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Casemate

2025-10-01T11:02:45Z

217.38.99.109: /* 20th century */

{{Short description|Fortified structure}}
{{For|the publishing company|Casemate Publishers}}
{{Use American English|date=October 2021}}
[[File:Fort Knox - Prospect, Maine - 15537074667.jpg|thumb|A mid-19th century artillery casemate at [[Fort Knox (Maine)|Fort Knox, Maine]].]]

A '''casemate''' is a fortified gun emplacement or armoured structure from which [[artillery|guns]] are fired, in a [[fortification]], [[warship]], or [[armoured fighting vehicle]].<ref name=Webster>Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary</ref>

When referring to [[Ancient history|antiquity]], the term "'''casemate wall'''" means a double city wall with the space between the walls separated into chambers, which could be filled up to better withstand [[battering ram]]s in case of siege (see {{section link||Antiquity: casemate wall}}.)

In its original early modern meaning, the term referred to a vaulted chamber in a [[fort]], which may have been used for storage, accommodation, or artillery which could fire through an opening or [[embrasure]]. Although the outward faces of brick or masonry casemates proved vulnerable to advances in artillery performance, the invention of [[reinforced concrete]] allowed newer designs to be produced well into the 20th century. With the introduction of [[ironclad]] warships, the definition was widened to include a protected space for guns in a ship, either within the [[Hull (watercraft)|hull]] or in the lower part of the [[superstructure]]. Although the main armament of ships quickly began to be mounted in revolving [[gun turret]]s, secondary batteries continued to be mounted in casemates; however, several disadvantages eventually also led to their replacement by turrets. In [[tank]]s and other [[armored fighting vehicle]]s lacking a turret for the main gun, the structure accommodating the gun is also called a casemate.

==Etymology==
First recorded in French in the mid-16th century, from the Italian {{lang|it|casamatta}} or Spanish {{lang|es|casamata}}, perhaps meaning a [[slaughterhouse]],<ref name ="Weekley_1921">{{cite book |last=Weekley |first=Ernest |author-link=Ernest Weekley |date=1921 |title=An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fj_CAgAAQBAJ&pg=RA1-PA259 |location=London |publisher=John Murray |page=259 |isbn=9780486122878 }}</ref> although it could derive from ''casa'' (in the sense of "[[hut]]"), and ''matta'' ([[Latin]] {{wikt-lang|la|matta}}), "done with reeds and wickers", thus a low-roof hut without windows or other openings set in marshy place.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Battisti |first1=Carlo |last2=Alessio |first2=Giovanni |date=1950–1957 |title=Dizionario etimologico italiano |trans-title=Italian Etymological Dictionary |language=Italian |location=Florence |publisher=Barbera |volume=1 |pages=788–89}}</ref> It could also come from ''casa matta'' with {{wikt-lang|it|matta}} in the sense of "false".<ref>{{cite book |last=Devoto |first=Giacomo |date=1979 |title=Avviamento all'etimologia italiana |trans-title=An Introduction to Italian Etymology |language=Italian |location=Milan |publisher=Mondadori |page=69}}</ref> However, it may have been ultimately derived from the Greek {{lang|el-latn|chásmata}} ({{wikt-lang|el|χάσματα}}), a gap or aperture.<ref name ="Weekley_1921"/>

=={{anchor|Antiquity: casemate wall}}Antiquity: casemate wall==

[[File:Casamata de Masada.jpg|thumb|right|An ancient casemate wall at [[Masada]]]]

The term ''casemate wall'' is used in the archaeology of [[Israel]] and the wider [[Near East]], having the meaning of a double wall protecting a city<ref name=Safra>{{cite web |last=Emswiler |first=Elizabeth Anne |title=The Casemate Wall System of Khirbat Safra |pages=1, 3–15 |date=2020 |publisher=[[Andrews University]] |url=https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1156&context=theses |access-date=22 October 2021}}</ref> or fortress,<ref name=MGH>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Casemate wall |encyclopedia=McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction |publisher=[[McGraw-Hill]] |via=[[The Free Dictionary]] |url=https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/casemate+wall |access-date=16 July 2022}}</ref> with transverse walls separating the space between the walls into chambers.<ref name=Safra /> These could be used as such, for storage or residential purposes, or could be filled with soil and rocks during siege in order to raise the resistance of the outer wall against battering rams.<ref name=Safra /> Originally thought to have been introduced to the region by the [[Hittites]], this has been disproved by the discovery of examples predating their arrival, the earliest being at [[Ti'inik]] (Taanach) where such a wall has been dated to the [[16th century BC]].<ref>Emswiler (2020), pp. 7–9.</ref> Casemate walls became a common type of fortification in the Southern Levant between the Middle Bronze Age (MB) and Iron Age II, being more numerous during the Iron Age and peaking in Iron Age II (10th–6th century BC).<ref name=Safra /> However, the construction of casemate walls had begun to be replaced by sturdier solid walls by the [[9th century BC]], probably due the development of more effective battering rams by the [[Neo-Assyrian Empire]].<ref name=Safra /><ref name=EB>{{cite encyclopedia |author=[[Seton Lloyd|Lloyd, Seton H.F.]] |title=Syro-Palestinian art and architecture |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |via= Britannica Online |url=https://www.britannica.com/art/Syro-Palestinian-art#ref419785 |access-date=16 July 2022}}</ref> Casemate walls could surround an entire settlement, but most only protected part of it.<ref>Emswiler (2020), p. 4.</ref> The three different types included freestanding casemate walls, then integrated ones where the inner wall was part of the outer buildings of the settlement, and finally filled casemate walls, where the rooms between the walls were filled with soil right away, allowing for a quick, but nevertheless stable construction of particularly high walls.<ref>Emswiler (2020), pp. 4–5.</ref>

==Modern period==
===Land fortification===
====Early modern period====
[[File:Arras-fortifications01.jpg|thumb|left|Embrasures for artillery casemates in the flank of a bastion at the 17th-century [[Arras#Vauban Citadel|Citadel of Arras]].]]

In fortifications designed to resist artillery, a casemate was originally a vaulted chamber usually constructed underneath the [[defensive wall|rampart]]. It was intended to be impenetrable and could be used for sheltering troops or stores. With the addition of an [[embrasure]] through the [[scarp (fortification)|scarp]] face of the rampart, it could be used as a protected gun position.<ref>[http://civilwarfortifications.com/dictionary/xgc-006.html Civilwarfortifications.com] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091006071509/http://civilwarfortifications.com/dictionary/xgc-006.html |date=October 6, 2009 }}</ref> In [[bastion fort]]s, artillery casemates were sometimes built into the flanks of [[bastion]]s, but in action they quickly filled with smoke making them inoperable and for that reason, had fallen out of favor during the 17th century.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lloyd |first=Ernest Marsh |year=1887 |title=Vauban, Montalembert, Carnot: Engineer Studies |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015010775750;view=2up;seq=134;size=125 |location=London |publisher=Chapman and Hall |pages=114–115 }}</ref>

====18th and 19th centuries====
[[file:Fortpoint court.jpg|thumb|Three tiers of artillery casemates at the mid-19th century [[Fort Point, San Francisco]]]]

In the late 18th century, [[Marc René, marquis de Montalembert]] (1714–1800) experimented with improved casemates for artillery, with ventilation systems that overcame the problem of smoke dispersal found in earlier works. For [[Coastal defence and fortification|coastal fortification]]s, he advocated multi-tiered batteries of guns in masonry casemates, that could bring concentrated fire to bear on passing warships. In 1778, he was commissioned to build a fort on the [[Île-d'Aix]], defending the port of [[Rochefort, Charente-Maritime]]. The outbreak of the [[Anglo-French War (1778–1783)|Anglo-French War]] forced him to hastily to build his casemated fort from wood but he was able to prove that his well-designed casemates were capable of operating without choking the gunners with smoke.<ref>Lloyd 1887, pp. 125–127</ref> The defenses of the new naval base at [[Cherbourg]] were later constructed according to his system.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lepage |first=Jean-Denis G. G. |year=2010 |title=French Fortifications, 1715–1815: An Illustrated History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aeVAPShsbTMC&pg=PA96 |location=Jefferson, NC |publisher=McFarland & Company Inc. |page=96 |isbn=978-0-7864-4477-9}}Lepage p. 96</ref> After seeing Montalembert's coastal forts, American engineer [[Jonathan Williams (engineer)|Jonathan Williams]] acquired a translation of his book and took it to the United States, where it inspired the [[Seacoast defense in the United States#Second System|Second]] and [[Seacoast defense in the United States|Third Systems]] of coastal fortification; the first fully developed example being [[Castle Williams]] in [[New York Harbor]] which was started in 1807.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wade |first=Arthur P. |year=2011 |title=Artillerists and Engineers |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Py7DBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 |location=McLean VA |publisher=Coast Defense Study Group (CDSG) Press |page=111 |isbn=978-0-9748167-2-2}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Hogg |first=Ian V. |year=1975 |title=Fortress: A History of Military Defence |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fwhUAAAAMAAJ |location=London |publisher=Macdonald and Jane's |page=78 |isbn=0-356-08122-2 |author-link=Ian V. Hogg}}</ref>
[[File:Casemates Haxo.jpg|thumb|left|A 19th-century textbook illustration of a triple Haxo casemate]]

