Cyprus Interest

Famagusta

Famagusta is a major town with a population nearby amounting to about 30,798 (1992). It lies on Famagusta Bay on the east coast of Cyprus in the Turkish controlled sector. Famagusta is an important port and a Turkish administrative centre. Before 1974 the majority of the population were Greek Cypriots, and the city was evacuated in 1974 when Turkey invaded Cyprus and the old town remains almost uninhabited to this day. Farming was the main occupation and there are other light industries in the area.

Famagusta was heavily fortified during the Venetian rule, and remnants of the fortifications can still be seen to this day. Famagusta is thought to be the scene of Acts II – V of Shakespeare’s Othello.

Famagusta occupies the site of the ancient town of Arsinoe, built in the 3rd Century BC by Ptolmey II. After the fall (1291) of Acre to the Saracens, Christian refugees greatly increased the town’s wealth. Famagusta became the capital of Cyprus in 1489 and was the seat of Government during the Venetian rule in the 15th-16th Centuries. The governor’s palace, the Cathedral of St Nicholas and many churches testify to the importance of the town during the Venetian period. The town was used as a British naval base during World War II and this resulted in heavy bomb damage. During the latter years of the war a British internment camp was established close to the town.