History

History

Cyprus, widely known as the birthplace of Aphrodite Goddess of Love and Beauty, has an area of 9,250 square metres and is situated in the eastern basin of the Mediterranean Sea. It combines natural beauty, history and legend.

Its history is long and turbulent as suggest the numerous archaeological findings. The strategic location of Cyprus at the crossroads of Europe and Middle East attracted to the island a number of foreign invasions. Egyptians, Assyrians, Phoenicians, Persians, Ptolemies, Romans all left their imprint on the island. In this respect, Cyprus has received and, subsequently, absorbed external cultural influences while preserving the essence of Greek culture as is reflected in the language, religion, language, traditions and customs.

In brief:

The Achaean Greeks who settled in the island in the second millenium BC introduced Greek culture. Export trade flourishes with the Near East and the Aegean.
Between 700-350BC Cyprus is invaded in succession by the Assyrians, Egyptians and Persians and is eventually liberated by King Evagoras.
In 333BC Alexander the Great takes Cyprus under his mantle.
The Romans invade Cyprus in 58BC.
In 45AD Cyprus becomes the first country to be governed by a Christian, Sergius Paulus.
In 395AD, following the partition of the Roman Empire, Cyprus comes under the Byzantine Empire, or orbit, from the 4^th to the 12^th centuries. The influence of the Hellenized Christianity of Byzantium on Cypriot culture has left a lasting imprint on Cyprus deeply felt until today.
Between the 7^th and 10^th centuries AD there had been a large number of Arab raids, eventually put at stop in 965AD by Byzantine Emperor Nikiphoros Phokas.
As the Byzantine Empire declined there was an interlude of Lusignian and Venetian rule over Cyprus from the 13^th to the 16^th century.
The Ottoman Turks conquered Cyprus in 1571 and ruled the island until 1878, when Britain declared Cyprus a British colony.
British colonization lasted from 1878 to 1960 when Cyprus gained its independence.
In 1974 life on the island was shattered as Turkey invaded Cyprus, capturing 37% of the island’s territory. As a result of the invasion, 200,000 Greek Cypriots became refugees, moving to the south while 40,000 Turkish troops were transferred to the Turkish-occupied north thus, partitioning the island through the force of arms.

Since then, the free part of the Republic of Cyprus has enjoyed economic growth, high standards of literacy and the highest per capita income in the Eastern Mediterranean attracting a large number of offshore companies and a great number of tourists year after year.