2-368-177 - Vivienne Sharp/Heritage Images

Venetian bastion, Nicosia, Cyprus, 2001. Cyprus came under Venetian rule in 1489. They heavily fortified Nicosia with 4.5 metre thick city walls built between 1567 and 1570. They were unable to prevent the city from falling into the hands of the Ottomans in 1571 however, with 20,000 of the city's population losing their lives during the siege.