Makarios III the British press as a crooked Cypriot priest and viewed with suspicion by the British authorities, was intercepted by Special Branch officers while attempting to board a flight at Nicosia airport. The joint police/military plan, codenamed Operation Apollo, saw Makarios exiled to Mahe Island in the Seychelles on 9 March 1956, as a 'guest' of Sir William Addis, Governor & Commander-in-Chief of the Seychelles. The Archbishop and his staff were flown to Aden and then on to Mombasa. At the Kenyan port the party were embarked in the East African Naval Vessel "Rosalind", escorted by the frigate HMS "Loch Fada".
Makarios II of Cyprus Makarios II of Cyprus Makarios II (1870 – June 28, 1950) was Archbishop of Cyprus from 1947 until 1950. He was born "Michail Charalambous Papaioannou" in the village of Prodromos in 1870. In 1895, he was ordained a deacon and left Cyprus for further education. He studied at the "Great School of the Nation" in Constantinople before entering the Halki seminary. In 1912, he enlisted in the Hellenic Army and served as chaplain during the Balkan Wars. On March 20, 1917, he was elected Bishop of Kyrenia. After the disturbances of October 1931, Makarios was exiled by the British administration.