This was their principle stronghold in the Greek islands and their most extensive castle was here on Rhodes. The castle was intended to protect the knights and travelers and any accessories the knights and travelers had. The town was built in the gothic style, protected by the outer wall of the castle and my guidebook claims it is in the same style as Avignon. The castle does not follow a grid like plan, more a circular plan where all roads lead to the pace of the Grand Masters, which was the secondary stronghold and place where the order met. The knights stayed in Inns along the street leading up to the Palace according to country they were from. Some of those countries have consulates in the "Inns". (Tough job) Other buildings were homes of squires, smiths, merchants, that serviced the knights.

  The castle resisted 2 sieges before falling in the 1500's to the Turks who used the palace as a powder keg (Which blew up, damaging the structure) and a prison. They converted some churches to Mosques, decorated some buildings with plates as seen in Granada, Spain, but did little else to the castle. The Italians, at the turn of the century, did extensive renovations, restoring much of the town. Unfortunately, they wanted tourism so most of the homes were turned into shops, much like Carcassone , France. Also like Carcassone, there are millions of tourists here year round to get a glimpse of this really cool gothic castle. I found the best time to wander was early in the morning. However, despite the crowd, it is worth the journey to see this castle.

I hope you enjoy the photos. Any comments, please E-mail me, .