Research Paper, Essay on Geography, cyprus

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Essay/Term paper: Cyprus

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Geography

               Cyprus, an island in the Eastern Mediterranean, at the cross-roads of three                continents - Europe, Asia and Africa - has one of the oldest histories of the                world, dating back 9000 years.                    Its strategic position, its wealth in forests and mineral deposits, as well as its                skilled craftsmen, made it the prized possession of the powers of the day.                    Cultural influences came from all directions - all major regional civilisations left                their mark on the island, contributing to the development of a very rich and                diverse cultural  heritage.                                   ANCIENT TIMES                   The Stone Age                   The first signs of human life on the island date back to c. 8500 BC during the               Palaeolithic period. Evidence of human activity was found in cave dwellings near               Liopetri, though it is not known whether they were just hunting parties passing               through or permanent settlers.                   The first undisputed settlements are believed to have been established towards               the end of  the 8th millennium BC.  Vestiges of such early communities are found               all over the island, such as at Khirokitia, Kalavasos-Tenta, Apostolos Andreas-               Kastros, Phrenaros, Petra tou Limniti.                           Neolithic Cypriots built circular houses               with small undressed stones for the               lower structures and sun-dried               mudbricks and  clay for the middle and               superstructure. The Khirokitia neolithic               settlement in Larnaca district stands out               as a striking example of prehistoric               architecture.                                                  The Neolithic settlement of Khirokitia                     The Bronze/ Copper Age                   Large copper deposits brought fame and wealth to the island and may have even               given it its name. It has been documented that during the bronze age Cyprus had               intense commercial relations with the main commercial and cultural centres of that               time. During this period metallurgy and pottery flourished while close relations               developed, particularly with Crete, which are also expressed in the               Cypro-Minoan script which appeared in Cyprus around 1500 BC.                   Of special significance for the future of Cyprus was its colonisation around 1200               BC by  Mycenaean  and Achaean Greeks, a migration process that lasted for               more than a century.  They brought with them to the island the Hellenic language,               culture and religion. Legend has it that the first Hellenes who settled in Cyprus               were heroes of the Trojan war. The arrival of the Achaeans greatly influenced               town planning, architecture, and pottery. Since then Cyprus has remained               predominantly Greek in culture, language and population despite influences               resulting from successive occupations.                   Iron Age                   More and more people from the Greek world came to live in Cyprus.  They built               city along the lines of the Greek ones.  There were about eleven city kingdoms in               all:  Kourion, Paphos, Soloi, Marion, Lapithos, Salamis, Kition, Kyrenia,               Amathus, and Idalion.                   Although Cyprus was conquered by other peoples, these city kingdoms mostly               ruled themselves, paying taxes to their conquerors. The island was conquered in               succession by the Assyrians, the Egyptians and the Persians (800-332 BC).                   The Classical Period                   For more than a century, Cyprus was caught in the middle of the power struggle               between Greece and Persia. In the 6th century BC Persia became the dominant               power and the kings of Cyprus, while being allowed to retain their autonomy,               were obliged to pay tribute to the Persian King and place their military forces at               his disposal. Persia's domination, however, was not maintained easily and there               were several attempts tooverthrow the Persian yoke, the most significant being               the Ionian revolt and an attempt by King Evagoras I of Salamis to unite all of               Cyprus' city-kingdoms under him. attempts failed.                   The Hellenistic Period                   Cyprus stayed in Persian hands until Alexander the Great defeated the Persian               Empire when the island became part of his huge Empire. Upon Alexander's death               Cyprus fell to one of his generals, Ptolemy I, the ruler of Egypt. From then on               Cyprus, under the Ptolemies,  was an integral part of the Hellenistic World until its               integration with the Roman Empire in 30 BC.                   During this time Cyprus experienced significant cultural activity and close contacts               with the city kingdoms of the Hellenic World. Cypriot athletes took part in the               Olympic and Panathenian Games and the names of Cypriot sculptors are referred               to at Delphi and  Lemnos. The worship of Aphrodite was known throughout the               region and the Temple of Goddess of Love and Beauty at Palaepaphos gathered               pilgrims from all over the ancient world. The city-kingdoms of Salamis, Amathus,               Paphos and others which were  established at the time of Greek colonisation               flourished during this period and produced  magnificent pieces of architecture and               sculpture which survive till our days.                   The Roman Period                   As the Ptolemaic empire declined, Cyprus came under Roman domination and               was a colony in 58 BC. Romans also left their legacy on the island in the form of               Roman amphitheatres, public baths, mosaics and other architectural edifices. One               of the  most significant events during this period was the visit to the island of the               Apostles Paul and Barnabas, the latter being considered the founder of the               Autocephalous Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus. The Apostles travelled all               across the island to Paphos where they converted the Roman governor to               Christianity and so Cyprus became the first country to be ruled by a Christian.                                      