Rhodes Island of Greece

Dodecanese

or Dhodhekanisos, also Dodecanesus, island group, south-eastern Greece, in the Aegean Sea, between the south-western coast of Turkey and Crete. Despite its name (Greek “twelve islands “) the group consists of about 50 islands and islets. They form a department of Greece , the greater part of which is known as the Southern Sporades, with a total land area of 2,663 sq km (1,028 sq mi). Only 14 of the islands are permanently inhabited. Of these, the most important are Rhodes, Kos , and Karpathos. Rhodes, on which the city of Rhodes , or Rodhos, Rodos Rhodos capital of the group, is located, has the largest area and population of the islands. The other inhabited islands are Kalimnos island, Leros island, Nisiros island, Patmos island, Kastellorizon island, Astipalaia island, Kasos island, Khalki island, Tilos island, and Lipsos island.

Rhodes

is the largest island of the Dodecanese and the fourth largest of Greece. It lies in the south eastern corner of the Aegean Sea, only 20km from the coast of Asia Minor.

It covers an area of 1398 km2 and the length of its coastline is 220kms. Near the southern harbor is the old walled city, which was built mainly in the early 14th century by the Knights of St John of Jerusalem.

Notable buildings in the old section include the Grand Hospital of the Knights and the Palace of the Grand Masters. This part of the city was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988.

The continual sunshine an average 300 days of sunshine a year- and the mild climate make the island suitable for viticulture. Its superb climate, the fertile soil and the geographical position are the main factors which have made the island densely populated from antiquity up to the present. Its population today is around 90,000 and they are able to host more than 1,250,000 visitors a year.

The modern section, near the smaller northern harbor, contains government buildings, hotels, and a national theatre. The present city is located near the site of the ancient city of Rhodes, which was founded in 408 bc. The great number of archaeological finds show the long, uninterrupted history of the island, which goes back to the Neolithic period.

In prehistoric times, Rhodes was inhabited by the Telchines, Heliades, Phoenicians and Cretans. In the 15th Century BC, Achaean colonists established the island before the Dorians settled in Rhodes around 1100 BC and founded the three cities  Lindos, Kamiros and lalyssos. Their ruins, especially those at Lindos, are well worth a visit.

The Doric Hexapolis was created with Kos, Knidos and Alicarnassos, and Rhodes became an important naval power, where arts and literature flourished.
  

Rhodes history = < click to read more about history of Rhodes.

Please visit  Rhodes Photo Album by Verena Struppert