History of Cyprus

tarihi01-594-386Cyprus has had a troubled history. The abundance of copper, timber and the strategic location between East and West resulted in repeated invasions, changes of rulers, and strife for the inhabitants.

Before the annexation to Rome in 58 B.C. Phoenicians, Archaeans, Assyrians, Egyptians, Persians, and Greeks colonized Cyprus.In 43 A.D. Christianity came to Cyprus and in 330 A.D.Cyprus became part of the Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire. And so it remained until 1191 when Richard the Lionheart, on his way to the Holy Land to fight the 3rd Crusade, conquered the island.

A year later Richard sold the island to the Knights Templar for 100,000 Byzants. The Knights Templar, unable to exploit the island satisfactorily, then returned the island to Richard who sold it to the French nobleman Guy de Lusignan. The Lusignan dynasty ruled the island for the next three hundred years - a rule that was often oppressive, effectively reducing Cypriots to serfdom.


The Ottoman Empire entering the First World War on the side of Germany and emerged defeated, partly occupied by foreign powers, and with harsh restrictions imposed, Cyprus became a part of the British colonies, following the Treaty of Lausanne in 1925.


On the 20th July 1974, Turkey, after consultation with Britain, intervened military, namely Peace-Keeping Action to protect the Turkish Cypriot community. This was in exercise of the powers of guarantee agreed in the Treaty of Zurich.
