In which sea do river Elbe and river Rhine drain their water ?

Correct — option (1), North Sea.

Both rivers end in the North Sea, though they start far apart.

The Elbe rises in the Giant Mountains (Krkonoše) of the Czech Republic. The International Commission for the Protection of the Elbe River says it 'reaches the North Sea after 1,094 km', with its mouth at the maritime border near Cuxhaven in Germany.

The Rhine starts in the Alps. The International Commission for the Protection of the Rhine describes the river as one that 'connects the Alps to the North Sea'. Its delta lies in the Netherlands.

So one sea receives both rivers, and option (1) is the only choice that names it.

The idea to remember: Elbe and Rhine flow to the North Sea; the Danube flows to the Black Sea.

Why the others are wrong

• (2)
  Mediterranean Sea — Neither the Elbe nor the Rhine reaches the Mediterranean; both end in the North Sea.

  An Alpine river that does reach the Mediterranean is the Rhône. It rises at the Rhône Glacier in Switzerland and enters the Mediterranean through the Gulf of Lion in France. Starting in the Alps, as the Rhine does, is no guide to where a river ends.

• (3)
  Adriatic Sea — The Adriatic is an arm of the Mediterranean between Italy and the Balkan coast. The Elbe and Rhine end far to the north, on the North Sea coasts of Germany and the Netherlands.

  The Adriatic is the answer for the Po, which rises near Monte Viso in Piedmont and reaches the sea near Adria in Italy.

• (4)
  Black Sea — The Black Sea receives the Danube. The International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River names the Black Sea as the Danube's receiving sea, which the river enters through the Danube Delta.

  The Danube's source streams rise in the Black Forest of south-western Germany. From there it flows east across Europe, away from the North Sea.

A river basin is all the land whose water leaves through one river mouth. Where a river rises does not decide which sea it reaches.

The Elbe and the Rhine drain north-west to the North Sea. The Danube, whose source streams rise in the Black Forest of south-western Germany, drains east to the Black Sea. The Rhône, from the Rhône Glacier in the Swiss Alps, reaches the Mediterranean.

The North Sea's Wikipedia article names the Elbe and the Rhine–Meuse as the largest rivers flowing into it. Other inflows it lists include the Weser, the Ems, the Scheldt and the Thames.

Key facts

• The Elbe rises at 1,386 m in the Giant Mountains and reaches the North Sea after 1,094 km, according to its international protection commission.
• The Elbe commission places the river's mouth in the North Sea at the maritime border near Cuxhaven-Kugelbake, Germany.
• The International Commission for the Protection of the Rhine describes the Rhine as connecting the Alps to the North Sea.
• The International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River names the Black Sea as the Danube's receiving sea.
• The Rhône enters the Mediterranean through the Gulf of Lion; the Po enters the Adriatic near Adria.

Common traps

• Following the Rhine's Alpine source south: it rises in the Alps but ends in the North Sea; the Rhône is an Alpine river that reaches the Mediterranean.
• Placing the Elbe's mouth on the Baltic because it crosses northern Germany: its mouth is on the North Sea near Cuxhaven.
• Grouping the Danube with the Rhine because both flow through Germany: the Danube's receiving sea is the Black Sea.

UnlockIAS will link similar questions from RAS Pre 2018 here once that paper is published on this site.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Into which sea does the river Danube drain?

  • (a)North Sea
  • (b)Baltic Sea
  • (c)Black Sea
  • (d)Adriatic Sea
  Answer(3) — The ICPDR names the Black Sea as the Danube's receiving sea. Option (1) receives the Elbe and the Rhine; option (2) is joined to the North Sea by the Kiel Canal; option (4) receives the Po.
• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which one of the following pairs of river and the sea it drains into is not correctly matched?

  • (a)Po – Adriatic Sea
  • (b)Rhône – Mediterranean Sea
  • (c)Elbe – Baltic Sea
  • (d)Danube – Black Sea
  Answer(3) — The Elbe reaches the North Sea near Cuxhaven, not the Baltic. Option (1) is correct, as the Po enters the Adriatic near Adria; option (2) is correct, through the Gulf of Lion; option (4) is correct, through the Danube Delta.