Kiel Canal (German:Nord-Ostsee-Kanal), a German waterway connecting the North Sea and Baltic Sea. Before 1918 it was known as the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal. The canal's western end meets the estuary of the Elbe River at Brunsbüttelkoog. The eastern end is at Holtenau, a suburb of Kiel.
The Kiel Canal enables ships to avoid the long route around the Danish peninsula in traveling between the North and Baltic seas. Its surface width is about 335 feet (102 m), bottom width 144 feet (44 m), depth 36 feet (11 m), and length 61 miles (98 km). There are two locks, one at each end of the canal.
The Kiel Canal, opened in 1895, was constructed essentially for military purposes. The canal was later widened, work being completed six weeks before World War I began. During World War II it was badly damaged by Allied air raids, but repairs were completed soon after the war. In terms of vessels and cargo tonnage carried, the canal ranks as one of the world's leading waterways.