Tyre was founded c. 2750 B.C. Along with Byblos and Sidon it would form the Phoenician empire. It was the most important of the Phoenician cities and was famous for its purple dye which would become a common color denoting high office, royalty, and/or wealth.
Tyre was an island fortress and proved highly impregnable. It wasn't until 587 B.C. that the city was finally captured by Nebuchadnezzar, but only after he layed seige to it for thirteen years. Phoenicia was absorbed into the Persian Empire soon after. The city was captured again, this time by Alexander the Great, in 332 B.C.