River, east-central Germany. A tributary of the Elbe River, it rises in the Bavarian highlands and flows north to join the Elbe just above Barby. As it crosses Thuringia, it enters a deep valley dominated by picturesque castles. The Saale is 265 mi (426 km) long
City (pop., 2002 est.: 243,045), east-central Germany. Lying on the Saale River, Halle's location was the site of settlements that centred around the local salt deposits and flourished 1000-400 BC. Halle and its valuable saltworks were granted to the archbishopric of Magdeburg in AD 968. It was a member of the Hanseatic League (1281-1478). The capital of Halle district in East Germany (1952-90), it is an important rail junction and a principal commercial and industrial centre. It was the birthplace of George Frideric Handel and the site of the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, founded in 1694