THE MIDDLE AGES                     The Byzantine Period                   The Christian civilisation was consolidated in               the island during the Byzantine Period               (330-1191 AD) at which time the island was               an important spiritual focus. Wonderful               churches and magnificent monasteries               containing fine wall paintings and mosaics               survive to our times and are testimony to the               importance of Cyprus in the East Roman               Empire.                                                          St Bartholomew, mosaic from the                                                   Kanakaria Church. 6th century AD                 With the emergence of Islam in the 6th and 7th centuries AD, Cyprus became an               object dispute between Christendom and Islam. The Arabs, who with their               repeated incursions, spread death and destruction in coastal settlements, were               finally pushed away in 965 AD by Emperor Nicephorus Phocas and restored               Cyprus as a province of the Byzantine Empire.                   The western Crusaders influenced a great deal the development of the history of               Cyprus. It was Richard the Lionheart, King of England, who during the Third               Crusade captured the island defeating its ruler, Isaac Comnenos in 1191. Richard               tried to sell Cyprus to the Knights Templars, who nevertheless, were not able to               resist the revolt of the people of Cyprus. Thus the island went back to the English               King, who sold it again this time to the Frankish King of Jerusalem, Guy de               Lusignan.                   The Frankish Period                   The rule of the Franks in Cyprus lasted until 1489 and during that time life on the               island  was organised on the basis of the feudal model of the West, oppression of               the indigenous population being its main characteristic. The Lusignan period left               numerous monuments on the island - mainly Gothic churches and mountain               fortifications.                   During the 14th century Cyprus is an important point of contact between East and               West. Within a network of contradictions, a complex cultural creation took shape               both in the letters and in the arts with the pronounced seal of a variety of               influences.                   The end of the Latin period in Cyprus came with the Venetian rule from 1489 to               1571. The Venetians held the island for its strategic position in the area of the               Eastern Mediterranean on the way to the vital Silk Route to China. Venice,               wished in this way to underline its prominence among the western powers of the               time and attempted to keep to road to the East open despite the growing menace               of the Ottomans. The Venetians also left their mark on the island's cultural               heritage with their fortifications around Nicosia and Famagusta. These, built with               the intention of fending off the Turks, proved inadequate and Cyprus fell to the               Turks in 1571, becoming part of the Ottoman Empire.                                        MODERN TIMES               The Turkish Period                   Though Cyprus on the whole became less prosperous under Ottoman rule, there               were certain immediate benefits. Serfdom was abolished and the rights of the               Greek Orthodox Church, which had been suppressed since the Franks, were               restored. However, there was very harsh rule and harsh taxation which               impoverished the people, and there were continual revolts. In 1821 an attempt by               Cypriots to support the Greeks in their revolt against Ottoman rule was brutally               crushed, with the Archbishop being publicly hanged and many others, including               three bishops, put to death.                   Cyprus remained under Ottoman rule until 1878 when, with the Treaty of Berlin,               the Sultan in his effort to secure British support in his conflict with the Russians               leased Cyprus to Great Britain. Then in 1914, following the entry of Turkey in               World War I on the side of Germany, the British government annexed Cyprus               and turned it into a Crown colony in 1925. In the meantime Turkey surrendered               all claim on Cyprus with the  Lausanne Treaty it concluded with Greece in 1923.                   The British Period                   British rule left its mark on the island's complex culture with the adoption by the               people Cyprus of some of the customs of their colonial masters, the legacy of               some British colonial buildings, and, most importantly, the tradition of the British               administration especially in the civil service.                   Cypriots fought alongside the allies against fascism and nazism during World War               II. The British, however, refused to keep their word and offer the island the right               of self determination at the end of the war. There followed the Enosis referendum               of 1950,  when 96% of Greek Cypriots voted for Enosis,  Union with Greece. In               April 1955 the EOKA Liberation Struggle, against the colonial rulers, resulted in               the granting of independence to the island on the basis of the Zurich and London               Agreements of February 1959.                   Independence and invasion                   The independent Republic of Cyprus came into being in August 1960. Its first               President was Archbishop Makarios. Over the first three years of independence               relations between  the Greek and Turkish Cypriots deteriorated, mainly as a               result of flaws in the  constitution which gave disproportional rights to the Turkish               Cypriot community including the right to block the passing of laws. In 1963               intercommunal violence broke out following which many Turkish Cypriots               withdrew to enclaves. Attempts to bring the two sides back together were made               through the United Nations who sent a contingent to the island.                   On 15 July 1974 the Junta ruling Athens at the time organised a coup to               overthrow Archbishop Makarios. A week later Turkey invaded the island,               claiming this was to restore constitutional order. However, when the rightful               government was restored, Turkish troops stayed on, implementing a long-held               policy of partitioning the island. They went on to occupy more than a third of               Cyprus, forcing  200,000 people to lose their homes and become refugees. The               area under Turkish occupation unilaterally declared independence in 1983, an act               condemned by the UN and other international organisations. No country in the               world other than Turkey has recognised this illegal state.                   The political issue, despite efforts to solve it, remains virtually frozen since 1974               and the occupation of part of Cyprus by the Turkish army still continues.