In the early 19th century, French military engineer [[François Nicolas Benoît, Baron Haxo|Baron Haxo]] designed a free-standing casemate that could be built on the top of the rampart, to protect guns and gunners from the high-angle fire of [[mortar (weapon)|mortar]]s and [[howitzer]]s.<ref>[http://civilwarfortifications.com/dictionary/xgh-003.html Civilwarfortifications.com] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417001835/http://civilwarfortifications.com/dictionary/xgh-003.html |date=April 17, 2009 }}</ref>
[[File:Fort Bovisand - geograph.org.uk - 1556989.jpg|thumb|right|The armored exterior of the 1861 artillery casemates at [[Fort Bovisand]], [[Plymouth]]]]

The advantages of casemated artillery were proved in the [[Crimean War]] of 1853–1856, when attempts by the [[Royal Navy]] to subdue the casemated Russian forts at [[Kronstadt]] were unsuccessful, while a casemated gun tower at [[Sevastopol]], the [[Battle of Malakoff|Malakoff Tower]], could only be captured by a surprise French infantry attack while the garrison was being changed.<ref>Hogg 1975, pp. 79–82</ref> In the early 1860s, the British, [[Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom|apprehensive about a possible French invasion]], fortified the naval dockyards of southern England with curved batteries of large guns in casemates, fitted with laminated iron shields tested to withstand the latest projectiles.<ref>Hogg 1975. pp. 87-89</ref>

However, in the [[American Civil War]] (1861–1865), the exposed masonry of casemate batteries was found to be vulnerable to modern [[Rifled breech loader|rifled artillery]]; [[Fort Pulaski]] was breached in a few hours by only ten such guns. In contrast, hastily constructed earthworks proved much more resilient.<ref>Hogg 1975, p. 101</ref> This led to casemates for artillery again falling out of favor. In continental Europe, they were often replaced by rotating gun turrets, but elsewhere large coastal guns were mounted in less expensive concrete gun pits or [[barbette]]s, sometimes using [[disappearing carriage]]s to conceal the gun except at the moment of firing.<ref>Hogg 1975, p. 94-95</ref> Casemates for secure barrack accommodation and storage continued to be built; the 1880s French forts of the [[Séré de Rivières system]] for example, had a central structure consisting of two stories of casemates, buried under layers of earth, concrete and sand to a depth of {{convert|18|metres}}, intended to defeat the new [[high explosive]] shells.<ref>Hogg 1975. p. 104</ref>
[[File:Fort-15-33-58.jpg|thumb|right|A ''casemate de Bourges'', built in 1910 at [[Fort d'Uxegney]] in the [[Vosges (department)|Vosges department]] of eastern France]]

Towards the end of the century, [[Imperial Germany]] had developed a new form of fortification called a ''feste'' ([[:de:Festung#Feste|German article: ''Festung#Feste'']]), in which the various elements of each fort were more widely dispersed in the landscape. These works, the first of which was [[Fort de Mutzig]] near [[Strasbourg]], had separate artillery blocks, infantry positions and underground barracks, all built of [[reinforced concrete]] and connected by tunnels or entrenchments. Although the main armament of these forts was still mounted in armored turrets, local defense was provided by separate protected positions for [[field gun]]s; these concrete structures were copied by the French who called them ''casemates de Bourges'' ([[:fr:Casemate de Bourges|French article: ''Casemate de Bourges'']]) after the proving ground where they had been tested.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kaufmann |first1=J. E. |last2=Kaufmann |first2=H. W. |last3=Lang |first3=Patrice |date=2017 |title=The Maginot Line: History and Guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CJdHXt3nmXIC |location=Barnsley, South Yorkshire |publisher=Pen & Sword Books Ltd |pages=6–7 |isbn=978-1848840683}}</ref>

====20th century====
[[File:Atlantic Wall, Longues-sur-Mer (2).jpg|thumb|A 1943 German casemate for a [[15 cm TbtsK C/36 naval gun|15 cm naval gun]] at [[Longues-sur-Mer battery]], Normandy]]
[[File:Le Touquet sud ‘le domaine des dunes blockhaus.jpg|thumb|Casemate south of Le Touquet, France]]

Following experience gained in [[World War I]], French engineers began to design a new scheme of fortifications to protect their eastern border, which became known as the [[Maginot Line]]. The main element of this line were large underground forts based on the ''feste'' principle, whose main armament was in turrets, however the countryside between them was defended by smaller self-sufficient works based on the earlier ''casemates de bourges'', housing either light field guns or [[anti-tank gun]]s.<ref>Kaufmann, Kaufmann & Lang 2017, pp. 10-13</ref> As [[World War II]] approached, similar casemate designs were adopted by other European nations as they offered protection from attacking aircraft. The German [[Organisation Todt]] undertook the development of casemates for the large coastal guns of the [[Atlantic Wall]]. Built of concrete up to {{convert|10|metres}} thick, they were thought to be able to withstand any form of attack.<ref>Hogg 1975. pp. 141-142</ref> Work by the Western Allies to develop countermeasures that could defeat casemates and other types of bunker resulted in weapons such as tank-mounted [[spigot mortar]]s, [[rocket-assisted projectile]]s, [[recoilless rifle]]s, various types of [[demolition charge]] and [[earthquake bomb]]s.<ref>Hogg 1975. pp. 143-148</ref>

===Naval===
[[File:HMS Warrior Gun Deck 68pdrs.png|thumb|upright|left|Inside the casemate or "citadel" of HMS ''Warrior'' (1860)]]

In warship design the term "casemate" has been used in a number of ways, but it generally refers to a protected space for guns within a ship's hull or superstructure.

The first ironclad warship, the {{ship|French ironclad|Gloire}} (1858), was a wooden steamship whose hull was covered with armored plating, tested to withstand the largest [[smoothbore]] guns available at the time. The response by the British [[Royal Navy]] to this perceived threat was to build an iron-hulled frigate, {{HMS|Warrior|1860}}. However, it was realised that to armor all of the hull to fully withstand the latest rifled artillery would make it unfeasibly heavy, so it was decided to create an armored box or casemate around the main gun deck, leaving the bow and stern unarmored.<ref>{{cite book |last=Winton |first=John |date=1987 |title=Warrior - The First and Last |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Laz-NwAACAAJ |location=Liskeard, Cornwall |publisher=Maritime Books |pages=3–4 |isbn= 978-0907771340}}</ref>
[[File:CSS Virginia, wash drawing by Clary Ray (Photo - NH 57830).jpg|thumb|CSS ''Virginia'' (1862) showing the casemate mounted on the very low main deck.]]

