Rhodes
Encyclopedia
Rhodes is an island in Greece
, located in the eastern Aegean Sea
. It is the largest of the Dodecanese
islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes peripheral unit
, which is part of the South Aegean Periphery
. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Rhodes. The city of Rhodes had 53,709 inhabitants in 2001. It is located northeast of Crete
, southeast of Athens
and southwest of the Anatolian coast in Turkey
.
Historically, Rhodes was famous worldwide for the Colossus of Rhodes
, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
. The medieval Old Town of the City of Rhodes has been declared a World Heritage Site
. Today, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe.
Rhodes is closer to Asia Minor
than to the Greek mainland.
The island of Rhodes is shaped like a spearhead
, 79.7 km (49.5 mi) long and 38 km (24 mi) wide, with a total area of approximately 1400 square kilometres (541 sq mi) and a coastline of approximately 220 km (137 mi). The city of Rhodes
is located at the northern tip of the island, as well as the site of the ancient and modern commercial harbours. The main air gateway (Diagoras International Airport, IATA code: RHO) is located 14 km (9 mi) to the southwest of the city in Paradisi
. The road network radiates from the city along the east and west coasts.
Outside of the city of Rhodes, the island is dotted with small villages and beach resorts, among them Faliraki
, Lindos
, Kremasti
, Haraki
, Pefkos
, Archangelos
, Afantou
, Koskinou
, Embona (Attavyros), Paradisi
, and Trianta (Ialysos).
It is situated 363 km (226 mi) east-south-east from Greece
mainland and only 18 km (11 mi) from the southern shore of Turkey
.
(Pinus brutia) and cypress
(Cupressus sempervirens). While the shores are rocky, the island has arable strips of land where citrus
fruit, wine
grapes, vegetables, olives and other crops are grown.
was found to be genetically distinct in 2005, and to be of urgent conservation concern. In Petaludes
Valley (Greek for "Valley of the Butterflies"), large numbers of tiger moths gather during the summer months. Mount Attavyros, at 1216 metres (3,990 ft), is the island's highest point of elevation.
that destroyed the Colossus of Rhodes
; one on 3 May 1481
which destroyed much of the city of Rhodes; and one on 26 June 1926.
On 15 July 2008, Rhodes was struck by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake
causing minor damage to a few old buildings. One woman lost her life when she fell down stairs while trying to flee her home.
The island was inhabited in the Neolithic
period, although little remains of this culture. In the 16th century BC
, the Minoans
came to Rhodes. Later Greek mythology recalled a Rhodian race called the Telchines
, and associated the island of Rhodes with Danaus
; it was sometimes nicknamed Telchinis. In the 15th century BC
, Mycenaean Greeks
invaded. After the Bronze Age collapse
, the first renewed outside contacts were with Cyprus
. In the 8th century BC
, the island's settlements started to form, with the coming of the Dorians, who built the three important cities of Lindos, Ialyssos and Kameiros
, which together with Kos
, Cnidus
and Halicarnassus
(on the mainland) made up the so-called Dorian Hexapolis
(Greek for six cities).
Before archaeology, myth stood in for blanks in the historical record. In Pindar
's ode, the island was said to be born of the union of Helios
the sun god and the nymph Rhode, and the cities were named for their three sons. The rhoda is a pink hibiscus
native to the island. Diodorus Siculus
added that Actis
, one of the sons of Helios and Rhode, travelled to Egypt
. He built the city of Heliopolis
and taught the Egyptians the science of astrology
.
In the second half of the 8th century, the sanctuary of Athena received votive gifts that are markers for cultural contacts: small ivories from the Near East and bronze objects from Syria. At Kameiros
on the northwest coast, a former Bronze Age site, where the temple was founded in the 8th century, there is another notable contemporaneous sequence of carved ivory figurines. Phoenician presence on the island at Ialysos
is attested in traditions recorded much later by Rhodian historians.
The Persians invaded and overran the island, but were in turn defeated by forces from Athens
in 478 BC. The cities joined the Athenian League
. When the Peloponnesian War
broke out in 431 BC, Rhodes remained largely neutral, although it remained a member of the League. The war lasted until 404 BC, but by this time Rhodes had withdrawn entirely from the conflict and decided to go her own way.
In 408 BC, the cities united to form one territory. They built the city of Rhodes, a new capital on the northern end of the island. Its regular plan was superintended by the Athenian architect Hippodamus. The Peloponnesian War had so weakened the entire Greek culture that it lay open to invasion. In 357 BC, the island was conquered by the king Mausolus
of Caria
, then it fell to the Persians in 340 BC. Their rule was also short. To the great relief of its citizens, Rhodes became a part of the growing empire of Alexander the Great in 332 BC, after he defeated the Persians.
Following the death of Alexander, his generals vied for control of the kingdom. Three: Ptolemy
, Seleucus
, and Antigonus
, succeeded in dividing the kingdom among themselves. Rhodes formed strong commercial and cultural ties with the Ptolemies in Alexandria
, and together formed the Rhodo-Egyptian alliance that controlled trade throughout the Aegean in the 3rd century BC.
The city developed into a maritime, commercial and cultural center; its coins circulated nearly everywhere in the Mediterranean. Its famous schools of philosophy, science, literature and rhetoric
shared masters with Alexandria: the Athenian rhetorician Aeschines
, who formed a school at Rhodes; Apollonius of Rhodes
; the observations and works of the astronomers Hipparchus
and Geminus
, the rhetorician Dionysios Trax
. Its school of sculptors developed a rich, dramatic style that can be characterized as "Hellenistic
Baroque
".
In 305 BC, Antigonus directed his son, Demetrius
, to besiege Rhodes in an attempt to break its alliance with Egypt. Demetrius created huge siege engines, including a 180 ft (55 m) battering ram
and a siege tower
named Helepolis
that weighed 360000 pounds (163,293 kg). Despite this engagement, in 304 BC after only one year, he relented and signed a peace agreement, leaving behind a huge store of military equipment. The Rhodians sold the equipment and used the money to erect a statue of their sun god, Helios
, the statue since called the Colossus of Rhodes
.
In 164 BC, Rhodes signed a treaty with Rome
. It became an educational center for Roman noble families, and was especially noted for its teachers of rhetoric, such as Hermagoras
and the unknown author of Rhetorica ad Herennium
. At first, the state was an important ally of Rome and enjoyed numerous privileges, but these were later lost in various machinations of Roman politics. Cassius
eventually invaded the island and sacked the city.
In the 1st century AD, the Emperor Tiberius
spent a brief term of exile on Rhodes. Saint Paul brought Christianity
to people on the island. Rhodes reached her zenith in the 3rd century. In 395, the long Byzantine Empire
-period began for Rhodes, when the eastern half of the Roman empire became gradually more Greek.
Beginning after 600 AD, its influence in maritime issues was manifested in the
collection of maritime law known as "Rhodian Sea Law" (Nomos Rhodion Nautikos), accepted throughout the Mediterranean and in use up to Byzantine times (and influencing the development of admiralty law up to the present).
Rhodes was occupied by the Muslim
forces of Muawiyah I
in 672. In circa
1090, it was occupied by the Muslim forces of the Seljuk Turks, not long after the Battle of Manzikert
. Rhodes was recaptured by the Byzantine
Emperor Alexius I Comnenus
during the First Crusade
.
. Under the rule of the newly named "Knights of Rhodes", the city was rebuilt into a model of the European medieval ideal. Many of the city's famous monuments, including the Palace of the Grand Master
, were built during this period.
