From the Assyrians to the Egyptians, the Persians to the Romans, Cyprus has seen hordes of visitors disembark on her shores over the centuries – each leaving their distinctive mark on the varied landscape. The war then turned in the Persian favor when Evagoras' fleet was destroyed at the Battle of Citium, and he was compelled to flee to Salamis. Evagoras managed to hold his ground and took advantage of a quarrel between the two Persian generals to conclude peace (376). Evagoras was allowed to remain nominally king of Salamis, but in reality, a vassal of Persia, to which he was to pay a yearly tribute. After his death, he was succeeded by his son, Nicocles. According to Isocrates's Panegyric, Evagoras was a model ruler, whose aim was to promote the welfare of his state and of his subjects by the cultivation of Greek refinement and civilization. Isocrates also states that many people migrated from Greece to Cyprus because of the noble rule of Evagoras. The next 500 years or so saw the island change hands through Richard the Lionheart, the French Lusignan family, the Venetians, and the Ottomans. In the mid-19th century, the Suez Canal was opened, so to protect the trade route to India, and Britain took a vested interest in the strategically located island, which saw many new roads, pipelines, crop irrigation, and railways being built. This alliance continued well into the 20th century with Cyprus’s independence being declared in 1960. This series of events lead to North Cyprus eventually declaring its independence from the south, in 1974. From towering crusader castles to war-time museums, memorials to spiritual sites, architecture with elements of French Gothic and Renaissance, Latin churches, Armenian monasteries, and cathedrals converted into mosques with visitors from all over the world offering their devotion and prayers.