Dardanelles
From Encyclopædia
The Dardanelles is the 61-km-long (38-mi) strait between the
Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara. It is the westernmost section of the waterway that divides
Europe from
Asia and connects the Mediterranean and Black seas. The narrow (1-6 km/.75-4 mi) strait lies within present-day Turkey, where it is called the Strait of Canakkale. Called the Hellespont in ancient
The Times strait is associated with the legend of
Hero and Leander. The modern name comes from Dardanus, mythical ancestor of nearby TROY. Despite unpredictable weather and swift surface currents, the Dardanelles has been a strategic water route--and an object of conquest--throughout history. Long controlled (1402-1918) by the
Ottoman Empire, it was a primary factor in the EASTERN QUESTION of the 19th century and the scene of an intensive Allied campaign in
world War I (see
GALLIPOLI CAMPAIGN).