The strong walls which the Knights had built withstood the attacks of the Sultan
of Egypt
in 1444, and of Mehmed II
in 1480. Ultimately, however, Rhodes fell to the large army of Suleiman the Magnificent
in December 1522, long after the rest of the Byzantine empire had been lost. The few surviving Knights were permitted to retire to the Kingdom of Sicily
. The Knights would later move their base of operations to Malta. The island was thereafter a possession of the Ottoman Empire
for nearly four centuries.
.
In 1912, Italy seized Rhodes from the Turks. The island's population thus bypassed many of the events associated with the "exchange of the minorities"
between Greece and Turkey
. Due to the Treaty of Lausanne
, the island, together with the rest of the Dodecanese
, was officially assigned to Italy. It became the core of their possession of the Isole Italiane dell'Egeo.
Following the Italian Armistice of 8 September 1943, the British attempted to get the Italian garrison on Rhodes to change sides. This was anticipated by the German Army
, which succeeded in occupying the island. In great measure, the German occupation caused the British failure in the subsequent Dodecanese Campaign
.
On 19 July 1944, the Gestapo
rounded up the island's nearly 2,000 Jewish inhabitants to send them to extermination camps. About 160 of the island's more than 600 Greek Jews survived. The Turkish
Consul Selahattin Ülkümen
succeeded, at considerable risk to himself and his family, in saving 42 Jewish families, about 200 persons in total, who had Turkish citizenship or were members of Turkish citizens' families.
In 1947, together with the other islands of the Dodecanese
, Rhodes was united with Greece.
In 1949, Rhodes was the venue for negotiations between Israel
and Egypt
, Jordan
, Lebanon
, and Syria
, concluding with the 1949 Armistice Agreements
.
In ancient times, Rhodes was home to one of the Seven Wonders of the World—the Colossus of Rhodes
. This giant bronze statue was documented as once standing at the harbour. It was completed in 280 BC but was destroyed in an earthquake
in 224 BC. No trace of the statue remains today.
Historical sites on the island of Rhodes include the Acropolis of Lindos, the Acropolis of Rhodes
, the Temple of Apollo
, ancient Ialysos
, ancient Kamiros, the Governor's Palace, Rhodes Old Town (walled medieval city), the Palace of the Grand Masters
, Kahal Shalom Synagogue
in the Jewish Quarter
, the Archeological Museum, the ruins of the castle of Monolithos, the castle of Kritinia, St. Catherine Hospice and Rhodes Footbridge
.
minority on the island, many of whom are descendants of Italians who remained after the end of the Italian occupation. Rhodes has a Muslim minority, a remnant from Ottoman Turkish
times.
The Jewish community of Rhodes goes back to the 1st century AD. In 1480, the Jews actively defended the walled city against the Turks. Kahal Shalom, established in 1557, is the oldest synagogue in Greece and still stands in the Jewish quarter of the old town of Rhodes.
At its peak in the 1920s, the Jewish community was one-third of the total population. In the 1940s, there were about 2000 Jews of various ethnic backgrounds. The Germans deported and killed most of the community during the Holocaust
. Kahal Shalom has been renovated with the help of foreign donors but few Jews live year-round in Rhodes today, so services are not held on a regular basis.
The municipality covers the island of Rhodes and a few uninhabited offshore islets. Rhodes city was the capital of the former Dodecanese
Prefecture. Rhodes is the most populated island of the South Aegean
Region.
Future roads:
Two pilot schools offer aviation services (small plane rental, island hopping).
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, located in the eastern Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. It is the largest of the Dodecanese
Dodecanese
The Dodecanese are a group of 12 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Sea, of which 26 are inhabited. Τhis island group generally defines the eastern limit of the Sea of Crete. They belong to the Southern Sporades island group...
islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes peripheral unit
Rhodes (peripheral unit)
Rhodes is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of South Aegean. The regional unit covers the islands of Rhodes, Chalki, Kastelorizo, Symi, Tilos and several smaller islands in the Aegean Sea.-Administration:...
, which is part of the South Aegean Periphery
Peripheries of Greece
The current official regional administrative divisions of Greece were instituted in 1987. Although best translated into English as "regions", the transcription peripheries is sometimes used, perhaps to distinguish them from the traditional regions which they replaced. The English word 'periphery'...
. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Rhodes. The city of Rhodes had 53,709 inhabitants in 2001. It is located northeast of Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, southeast of Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and southwest of the Anatolian coast in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
Historically, Rhodes was famous worldwide for the Colossus of Rhodes
Colossus of Rhodes
The Colossus of Rhodes was a statue of the Greek Titan Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of Rhodes by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC. It is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was constructed to celebrate Rhodes' victory over the ruler of...
, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
The Seven Wonders of the World refers to remarkable constructions of classical antiquity listed by various authors in guidebooks popular among the ancient Hellenic tourists, particularly in the 1st and 2nd centuries BC...
. The medieval Old Town of the City of Rhodes has been declared a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
. Today, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe.
Name
The island has been known as Ρόδος in Greek throughout its history. In addition, the island has been called , Rodos, and Ladino: Rodi or Rodes.Geography
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
than to the Greek mainland.
The island of Rhodes is shaped like a spearhead
Spearhead
A spearhead is the sharpened tip of a spear.Spearhead may also refer to:-Armed conflict:* Armoured spearhead, a tactical formation* Spearhead, nickname of the U.S. 3rd Armored Division in the U.S...
, 79.7 km (49.5 mi) long and 38 km (24 mi) wide, with a total area of approximately 1400 square kilometres (541 sq mi) and a coastline of approximately 220 km (137 mi). The city of Rhodes
Rhodes, Greece
Rhodes is the principal city and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. It has a population of approximately 80,000. Rhodes has been famous...
is located at the northern tip of the island, as well as the site of the ancient and modern commercial harbours. The main air gateway (Diagoras International Airport, IATA code: RHO) is located 14 km (9 mi) to the southwest of the city in Paradisi
Paradisi, Greece
Paradeisi is a village on the northern coast of the island of Rhodes, Greece. It has a population of 2,603 inhabitants and is the second-largest town in the Municipality of Petaloudes....
. The road network radiates from the city along the east and west coasts.
Outside of the city of Rhodes, the island is dotted with small villages and beach resorts, among them Faliraki
Faliraki
Faliraki is the primary seaside resort village on the Greek island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese. It is situated on Faliraki Bay, on the northeastern coast, about 14 km south of the town of Rhodes and 10 km southeast of the airport...
, Lindos
Lindos
Lindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island...
, Kremasti
Kremasti
Kremasti is a town on the Greek island of Rhodes . Located on the west coast of the island, Kremasti is 12 kilometers from the capital of Rhodes, on the road to the airport. It has a population of approximately 4,372 people and is the administrative center of the Municipality of Petaloudes...
, Haraki
Haraki
Charaki is a small fishing village on the east coast of the island of Rhodes, Greece. In addition to its fishing trade, Haraki is also a small holiday resort, with the usual tavernas, restaurants and bars. Charaki has a small, picturesque bay with a number of holiday apartments in addition to its...
, Pefkos
Pefkos
Pefkos or Pefki, Greek: Πεύκος , is a well known beach resort located on eastern coast of Rhodes, just a few kilometers south of Lindos, from the capital city Rhodes. The island of Rhodes is the largest of the Dodecanese islands, on the eastern Aegean Sea, just a few miles from the coast of the...
, Archangelos
Archangelos
Archangelos is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Location and population:...
, Afantou
Afantou
Afantou is a village and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is situated on the east coast of Rhodes just south of the resort town Faliraki. From...
