| Conventional Long Name: | Cyprus |
| Native Name: | |
| Title Leader: | Monarch |
| Leader1: | Victoria |
| Leader2: | Elizabeth II |
| Year Leader1: | 1878–1901 (first) |
| Year Leader2: | 1952–1960 (last) |
| Title Deputy: | Governor |
| Deputy1: | Garnet Wolseley |
| Deputy2: | Hugh Foot |
| Year Deputy1: | 1878–1879 (first) |
| Year Deputy2: | 1957–1960 (last) |
| Capital: | Nicosia |
| Official Languages: | English |
| Common Languages: | GreekTurkish |
| Event Pre: | Cyprus Convention |
| Date Pre: | 4 June 1878 |
| Event Start: | Protectorate established |
| Date Start: | 12 July |
| Year Start: | 1878 |
| Event1: | British annexation |
| Date Event1: | 5 November 1914 |
| Event2: | Treaty of Lausanne |
| Date Event2: | 24 July 1923 |
| Date Event3: | 1 May 1925 |
| Event4: | Enosis referendum |
| Date Event4: | 15 January 1950 |
| Event5: | Cyprus Emergency |
| Date Event5: | 1 April 1955 |
| Date Event6: | 19 February 1959 |
| Event End: | Independence |
| Date End: | 16 August |
| Year End: | 1960 |
| Legislature: | Legislative Council |
| Flag: | Flag of Cyprus |
| Flag Type: | Flag (1922–1960) |
| Symbol: | Coat of arms of Cyprus#Previous coats of arms |
| Image Map Caption: | Cyprus in the 1930s, with Cyprus in dark green and the United Kingdom in dark grey |
| P1: | Ottoman Cyprus |
| Flag P1: | Flag of the Ottoman Empire.svg |
| S1: | Cyprus |
| Flag S1: | Flag of Cyprus.svg |
| S2: | Akrotiri and Dhekelia |
| Flag S2: | Flag of the United Kingdom.svg |
| Stat Year1: | 1924 |
| Stat Area1: | 35800NaN0 |
| Ref Area1: | [1] |
| Stat Pop1: | 310,709 |
| Stat Year2: | 1955 |
| Stat Pop2: | 529,972 |
| Ref Pop2: | [2] |
| Stat Year3: | 1960 |
| Stat Pop3: | 572,930 |
| Today: |
British Cyprus (Greek: Βρετανική Κύπρος; Turkish: Britanya Kıbrısı) was the island of Cyprus under the dominion of the British Empire, administered sequentially from 1878 to 1914 as a British protectorate, from 1914 to 1925 as a unilaterally annexed military occupation, and from 1925 to 1960 as a Crown colony. Following the London and Zürich Agreements of 19 February 1959, Cyprus became an independent republic on 16 August 1960.
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 nominal Ottoman suzerainty was established over Cyprus by the Cyprus Convention of 4 June 1878, following the Russo-Turkish War, in exchange for British support of the Ottomans during the Congress of Berlin.[3] Cyprus was then proclaimed a British protectorate and was informally integrated into the British Empire. This remained in place until 5 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 Crown Colony of Cyprus was proclaimed a decade later, in 1925, after Britain's annexation of Cyprus was verified twice, firstly in the Treaty of Sèvres in 1920, which was never implemented, and then confirmed again in the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923.[4]
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.
See main article: Cyprus Emergency. The Cyprus Emergency was a military action that took place in Cyprus from 1955 to 1959. The Cyprus Emergency primarily consisted of a campaign by the Greek Cypriot military group EOKA to remove the British from Cyprus so it could be unified with Greece.
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 to Cyprus on 16 August 1960 and formed the Republic of Cyprus. Archbishop Makarios III, a charismatic religious and political leader, was elected as the first president of independent Cyprus. As part of the independence agreement, the United Kingdom retained possession of the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia as a British Overseas Territory.
In March 1961 at the 1961 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference, Cyprus became an independent republic in the Commonwealth of Nations, and Archbishop Makarios III became both a Commonwealth head of state and a Commonwealth head of government.
In 1961, the Republic of Cyprus became the 99th member of the United Nations.