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Cyprus 1974 - when Britain nearly gave up its vital sovereign bases

Cyprus 1974 - when Britain nearly gave up its vital sovereign bases

Update: 2025-12-11
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When a Greek military coup and Turkish invasion plunged Cyprus into a bloody conflict, more than 30,000 British military personnel and their dependents were caught up in the crisis.

They didn’t want to be part of the fighting, but came perilously close to being dragged in, more than once.

Kate Gerbeau talks to historian Andrew Southam about his new book, which sheds new light on those events and how they led the government of the time to consider our Cyprus bases “a liability”.

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Cyprus 1974 - when Britain nearly gave up its vital sovereign bases

Cyprus 1974 - when Britain nearly gave up its vital sovereign bases