River Spree

Spree/Sprjewja/Spréva
The Spree in Berlin, Reichstag building to the left
Country	Czech Republic, Germany
Basin features
Main source	Upper Lusatia
River mouth	Havel 52°32′10″N 13°12′31″E / 52.53611°N 13.20861°E / 52.53611; 13.20861Coordinates: 52°32′10″N 13°12′31″E / 52.53611°N 13.20861°E / 52.53611; 13.20861
Basin size	10,105 km2 (3,902 sq mi)
Physical characteristics
Length	about 400 km (250 mi)
Discharge	Average rate: 36 m3/s (1,300 cu ft/s)

The Spree (German pronunciation: [ˈʃpʁeː]; Sorbian: Sprjewja, Czech: Spréva) is a river that flows through the Saxony, Brandenburg and Berlin states of Germany, and in the Ústí nad Labem region of the Czech Republic. Approximately 400 kilometres (250 mi) in length, it is a left bank tributary of the River Havel, which itself flows into the Elbe and then the North Sea. It is the river on which the original centre of Berlin was built.

The reach of the river between the Dämeritzsee and Müggelsee to the east of Berlin is known as the Müggelspree.

The source of the Spree is located in Neugersdorf, Germany, in the Lusatian Highlands (Lausitzer Bergland) near the Czech border. It runs on the border for a short distance at two points (near Ebersbach and Oppach) before leaving the hills and passing through the old city of Bautzen/Budyšin, the center of the Sorbs in Upper Lusatia. Just to the north of Bautzen the river flows through the Bautzen Reservoir. Further north the river passes through the city of Spremberg and the Spremberg Reservoir before reaching the city of Cottbus. To the north of Cottbus the river enters the Spreewald, a large wetlands area in Lower Lusatia.