TAUNUS, a wooded mountain range of Germany in the province of Hesse-Nassau. It lies between the Rhine and the Main on the south and the Lahn on the north, and is some 55 m. long. Its southern edge stands 5 to 1 o m. back from the Main, but slopes steeply to the Rhine, and from Bingen downwards forms precipitous crags, many of which are crowned with pic turesque ruins. It has an average elevation of 1,500 ft., but the loftiest peaks occur in the east, where the Grosser Feldberg (2,887 ft.), Kleiner Feldberg (2,714 ft.) and Altkonig (2,618 ft.) dominate the Wetterau and the valley of the Main. Above the Rheingau (the slopes to the Rhine between Biebrich and Bingen), the altitude averages 1,500 to 1,700 ft. The geological core of the system consists of ( ?Archean) argillaceous schists, capped by quartzite (Devonian) and broken through in places by basalt. On the northern side, which sinks on the whole gently towards the Lahn, the higher greywacke formation (Devonian) attains a con siderable development. The hills are generally well wooded, with firs and beeches. The lower slopes are, where possible, planted
with vineyards, orchards and chestnut and almond groves. The vineyards of the Rheingau are specially famous, and yield many famous brands of wine. The Taunus is also famous for its mineral springs and health resorts.
There are ruins of the castle of Kuno (above Falkenstein) ; of a fortress at Konigstein ; a Cistercian abbey at Eberbach; and two concentric lines of pre-Roman fortifications at Altkonig. The chief historical monument, however, is the Saalburg, a Roman fort serving as a centre of communications along the limes or fortified frontier-line drawn from Rhine to Main by Domitian (see LIMES GERMANICUS).
At Niederwald (q.v.) is the gigantic "Germania" statue in com memoration of the 1870 War. The steep crags of the western end of the Taunus, where they abut upon the Rhine, are rich in the romantic associations of the great river. Here are the rock of the siren Lorelei; the old castles of Stahleck and Pfalz; and the quaint mediaeval towns of Kaub and St. Goarshausen.