Byzantine Fortification #1182

Description

Its current form was shaped primarily during the period when the Knights of the Order of Saint John occupied the island, from 1309 to 1522. This castle-city was also the site of two major sieges in world history, in 305 BC and in 1522.

Thanks to its strategic location as a gateway to the Aegean Sea, Rhodes has always been a crucial point on trade routes between East and West, with well-protected harbors that made it an essential stopover. During the Hellenistic period in the late 4th century BC, Rhodes was already surrounded by defensive walls that enabled it to withstand the famous siege by Demetrius Poliorketes, king of Macedonia, in 305 BC. To commemorate their victory over Demetrius, the Rhodians built the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

In the 3rd century BC, Philo of Byzantium, author of the treatise Paraskeuastica on fortifications, visited Rhodes and praised its defensive walls. After an earthquake in 226 BC severely damaged the city’s fortifications, they were quickly rebuilt. Later, the Byzantines added a fortress on the highest part of the town.

The medieval history of Rhodes reached a turning point in 1309, when the Knights of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem (also known as the Knights Hospitallers or simply the Knights) took control of the island.