Johann Gottfried Tulla was a German engineer who accomplished the straightening of the Rhine, improving navigation and alleviating the effects of flooding. His measures gave the Upper Rhine a completely new appearance. The river was deepened and channelled between embankments, new sections were dug to straighten out its meandering course, and numerous small islands were removed. The effect was to reduce the river's length between Basel and Worms from 355 km to 275 km. However, the straightening of the Upper Rhine may have increased the flood risk in the region of the Middle and Lower Rhine, partial floodplain restoration is performed in a joint program of Germany and France.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Gottfried_Tulla