, Koskinou
Koskinou
Koskinou is a village on the Greek island of Rhodes.It located 5 miles from Rhodes town and 6 miles from the island resort of Faliraki.Koskinou is famous for its unique traditional houses decorated with bright, vibrant colours. There is a major festival on July 17th when the village celebrates the...
, Embona (Attavyros), Paradisi
Paradisi, Greece
Paradeisi is a village on the northern coast of the island of Rhodes, Greece. It has a population of 2,603 inhabitants and is the second-largest town in the Municipality of Petaloudes....
, and Trianta (Ialysos).
It is situated 363 km (226 mi) east-south-east from Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
mainland and only 18 km (11 mi) from the southern shore of Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
Flora
The interior of the island is mountainous, sparsely inhabited and covered with forests of pinePine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
(Pinus brutia) and cypress
Cupressus sempervirens
Cupressus sempervirens, the Mediterranean Cypress is a species of cypress native to the eastern Mediterranean region, in northeast Libya, southeast Greece , southern Turkey, Cyprus, Northern Egypt, western Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Malta, Italy, western Jordan, and also a disjunct population in...
(Cupressus sempervirens). While the shores are rocky, the island has arable strips of land where citrus
Citrus
Citrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the rue family, Rutaceae. Citrus is believed to have originated in the part of Southeast Asia bordered by Northeastern India, Myanmar and the Yunnan province of China...
fruit, wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
grapes, vegetables, olives and other crops are grown.
Fauna
The Rhodian population of fallow deerFallow Deer
The Fallow Deer is a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. This common species is native to western Eurasia, but has been introduced widely elsewhere. It often includes the rarer Persian Fallow Deer as a subspecies , while others treat it as an entirely different species The Fallow...
was found to be genetically distinct in 2005, and to be of urgent conservation concern. In Petaludes
Petaloudes
Petaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,...
Valley (Greek for "Valley of the Butterflies"), large numbers of tiger moths gather during the summer months. Mount Attavyros, at 1216 metres (3,990 ft), is the island's highest point of elevation.
Geology - Earthquakes
Earthquakes include the 226 BC earthquake226 BC Rhodes earthquake
The Rhodes earthquake of 226 BC, which affected the island of Rhodes, Greece, is famous for having toppled the large statue known as the Colossus of Rhodes. Following the earthquake, the statue lay in place for nearly 8 centuries before being sold off by invaders...
that destroyed the Colossus of Rhodes
Colossus of Rhodes
The Colossus of Rhodes was a statue of the Greek Titan Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of Rhodes by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC. It is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was constructed to celebrate Rhodes' victory over the ruler of...
; one on 3 May 1481
1481 Rhodes earthquake
The 1481 Rhodes earthquake occurred at 3:00 in the morning on 3 May. It triggered a small tsunami, which caused local flooding. There were an estimated 30,000 casualties...
which destroyed much of the city of Rhodes; and one on 26 June 1926.
On 15 July 2008, Rhodes was struck by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake
2008 Dodecanese earthquake
The 2008 Dodecanese earthquake, on 15 July 2008, was an earthquake near Kattavia on the island of Rhodes in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. The quake struck at 06:26 a.m. local time and one woman was killed when she slipped and fell as she tried to flee her home. However, the earthquake did...
causing minor damage to a few old buildings. One woman lost her life when she fell down stairs while trying to flee her home.
Ancient times
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period, although little remains of this culture. In the 16th century BC
16th century BC
The 16th century BC is a century which lasted from 1600 BC to 1501 BC.-Events:* 1700 BC – 1500 BC: Hurrian conquests.* 1595 BC: Sack of Babylon by the Hittite king Mursilis I....
, the Minoans
Minoan civilization
The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age civilization that arose on the island of Crete and flourished from approximately the 27th century BC to the 15th century BC. It was rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th century through the work of the British archaeologist Arthur Evans...
came to Rhodes. Later Greek mythology recalled a Rhodian race called the Telchines
Telchines
In Greek mythology, the Telchines were the original inhabitants of the island of Rhodes, and were known in Crete and Cyprus....
, and associated the island of Rhodes with Danaus
Danaus
In Greek mythology Danaus, or Danaos , was the twin brother of Aegyptus and son of Achiroe and Belus, a mythical king of Egypt. The myth of Danaus is a foundation legend of Argos, one of the foremost Mycenaean cities of the Peloponnesus...
; it was sometimes nicknamed Telchinis. In the 15th century BC
15th century BC
The 15th century BC is a century which lasted from 1500 BC to 1401 BC.- Events :* 1504 BC – 1492 BC: Egypt conquers Nubia and the Levant.* 1500 BC – 1400 BC: The Rigveda was composed around this time....
, Mycenaean Greeks
Mycenaean Greece
Mycenaean Greece was a cultural period of Bronze Age Greece taking its name from the archaeological site of Mycenae in northeastern Argolis, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. Athens, Pylos, Thebes, and Tiryns are also important Mycenaean sites...
invaded. After the Bronze Age collapse
Bronze Age collapse
The Bronze Age collapse is a transition in southwestern Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age that some historians believe was violent, sudden and culturally disruptive...
, the first renewed outside contacts were with Cyprus
Ancient history of Cyprus
The ancient history of Cyprus, also known as Classical Antiquity, dates from the 8th century BC to the Middle Ages. The earliest written records relating to Cyprus date to the Middle Bronze Age , see Alasiya.-Assyrian Period:...
. In the 8th century BC
8th century BC
The 8th century BC started the first day of 800 BC and ended the last day of 701 BC.-Overview:The 8th century BC was a period of great changes in civilizations. In Egypt, the 23rd and 24th dynasties led to rule from Nubia in the 25th Dynasty...
, the island's settlements started to form, with the coming of the Dorians, who built the three important cities of Lindos, Ialyssos and Kameiros
Kameiros
Kameiros is an ancient city and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the northwest coast of the island. It was the heart of an agricultural...
, which together with Kos
Kos
Kos or Cos is a Greek island in the south Sporades group of the Dodecanese, next to the Gulf of Gökova/Cos. It measures by , and is from the coast of Bodrum, Turkey and the ancient region of Caria. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Kos peripheral unit, which is...
, Cnidus
Knidos
Knidos or Cnidus is an ancient settlement located in Turkey. It was an ancient Greek city of Caria, part of the Dorian Hexapolis. It was situated on the Datça peninsula, which forms the southern side of the Sinus Ceramicus, now known as Gulf of Gökova. By the fourth century BC, Knidos was located...
and Halicarnassus
Halicarnassus
Halicarnassus was an ancient Greek city at the site of modern Bodrum in Turkey. It was located in southwest Caria on a picturesque, advantageous site on the Ceramic Gulf. The city was famous for the tomb of Mausolus, the origin of the word mausoleum, built between 353 BC and 350 BC, and...
(on the mainland) made up the so-called Dorian Hexapolis
Doric hexapolis
The Doric or Dorian Hexapolis was a federation of six cities of Dorian foundation, and included:*Kos, on the island of the same name in the Aegean sea;*Cnidus, in Caria;*Halicarnassus, also in Caria;*Lindus, on the island of Rhodes;...
(Greek for six cities).
Before archaeology, myth stood in for blanks in the historical record. In Pindar
Pindar
Pindar , was an Ancient Greek lyric poet. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian described him as "by far the greatest of the nine lyric poets, in virtue of his inspired magnificence, the beauty of his thoughts and figures, the rich...