The [[American Civil War]] saw the use of [[casemate ironclad]]s: armored steamboats with a very low [[Freeboard (nautical)|freeboard]] and their guns on the main deck ('Casemate deck') protected by a sloped armoured casemate, which sat atop the hull. Although both sides of the Civil War used casemate ironclads, the ship is mostly associated with the southern [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]], as the north also employed turreted [[Monitor (warship)|monitors]], which the south was unable to produce. The most famous naval battle of the war was the duel at [[Battle of Hampton Roads|Hampton Roads]] between the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] turreted ironclad {{USS|Monitor}} and the Confederate casemate ironclad {{ship|CSS|Virginia}} (built from the scuttled remains of {{USS|Merrimack|1855|6}}).<ref>[http://www.civilwarhome.com/ironclad.htm Civilwarhome.com]</ref>

"Casemate ship" was an alternative term for "[[central battery ship]]" (UK) or "center battery ship" (US).<ref name=Hovgaard14>Hovgaard, William, ''Modern History of Warships'', pp. 14–15.</ref> The casemate (or central battery) was an armored box that extended the full width of the ship protecting many guns. The armored sides of the box were the sides or hull of the ship. There was an armored bulkhead at the front and rear of the casemate, and a thick deck protecting the top. The lower edge of the casemate sat on top of ship's [[belt armour]].<ref name=Hovgaard14/> Some ships, such as {{HMS|Alexandra|1875|6}} (laid down 1873), had a two-story casemate.<ref name=Hovgaard18>Hovgaard, William, ''Modern History of Warships'', p. 18.</ref>

A "casemate" was an armored room in the side of a warship, from which a gun would fire. A typical casemate held a 6-inch gun, and had a {{convert|4|to|6|in|adj=on}} front plate (forming part of the side of the ship), with thinner armor plates on the sides and rear, with a protected top and floor,<ref name=Hovgaard79>Hovgaard, William, ''Modern History of Warships'', pp. 78–79.</ref> and weighed about 20 tons (not including the gun and mounting).<ref name=Brown129>Brown, David K, ''Warrior to Dreadnought'', p. 129.</ref> Casemates were similar in size to turrets; ships carrying them had them in pairs, one on each side of the ship.
[[file:Casemate USS North Dakota LOC 09527u.jpg|thumb|left|Casemate-mounted 5"/50 caliber gun on {{USS|North Dakota|BB-29|6}}]]

The first battleships to carry them were the British {{sclass|Royal Sovereign|battleship|4}} laid down in 1889. They were adopted as a result of live-firing trials against {{HMS|Resistance|1861|6}} in 1888.<ref name=Brown101>Brown, David K, ''Warrior to Dreadnought'', pp. 101–02, 129.</ref> Casemates were adopted because it was thought that the fixed armor plate at the front would provide better protection than a turret,<ref name=Brown129/> and because a turret mounting would require external power and could therefore be put out of action if power were lost – unlike a casemate gun, which could be worked by hand.<ref name=Brown129/> The use of casemates enabled the 6-inch guns to be dispersed, so that a single hit would not knock out all of them.<ref name=Brown129/> Casemates were also used in protected and armored cruisers, starting with the 1889 {{sclass|Edgar|cruiser|4}}<ref name=Brown134>Brown, David K, ''Warrior to Dreadnought'', pp. 134–35.</ref> and retrofitted to the 1888 {{sclass|Blake|cruiser|4}} during construction.<ref name=Brown134/>

In the [[pre-dreadnought]] generation of warships, casemates were placed initially on the main deck, and later on the upper deck as well. Casemates on the main deck were very close to the waterline. In the ''Edgar''-class cruisers, the guns in the casemates were only {{convert|10|ft|m}} above the waterline.<ref name=Brown136>Brown, David K, ''Warrior to Dreadnought'', p. 136.</ref> Casemates that were too close to the waterline or too close to the bow (such as in the 1912 [[Iron Duke-class battleship|''Iron Duke''-class dreadnoughts]]) were prone to flooding, making the guns ineffective.<ref name=Brown42>Brown, David K, ''The Grand Fleet, Warship Design and Developments 1906–1922'', p. 42.</ref>
[[file:Haruna 1934.jpg|thumb|Casemates on the {{ship|Japanese battleship|Haruna}}, showing their vulnerability to flooding]]

Shipboard casemate guns were partially rendered obsolete by the arrival of "all-big gun" battleship and battlecruiser, pioneered by {{HMS|Dreadnought|1906|6}} and ''[[HMS Invincible (1907)|Invincible]]'', respectively, who carried their main guns in turrets and secondary armament upon the superstructure in exposed single mounts. Casemates would be quickly reintroduced in succeeding battleship and battlecruiser classes for secondary armament due to the increasing [[torpedo]] threat from [[destroyer]]s.

Many World War I-era battleships that remained in service had their casemates plated over during modernization in the 1930s (or after the [[Attack on Pearl Harbor]], in the case of US vessels) but some, like {{HMS|Warspite|03|6}} carried them to the end of World War II. The last ships built with casemates as new construction were the American {{sclass|Omaha|cruiser|2}}s of the early 1920s and the 1933 Swedish aircraft cruiser {{HSwMS|Gotland|1933|6}}. In both cases the casemates were built into the forward angles of the forward superstructure (and the aft superstructure as well, in the Omahas).{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

===Armoured vehicles===
{{more citations needed section|date=July 2022}}
[[file:Jagdtiger 1.jpg|thumb|A [[Jagdtiger]], an example of a casemate armoured vehicle]]
[[file:Strv 103c a.jpg|thumb|The Swedish [[Strv 103]] was used until the 1990s]]

In regards to armored fighting vehicles, casemate design refers to vehicles that have their main gun mounted directly within the hull and lack the rotating [[Gun turret#Combat vehicles|turret]] commonly associated with tanks.<ref name=Bud>{{cite book|author1=Robert Bud|author2=Philip Gummett|author3=Science Museum (Great Britain)|title=Cold War, Hot Science: Applied Research in Britain's Defence Laboratories, 1945–1990|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BNAgAQAAIAAJ&q=%22casemate%22|date=1 January 1999|publisher=Harwood Academic Publishers|isbn=978-90-5702-481-8|page=182}}</ref> Such a design generally makes the vehicle mechanically simpler in design, less costly in construction, lighter in weight and lower in profile. The saved weight can be used to mount a heavier, more powerful gun or alternatively increase the vehicle's armor protection in comparison to regular, turreted tanks. However, in combat the crew has to rotate the entire vehicle if an enemy target presents itself outside of the vehicle's limited gun traverse arc. This can prove very disadvantageous in combat situations.

During [[World War II]], casemate-type armored fighting vehicles were heavily used by both the combined German [[Wehrmacht]] forces, and the Soviet [[Red Army]]. They were mainly employed as [[tank destroyer]]s and [[assault gun]]s. Tank destroyers, intended to operate mostly from defensive ambush operations, did not need a rotating turret as much as offensively used tanks, while assault guns were mainly used against fortified infantry positions and could afford a longer reaction time if a target presented itself outside the vehicle's gun traverse arc. Thus, the weight and complexity of a turret was thought to be unnecessary, and could be saved in favor of more capable guns and armor. In many cases, casemate vehicles would be used as both tank destroyers or assault guns, depending on the tactical situation. The Wehrmacht employed several casemate tank destroyers, initially with the still-''[[Panzerjäger]]'' designation ''[[Elefant]]'' with an added, fully enclosed five-sided (including its armored roof) casemate atop the hull, with later casemate-style tank destroyers bearing the ''[[Jagdpanzer]]'' (literally 'hunting tank') designation, with much more integration of the casemate's armour with the tank hull itself. Examples are the [[Jagdpanzer IV]], the [[Jagdtiger]] and the [[Jagdpanther]].<ref>These translate as 'Hunting Tiger' and 'Hunting Panther', respectively</ref><ref name="GreenBrown2008">{{cite book|author1=Michael Green|author2=James D. Brown|title=Tiger Tanks at War|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KLIH9ZKEsXAC&pg=PA90|date=15 February 2008|publisher=MBI Publishing Company|isbn=978-1-61060-031-6|pages=90–91}}</ref> Assault guns were designated as 'Sturmgeschütz', like the [[Sturmgeschütz III]] and [[Sturmgeschütz IV]]. In the Red Army, casemate tank destroyers and self-propelled guns bore an "SU-" or "ISU-" prefix, with the "SU-" prefix an abbreviation for [[Samokhodnaya Ustanovka]], or "self-propelled gun". Examples are the [[SU-100]] or the [[ISU-152]]. Both Germany and the Soviet Union mainly built casemate AFVs by using the chassis of already existing turreted tanks, instead of designing them from scratch.

While casemate AFVs played a very important role in World War II (the ''Sturmgeschütz'' III for example was the most numerous armored fighting vehicle of the German Army during the entire war), they became much less common in the post-war period. Heavy casemate tank destroyer designs such as the US [[T28 super-heavy tank|T28]] and the British [[Tortoise heavy assault tank|Tortoise]] never went beyond prototype status, while casemate vehicles of a more regular weight, such as the Soviet [[T-54/55 operators and variants#Self-propelled gun|SU-122-54]], saw only very limited service. The general decline of casemate vehicles can be seen in the technological progress which resulted in the rise of universal [[main battle tanks]], which unified in them the capability to take up the roles and tasks which in the past had to be diverted between several different classes of vehicles. However, vehicles such as the German [[Kanonenjagdpanzer]] of the 1960s still let the casemate concept live on, while the [[Swedish Army]] went as far as employing a casemate tank design, the [[Stridsvagn 103]], or "S-Tank", as their main armored fighting vehicle from the 1960s until the 1990s, favoring it over contemporary turreted designs. Other casemate design ideas, such as the projected German [[VT tank|Versuchsträger 1–2]] with two main guns, were developed even later.

