British Cyprus

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Cyprus
Κύπρος (Greek)
Kıbrıs (Turkish)
1878–1960
Naqshbandiyya)
Monarch 
• 1878–1901 (first)
Victoria
• 1952–1960 (last)
Elizabeth II
Governor 
• 1878–1879 (first)
Garnet Wolseley[a]
• 1957–1960 (last)
Hugh Foot
LegislatureLegislative Council
History 
4 June 1878
• Protectorate established
12 July 1878
• British annexation
5 November 1914
24 July 1923
• Crown colony of Cyprus
1 May 1925
15 January 1950
1 April 1955
19 February 1959
16 August 1960
Area
1924[1]9,272 km2 (3,580 sq mi)
Population
• 1924[1]
310,709
• 1955[2]
529,972
• 1960[2]
572,930
Currency
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Ottoman Cyprus
Cyprus
Akrotiri and Dhekelia
Today part of

British Cyprus (Greek: Βρετανική Κύπρος; Turkish: İngiliz Kıbrıs) was the island of Cyprus under the dominion of the British Empire, administered sequentially from 1878 to 1914 as a British protectorate, from 1914 to 1925 as a unilaterally annexed military occupation, and from 1925 to 1960 as a Crown colony. Following the London and Zürich Agreements of 19 February 1959, Cyprus became an independent republic on 16 August 1960.

History

Silver coin: 45 piastre British Cyprus George V - 1928
Flag of Cyprus (1881–1922)

Formation

Cyprus was a territory of the Ottoman Empire, lastly as part of the Vilayet of the Archipelago, since it was conquered from the Republic of Venice in 1570–71.

Greek Orthodox priests blessing the Union Jack as it is raised in Nicosia
, 1878

A British protectorate under nominal Ottoman suzerainty was established over Cyprus by the Cyprus Convention of 4 June 1878, following the Russo-Turkish War, in exchange for British support of the Ottomans during the Congress of Berlin.[3] Cyprus was then proclaimed a British protectorate and was informally integrated into the British Empire. This remained in place until 5 November 1914, when after the Ottomans joined the Central Powers, in turn entering World War I, Britain declared the complete annexation of Cyprus into the British Empire, albeit under a military administration status. The Crown Colony of Cyprus was proclaimed a decade later, in 1925, after Britain's annexation of Cyprus was verified twice, firstly in the Treaty of Sèvres in 1920, then confirmed again in the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923.[4]

Proposed union with Greece

King

Greek Cypriot population wanted the union. The Greek petition and enosis became an international issue when it was accepted by the United Nations
.

Cyprus Emergency

The Cyprus Emergency was a military action that took place in Cyprus from 1955 to 1959. The Cyprus Emergency primarily consisted of a campaign by the Greek Cypriot military group EOKA to remove the British from Cyprus so it could be unified with Greece.

Independence

Signed on 19 February 1959, the

British Overseas Territory
.

In March 1961 at the

republic in the Commonwealth of Nations, and Archbishop Makarios III became both a Commonwealth head of state and a Commonwealth head of government
.

In 1961, the Republic of Cyprus became the 99th member of the United Nations.

Notable residents

See also

Notes

  1. ^ as High Commissioner

References

  1. ^ a b "The British Empire in 1924". The British Empire. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Cyprus Population". Worldometers. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  3. ^ Eric Solsten, ed. Cyprus: A country study (1991).
  4. .

External links