Corfu

Corfu or Kérkira (ancient Corcyra), island, north-western Greece, the most northerly of the Ionian Islands, in the Ionian Sea; its area is 593 sq km (229 sq mi). Corfu is separated from the Greek and Albanian mainlands by a narrow channel. With the small islands of Paxoí and Antipaxos, it forms the department (nomós) of Kérkira, the capital and largest town of which is the port of Kérkira on the eastern coast of Corfu Island. Practically all the commerce of the island passes through the town of Kérkira, which is also a centre of tourism. The town’s historic centre was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007. The northern part of the island is mountainous with Mount Pandokrator reaching 906 m (2,972 ft), the central part hilly, and the southern part low and fairly level. The island is well watered and fertile. Olive oil, citrus fruit, figs, and textiles are principal products. Population 107,592 (1991).

Corfu is the ancient Corcyra. In about 734 bc the island, which has been identified as Scheria, home of the Phaeacians in Homer's Odyssey, was colonized by the Corinthians. After the Persian Wars, in which Corcyra did not take part, further dispute with Corinth led the Corcyreans to ally themselves in 435 bc with Athens, and the intervention of Athens contributed to the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War. In 229 bc the island came under Roman protection. It was part of the Byzantine Empire until around ad 1400, when it passed into the possession of the Venetians, who called it Corfu and held it until 1797, despite several attacks by the Ottoman Turks. It became a British protectorate in 1814 and then a part of Greece in 1864. During World War I the French took temporary military possession of the island in 1916 to provide a refuge for the exhausted Serbian army. The Declaration of Corfu, proclaiming the union of the Yugoslavs, was signed here in 1917. Benito Mussolini sent naval forces to bombard the town of Kérkira and to occupy the island in 1923, but these troops were evacuated later that year. During World War II the island was held by Italian and German forces until it was retaken by Greek and British troops in October 1944.