's ode, the island was said to be born of the union of Helios
Helios
Helios was the personification of the Sun in Greek mythology. Homer often calls him simply Titan or Hyperion, while Hesiod and the Homeric Hymn separate him as a son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia or Euryphaessa and brother of the goddesses Selene, the moon, and Eos, the dawn...
the sun god and the nymph Rhode, and the cities were named for their three sons. The rhoda is a pink hibiscus
Hibiscus
Hibiscus is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. It is quite large, containing several hundred species that are native to warm-temperate, subtropical and tropical regions throughout the world...
native to the island. Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...
added that Actis
Actis
In Greek mythology, Actis was one of the Heliadae, a son of Rhodos and Helios. Actis, along with his brothers, Triopas, Macar and Candalus, were jealous of a fifth brother, Tenages's, skill at science. They killed him and Actis escaped to Egypt. According to Diodorus Siculus, Actis built the city...
, one of the sons of Helios and Rhode, travelled to Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. He built the city of Heliopolis
Heliopolis (ancient)
Heliopolis was one of the oldest cities of ancient Egypt, the capital of the 13th Lower Egyptian nome that was located five miles east of the Nile to the north of the apex of the Nile Delta...
and taught the Egyptians the science of astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
.
In the second half of the 8th century, the sanctuary of Athena received votive gifts that are markers for cultural contacts: small ivories from the Near East and bronze objects from Syria. At Kameiros
Kameiros
Kameiros is an ancient city and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the northwest coast of the island. It was the heart of an agricultural...
on the northwest coast, a former Bronze Age site, where the temple was founded in the 8th century, there is another notable contemporaneous sequence of carved ivory figurines. Phoenician presence on the island at Ialysos
Ialysos
Ialysos , is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is the second-largest town on the island of Rhodes...
is attested in traditions recorded much later by Rhodian historians.
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
in 478 BC. The cities joined the Athenian League
Delian League
The Delian League, founded in circa 477 BC, was an association of Greek city-states, members numbering between 150 to 173, under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Plataea at the end of the Greco–Persian Wars...
. When the Peloponnesian War
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases...
broke out in 431 BC, Rhodes remained largely neutral, although it remained a member of the League. The war lasted until 404 BC, but by this time Rhodes had withdrawn entirely from the conflict and decided to go her own way.
In 408 BC, the cities united to form one territory. They built the city of Rhodes, a new capital on the northern end of the island. Its regular plan was superintended by the Athenian architect Hippodamus. The Peloponnesian War had so weakened the entire Greek culture that it lay open to invasion. In 357 BC, the island was conquered by the king Mausolus
Mausolus
Mausolus was ruler of Caria . He took part in the revolt against Artaxerxes Mnemon , conquered a great part of Lycia, Ionia and several Greek islands and cooperated with the Rhodians in the Social War against Athens...
of Caria
Caria
Caria was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the Carian population in forming Greek-dominated states there...
, then it fell to the Persians in 340 BC. Their rule was also short. To the great relief of its citizens, Rhodes became a part of the growing empire of Alexander the Great in 332 BC, after he defeated the Persians.
Following the death of Alexander, his generals vied for control of the kingdom. Three: Ptolemy
Ptolemy I Soter
Ptolemy I Soter I , also known as Ptolemy Lagides, c. 367 BC – c. 283 BC, was a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great, who became ruler of Egypt and founder of both the Ptolemaic Kingdom and the Ptolemaic Dynasty...
, Seleucus
Seleucus I Nicator
Seleucus I was a Macedonian officer of Alexander the Great and one of the Diadochi. In the Wars of the Diadochi that took place after Alexander's death, Seleucus established the Seleucid dynasty and the Seleucid Empire...
, and Antigonus
Antigonus I Monophthalmus
Antigonus I Monophthalmus , son of Philip from Elimeia, was a Macedonian nobleman, general, and satrap under Alexander the Great. During his early life he served under Philip II, and he was a major figure in the Wars of the Diadochi after Alexander's death, declaring himself king in 306 BC and...
, succeeded in dividing the kingdom among themselves. Rhodes formed strong commercial and cultural ties with the Ptolemies in Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
, and together formed the Rhodo-Egyptian alliance that controlled trade throughout the Aegean in the 3rd century BC.
The city developed into a maritime, commercial and cultural center; its coins circulated nearly everywhere in the Mediterranean. Its famous schools of philosophy, science, literature and rhetoric
Rhetoric
Rhetoric is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the facility of speakers or writers who attempt to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations. As a subject of formal study and a productive civic practice, rhetoric has played a central role in the Western...
shared masters with Alexandria: the Athenian rhetorician Aeschines
Aeschines
Aeschines was a Greek statesman and one of the ten Attic orators.-Life:Although it is known he was born in Athens, the records regarding his parentage and early life are conflicting; but it seems probable that his parents, though poor, were respectable. Aeschines' father was Atrometus, an...
, who formed a school at Rhodes; Apollonius of Rhodes
Apollonius of Rhodes
Apollonius Rhodius, also known as Apollonius of Rhodes , early 3rd century BCE – after 246 BCE, was a poet, and a librarian at the Library of Alexandria...
; the observations and works of the astronomers Hipparchus
Hipparchus
Hipparchus, the common Latinization of the Greek Hipparkhos, can mean:* Hipparchus, the ancient Greek astronomer** Hipparchic cycle, an astronomical cycle he created** Hipparchus , a lunar crater named in his honour...
and Geminus
Geminus
Geminus of Rhodes , was a Greek astronomer and mathematician, who flourished in the 1st century BC. An astronomy work of his, the Introduction to the Phenomena, still survives; it was intended as an introductory astronomy book for students. He also wrote a work on mathematics, of which only...
, the rhetorician Dionysios Trax
Dionysius Thrax
Dionysius Thrax was a Hellenistic grammarian and a pupil of Aristarchus of Samothrace. His place of origin was not Thrace as the epithet Thrax denotes, but probably Alexandria...
. Its school of sculptors developed a rich, dramatic style that can be characterized as "Hellenistic
Hellenistic civilization
Hellenistic civilization represents the zenith of Greek influence in the ancient world from 323 BCE to about 146 BCE...
Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
".
In 305 BC, Antigonus directed his son, Demetrius
Demetrius I of Macedon
Demetrius I , called Poliorcetes , son of Antigonus I Monophthalmus and Stratonice, was a king of Macedon...
, to besiege Rhodes in an attempt to break its alliance with Egypt. Demetrius created huge siege engines, including a 180 ft (55 m) battering ram
Battering ram
A battering ram is a siege engine originating in ancient times and designed to break open the masonry walls of fortifications or splinter their wooden gates...
and a siege tower
Siege tower
A siege tower is a specialized siege engine, constructed to protect assailants and ladders while approaching the defensive walls of a fortification. The tower was often rectangular with four wheels with its height roughly equal to that of the wall or sometimes higher to allow archers to stand on...
named Helepolis
Helepolis
Helepolis was an ancient siege engine invented by Polyidus of Thessaly and improved by Demetrius I of Macedon and Epimachus of Athens for the unsuccessful siege of Rhodes, based on an earlier, less massive design used against Salamis...
that weighed 360000 pounds (163,293 kg). Despite this engagement, in 304 BC after only one year, he relented and signed a peace agreement, leaving behind a huge store of military equipment. The Rhodians sold the equipment and used the money to erect a statue of their sun god, Helios
Helios
Helios was the personification of the Sun in Greek mythology. Homer often calls him simply Titan or Hyperion, while Hesiod and the Homeric Hymn separate him as a son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia or Euryphaessa and brother of the goddesses Selene, the moon, and Eos, the dawn...
, the statue since called the Colossus of Rhodes
Colossus of Rhodes
The Colossus of Rhodes was a statue of the Greek Titan Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of Rhodes by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC. It is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was constructed to celebrate Rhodes' victory over the ruler of...
.
