The Cyprus Emergency

An in-depth look at the conflicts in Cyprus during the mid-twentieth century. The UK has been involved in Cyprus for over 125 years. Strategically placed in the Eastern Mediterranean, it was initially ideal for protection of the Suez Canal and more recently as a ‘listening post’ for the troubled Middle East and southern flank of NATO. The British faced two serious problems—the first, the Greek Cypriots’ desire for Enosis, (union with Greece) and, second, the intense rivalry and antipathy between