The website devoted to Cypriot archaeology

Ottoman

The Ottoman period of rule in Cyprus was not a particularly great period but it probably began on a hopeful note as it brought to an end the largely repressive and restrictive regimes of the Lusignans and Venice.

The Ottomans invaded Cyprus in 1570, Nicosia fell relatively quickly but Famagusta held out for 10 months under its commander Marcantonio Bragadino before finally surrendering.

Ottoman governance was usually about acquiring as much money as possible and there were a series of rebellions about the conditions in which the common Cypriots existed. Increasing European links in the 19th century gradually meant that conditions slightly improved.

The politics of Cyprus then became caught up in the great game between the British Empire and Russia, as Britain supported the Ottoman Empire against Russia. Eventually the Ottomans ceded Cyprus to the British in 1878.

Paphos harbour showing the fort on the breakwater, it is built on the site of an earlier fort destroyed by the Venetians. The date above the door suggests it was built by the Ottoman Turks between 1580 and 1592.