Nicosia, midnight on August 15…
Sir Hugh Foot enters the Government House, followed by Archbishop Makarios, the man who would assume the office of the first President of the Republic of Cyprus. The Turkish Cypriot leader, Dr. Fazil Kucuk, served as Vice President.
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Anger in Ankara—the pseudo-state—over the October 1 parade
As the clock struck 12:00 midnight and the calendar turned to August 16, Sir Hugh Foot, the last British Governor of Cyprus, read the proclamation of the Queen of England, in which Britain confirmed the end of British sovereignty over the island and its continued presence in the military base areas, as agreed in the Zurich-London Agreements, 18 months earlier. She then handed over the reins of the newly established Republic of Cyprus to its first President, Archbishop Makarios, and its first Vice President, Fazil Kuchuk.
Representatives of the two communities, as well as Greece, Turkey, and Britain, signed the documents. The process took about an hour. On the morning of August 16, Sir Hugh Foot left the Presidential Palace, handing it over to Archbishop Makarios.
And so the Republic of Cyprus was born, under the trusteeship of Britain, Greece, and Turkey. Since then, the flag of the Republic of Cyprus has flown high as a symbol of peace and freedom.
The Republic of Cyprus enjoyed only three years of peace.
On July 11, 1963, the Council of Ministers, consisting of seven Greek Cypriots and three Turkish Cypriots, decided to designate October 1 as Cyprus’s official Independence Day, so that it would not fall during a school break and could be celebrated with ceremonies and parades.