In 164 BC, Rhodes signed a treaty with Rome
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
. It became an educational center for Roman noble families, and was especially noted for its teachers of rhetoric, such as Hermagoras
Hermagoras
Hermagoras may refer to:*Hermagoras of Amphipolis Stoic philosopher*Hermagoras of Temnos Rhetorician*Hermagoras of Aquileia . First bishop of Aquileia and saint...
and the unknown author of Rhetorica ad Herennium
Rhetorica ad Herennium
The Rhetorica ad Herennium, formerly attributed to Cicero but of unknown authorship, is the oldest surviving Latin book on rhetoric, dating from the 90s BC, and is still used today as a textbook on the structure and uses of rhetoric and persuasion....
. At first, the state was an important ally of Rome and enjoyed numerous privileges, but these were later lost in various machinations of Roman politics. Cassius
Gaius Cassius Longinus
Gaius Cassius Longinus was a Roman senator, a leading instigator of the plot to kill Julius Caesar, and the brother in-law of Marcus Junius Brutus.-Early life:...
eventually invaded the island and sacked the city.
Tiberius
Tiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
spent a brief term of exile on Rhodes. Saint Paul brought Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
to people on the island. Rhodes reached her zenith in the 3rd century. In 395, the long Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
-period began for Rhodes, when the eastern half of the Roman empire became gradually more Greek.
Beginning after 600 AD, its influence in maritime issues was manifested in the
collection of maritime law known as "Rhodian Sea Law" (Nomos Rhodion Nautikos), accepted throughout the Mediterranean and in use up to Byzantine times (and influencing the development of admiralty law up to the present).
Rhodes was occupied by the Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
forces of Muawiyah I
Muawiyah I
Muawiyah I was the first Caliph of the Umayyad Dynasty. After the conquest of Mecca by the Muslims, Muawiyah's family converted to Islam. Muawiyah is brother-in-law to Muhammad who married his sister Ramlah bint Abi-Sufyan in 1AH...
in 672. In circa
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1090, it was occupied by the Muslim forces of the Seljuk Turks, not long after the Battle of Manzikert
Battle of Manzikert
The Battle of Manzikert , was fought between the Byzantine Empire and Seljuq Turks led by Alp Arslan on August 26, 1071 near Manzikert...
. Rhodes was recaptured by the Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
Emperor Alexius I Comnenus
Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos, Latinized as Alexius I Comnenus , was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118, and although he was not the founder of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during his reign that the Komnenos family came to full power. The title 'Nobilissimus' was given to senior army commanders,...
during the First Crusade
First Crusade
The First Crusade was a military expedition by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem...
.
Medieval period
In 1309, the Byzantine era came to an end when the island was occupied by forces of the Knights HospitallerKnights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
. Under the rule of the newly named "Knights of Rhodes", the city was rebuilt into a model of the European medieval ideal. Many of the city's famous monuments, including the Palace of the Grand Master
Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes
The Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes is a palace in the town of Rhodes, on the island of Rhodes in Greece. In the point that today is the palace it was earlier a Byzantine citadel that functioned as headquarters and fortress. The palace was built in the 14th century by the...
, were built during this period.
The strong walls which the Knights had built withstood the attacks of the Sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
in 1444, and of Mehmed II
Mehmed II
Mehmed II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446, and later from...
in 1480. Ultimately, however, Rhodes fell to the large army of Suleiman the Magnificent
Suleiman the Magnificent
Suleiman I was the tenth and longest-reigning Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1520 to his death in 1566. He is known in the West as Suleiman the Magnificent and in the East, as "The Lawgiver" , for his complete reconstruction of the Ottoman legal system...
in December 1522, long after the rest of the Byzantine empire had been lost. The few surviving Knights were permitted to retire to the Kingdom of Sicily
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
. The Knights would later move their base of operations to Malta. The island was thereafter a possession of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
for nearly four centuries.
Modern history
The island was populated by ethnic groups from the surrounding nations, including Jews. Under the Ottoman Empire rule, they generally did fairly well, but discrimination and bigotry occasionally arose. In February 1840, the Jews of Rhodes were falsely accused of ritually murdering a Christian boy. This became known as the Rhodes blood libelRhodes blood libel
The Rhodes blood libel was an 1840 event of blood libel against Jews, in which the Greek Orthodox community accused Jews on island of Rhodes of the ritual murder of a Christian boy who disappeared in February of that year....
.
In 1912, Italy seized Rhodes from the Turks. The island's population thus bypassed many of the events associated with the "exchange of the minorities"
Population exchange between Greece and Turkey
The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey was based upon religious identity, and involved the Greek Orthodox citizens of Turkey and the Muslim citizens of Greece...
between Greece and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. Due to the Treaty of Lausanne
Treaty of Lausanne
The Treaty of Lausanne was a peace treaty signed in Lausanne, Switzerland on 24 July 1923, that settled the Anatolian and East Thracian parts of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire. The treaty of Lausanne was ratified by the Greek government on 11 February 1924, by the Turkish government on 31...
, the island, together with the rest of the Dodecanese
Dodecanese
The Dodecanese are a group of 12 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Sea, of which 26 are inhabited. Τhis island group generally defines the eastern limit of the Sea of Crete. They belong to the Southern Sporades island group...
, was officially assigned to Italy. It became the core of their possession of the Isole Italiane dell'Egeo.
Following the Italian Armistice of 8 September 1943, the British attempted to get the Italian garrison on Rhodes to change sides. This was anticipated by the German Army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
, which succeeded in occupying the island. In great measure, the German occupation caused the British failure in the subsequent Dodecanese Campaign
Dodecanese Campaign
The Dodecanese Campaign of World War II was an attempt by Allied forces, mostly British, to capture the Italian-held Dodecanese islands in the Aegean Sea following the surrender of Italy in September 1943, and use them as bases against the German-controlled Balkans...
.
On 19 July 1944, the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
rounded up the island's nearly 2,000 Jewish inhabitants to send them to extermination camps. About 160 of the island's more than 600 Greek Jews survived. The Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
Consul Selahattin Ülkümen
Selahattin Ülkümen
Selahattin Ülkümen was a Turkish diplomat and consul in Rhodes during the Second World War, who assisted many local Jews to escape the Holocaust...
succeeded, at considerable risk to himself and his family, in saving 42 Jewish families, about 200 persons in total, who had Turkish citizenship or were members of Turkish citizens' families.
In 1947, together with the other islands of the Dodecanese
Dodecanese
The Dodecanese are a group of 12 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Sea, of which 26 are inhabited. Τhis island group generally defines the eastern limit of the Sea of Crete. They belong to the Southern Sporades island group...
, Rhodes was united with Greece.
In 1949, Rhodes was the venue for negotiations between Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, and Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, concluding with the 1949 Armistice Agreements
1949 Armistice Agreements
The 1949 Armistice Agreements are a set of agreements signed during 1949 between Israel and neighboring Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. The agreements ended the official hostilities of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, and established armistice lines between Israeli forces and the forces in...
.
Archaeology
Colossus of Rhodes
The Colossus of Rhodes was a statue of the Greek Titan Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of Rhodes by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC. It is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was constructed to celebrate Rhodes' victory over the ruler of...
. This giant bronze statue was documented as once standing at the harbour. It was completed in 280 BC but was destroyed in an earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
in 224 BC. No trace of the statue remains today.
Historical sites on the island of Rhodes include the Acropolis of Lindos, the Acropolis of Rhodes
Acropolis of Rhodes
The Acropolis of Rhodes is an acropolis dating from the Hellenistic period 3 kilometers from the centre of Rhodes, in the island with the same name, Greece....
