Sicily History

Sicily has had a long and varied history involving peoples form many parts pf the Mediterranean. The island was colonized by the Phoenicians and Punic settlers from Carthage and by Greeks, starting in the 8th century BC with the most important colony being established at Syracuse in 734 BC.

Other Greek colonies were Gela, Acragas, Selinunte, Himera, and Messene (now known as Messina). These city states were an important part of classical Greek civilization, which included Sicily as part of Magna Graecia. In fact the famous Archimedes was from Sicily.

Palermo was a Carthaginian city from the 8th century BC called Zis or Sis and there are hundreds of Phoenician and Carthaginian grave sites over a large area of Palermo.

The First Punic War between Rome and Carthage started in the 3rd century BC and by the end of war (242 BC) all of Sicily was in Roman hands, thus becoming Rome's first province outside of the Italian peninsula.

During the Second Punic War the Carthigians initially gained success which encouraged many of the Sicilian cities to revolt against Roman rule. Rome then sent armies to put down the rebellions and it was during the siege of Syracuse that Archimedes was killed). Again Rome triumphed.

For the next 6 centuries Sicily remained a province of the Roman Empire used mainly for its grain which was the mainstay of the food supply of the city of Rome. Rome however did not make much effort to Romanize the region, which remained largely Greek in influence.

Sicily the went through centuries of changing hands from the Ostrogoths, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Germans, French, Spanish, Austrians, and Bourbons. Very few places can lay claim to such a colourful history!

Sicily was joined with the kingdom of Italy in 1860 following the expedition of Giuseppe Garibaldi. Before the unification Sicily was one of the richest and most developed regions of Italy. Following the unification its national treasure and its facilities were exploited to create the new industrial growth which transformed the poor urban areas of northern Italy into the large economic heart of today.

In 1866 Palermo insurged against Italy. The city was soon bombed by the Italian navy, which disembarked on September 22, under the command of Raffaele Cadorna. Italian soldiers summarily executed the civilian insurgents, and took possession once again of the island.

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