The or '''Strymónas''' ( in
Bulgaria , runs first westward, then southward, enters
Greek territory at the Kula village and flows into the
Aegean Sea , near
Kavála in the
Serres Prefecture . The river's length is 415 km (of which 290 km in Bulgaria, making it the country's fifth longest).
The river valley is a
Coal -producing area of Bulgaria. The Greek portion is a valley which is dominant in agriculture. The tributaries include the
Rila River .
The
Ancient Greek city of
Amphipolis was founded at the river's entrance to the Aegean, and the
Battle Of Kleidion was fought by the river in
1014 .
In 1913, the
Greek Army was trapped in the
Kresna Gorge of the Struma during the
Second Balkan War . The Bulgarians were defeated in the war, however, and the
Treaty Of Bucharest resulted in significant territorial losses for Bulgaria.
The ship ''
Struma '', which carried Jewish refugees out of
Romania in
World War II and subsequently sunk in the
Black Sea , causing nearly 800 deaths, is named after the river.