, the Temple of Apollo
Temple of Apollo
Temple of Apollo can refer to:*Greece**Temple of Apollo, Corinth**Temple of Apollo **Temple of Apollo at Bassae**Temple of Apollo Patroos*Cyprus**Temple of Apollo Hylates, Limassol*Italy**Temple of Apollo Palatinus, in Rome...
, ancient Ialysos
Ialysos
Ialysos , is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is the second-largest town on the island of Rhodes...
, ancient Kamiros, the Governor's Palace, Rhodes Old Town (walled medieval city), the Palace of the Grand Masters
Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes
The Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes is a palace in the town of Rhodes, on the island of Rhodes in Greece. In the point that today is the palace it was earlier a Byzantine citadel that functioned as headquarters and fortress. The palace was built in the 14th century by the...
, Kahal Shalom Synagogue
Kahal Shalom Synagogue
The Kahal Shalom Synagogue is a Sephardic synagogue in La Juderia, the Jewish quarter of the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of Rhodes. It is the oldest synagogue in Greece today.-History:...
in the Jewish Quarter
La Juderia
La Juderia, , was the former Jewish quarter of Rhodes, Greece. The quarter was inhabited by Sephardic, Ladino-speaking Jews.-History:Although there has been a Jewish presence of some sort on the island of Rhodes for nearly 2,000 years, the inhabitants of La Juderia did not arrive until the 16th...
, the Archeological Museum, the ruins of the castle of Monolithos, the castle of Kritinia, St. Catherine Hospice and Rhodes Footbridge
Rhodes Footbridge
The Rhodes Footbridge is an ancient Greek arch bridge in the city of Rhodes, Greece. Dating to the 4th century BC or early Hellenistic period, the modest structure represents the oldest known Greek bridge with a voussoir arch.- Construction and location :...
.
Religion
The predominant religion is Greek Orthodox. There is a significant Roman CatholicRoman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
minority on the island, many of whom are descendants of Italians who remained after the end of the Italian occupation. Rhodes has a Muslim minority, a remnant from Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
times.
The Jewish community of Rhodes goes back to the 1st century AD. In 1480, the Jews actively defended the walled city against the Turks. Kahal Shalom, established in 1557, is the oldest synagogue in Greece and still stands in the Jewish quarter of the old town of Rhodes.
At its peak in the 1920s, the Jewish community was one-third of the total population. In the 1940s, there were about 2000 Jews of various ethnic backgrounds. The Germans deported and killed most of the community during the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
. Kahal Shalom has been renovated with the help of foreign donors but few Jews live year-round in Rhodes today, so services are not held on a regular basis.
Government
The present municipality Rhodes was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 10 former municipalities, that became municipal units (constituent communities in brackets):- AfantouAfantouAfantou is a village and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is situated on the east coast of Rhodes just south of the resort town Faliraki. From...
(Afantou, Archipoli) - Archangelos (Archangelos, Malonas, Masari)
- AttavyrosAttavyrosAttavyros is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. The population is 3,225 ; the land area is 234.350 km². It is the westernmost municipal unit on the...
(Emponas, Kritinia, Monolithos, Siana, Agios Isidoros) - IalysosIalysosIalysos , is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is the second-largest town on the island of Rhodes...
- KallitheaKallithea, RhodesKallithea is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the northeastern portion of the island, just south of the City of Rhodes. The population...
(Kalythies, Koskinou, Psinthos) - KameirosKameirosKameiros is an ancient city and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the northwest coast of the island. It was the heart of an agricultural...
(Soroni, Apollona, Dimylia, Kalavarda, Platania, Salakos, Fanes) - LindosLindosLindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island...
(Lindos, Kalathos, Laerma, Lardos, Pylona) - PetaloudesPetaloudesPetaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,...
(Kremasti, Pastida, Maritsa, Paradeisi, Theologos, Damatria) - Rhodes
- South RhodesSouth RhodesSouth Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:...
(Gennadi, Apolakkia, Arnitha, Asklipieio, Vati, Istrios, Kattavia, Lachania, Mesanagros, Profilia)
The municipality covers the island of Rhodes and a few uninhabited offshore islets. Rhodes city was the capital of the former Dodecanese
Dodecanese
The Dodecanese are a group of 12 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Sea, of which 26 are inhabited. Τhis island group generally defines the eastern limit of the Sea of Crete. They belong to the Southern Sporades island group...
Prefecture. Rhodes is the most populated island of the South Aegean
South Aegean
The South Aegean is one of the thirteen regions of Greece. It consists of the Cyclades and Dodecanese island groups in the central and southeastern Aegean Sea.- Administration :...
Region.
Towns and villages
Rhodes has 43 towns and villages:| Town/Village | Population | Municipal unit | Town/Village | Population | Municipal unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rhodes City | 80,000 | Rhodes | Gennadi Gennadi Gennadi is a Greek village 64 km from Rhodes Town and 27 km from ancient Lindos. An agriculture place with a bit of tourism.... |
655 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Ialysos Ialysos Ialysos , is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is the second-largest town on the island of Rhodes... |
15,000 | Ialysos | Salakos Salakos Salakos is a village of 350 people on the west side of the of Rhodes Island. It is 40 km from the capital Rhodes town and 7km from the North West coast. The village is located on the hills of Mt. Prophitis Ilias. Inhabitants are mainly employed in farming, livestock rearing and tourism... |
607 | Kamiros |
| Afantou Afantou Afantou is a village and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is situated on the east coast of Rhodes just south of the resort town Faliraki. From... |
5,933 | Afantou | Kritinia | 606 | Attavyros Attavyros Attavyros is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. The population is 3,225 ; the land area is 234.350 km². It is the westernmost municipal unit on the... |
| Kalythies | 5,861 | Kallithea | Kattavia Kattavia Kattavia is a small village located on the southernmost tip of the island of Rhodes. It is located within the municipality of South Rhodes and was at the epicentre of the 2008 Dodecanese earthquake.... |
590 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Archangelos | 5,752 | Archangelos | Dimylia | 515 | Kamiros |
| Kremasti Kremasti Kremasti is a town on the Greek island of Rhodes . Located on the west coast of the island, Kremasti is 12 kilometers from the capital of Rhodes, on the road to the airport. It has a population of approximately 4,372 people and is the administrative center of the Municipality of Petaloudes... |
4,585 | Petaloudes Petaloudes Petaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,... |
Kalavarda | 512 | Kamiros |
| Koskinou Koskinou Koskinou is a village on the Greek island of Rhodes.It located 5 miles from Rhodes town and 6 miles from the island resort of Faliraki.Koskinou is famous for its unique traditional houses decorated with bright, vibrant colours. There is a major festival on July 17th when the village celebrates the... |
3,224 | Kallithea | Pylona | 504 | Lindos Lindos Lindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island... |
| Paradeisi | 2,646 | Petaloudes Petaloudes Petaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,... |
Istrios | 485 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Pastida Pastida Pastida is a tiny village on the Greek island of Rhodes. It's located slightly inland from the west coast on the northern tip of Rhodes, 5 miles from Trianta and 10 miles from Rhodes Town, on the footof mountain Philerimos. In Latin, the name of the village means "castle". It's a part of the... |
1,803 | Petaloudes Petaloudes Petaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,... |
Damatria Damatria Damatria is a village on Greek island of Rhodes, located on the west coast, about 20 km far from the capital. It's a part of the Municipality of Petaloudes. It has a population of only 489 people. Damatria is believed to be the only village of Rhodes dating back to the Dorian era in the 11th... |
477 | Petaloudes Petaloudes Petaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,... |
| Maritsa Maritsa, Rhodes Maritsa is a village situated on west coast of the island of Rhodes, Greece, about 17 km far from the capital, between Kremasti and Psinthos. It's a part of the Municipality of Petaloudes. This village is renowned for its traditional taverns and active nightlife all year round... |
