Cyprus: A Brief History of the North

The island of Cyprus has for many reasons a varied and convoluted history. It was first settled by humankind in the Stone Age, and since those earliest days of pre-history, it has been ruled by almost every conceivable race or nationality. The Hittites, ancient Greeks and Romans, Phoenicians, Assyrians, Byzantines, British (twice!), Lusignans, Venetians and Ottomans, to name just a few, have all been in control of the island at some time and have all left their mark. However, it is more recent history that is of interest to today’s visitors, and specifically the time following the division of the island into effectively two separate countries.

A small article like this is no place to expand seriously on all the political issues that led to the division of Cyprus. However, the shortened version is that in the early twentieth century, the island became a Crown Colony under the supervision of Great Britain. In the 1960s, the constitution put in place a power-sharing government, with representatives from both the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities. Conflict turned into internal fighting and in 1974, Greek Cypriots in favour of Enosis (incorporation into the Greek mainland state) carried out a coup, replacing the government with one comprising only Greek Cypriots. In response, Turkey sent armed forces to the island and the United Nations responded with a peacekeeping force.

This all resulted in a border being drawn across the width of the island, maintained by the UN forces. Greek Cypriots moved to the south of the island and Turkish Cypriots to the north. The south was formally known as the Republic of Cyprus. At the time, only recognised officially by Turkey, the north was titled The Turkish Federated State of Northern Cyprus, later becoming known as The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (the TRNC), though these days it is more commonly simply known as North Cyprus. The UN force remained, and does so to this day, and the border was effectively closed, with crossing being extremely difficult.

The situation remained like that for many decades. Due to its political status, the north only conducted trade with mainland Turkey, travel to the north was straightforward enough, though again had to be via Turkey. The airport in the north is recognised by aviation regulators, but flights there have to route via a mainland Turkish airport. This state of virtual isolation obviously had consequences, but Cypriots are by nature adaptable people. An ‘old-fashioned’ type of country emerged, with the emphasis on locally-grown produce and locally-sourced materials. However, in some ways the situation resulted in the north becoming comparatively highly developed, particularly in technology. North Cyprus was an early adopter of mobile telephones, together with satellite television and internet services, for example.

The economy of North Cyprus has obviously also been affected by the circumstances. The region has always produced significant quantities of fruit, and still does. However, the only effective export market again involves shipping via a Turkish-based company, so costs have always been a problem. Despite budgetary assistance from its motherland, the county’s government soon began to realise that possibly its only significant asset was to be found through tourism. Although the visitor numbers were, and remain, only a fraction of those to other countries in the Mediterranean region, the comparatively unspoiled and under-populated nature of North Cyprus has always made it a firm favourite among many. It is also the case that some of the most important archaeology and history is in the north, including the vast remains of the Roman city of Salamis, three crusader castles, and Bellapais Abbey.

Today, the situation remains much the same, although there have been some significant changes. There have been a number of plans for reunification of the island, the most significant of which was the United Nations plan early this century under the leadership of Kofi Annan, but none have to date been successful in being accepted by both sides. However, there have certainly been some changes. In 2004, the Republic of Cyprus became a member of the EU, adopting the Euro as its currency. Although no settlement plan was reached, a number of concessions were made. One of the most significant of these was an almost complete relaxation of the border controls. Since then, any EU passport holder and any Cypriot national with an identity card can freely cross between the north and south at a number of official points. Although it seems a minor matter, in fact it is of significant importance as it has allowed a degree of officially sanctioned trade between the countries.

The opening of the border has also had a positive effect on tourism to North Cyprus. There are still flights to Ercan airport in the north, but these still involve a brief stopover in Turkey and more significantly, there are only a handful of departure airports in Europe running the route. Larnaca airport in the south is very close to the border and is served by flights from a vast number of airports worldwide, making access far easier for many potential tourists. It is also worth noting that North Cyprus has retained the Turkish Lira as its currency, and international exchange rates make this very advantageous for most visitors. The once forgotten neighbour is now a real player in the tourism market, but the country still remains comparatively quiet and unspoiled. It is bound to become more and more popular in future, so now is probably the ideal time to consider a visit! There are many tour operators who feature the country, but in the UK, Cyprus Paradise are probably the longest established company offering holidays to North Cyprus.