==See also==
* [[Bunker]]
* [[Fortification]]
* [[Gun turret]]
* [[Pillbox (military)]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{commons category-inline|Casemates}}

{{Fortifications}}
{{Man-made and man-related Subterranea}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Fortification (architectural elements)]]
[[Category:Weapons platforms]]
[[Category:Bunkers| ]]

Orinoco

2025-09-18T08:52:54Z

217.38.99.109: /* Economic activity */

{{short description|River in Venezuela and Colombia}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Infobox river
| name = Orinoco River
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| name_other = Río Orinoco
| name_etymology = [[Warao language|Warao]] for "a place to paddle"

| image = Orinoco Bridge.jpg
| image_size =
| image_caption = Orinoquia Bridge near [[Ciudad Guayana]], Venezuela
| map = Orinoco drainage basin map (plain)-es.svg
| map_size =
| map_caption = The Orinoco [[drainage basin]]
| pushpin_map = Venezuela
| pushpin_map_size =
| pushpin_map_caption = Mouth location in Venezuela
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-zoom = 5

| subdivision_type1 = Countries
| subdivision_name1 = {{hlist|[[Colombia]]|[[Venezuela]]}}
| subdivision_type2 =
| subdivision_name2 =
| subdivision_type3 = Region
| subdivision_name3 = [[South America]]
| subdivision_type4 =
| subdivision_name4 =
| subdivision_type5 =
| subdivision_name5 =

| length = {{cvt|2,140|km}}<ref name="XXI. PECES DEL FONDO DEL RÍO ORINOCO Y AFLUENTES PRINCIPALES (COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA): diversidad y aspectos bioecológicos">{{cite book |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/370581100 |title=XXI. PECES DEL FONDO DEL RÍO ORINOCO Y AFLUENTES PRINCIPALES (COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA): diversidad y aspectos bioecológicos |last1=Carlos Andrés |first1=Lasso Alcalá |last2=Mónica Andrea |first2=Morales Betancourt |isbn=978-958-5183-65-0 |doi=10.21068/eh9789585183629 |year=2022}}</ref><ref name="Orinoco River Basin, South America">{{cite web|url=https://files.worldwildlife.org/wwfcmsprod/files/Publication/file/5o1b74cnbo_English_Version_Orinoco_River_Report_Card_3_High_Res.pdf|title=Orinoco River Basin, South America|year=2016}}</ref>
| basin_size ={{cvt|1,014,797|km2}}<ref name="XXI. PECES DEL FONDO DEL RÍO ORINOCO Y AFLUENTES PRINCIPALES (COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA): diversidad y aspectos bioecológicos"/>
| width_min =
| width_avg =
| width_max =
| depth_min =
| depth_avg =
| depth_max = {{cvt|100|m}}

| source1 = Hydrological source (main stem)
| source1_location = Cerro Delgado-Chalbaud, [[Parima Mountains]], [[Venezuela]]
| source1_coordinates= {{coord|2|19|05|N|63|21|42|W|display=inline}}
| source1_elevation = {{cvt|1,047|m}}

| source2 = Geographical source (Orinoco–[[Guaviare River|Guaviare]]–[[Guayabero River|Guayabero]]–Papamene–Sorrento: 3,010 km)
| source2_location = [[Cordillera Oriental (Colombia)|Cordillera Oriental]], [[Colombia]]
| source2_coordinates= {{coord|3|31|36.5952|N|74|28|27.3684|W|}}
| source2_elevation = {{cvt|3,080|m}}

| mouth = [[Delta Amacuro]]
| mouth_location = [[Atlantic Ocean]], [[Venezuela]]
| mouth_coordinates = {{coord|8|37|N|62|15|W|display=inline,title}}<ref>{{GEOnet2|32FA87C3E20B3774E0440003BA962ED3|Orinoco River}}</ref>
| mouth_elevation = {{cvt|0|m}}

| discharge1_location= [[Orinoco Delta]]
| discharge1_avg = (Period: 1983–2020) {{cvt|39,000|m3/s}}<ref name="XXI. PECES DEL FONDO DEL RÍO ORINOCO Y AFLUENTES PRINCIPALES (COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA): diversidad y aspectos bioecológicos"/>
| discharge1_min = {{cvt|8,000|m3/s}}<ref name="XXI. PECES DEL FONDO DEL RÍO ORINOCO Y AFLUENTES PRINCIPALES (COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA): diversidad y aspectos bioecológicos"/>
| discharge1_max = {{cvt|85,000|m3/s}}<ref name="XXI. PECES DEL FONDO DEL RÍO ORINOCO Y AFLUENTES PRINCIPALES (COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA): diversidad y aspectos bioecológicos"/>

| discharge2_location= [[Ciudad Guayana]]
| discharge2_avg = (Period: 1926–2011) {{cvt|37,740|m3/s}}<ref name="La geografía del agua">{{cite web |url=https://bibliofep.fundacionempresaspolar.org/media/1378189/agua_ti_cap03.pdf |title=La geografía del agua |last1=José Rafael |first1=Córdova |last2=Marcelo González |first2=Sanabria}}</ref>

|discharge3_location= [[Ciudad Bolívar]]
|discharge3_avg = (Period: 1926–2011) {{cvt|32,760|m3/s}}<ref name="La geografía del agua"/>

|discharge5_location= [[Puerto Ayacucho]]
|discharge5_avg = (Period: 1926–2011) {{cvt|16,182|m3/s}}<ref name="La geografía del agua"/>

|discharge4_location=[[Puerto Carreño]]
|discharge4_avg = (Period: 1971–2000) {{cvt|18,363.7|m3/s}}<ref name="Orinoco">{{cite web |url=https://www.riversnetwork.org/V1/index.php/component/content/?view=article&id=67&catid=10&Itemid=179 |title=Orinoco}}</ref>

| progression = [[Atlantic Ocean]]
| river_system = Orinoco River
| tributaries_left = [[Casiquiare River|Casiquiare]], [[Guaviare River|Guaviare]], [[Vichada River|Vichada]], [[Tomo River|Tomo]], [[Cinaruco River|Cinaruco]], [[Capanaparo River|Capanaparo]], [[Meta River|Meta]], [[Arauca River|Arauca]], [[Apure River|Apure]], [[Guárico River|Guárico]]
| tributaries_right = [[Mavaca River|Mavaca]], [[Sipapo River|Sipapo]], [[Ocamo River|Ocamo]], [[Ventuari River|Ventuari]], [[Suapure River|Suapure]], [[Parguaza River|Parguaza]], [[Caura River (Venezuela)|Caura]], [[Cuchivero River|Cuchivero]], [[Aro River|Aro]], [[Caroní River|Caroní]]

