army command had objections in both cases. In addition, lignite deposits in the area meant that a power station with short supply routes could be constructed at Muldenstein. Construction on the Muldenstein railway power station started on 18 January 1910 and about two months later the construction of a substation in Bitterfeld and the erection of overhead contact wire for the first section from Dessau to Bitterfeld began. The state police approved the power supply and contact line systems on 4 January 1911 and trial operations with a voltage of 5 kV and a supply line voltage of 30 kV began on 18 January 1911 using a borrowed Baden State Railways class A1 locomotive, which had previously had test runs on the Ammergau Railway with transformers suitable for 5.5 kV. After increasing the supply line voltage to the designated 60 kV, the catenary voltage was increased to 10 kV for test runs on 25 March and permanent on 28 March the newly built WSL 10502 HALLE and WGL 10204 HALLE locomotives could be reach their full traction effort. On 1 April, the line was opened for public operations by the Prussian Minister Paul von Breitenbach in the presence of members of parliament. After the “Convention relating to the implementation of electric traction" was established by the state railway administrations of Prussia-Hesse, Bavaria and Baden in 1912, it was agreed in the autumn of 1913 that a voltage of 15 kV and frequency of 16 2/3 Hz would be adopted. In order to extend electrified service to the south, a sub-station was put into operation on 1 May 1914 in Wahren along with a 60 kV feeder line. By 1 June 1914, electric rail operations had been extended to Neuwiederitzsch and beyond to parts of the Leipzig freight ring, but after the outbreak of the First World War it was closed in the first few days of August 1914 so that the materials could be completely recovered. According to Tetzlaff, the whole line to Leipzig Hauptbahnhof was taken into operation by electric traction in June 1914, but this is considered unlikely. At the beginning of the twenties, the electrification was initially restored between Leipzig and Dessau and soon extended over the whole line towards Magdeburg. To ensure the power supply, another substation was built in Marke. After the Second World War After the end of World War II, the most urgent