Limassol is located between the towns of Amathus and Cirium. Though situated between ancients there is surprisingly very little mention of Limassol's foundation among the ancient writings. As per the Synod of 451, the bishop of Theodossiania Sotir and the bishops of Amathus and Arsinoe were all involved in its foundation. Neapolis and Limassol are actually one and the same as the name got changed in the course of history. In the 10th century it was known as Neapolis as can be witnessed in the writings of Constantine Porfyrogennitos.
Limassol's history is revealed indirectly through the events that took place in 1191 AD and resulted in the end of the Byzantine occupation of the island of Cyprus. In 1991, Richard the Lion heart was traveling to the Holy Land. Another ship was traveling alongside his and it carried his fiancée and his sister. Due to an unexpected storm the two ships got separated and the one with the two royal ladies landed on the shores of Limassol. The Byzantine governor of Cyprus at that time was Isaac Comnenus who was not fond of Latins. When the queens refused to come ashore he refused them fresh water and forced them to take to the sea in order to escape capture and ransom.
Later on King Richard arrived in Limassol and asked Isaac to contribute to the crusade. Isaac agreed to do so initially but went back on his word. This caused king Richard to pursue and defeat Isaac. This Limassol was taken over by the British.
In 1192 AD, one year later, King Richard sold Cyprus to the Knights Templar who in turn forced high taxes to recover the price they had paid to purchase the island. This led to one of the several revolts by the Cypriot population who insisted that the bond of promise be abandoned. King Richard accepted this demand and resold Cyprus to Guy DeLusignan. The DeLusignan dynasty ruled Cyprus for over three centuries during which it enjoyed a reasonable amount of prosperity and came to be known for its large number of Latin bishops. This continued until the 1570 AD invasion of Cyprus by the Turks.
The 13th century was the time of great prosperity for its inhabitants as a lot of merchants settled down in Limassol as well as Cyprus and this led to increased trade. The harbor of Limassol was also a center of commerce through transportation and it too contributed vastly to the financial and cultural development of Limassol.
Limassol