| custom_label =
| custom_data =
| extra =
}}

The '''Orinoco''' ({{IPA|es|oɾiˈnoko}}) is one of the longest [[river]]s in [[South America]] at {{cvt|2,140|km}}. Its [[drainage basin]], sometimes known as the '''Orinoquia''', covers approximately {{cvt|1000000|km2}}, with 65% of it in [[Venezuela]] and 35% in [[Colombia]]. It is the [[List of rivers by discharge|fourth largest river]] in the world by [[Discharge (hydrology)|discharge]] volume of water ({{cvt|39,000|m3/s}} at [[Orinoco Delta|delta]]) due to the high precipitation throughout its catchment area ({{convert|2,300|mm/a|link=in|disp=sqbr}}). The Orinoco River and its tributaries are the major transportation system for eastern and interior Venezuela and the [[Llanos]] of Colombia. The environment and wildlife in the Orinoco's basin are extremely diverse.<ref name="XXI. PECES DEL FONDO DEL RÍO ORINOCO Y AFLUENTES PRINCIPALES (COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA): diversidad y aspectos bioecológicos"/><ref>Supplement of {{cite journal |url=https://hess.copernicus.org/articles/26/35/2022/hess-26-35-2022-supplement.pdf |year=2021 |access-date=21 February 2022 |archive-date=4 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220104103919/https://hess.copernicus.org/articles/26/35/2022/hess-26-35-2022-supplement.pdf |url-status=live |doi=10.5194/hess-26-35-2022 |title=How well are we able to close the water budget at the global scale? |last1=Lehmann |first1=Fanny |last2=Vishwakarma |first2=Bramha Dutt |last3=Bamber |first3=Jonathan |journal=Hydrology and Earth System Sciences |volume=26 |pages=35–54 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name="Orinoco River Basin, South America–WWF">{{cite web |url=https://wwf.panda.org/discover/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/orinoco_river_basin |title=Orinoco River Basin, South America–WWF}}</ref><ref name="Publications-EcoHealth Report Cards">{{cite web|url=https://ecoreportcard.org/report-cards/orinoco-river/publications/|title=Publications-EcoHealth Report Cards}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Orinoquia, Orinoquía |encyclopedia=Diccionario panhispánico de dudas |year=2005 |publisher=Royal Spanish Academy |url=https://www.rae.es/dpd/Orinoquia |access-date=2023-01-07}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The river's name is derived from the [[Warao language|Warao]] term for "a place to paddle", itself derived from the terms {{lang|wba|güiri}} (paddle) and {{lang|wba|noko}} (place) i.e. a navigable place.<ref>{{cite web |title=Orinoco River |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Orinoco-River |website=Encyclopaedia Britannica |access-date=11 April 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Orinoco |url=http://etimologias.dechile.net/?Orinoco |website=Diccionario Etimológico Español en Línea |access-date=11 April 2020}}</ref>

== History ==
{{More citations needed|section|date=December 2022}}
[[File:Map of Lower Orinoco pub. 1897.jpg|thumb|left|Map of the Lower Orinoco, 1897]]
The mouth of the Orinoco River at the [[Atlantic Ocean]] was documented by [[Christopher Columbus]] on 1 August 1498, during his [[Christopher Columbus#Third voyage and arrest|third voyage]]. Its source at the Cerro Delgado–Chalbaud, in the [[Parima Mountains|Parima range]], was not explored until 453 years later, in 1951. The source, near the Venezuelan–[[Brazil]]ian border, at {{cvt|1047|m}} above sea level ({{coord|2|19|05|N|63|21|42|W|}}), was explored in 1951 by a joint French-Venezuelan expedition.

The Orinoco, as well as its tributaries in the eastern [[llanos]] such as the [[Apure River|Apure]] and [[Meta River|Meta]], were explored in the 16th century by German expeditions under [[Ambrosius Ehinger]] and his successors. In 1531, starting at the principal outlet in the delta, the Boca de Navios, [[Diego de Ordaz]] sailed up the river to the Meta. [[Antonio de Berrio]] sailed down the [[Casanare River|Casanare]] to the Meta, and then down the Orinoco River and back to [[Santa Ana de Coro|Coro]]. In 1595, after capturing de Berrio to obtain information while conducting an expedition to find the fabled city of [[El Dorado]], the Englishman [[Sir Walter Raleigh]] sailed down the river, reaching the [[Llanos|savanna country]].

From April to May 1800, the Prussian-born [[Alexander von Humboldt]] and his companion, [[Aimé Bonpland|Aime Bonpland]], explored stretches of the Orinoco, supported by indigenous helpers and guided by his interest to prove that South America's waterways formed an interconnected system from the Andes to the Amazon.<ref>{{ cite book | last=Daum | first=Andreas W.|author-link=Andreas Daum | year=2024 | title=Alexander von Humboldt: A Concise Biography | location=Trans. Robert Savage. Princeton, N.J. | publisher=Princeton University Press |pages=68‒70 | isbn=978-0-691-24736-6 }}</ref> He reported on the [[Boto|pink river dolphins]] and later published extensively on the river's flora and fauna.<ref>Helferich, Gerard (2004) ''Humboldt's Cosmos: Alexander von Humboldt and the Latin American Journey that Changed the Way We See the World,'' Gotham Books, New York; {{ISBN|1-59240-052-3}}.</ref>

The sources of the Orinoco River, located at Cerro [[Carlos Delgado Chalbaud]] (2º19’05” N, 63º21’42” W), were discovered in 1951 by the French-Venezuelan expedition that went back and explored the Upper Orinoco course to the [[Parima Mountains|Sierra Parima]] near the border with Brazil, headed by Venezuelan army officer Frank Risquez Iribarren.<ref>Alberto Contramaestre Torres. Expedición a las fuentes del Orinoco. Caracas, 1954.</ref><ref>Pablo J. Anduce. ''Shailili-Ko. Descubrimiento de las fuentes del Orinoco''. Caracas: Talleres Gráficos Ilustraciones S.A., 1960.</ref>

The first bridge across the Orinoco River, the [[Angostura Bridge]] at [[Ciudad Bolívar]], Venezuela, was completed in 1967.<ref>{{cite book|title=In the Wake of Tacoma: Suspension Bridges and the Quest for Aerodynamic Stability|author=Scott, R.|date=2001|publisher=American Society of Civil Engineers|isbn=9780784470732|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dLOR_CjeiBMC|page=184|access-date=13 April 2015}}</ref>

In 1968, an expedition was set off by [[The Geographical Journal]] and [[Hovercraft]] from [[Manaus]] ([[Brazil]]) to [[Port of Spain]] (Trinidad). Aboard a [[SR.N6]] Hovercraft, the expedition members followed the Negro river upstream to where it is joined by the [[Casiquiare canal]], on the border between Colombia and Venezuela. After following the Casiquiare to the Orinoco River they hovered thru perilous rapids of Maipures and Atures. The Orinoco was then traversed down to its mouths in the Gulf of Paria and then to Port of Spain. The primary purpose of the expedition was filming for the [[BBC]] series ''[[The World About Us]]'' episode "The Last Great Journey on Earth from Amazon to Orinoco by Hovercraft", which aired in 1970, and demonstrated the abilities of a hovercraft, thereby promoting sales of this British invention.

The first powerline crossing of the Orinoco River was completed in 1981 for an 800{{nbsp}}kV{{nbsp}}TL single span of {{cvt|1200|m}} using two towers {{cvt|110|m}} tall.<ref name="SAE-Power">{{Cite web |title=Experience |publisher=SAE Power Lines |url=http://www.saepowerlines.com/eng/esperienze.htm |access-date=13 October 2015 |archive-date=2 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150802012558/http://www.saepowerlines.com/eng/esperienze.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1992, an overhead power line crossing for two 400{{nbsp}}kV-circuits was completed just west of Morocure (between the cities of [[Ciudad Bolívar]] and [[Ciudad Guayana]]), north of the confluence of Routes{{nbsp}}1 and 19. It had three towers, and the two spans measured {{cvt|2161|m}} and {{cvt|2537|m}}, respectively.<ref name="SAE-Power" /><ref>{{Cite magazine|title=Critical Path |date=June 2005 |magazine=[[PEI (magazine)|PEI]] |pages=105–111, page 107 |url=http://www.pbpower.net/inprint/articles/critical/critical.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923215840/http://www.pbpower.net/inprint/articles/critical/critical.pdf |archive-date=23 September 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Pylons of the Orinoco High-Voltage Crossing |work=International Database for Civil and Structural Engineering |url=http://structurae.net/structures/pylons-of-the-orinoco-high-voltage-crossing |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304200554/http://structurae.net/structures/pylons-of-the-orinoco-high-voltage-crossing |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=dead |access-date=13 October 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Orinoco Powerline Crossing |publisher=Skyscraper Source Media Inc. |url=http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=58412 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305034956/http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=58412 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2006, a second bridge, known as the [[Orinoquia Bridge]], was completed near [[Ciudad Guayana]], Venezuela.{{citation needed|date=February 2016}}

== Geography ==

The course of the Orinoco forms a wide ellipsoidal arc, surrounding the [[Guiana Shield]]; it is divided in four stretches of unequal length that very roughly correspond to the longitudinal zonation of a typical large river:
* Upper Orinoco – {{cvt|286|km}} long, from its headwaters to the Raudales de Guaharibos rapids, flows through mountainous landscape in a northwesterly direction
* Middle Orinoco – {{cvt|805|km}} long, divided into two sectors, the first of which ca. {{cvt|515|km}} long has a general westward direction down to the confluence with the [[Atabapo River|Atabapo]] and [[Guaviare River|Guaviare]] rivers at [[San Fernando de Atabapo]]; the second flows northward, for about {{cvt|290|km}}, along the Venezuelan–Colombian border, flanked on both sides by the westernmost granitic upwellings of the Guiana Shield which impede the development of a flood plain, to the [[Raudales de Atures|Atures rapids]] near the confluence with the [[Meta River]] at [[Puerto Carreño]]
*Lower Orinoco – {{cvt|959|km}} long with a well-developed alluvial plain, flows in a northeast direction, from Atures rapids down to Piacoa in front of [[Barrancas del Orinoco|Barrancas]]
* Delta Amacuro – {{cvt|200|km}} long that empties into the [[Gulf of Paría]] and the Atlantic Ocean, a very large [[river delta|delta]], some {{cvt|22500|km2}} and {{cvt|370|km}} at its widest.

