These relations were exacerbated by the Venetian seizure of Turkish ships, execution of Turkish corsairs in violation of an Ottoman-Venetian Treaty, and the continuing presence of Maltese pirates in Venetian ports harassing Muslim pilgrims and interfering in general commerce. Therefore, the Sultan Selim II decided to intervene and put an end to this state of affairs, as well as to consolidate the Ottoman control of the East in general. The Venetians refused to yield to the demands of the Sultan, and the Ottoman-Venetian war began early in 1570. Nicosia fell on 9 September 1570, followed by Famagusta on 1 August 1571. In spite of a naval reversal at Lepanto on the Adriatic coast on 7 October 1571, Selim's efforts were successful and the Venetians had to sue for peace.

The peace treaty was concluded in March 1573 with Venice agreeing both to pay a heavy war indemnity sufficient to defray all Sultan's expenses incurred in the conflict, and also to renounce all Venetian claims to Cyprus. It must be remembered that the Venetians were foreign feudal landlords in Cyprus, and the first step of the Turkish governors was to abolish the feudal system.

Nevertheless, in the opinion of Sinan Pasha, the Beylerbeyi (Governor-General) who replaced Lala Mustafa Pasha, the island was still heavily in need not only of more residents in general but also of skilled craftsmen. Consequently, after he informed Sultan Selim II of the island's condition, a firman (decree) was issued to the Kadis (chief judges) of Karaman, Íchel, Bozok (Yozgat), Alaiyye (Alanya), Teke (Antalya), and Aydin calling for a population transfer. throughout their history, this practice was commonly employed by the Ottoman Turks in rebuilding and populating the conquered territories. This was an essential part of their political theory.

In this instance Sultan Selim II recommended the transfer of one in every ten families from the areas mentioned above. It was further stipulated that their properties should be sold for their actual market value and that all monies thereby accruing should be given to them for their use in Cyprus. Furthermore, in order to provide additional assistance, they were to be exempt from all taxation for the initial three years of their residence in Cyprus.

A total of 5,720 households were transferred in this early period and re-settled in approximately one hundred empty villages in the Mesaoria, Mazoto, and Paphos regions of Cyprus. Early arrivals consisted of families primarily from Karaman, Yozgat, Alanya, and Antalya. Others quickly following came primarily from Beyşehir, Aksaray, Seydişehir, Develihisar, Niğde, and Endugi. The transfer to Cyprus of population from several Anatolian provinces continued immediately ensuing years with families from Konya, Kirşehir, Aydin, Çorum, Kayseri, Samsun, Eskişehir, Ankara, Burdur, and Ushak.

The use of resettlement as a general method for development of the Turkish population of Cyprus continued intermittently until the middle of the eighteen century. Later transfers included the Akkeçili tribe from Uşak; farmers from the Manavgat, Selendi, Mamuriye, and Karataş regions; and craftsmen and tradesmen numbering two hundred from Aleppo. At the time of the British arrival in Cyprus in 1878 under the Cyprus Defence Alliance between Great Britain and the Ottoman Empire, approximately 95,000 Turkish-Cypriots were residing on the island.