress went down in history thanks to the heroic defense in June 1941. This was the first serious battle between the Nazis and the Red Army of the USSR. The forces were unequal: the troops of the Third Reich in this battle were almost twice as large as the Soviet ones. However, the fortress kept the defense for nine days, according to the memoirs of one Austrian soldier who took part in that battle, "it is not clear why".
In the early 70s, a majestic memorial complex was created on the territory of the fortress in memory of those important events.
Conclusion
Mukhavets is one of the most beautiful rivers in Polesye, the largest tributary of the Western Bug in Belarus. A unique monument of the 19th century, the Brest Fortress, which took the first blow from the Nazi army in 1941, has partially survived at its mouth.