[[File:Deltaorinoco.jpg|thumb|right|Orinoco in Mariusa National Park (Delta Amacuro)]]
[[File:Ciudad guyana.jpg|thumb|right|Orinoco at its confluence with the [[Caroní River]] (lower left)<ref>{{cite web
| url=http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=6215
| title=Ciudad Guayana, Venezuela : Image of the Day
| publisher=earthobservatory.nasa.gov | access-date=2009-10-31
| date=2006-01-23
}}</ref>]]
[[File:Orinoco-Landschaft.JPG|right|thumb|Rapids of the Orinoco, near Puerto Ayacucho airport, Venezuela]]
[[File:Orinoco 33. 2005.jpg|right|thumb|Orinoco in [[Amazonas (Venezuelan state)|Amazonas State]], Venezuela]]
[[File:Orinoco4.jpg|right|thumb|Orinoco in Amazonas State, Venezuela]]

At its mouth, the Orinoco River forms a wide delta that branches off into hundreds of rivers and waterways that flow through {{cvt|41,000|km2}} of swampy forests. In the rainy season, the Orinoco River can swell to a breadth of {{cvt|22|km}} and a depth of {{cvt|100|m}}.

Most of the important Venezuelan rivers are tributaries of the Orinoco River, the largest being the [[Caroni River (Venezuela)|Caroní]], which joins it at [[Puerto Ordaz]], close to the [[Llovizna]] Falls. A peculiarity of the Orinoco river system is the [[Casiquiare canal]], which starts as an arm of the Orinoco, and finds its way to the [[Rio Negro (Amazon)|Rio Negro]], a tributary of the [[Amazon River|Amazon]], thus forming a 'natural canal' between Orinoco and Amazon.

The [[stream gradient]] of the entire river is 0.05% ({{cvt|1,047|m|disp=sqbr}} over {{cvt|2,250|km|disp=sqbr}}). Downstream of Raudales de Guaharibos the gradient is 0.01% ({{cvt|183|m|disp=sqbr}}<ref name="gv">{{Cite web |title=Raudal de Guaharibos rapids, Estado Amazonas, Venezuela |url=https://ve.geoview.info/raudal_de_guaharibos,3640388 |access-date=2021-07-21 |website=ve.geoview.info}}</ref> over {{cvt|1,964|km|disp=sqbr}}), which is also the gradient from Ciudad Bolivar to the ocean ({{cvt|54|m|disp=sqbr}} over {{cvt|435|km|disp=sqbr}}).

=== Major rivers in the Orinoco Basin ===
* [[Apure River|Apure]]: from Venezuela through the east into the Orinoco
* [[Arauca River|Arauca]]: from Colombia to Venezuela east into the Orinoco
* [[Atabapo River|Atabapo]]: from the [[Guiana Shield|Guiana Highlands]] of Venezuela north into the Orinoco
* [[Caroní River|Caroní]]: from the Guiana Highlands of Venezuela north into the Orinoco
* [[Casiquiare canal]]: in SE Venezuela, a [[distributary]] from the Orinoco flowing west to the Negro River, a major affluent to the Amazon
* [[Caura River (Venezuela)|Caura]]: from eastern Venezuela (Guiana Highlands) north into the Orinoco
* [[Guaviare River|Guaviare]]: from Colombia east into the Orinoco
* [[Inírida River|Inírida]]: from Colombia southeast into the Guaviare.
* [[Meta River|Meta]]: from Colombia, border with Venezuela east into the Orinoco
* [[Ventuari River|Ventuari]]: from eastern Venezuela (the Guiana Highlands) southwest into the Orinoco
* [[Vichada River|Vichada]]: from Colombia east into the Orinoco
{{see also|Casiquiare canal-Orinoco River hydrographic divide}}

==Discharge==
===[[Ciudad Guayana]]===
{{Bar chart
| title = Period: 1995–2024<ref name="The Flood Observatory">{{cite web |url=https://floodobservatory.colorado.edu/SiteDisplays/141.htm |title=The Flood Observatory}}</ref><ref name="NATURAL CONDITIONS OF THE ORINOCO RIVER DELTA">{{cite book |url=https://openjicareport.jica.go.jp/pdf/11603503_11.PDF |title=NATURAL CONDITIONS OF THE ORINOCO RIVER DELTA}}</ref>
| label_type = Year
| data_type = Average discharge (m3/s)
| bar_width = 13
| width_units = em
| data_max = 44,050
| label1=2024
| data1=33,007
| label2=2023
| data2=36,380
| label3=2022
| data3=42,663
| label4=2021
| data4=42,786
| label5=2020
| data5=31,551
| label6=2019
| data6=34,620
| label7=2018
| data7=40,870
| label8=2017
| data8=39,057
| label9=2016
| data9=39,841
| label10=2015
| data10=33,747
| label11=2014
| data11=36,018
| label12=2013
| data12=36,484
| label13=2012
| data13=44,049
| label14=2011
| data14=40,189
| label15=2010
| data15=40,101
| label16=2009
| data16=30,919
| label17=2008
| data17=38,444
| label18=2007
| data18=40,936
| label19=2006
| data19=42,628
| label20=2005
| data20=37,972
| label21=2004
| data21=42,409
| label22=2003
| data22=41,235
| label23=2002
| data23=40,373
| label24=2001
| data24=30,510
| label25=2000
| data25=37,390
| label26=1999
| data26=39,080
| label27=1998
| data27=36,844
| label28=1997
| data28=33,094
| label29=1996
| data29=38,620
| label30=1995
| data30=32,853
}}
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Monthly average discharge (m3/s, period 1996 to 1998)<ref name="NATURAL CONDITIONS OF THE ORINOCO RIVER DELTA">{{cite book |url=https://openjicareport.jica.go.jp/pdf/11603503_11.PDF |title=NATURAL CONDITIONS OF THE ORINOCO RIVER DELTA}}</ref>
|-
!Month
! 1996
! 1997
! 1998
! ''1943–1998''
|-
|January
|17,627
|24,386
|10,919
|''16,661''
|-
|February
|14,486
|17,144
|7,583
|''10,108''
|-
|March
|15,334
|15,767
|8,906
|''7,702''
|-
|April
|12,514
|12,615
|12,411
|''10,609''
|-
|May
|23,670
|25,152
|32,751
|''26,317''
|-
|June
|45,781
|43,142
|49,062
|''45,179''
|-
|July
|61,177
|55,597
|63,659
|''58,412''
|-
|August
|67,639
|61,275
|67,756
|''64,975''
|-
|September
|65,933
|53,825
|66,416
|''63,244''
|-
|October
|57,912
|38,742
|54,189
|''53,201''
|-
|November
|45,267
|28,372
|38,345
|''40,805''
|-
|December
|36,094
|21,116
|30,130
|''29,229''
|-
|''Mean''
|''38,620''
|''33,094''
|''36,844''
|''35,537''
|}

