The Marmara Region is that area in northwestern Turkey surrounding the Sea of Marmara. From the north—the Black Sea—the Sea of Marmara is entered via the 20 mi. [32 km.] long Bosphorus Straits. It is exited to the southwest via the 42 mi. [68 km.] long Dardanelles (ancient Hellespont) into the Aegean Sea. These bodies of water, the Bosphorus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles separate Asia from Europe. In addition, they provide passage from the Mediterranean and the Aegean Seas into the land locked Black Sea. Thus they have always been of strategic importance!