Rhodes

Rhodes

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The most popular of the Dodecanese Islands and one of the most popular of all the Greek islands, Rhodes is a multifaceted place, almost like a small country, with a history that has stirred romantics for centuries. It also has some of the best beaches the most interesting archaeological sites in Greece, fine restaurants and an intense nightlife.

Rhodes (or Rodos) is an island in the Aegean Sea, the largest of the Dodecanese Island complex. It is located at the southeastern edge of the archipelagos of the Dodecanese, facing the shores of Asia Minor, which are about 9-10 kilometers away. The population of the island exceeds 115.000 of which about 50.000 live in the capital city, and it covers an area of 1401 square kilometers. It is the 4th largest and one of the most beautiful Greek islands. The landscape of Rhodes mainly comprises of hills and low mountains, which in their majority are covered with forests. The climate of Rhodes is subtropical and considered very healthy. Refreshing westerly winds moderate the summer heat, while the winter is nearly always mild, with long periods of sunshine.

Ancient history
Rhodes has been inhabited since the Stone Age. In prehistoric time the island was inhabited by Cretans, who where the first settlers on the island, the Phoenicians and Dorians who must have installed themselves on the island prior to the Trojan War. (1184 BC). After the Trojan war the rapid progress and development of the ancient civilization of Rhodes commences, examples of which can be seen nowadays in the antiquities of the three largest and most powerful cities of the island, Lindos, Ialyssos and Kamiros. At the end of 5th century BC these cities united into a single political force and founded Rhodes, which achieved its acme in the 3rd century BC. During that period, famous artists, philosophers and writers lived here. From 200 BC it became an ally of Rome and was obliged to have the same friends and enemies as the Romans, but from the 1st century BC it began, slowly but surely, to go into decline. It was Diocletian who dealt its final blow into independence in 297 AD when he joined the Provincia insularum of the Roman Empire.