Sicily summary

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Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Sicily.

Sicily , Italian Sicilia, Island, Italy. Sicily is separated from the mainland by the Strait of Messina. The largest island (9,830 sq mi [25,460 sq km]) in the Mediterranean Sea, it is also the site of Europe’s highest active volcano, Mount Etna. The capital is Palermo. Sicily’s strategic location at the centre of the Mediterranean has made the island a crossroads of history. The Greeks colonized it in the 8th–6th centuries bce, and in the 3rd century bce it became the first Roman province. It came under Byzantine rule in the 6th century ce and fell in 965 to Arabs from North Africa. It was taken in 1060 by the Normans. In the 12th–13th centuries and again in the 18th century it formed part of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. During the 19th century it was a major centre of revolutionary movements; in 1860 it was liberated from the Bourbons, and in 1861 it was incorporated into the Kingdom of Italy. Agriculture is its economic mainstay; industries include oil refining, food processing, wine making, and shipbuilding. Together with the islands of Egadi, Lipari, Pelagie, and Pantelleria, Sicily forms an autonomous region of Italy (pop., 2007 est.: 5,016,861).

Mount Etna Summary

Mount Etna, active volcano on the east coast of Sicily. The name comes from the Greek Aitne, from aithō, “I burn.” Mount Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe, its topmost elevation being about 10,900 feet (3,320 metres). Like other active volcanoes, it varies in height, increasing from

The western Mediterranean during the Punic Wars

Punic Wars Summary

Punic Wars, (264–146 bce), a series of three wars between the Roman Republic and the Carthaginian (Punic) empire, resulting in the destruction of Carthage, the enslavement of its population, and Roman hegemony over the western Mediterranean. The origin of these conflicts is to be found in the

Catania Summary

Catania, city, eastern Sicily, Italy, in the broad plain of Catania on the Ionian seacoast, south of Mount Etna. The city was founded in 729 bce by Chalcidians (settlers from Chalcis in the Greek island of Euboea) from Naxos, 50 miles (80 km) north. It acquired importance in the 5th century bce

Syracuse Summary

Syracuse, city, on the east coast of Sicily, 33 miles (53 km) south of Catania. It was the chief Greek city of ancient Sicily. Syracuse was settled about 734 bce by Corinthians led by the aristocrat Archias, and the city soon dominated the coastal plain and hill country beyond. The original Greek