1,766 | Petaloudes Petaloudes Petaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,... |
Laerma | 446 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Empona Empona Emponas is a mountainous village , halfway up the Attavyros, a gray rocky mountain of 1,215 m height. On top is a temple of Zeus. The village is the centre of wine industry on Rhodes and attracts many tourist daytrips.... |
1,451 | Attavyros Attavyros Attavyros is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. The population is 3,225 ; the land area is 234.350 km². It is the westernmost municipal unit on the... |
Apolakkia | 415 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Soroni Soroni Soroni is a small village on the island of Rhodes, Greece, on the northwest coast of the island . It is the capital of the municipality of Kameiros . Population, 1232 . The island's main power plant is located just outside the village... |
1,236 | Kamiros | Platania Platania Platania is a comune and town in the province of Catanzaro in the western part of the Calabria region of Italy.-Population history:The population grew until the 1950s except for between the censuses of 1901 and 1911, the commune was to be rocked by emigration as the population fell over half since... |
383 | Kamiros |
| Lardos | 1,212 | Lindos Lindos Lindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island... |
Kalathos | 380 | Lindos Lindos Lindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island... |
| Psinthos | 1,166 | Kallithea | Lachania | 341 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Malona | 1,096 | Archangelos Archangelos Archangelos is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Location and population:... |
Monolithos Monolithos, Greece Monolithos is a village on the island of Rhodes, in Greece. It is located 10 km south-east of Apolakkia and 30 km from Prasonisi.Outside the village is the Venetian Castle, built on top of a 100m rock. This castle was built in 1480 by the Knights of Saint John to protect the island from attacks. In... |
334 | Attavyros Attavyros Attavyros is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. The population is 3,225 ; the land area is 234.350 km². It is the westernmost municipal unit on the... |
| Lindos Lindos Lindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island... |
1,091 | Lindos Lindos Lindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island... |
Mesanagros | 330 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Apollona | 997 | Kamiros | Profilia | 326 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Massari Massari Sari Abboud better known by his stage name Massari is a Lebanese Canadian R&B, pop, and hip hop singer who grew up in Canada. Massari means "money" in Arabic.... |
931 | Archangelos Archangelos Archangelos is a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Location and population:... |
Arnitha | 310 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Fanes Fanes Fanes is a village in the northeast part of Rhodes. The main village is situated around 1 km inland. Fanes has had extensive farm fields, near the coast and along the adjacent hills. It also has a small natural bay which was refitted as a yacht port in the 1990s. Since 1998, Fanes has formed... |
895 | Kamiros | Siana | 244 | Attavyros Attavyros Attavyros is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. The population is 3,225 ; the land area is 234.350 km². It is the westernmost municipal unit on the... |
| Theologos Theologos Theologos : is a village on the Greek island of Rhodes. It's located on the west coast of the island, about 20 km far from the capital. It's a part of the Municipality of Petaloudes. The old centre of Tholos is built in traditional Rhodian style. With tall shuttered buildings and narrow... |
856 | Petaloudes Petaloudes Petaloudes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. Population was 12,133 as of 2001. It includes the villages of Kremasti, Paradisi, Theologos ,... |
Vati | 188 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
| Archipoli | 779 | Afantou Afantou Afantou is a village and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It is situated on the east coast of Rhodes just south of the resort town Faliraki. From... |
Agios Isidoros | Attavyros Attavyros Attavyros is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. The population is 3,225 ; the land area is 234.350 km². It is the westernmost municipal unit on the... |
|
| Asklipio | 673 | South Rhodes South Rhodes South Rhodes is a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit.-Geography:... |
Economy
The economy is tourist-oriented. The most developed sector is service. Small industries process imported raw materials for local retail. Other industry includes agricultural goods production, stockbreeding, fishery and winery.Road network
The road network of the island is mostly modern and paved. There are four major arteries:- Rhodes-Kamiros Province Avenue: Two lane, runs through the west coast north to south and connects Rhodes City with Diagoras Airport and Kamiros.
- Rhodes-Lindos National Avenue (Greek National Road 95Greek National Road 95Greek National Road 95 is one of the main arteries on the island of Rhodes and is the only one recorded as a National Highway. It begins from the south part of Rhodes City and ends in the village of Lindos.- History :...
): Four and two lane, runs mainly inland north to south and connects Rhodes City with Lindos. - Rhodes-Kallithea Province Avenue: Two lane, runs through the east coast north to south and connects Rhodes City with Faliraki Resort.
- Tsairi-Airport National Avenue: Four and two lane, runs inland east to west and connects the east coast with the west and the airport.
Future roads:
- Further widening of E-95 from Faliraki to Lindos. This is to be four lane with jersey barrierJersey barrierA Jersey barrier or Jersey wall is a modular concrete barrier employed to separate lanes of traffic. It is designed to both minimize vehicle damage in cases of incidental contact while still preventing crossover in the case of head-on accidents....
in the middle, about 36 km (22 mi) in length, with the first part scheduled to start in August 2007. - Plans also exist for a new four lane express road connecting Rhodes Town with Diagoras Airport that will reduce congestion on the coastal west avenue.
- The first phase of construction of the Rhodes City ringway was begun a few years ago, but progress has been slow.
Cars and motorbikes
Families in Rhodes often own more than one car, along with a motorbike. Traffic jams are common particularly in the summer months. The island is served by 450 taxis.Bus
Bus services are handled by two operators:- RODA: Rhodes City company that also services suburban areas (Faliraki, Ialysos, Kremasti, Airport, Pastida, Maritsa, Paradeisi) and the entire west coast (blue-white colored).
- KTEL: State-owned buses that serve villages and resorts in the east coast (yellow-orange colored).
Air
Rhodes has three airports but only one is public. Diagoras Airport, one of the biggest in Greece, is the main entrance/exit point for both locals and tourists. The island is well connected with other major Greek cities and islands as well as with major European capitals and cities via charter flights.- Rhodes International Airport, "Diagoras": public airport, 14 km (9 mi) south west of Rhodes City, third in international passenger volume and fourth in total passenger volume in Greece.
- Rhodes Maritsa AirportRhodes Maritsa AirportRhodes Maritsa Airport is a military airport located on the island of Rhodes in Greece. The airport is located 14 km south west of the capital city of Rhodes, near the village of Maritsa, and 3 km south of the new Rhodes International Airport....
: closed to public, near Maritsa village. Built in 1938 by the Italians was the first airport of the island and used to be the public airport until 1977. Nowadays serves the Hellenic Air ForceHellenic Air ForceThe Hellenic Air Force, abbreviated to HAF is the air force of Greece. The mission of the Hellenic Air Force is to guard and protect Greek airspace, provide air assistance and support to the Hellenic Army and the Hellenic Navy, as well as the provision of humanitarian aid in Greece and around the...
and is sometimes used for car races. - Kalathos Airfield: inoperative, 7 km (4 mi) north of LindosLindosLindos is an archaeological site, a town and a former municipality on the island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Rhodes, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies on the east coast of the island...
. Built by the Italians during World War II, was called Aeroporto di Gadurrà. Today only the runway is visible. - KattaviaKattaviaKattavia is a small village located on the southernmost tip of the island of Rhodes. It is located within the municipality of South Rhodes and was at the epicentre of the 2008 Dodecanese earthquake....
Airstrip, located in the south of the island it was an emergency airstrip built by the Italians during World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Today it is abandoned.