===[[Ciudad Bolívar]]===
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Minimum and maximum discharge (m3/s, period 2000 to 2023)<ref name="Actualidad Hidrometeorológica">{{cite web |url=https://hidromet-ucv.org.ve/category/actualidad-meteorolog/ |title=Actualidad Hidrometeorológica}}</ref><ref name="The Flood Observatory"/>
|-
! Year
! Min
! ''Mean''
! Max
! Year
! Min
! ''Mean''
! Max
|-
|2000
|4,799
|''33,415''
|67,667
|2012
|7,805
|''38,685''
|77,909
|-
|2001
|3,438
|''25,695''
|59,527
|2013
|5,581
|''32,041''
|65,850
|-
|2002
|3,868
|''34,002''
|74,367
|2014
|4,364
|''31,632''
|71,214
|-
|2003
|3,287
|''34,728''
|74,367
|2015
|5,725
|''29,476''
|71,136
|-
|2004
|4,071
|''35,717''
|74,208
|2016
|3,514
|''35,474''
|78,398
|-
|2005
|5,439
|''31,980''
|64,800
|2017
|7,520
|''34,302''
|77,315
|-
|2006
|6,521
|''35,901''
|77,422
|2018
|4,693
|''36,467''
|82,611
|-
|2007
|3,949
|''34,477''
|71,527
|2019
|4,846
|''32,017''
|72,203
|-
|2008
|4,754
|''32,378''
|70,536
|2020
|4,570
|''28,915''
|63,638
|-
|2009
|7,419
|''26,041''
|59,671
|2021
|7,279
|''39,378''
|74,873
|-
|2010
|3,067
|''35,286''
|75,807
|2022
|6,463
|''39,094''
|75,912
|-
|2011
|6,368
|''37,957''
|74,367
|2023
|8,377
|''32,523''
|68,742
|}
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Monthly average discharge (m3/s, period 2018 to 2023)<ref name="Actualidad Hidrometeorológica">{{cite web |url=https://hidromet-ucv.org.ve/category/actualidad-meteorolog/ |title=Actualidad Hidrometeorológica}}</ref>
|-
! Month
! 2018
! 2019
! 2020
! 2021
! 2022
! 2023
! ''1926–2023''
|-
|January
|11,009
|8,955
|13,667
|19,108
|11,067
|14,528
|''11,637''
|-
|February
|7,593
|6,414
|7,142
|9,554
|6,463
|9,412
|''6,840''
|-
|March
|4,693
|4,846
|4,570
|7,279
|10,187
|8,377
|''5,521''
|-
|April
|6,862
|5,634
|5,080
|16,378
|13,860
|10,036
|''7,347''
|-
|May
|27,262
|17,343
|11,688
|33,363
|28,156
|19,290
|''20,295''
|-
|June
|46,541
|36,447
|29,204
|63,086
|50,344
|41,963
|''39,205''
|-
|July
|73,295
|57,240
|42,542
|68,208
|68,499
|59,398
|''57,550''
|-
|August
|82,611
|72,203
|57,742
|74,873
|75,912
|68,742
|''69,207''
|-
|September
|70,591
|69,859
|63,638
|68,441
|73,589
|67,129
|''66,502''
|-
|October
|50,838
|48,298
|50,060
|53,294
|54,020
|52,622
|''51,206''
|-
|November
|34,852
|34,644
|36,926
|36,518
|45,509
|23,332
|''35,752''
|-
|December
|21,457
|22,317
|24,718
|22,437
|31,527
|15,450
|''22,974''
|-
| colspan="8" |
|-
|''Mean''
|''36,467''
|''32,017''
|''28,915''
|''39,378''
|''39,094''
|''32,523''
|''32,836''
|}
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Average discharge (m3/s, complete series from 1926 to 2023)<ref name="THE EXTRAORDINARY FLOOD OF THE ORINOCO RIVER IN 2018">{{cite web |last1=José L. |first1=López |last2=José R. |first2=Córdova |last3=Bartolo |first3=Castellanos |last4=Santiago |first4=Yépez |last5=Alain |first5=Laraque |title=THE EXTRAORDINARY FLOOD OF THE ORINOCO RIVER IN 2018 |url=https://hybam.obs-mip.fr/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/6_Lopez.pdf}}</ref><ref name="Actualidad Hidrometeorológica2">{{cite web |title=Actualidad Hidrometeorológica |url=https://hidromet-ucv.org.ve/category/actualidad-meteorolog/}}</ref><ref name="The Flood Observatory"/>
|-
!Year
!m3/s
!Year
!m3/s
!Year
!m3/s
|-
|1926
|23,376
|1959
|30,333
|1992
|28,571
|-
|1927
|37,476
|1960
|31,818
|1993
|35,204
|-
|1928
|32,838
|1961
|27,830
|1994
|35,110
|-
|1929
|32,653
|1962
|32,930
|1995
|29,360
|-
|1930
|30,610
|1963
|32,560
|1996
|35,992
|-
|1931
|33,766
|1964
|27,736
|1997
|28,757
|-
|1932
|33,302
|1965
|27,643
|1998
|35,000
|-
|1933
|32,792
|1966
|29,220
|1999
|34,925
|-
|1934
|34,137
|1967
|34,323
|2000
|33,415
|-
|1935
|31,168
|1968
|32,280
|2001
|25,695
|-
|1936
|31,260
|1969
|32,606
|2002
|34,002
|-
|1937
|29,962
|1970
|34,600
|2003
|34,728
|-
|1938
|37,383
|1971
|33,673
|2004
|35,717
|-
|1939
|28,292
|1972
|36,177
|2005
|31,980
|-
|1940
|25,232
|1973
|27,597
|2006
|35,901
|-
|1941
|28,200
|1974
|26,344
|2007
|34,477
|-
|1942
|31,540
|1975
|29,313
|2008
|32,378
|-
|1943
|38,403
|1976
|37,290
|2009
|26,041
|-
|1944
|34,878
|1977
|30,705
|2010
|35,286
|-
|1945
|33,395
|1978
|32,514
|2011
|37,957
|-
|1946
|36,363
|1979
|32,885
|2012
|38,685
|-
|1947
|30,426
|1980
|35,018
|2013
|32,041
|-
|1948
|31,818
|1981
|38,080
|2014
|31,632
|-
|1949
|32,745
|1982
|36,224
|2015
|29,476
|-
|1950
|32,096
|1983
|36,130
|2016
|35,474
|-
|1951
|38,220
|1984
|31,493
|2017
|34,302
|-
|1952
|33,858
|1985
|30,380
|2018
|36,467
|-
|1953
|36,177
|1986
|35,040
|2019
|32,017
|-
|1954
|38,310
|1987
|34,090
|2020
|28,915
|-
|1955
|31,076
|1988
|30,472
|2021
|39,378
|-
|1956
|36,734
|1989
|29,638
|2022
|39,094
|-
|1957
|29,128
|1990
|33,442
|2023
|32,523
|-
|1958
|28,108
|1991
|31,770
|2024
|
|}

== Ecology ==
The [[boto]] and the [[giant otter]] inhabit the Orinoco River system.<ref name=WWF>WWF: ''[http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/where_we_work/orinoco_river_basin/ Orinoco River Basin, South America.]'' Retrieved 24 May 2014</ref> The [[Orinoco crocodile]] is one of the rarest reptiles in the world. Its range in the wild is restricted to the middle and lower Orinoco River Basin.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Thorbjarnarson |first1=John B. |last2=Hernández |first2=Gustavo |year=1993 |title=Reproductive ecology of the Orinoco crocodile (''Crocodylus intermedius'') in Venezuela. I. Nesting ecology and egg and clutch relationships |journal=Journal of Herpetology |volume=27 |issue=4 |pages=363–370 |doi=10.2307/1564821 |jstor=1564821}}</ref>

More than 1000 fish species have been recorded in the river basin and about 15% are [[Endemism|endemic]].<ref name=Reis2016>{{Cite journal |doi = 10.1111/jfb.13016|pmid = 27312713|title = Fish biodiversity and conservation in South America|journal = Journal of Fish Biology|volume = 89|issue = 1|pages = 12–47|year = 2016|last1 = Reis|first1 = R. E.|last2 = Albert|first2 = J. S.|last3 = Di Dario|first3 = F.|last4 = Mincarone|first4 = M. M.|last5 = Petry|first5 = P.|last6 = Rocha|first6 = L. A.|url = https://zenodo.org/record/896303|doi-access = free| bibcode=2016JFBio..89...12R }}</ref> Among the fish in the river are species found in [[brackish]] or salt water in the Orinoco [[estuary]], but also many restricted to fresh water. By far the largest orders are [[Characiformes]] and [[Siluriformes]], which together account for more than 80% of the fresh water species.<ref name=FEW>Hales, J., and P. Petry: ''[http://www.feow.org/ecoregions/details/307 Orinoco Llanos]''. Orinoco Delta & Coastal Drainages. Retrieved 24 May 2014.</ref> Some of the more famous are the [[Pygocentrus cariba|black spot piranha]] and the [[cardinal tetra]]. The latter species, which is important in the aquarium industry, is also found in the [[Rio Negro (Amazon)|Rio Negro]], revealing the connection between this river and the Orinoco through the [[Casiquiare canal]].<ref>{{cite web|website=Seriously Fish|url=http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/paracheirodon-axelrodi/|title=Paracheirodon axelrodi, Cardinal Tetra.|access-date=24 May 2014}}</ref> Because the Casiquiare includes both [[Blackwater river|blackwater]] and [[Clearwater river (river type)|clear-]] to [[Whitewater river (river type)|whitewater]] sections, only relatively adaptable species are able to pass through it between the two river systems.<ref name=Staeck2015>{{cite journal|last1=Staeck|first1=W.|last2=Schindler|first2=I.|title=Description of a new Heros species (Teleostei, Cichlidae) from the Rio Orinoco drainage and notes on Heros severus Heckel, 1840|year=2015|journal=Bulletin of Fish Biology|volume=15|issue=1–2|pages=121–136|url=http://www.ichthyologie.de/images/stories/gfi/publikationen/Bulletin_of_Fish_Biology/Volume_15/BoFB_Vol15_121_136_Staeck_and_Schindler.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.ichthyologie.de/images/stories/gfi/publikationen/Bulletin_of_Fish_Biology/Volume_15/BoFB_Vol15_121_136_Staeck_and_Schindler.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live}}{{Dead link|date=April 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

