Byzantine Times

After the division of the Roman Empire into Western and Eastern Empires, Corfu was included in the Eastern Roman Empire which later became the Byzantine Empire. This period lasted from 337 AD to 1267 AD.

During the 5th, 7th and 9th centuries Corfu was plagued by barbarian raids. In 562 AD the leader of Goths Totila with his barbarian herds and 300 ships laid waste to the island. When the Coths withdrew the Corfiots fortified the old fortress and settled there. This was the starting point for the new town of Corfu.

Archaeological finds are proof of a continuous and dynamic local life especially after the 8th century due to the desire of Byzantines to better control free navigation in the Ionian and Adriatic seas. Corfu developed into an important trading post for Byzantium and its Venetian allies and this resulted in its economic, demographic and cultural growth. In 876 the Church of Corfu became a metropolitan church under the authority of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. In 1081 the leader of the Norman in southern Italy, Robert Guiscard conquered all Corfu except for the fortress. Guiscard was finally defeated in a naval battle against the Byzantines in the harbor of Corfu in 1084.

In 1147 the Normans, led this time by the Roger II, King of Sicily, regained control of Corfu but the Byzantines took back the island with the help of the Venetians. In 1199 the island was conquered by the Genoese pirate Leon Vetrano who used Corfu as his staging post for pirate raids on the Peloponnese. After Byzantine fell into the hands of the Crusaders in the 4th crusade (1202 - 1214) Corfu was ceded to the Venetians who held it for nearly seven years. Venetians rule was abolished by the Despot of Epirus, Michael Angelos Komninos Doukas.