Two pilot schools offer aviation services (small plane rental, island hopping).
Sea
Rhodes has five ports, three of them in Rhodes City, one in the west coast near Kamiros and one in east coast near Lardos.- Central Port: located in the city of Rhodes serves domestic and international traffic.
- Kolona Port: opposite the central port, serves intra-Dodecanese traffic and large yachts.
- Akandia Port: the new port of the island next to the central port, being built since 1960s, for domestic and international traffic. At the moment serves cruise ships on peak days.
- Kamiros Skala Dock: 30 km (19 mi) south west of the city near Ancient Kamiros ruins serves mainly the island of Halki
- Lardos Dock: formerly servicing local industries, now under development as an alternative port for times when the central port is inaccessible due to weather conditions. It is situated in a rocky shore near the village of Lardos in south east Rhodes.
Sports
- Football: AS Rodos and Diagoras F.C.Diagoras F.C.Diagoras FC is a football club based in Rhodes, Greece. It was founded in 1905. Diagoras is named after the island's famous hero Diagoras. The team first played under Ottoman Rule until the short lived independence of the Dodecanese in 1912...
, both Rhodes City based teams, compete professionally at the national level. Local football leagues (organized at the prefecture level) contain three divisions with more than 50 teams. Many stadiums are grass covered. - Basketball: Colossus BCKolossos Rodou BCKolossos Rodou B.C., or, Colossus Rhodes B.C., is a Greek professional basketball team located in Rhodes, Greece. Kolossos currently plays in the first Greek league of professional basketball the Greek Championship. The club was founded in 1963 and also initially featured sports like volleyball and...
sponsors professional basketball and has joined the Greek A1 League. The local league includes two divisions with 14 teams. Two indoor courts exist in Rhodes City, and one each in Ialysos and Kremasti. Several other are planned for Rhodes City Pales De Sports, Faliraki, Afantou, and South Rhodes. - Volleyball: local teams only.
- Water Polo: mostly amateur based. There is no single indoor pool on the island.
- Rugby: introduced in 2007. Teams compete at the national level.
- Tennis: tennis has a long history on the island.
- Sailing: widely developed, offers competition at the international level.
- Cycling: for a long period of time Rhodes had the only cycling track in Greece, producing Olympics level competitors.
- Rhodes competes in the bi-annual Island GamesInternational Island Games AssociationThe International Island Games Association is an organisation the sole purpose of which is to organise the Island Games, a friendly biennial athletic competition between teams from several European islands and other small territories. The IGA liaises with the member island associations and with...
, which it hosted in 2007.
In popular culture
- In ancient times there was a Roman saying: "Hic Rhodus, hic salta!"—"Rhodes is here, here perform your jump", an admonition to prove one's idle boasts by deed rather than talk. It comes from an Aesop's fable called "The Boastful Athlete", and was cited by Hegel and Marx.
- Lawrence DurrellLawrence DurrellLawrence George Durrell was an expatriate British novelist, poet, dramatist, and travel writer, though he resisted affiliation with Britain and preferred to be considered cosmopolitan...
's Reflections on a Marine Venus (1953) is the author's semi-autobiographical account of his stay on the Island after World War II. - Many of the outdoor scenes of The Guns of NavaroneThe Guns of Navarone (film)The Guns of Navarone is a 1961 British-American Action/Adventure war film based on the 1957 novel of the same name about the Dodecanese Campaign of World War II by Scottish thriller writer Alistair MacLean. It stars Gregory Peck, David Niven and Anthony Quinn, along with Anthony Quayle and Stanley...
(starring Gregory PeckGregory PeckEldred Gregory Peck was an American actor.One of 20th Century Fox's most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1960s, Peck continued to play important roles well into the 1980s. His notable performances include that of Atticus Finch in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird, for which he won an...
, David NivenDavid NivenJames David Graham Niven , known as David Niven, was a British actor and novelist, best known for his roles as Phileas Fogg in Around the World in 80 Days and Sir Charles Lytton, a.k.a. "the Phantom", in The Pink Panther...
and Anthony QuinnAnthony QuinnAntonio Rodolfo Quinn-Oaxaca , more commonly known as Anthony Quinn, was a Mexican American actor, as well as a painter and writer...
) and Escape to AthenaEscape to AthenaEscape to Athena is a British adventure war film released in 1979, directed by George Pan Cosmatos and produced by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment. The international cast included many well-known actors of the 1970s, including Roger Moore, Telly Savalas and Elliott Gould.The film is set during the...
(starring Roger MooreRoger MooreSir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
and Telly SavalasTelly SavalasAristotelis "Telly" Savalas was an American film and television actor and singer, whose career spanned four decades. Best known for playing the title role in the 1970s crime drama Kojak, Savalas was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Birdman of Alcatraz...
) were filmed on the island of Rhodes. - In the PlayStation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
game God of War IIGod of War IIGod of War II is an action-adventure video game released for the PlayStation 2 by Sony Computer Entertainment's Santa Monica division in March, 2007....
, both Rhodes and the Colossus of Rhodes are featured at the start of the game, offering a mythological theory as to how the Colossus was destroyed. The Colossus of Rhodes is a common feature in many games, for example, it can be built as a "Wonder" in Rise of NationsRise of NationsRise of Nations is a real-time strategy computer game, developed by Big Huge Games and published by Microsoft on May 20, 2003. The development of the game was led by veteran Brian Reynolds, of Civilization II and Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. Concepts taken from turn-based strategy games have been...
and the CivilizationCivilization (series)Civilization is a series of turn-based strategy, 4X video games produced by Sid Meier. Basic gameplay functions are similar throughout the series, namely, buiding a civilization on a macro-scale from prehistory up to the near future...
series of games. - In one book of the Roman Mysteries series of children's novels by Caroline LawrenceCaroline LawrenceCaroline Lawrence is an English American author, best known for The Roman Mysteries series of historical novels for children. The series is about a Roman girl called Flavia and her three friends: Nubia , Jonathan and Lupus...
, the main characters visit Rhodes to stop the trading of slave labour.
Notable people
- AgesanderAgesander of RhodesAgesander was a sculptor from the island of Rhodes. His name occurs in no author except Pliny, and until very recently we have known of only one work which he executed, albeit one very highly renowned work...
, (1st century BC) sculptor - Chares of LindosChares of LindosChares of Lindos was a Greek sculptor born on the island of Rhodes. He was a pupil of Lysippus....
(3rd century BC), sculptor - Cleobulus of Lindos (6th century BC), philosopher and one of the Seven Sages of Ancient Greece
- Diagoras of RhodesDiagoras of RhodesDiagoras of Rhodes was an ancient Greek boxer from the 5th century BC, who was celebrated for his own victories, as well as the victories of his sons and grandsons. He was a member of the Eratidae family at Ialysus in Rhodes. He descended from Damagetus, king of Ialysus, and, on the mother's side,...
(5th century BC), boxer, multiple Olympic winner - Dinocrates (4th century BC), architect and technical adviser for Alexander the Great
- LeonidasLeonidas of RhodesLeonidas of Rhodes was one of the most famous Olympic runners of antiquity. Competing in the Olympic Games of 164 BCE, he captured the crown in three separate foot races — the stadion, the diaulos, and the hoplitodromos...
, (2nd century BC) athlete - MemnonMemnon of RhodesMemnon of Rhodes was the commander of the Greek mercenaries working for the Persian king Darius III when Alexander the Great of Macedonia invaded Persia in 334 BC. He commanded the mercenaries at the Battle of the Granicus River, where his troops were massacred by the victorious Macedonians...
(380–333 BC), commander of mercenary army