== Economic activity ==
The river is navigable for most of its length, and [[dredging]] enables ocean ships to go as far as [[Ciudad Bolívar]], at the confluence of the [[Caroní River]], {{cvt|435|km}} upstream. River steamers carry cargo as far as [[Puerto Ayacucho]] and the Atures Rapids.

=== El Florero iron mine ===
In 1926, a Venezuelan mining inspector found one of the richest [[iron ore]] deposits near the Orinoco delta, south of the city of San Felix on a mountain named ''El Florero''. Full-scale mining of the ore deposits began after [[World War II]], by a conglomerate of Venezuelan firms and US steel companies. At the start in the early 1950s, about 10,000 tons of ore-bearing soil was mined per day.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=GtkDAAAAMBAJ&dq=popular+mechanics+July+1932+airplane&pg=PA142 "Venezuela's Magnetic Mountain"] ''Popular Mechanics'', July 1949</ref>

=== Tar sands ===
The Orinoco River deposits also contain extensive [[tar sands]] in the [[Orinoco Belt|Orinoco oil belt]], which may be a source of future oil production.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Forero |first=Juan |date=1 June 2006 |title=For Venezuela, A Treasure In Oil Sludge |newspaper=The New York Times |volume=155 |issue=53597 |pages=C1–C6 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/01/business/worldbusiness/01oil.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220134004/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/01/business/worldbusiness/01oil.html |archive-date=20 December 2016 |url-status=live |df=dmy }}</ref>

== Eastern Venezuelan basin ==
[[File:Vista RioCaroni DesdeOrinoco.jpg|thumbnail|Union of the Orinoco with the [[Caroní River]]]]
Encompassing the states of [[Anzoategui]]-[[Guarico]] and [[Monagas]] states, the Interior Range forms the northern boundary and the [[Guayana Shield]] the southern boundary.<ref name=Prieto>Prieto, R., Valdes, G., 1992, El Furrial Oil Field, In Giant Oil and Gas Fields of the Decade, 1978–1988, AAPG Memoir 54, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, {{ISBN|0891813330}}</ref>{{rp|155}} Maturin forms the eastern subbasin and Guarico forms the western subbasin.<ref name=Prieto/>{{rp|156}} The El Furrial oil field was discovered in 1978, producing from late [[Oligocene]] shallow marine [[sandstone]]s in an [[overthrust]]ed [[foreland basin]].<ref name=Prieto/>{{rp|155}}

== Recreation and sports ==

Since 1973, the Civil Association Nuestros Rios son Navegables organize the Internacional Rally ''Nuestros Rios son Navegables'', a motonautical round trip of over 1,200 kilometers through the Orinoco, Meta and Apure Rivers. Starting out from Ciudad Bolívar or San Fernando de Apure, is the longest fluvial rally in the world with the participation of worldwide competitors, more than 30 support boats, logistics teams, thousands of tourists and fans travel. The boats had an average speed of 120 miles per hour.

Since 1988, the local government of [[Ciudad Guayana]] has conducted a swim race in the rivers Orinoco and [[Caroni River (Venezuela)|Caroní]], with up to 1,000 competitors. Since 1991, the ''Paso a Nado Internacional de los Rios Orinoco–Caroní'' has been celebrated every year, on a Sunday close to 19 April. Worldwide, this swim-meet has grown in importance, and it has a large number of competitors.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Antecedentes y Sumario Paso a Nado Internacional de Los Rios Orinoco/Caroni" ''Paso Nado Internacional de Los Rios Orinoco y Caroní'' |language=es |trans-title=Antecedents and Summary of the ''International Swim Meet of the Orinoco and Caroni Rivers'' |url=http://www.almacaronidireccion.com/imdecaroni/static.php?page=static070130-092723 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217065719/http://www.almacaronidireccion.com/imdecaroni/static.php?page=static070130-092723 |archive-date=17 December 2007 |url-status=dead |df=dmy}}</ref> The 26th meet was held in 2016.<ref>{{Cite web|title=26 edición Paso a Nado de Ríos Orinoco y Caroní 2016 |publisher=Roberto Muñoz Natación Venezuela |url=http://1968.com.ve/26-edicion-paso-a-nado-de-rios-orinoco-y-caroni-2016/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161109162140/http://1968.com.ve/26-edicion-paso-a-nado-de-rios-orinoco-y-caroni-2016/ |archive-date=9 November 2016 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref>

== In culture ==
The Irish singer and songwriter Enya wrote and sang the song "[[Orinoco Flow]]", which she released in 1988.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Rick |date=2020-11-18 |title=Behind the Song: "Orinoco Flow (Sail Away)" by Enya |url=https://americansongwriter.com/sail-away-by-enya-behind-the-song/ |access-date=2023-12-27 |website=American Songwriter |language=en-US}}</ref>
Jules Verne's novel Superbe Orénoque has the river as its central theme. One of the characters in the children's novels and television series [[The Wombles]] is named Orinoco.

[[Daniel Defoe]]'s novel ''[[Robinson Crusoe]]'' is set on a fictional island in the mouth of the Orinoco, with [[Trinidad]] just visible from the northwest beach.

== See also ==
* [[Adaheli]], the Sun in the [[mythology]] of the Orinoco region
* ''[[Fishes of the Orinoco in the Wild]]'' (2020) book
* "[[Orinoco Flow]]" – the song uses the Orinoco and its environs as a theme for its lyrics

{{Clear}}

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== References ==
* Stark, James H. 1897. ''Stark's Guide-Book and History of Trinidad including Tobago, Granada, and St. Vincent; also a trip up the Orinoco and a description of the great Venezuelan Pitch Lake''. Boston, James H. Stark, publisher; London, Sampson Low, Marston & Company. (This book has an excellent description of a trip up the Orinoco as far as [[Ciudad Bolívar]] and a detailed description of the Venezuelan [[Pitch Lake]] situated on the western side of the Gulf of Paria opposite.)
* MacKee, E.D., Nordin, C.F. and D. Perez-Hernandez (1998). "The Waters and Sediments of the Rio Orinoco and its major Tributaries, Venezuela and Colombia." United States Geological Survey water-supply paper, {{ISSN|0886-9308}} /A-B. Washington: United States Government Printing Office.
* Rawlins, C.B. (1999). ''The Orinoco River''. New York: Franklin Watts.
* Triana, S. Pérez. [http://www.gutenberg.org/files/50506/50506-h/50506-h.htm Down the Orinoco in a Canoe]
* Weibezahn, F.H., Haymara, A. and M.W. Lewis (1990). ''The Orinoco River as an ecosystem''. Caracas: Universidad Simon Bolivar.

== External links ==
{{commons category|Orinoco River}}
*{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Orinoco |volume=20 |pages=275–276 |first=George Earl |last=Church |short=1}}
*{{Gutenberg|no=50506|name=Down the Orinoco in a Canoe}} (Transcription of book from 1902)
*[https://scioteca.caf.com/bitstream/handle/123456789/495/el_camino_de_los_r_os_w_2013.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y "Rios de Integracion ". Geurgescu, Paul. CAF. 2017]

{{Orinoco Tributaries}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Border rivers]]
[[Category:Colombia–Venezuela border]]
[[Category:Dredged rivers and waterways]]
[[Category:International rivers of South America]]
[[Category:Orinoco basin]]
[[Category:Rivers of Colombia]]
[[Category:Rivers of Venezuela]]
[[Category:Rivers of Amazonas (Venezuelan state)]]