Languages English 1952–60 Elizabeth II last | Government Crown colony Capital Nicosia | |
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1878–1901 Victoria first Protector 1910–36 George V first Sovereign 1878-79 Garnet Wolseley, first High-Commissioner | ||
British Cyprus was the island of Cyprus under the dominion of the British Empire, administered sequentially from 1878 to 1912 as a British Protectorate, a unilaterally annexed military occupation from 1914 to 1922 and from 1922 to 1960 as a Crown colony.
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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.
A British protectorate under Ottoman suzerainty was established over Cyprus by the Cyprus Convention of 4 June 1878, following the Russo-Turkish War, in which the British occupied the island as a consequence of the Ottoman Empire's actions throughout the duration of the war. Cyprus was then proclaimed a British protectorate and was integrated into the British Empire. This remained in place until 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 colony of British Cyprus was proclaimed a decade later, in 1925, after Britain's annexation of Cyprus was verified twice, firstly in the Treaty of Sevres in 1920, then confirmed again in the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923.
Proposed union with Greece
King Paul of Greece declared that Cyprus desired union with Greece in 1948. A referendum was presented by the Orthodox Church of Cyprus in 1950, according to which around 97% of the 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 mainly primarily consisting 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 London and Zurich Agreements started the process for the constitution of an independent Cyprus. The United Kingdom granted independence of Cyprus via referendum on 16 August 1960 and formed the Republic of Cyprus. Archbishop Makarios III, a charismatic religious and political leader, was elected the first president of independent Cyprus. In 1961 the Republic of Cyprus became the 99th member of the United Nations.