Rhodes was my first destination of my fellowship travel. To travel to Rhodes I had two choices, either to take the ferry or the plane. Even though the ferry would have been a beautiful journey, after learning that the trips from Athens to Rhodes were between 13-17 hours, I preferred to buy a cheap flight ticket and be in Rhodes in an hour. I went to Rhodes alone and stayed for the weekend at a backpackers accommodation that was run by a Greek Australian couple. At that place I met other travelers like myself who came to Rhodes to explore the island. As I was staying for only two days I was focused to visit the Medieval Town. The moment I arrived to the Medieval Town, I realized how touristic this location was. Compared to all the other port-cities that I have been to, Rhodes was the city that had the largest mass tourism. However, once I entered through the impressive gates and started to wonder in the streets of the Medieval Town I felt that I was taken into another time.
The history of the Island and the Medieval Town
The island of Rhodes was known by many civilizations to be the crossroad of the major sea routes in the Mediterranean. Its strategic position brought the island a great wealth and therefore, today its art, language and architecture is one of the most complex one in the region. Its capital city Rhodes is located at the north of the island and the Medieval Town is located in its center. Archeological excavations indicates that the island was inhabited as early as the Neolithic Period (4000 BC). In 408 BC the cities of the island -Ialyssos, Kamiros and Lindos- founded the city of Rhodes. During this period various artistic works were produced including the Colossus - considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In 164 BC Rhodes became a province of the Roman Empire and continued to be a major trade center in the Mediterranean.
Between 330-650 AD the island belonged to the Eastern Roman Empire, known also as the Byzantine Empire. In 602, the island was captured by the Sasanian navy and remained under the rule of the Umayyad forces until 680. After having their fleets destroyed by the Greek Fire in Constantinople, the Ummayyad's signed a peace treaty with the Byzantine Emperor and evacuated the island in 680. From 8th to the 12th centuries the island belonged to the Cibyrrhaeot Theme of the Byzantine Empire. In 1090, thirty years after the Battle of Manzikert (Malazgirt), Rhodes was occupied by the Seljuk Turks and recaptured by the Emperor Alexios I Komnenos during the first crusades. Between 1090-1309 the island was ruled by numerous powers of the region.
In 1309, the Island was sold to the Order of the Knights Hospitaliers of Saint John of Jerusalem. The Order was originally located in Jerusalem, then passed to Cyprus and finally established their headquarter in Rhodes. Under the Knights the fortifications of the town were extended, and the city was divided into two parts by an inner wall. The Northern part known as Castel or Chateau was the site of the Grand Masters Palace, the church of the Knights, the Latin Cathedral and the Catholic Bishops. The Southern part known was Ville or Burgus was the site where laymen lives and the commercial buildings were situated.
In 1522, Rhodes was conquered by the Ottoman army during the reign of Sultan Suleiman. New buildings such as mosques and public baths were established but also churches were converted into mosques and major houses of the Knights were transformed into private mansions. As a result of this transformation, the local architecture of the time became a mixture of oriental and western architecture. In the 17th century with development of the sea trades to the New World, the Mediterranean trades gradually lost its importance and Rhodes lost its dominant role as an international port.
However, the island always stayed a critical location for military purposes. The Ottoman rule in Rhodes continued for nearly four centuries. In 1912, Italy seized Rhodes from the Ottomans after the Tripolitanian Wars (1911-1912). During the Second World War, the island was occupied by the German army and in 1947, Rhodes united with Greece. Finally in 1988, as a result of its complex history, the Medieval Town was chosen to be a World Heritage City.
The Grand Masters Palace
The Grand Masters Palace was built by the the Knights of St. John and it was used as the administrative center of fortified city. However, period the era of the Knights, excavations indicate that on the same location there was a Byzantine Palace dating from the 7th century. The Palace was destroyed in 1856 as a result of an explosion of gunpowder that was stored in the basement of the St John Church. Today the Palace that is the most visited site in the Medieval Town, however it is a reproduction of the Palace that was destroyed. The Palace was rebuilt in 1940 according to the previous drawings.
http://eng.travelogues.gr/item.php?view=49705
The picture on the right was drawn in 1828 by Bernard Eugene Rottiers, a Flemish army official. In 1808 Rottiers joined the Russian army and went to missions in Georgia against the Persian and Ottoman armies. When the war was over he stayed in Athens and worked in trade of antiquities. In 1824, Rottiers returned to Greece and to organize an expedition in Greece for collecting antiquities. However, the expedition did not take place because of the ongoing Greek Revolution. As a result, he stayed in Rhodes for six months and later published his drawings of the medieval monuments in Rhodes. Today the interior of the palace is completely renovated and it is the most visited medieval monument in Rhodes.
The Archaeological Museum of Rhodes
The Archeological Museum of Rhodes was originally the Hospital of the Knights. The construction of the building started in 1440 and it was completed in 1489 by the Grand Master d'Aubusson. Today, the building exhibits wide range of archeological findings from different parts of Rhodes .
http://eng.travelogues.gr/item.php?view=49717
The picture is another drawing Bernard Eugene Rottiers dating from 1828. The picture displays that the facade of the Hospital of the Knights did not have a major change, except the columns that are in front of the facade are not there anymore.
