ABSTRACT
The late thirteenth century witnessed a swift and dramatic change in the role of Cyprus in the commercial and maritime relations between the West and the Levant. Until 1291 the function of the island in this framework had been restricted by geographic, economic and judicial factors. Until 1291 Famagusta's location had prevented it from developing into a large maritime and commercial center. Its main importance as a harbour derived then from the fact that it was closer than Limassol to Nicosia, the capital of the Lusignan kingdom. Genoese permanent settlers are attested in Cyprus as early as 1203, about a decade after the Latin conquest of the island. In 1218 Queen Alice granted Genoa various privileges, as well as two plots of land upon which to build houses, one in Limassol and the other in Famagusta. The situation in Cyprus was drastically altered only after the Genoese conquest of Famagusta in 1374.
