Turkey: Ottoman miniature of Janissaries battling the Knights of St. John in the siege of Rhodes, 1522

The Siege of Rhodes of 1522 was the second and ultimately successful attempt by the Ottoman Empire to expel the Knights of Rhodes from their Greek island stronghold and thereby secure Ottoman control of the Eastern Mediterranean. The first siege, in 1480, had been unsuccessful.

The Knights of St. John had captured Rhodes in the early 14th century after the loss of Acre, the last Crusader stronghold in Palestine in 1291.

When the Turkish invasion force of 400 ships arrived on Rhodes on 26 June 1522, they were commanded by Mustafa Pasha. Sultan Suleiman himself arrived with the army of 100,000 men on 28 July to take personal charge. The Turks blockaded the harbor and bombarded the town with field artillery from the land side, followed by almost daily infantry attacks. They also sought to undermine the fortifications through tunnels and mines.

On 24 September, Mustafa Pasha ordered a new massive assault, aimed mainly at the bastions of Spain, England, Provence and Italy. After a day of furious fighting, during which the bastion of Spain changed hands twice, Suleiman eventually called off the attack. He sentenced Mustafa Pasha, his brother-in-law, to death for his failure to take the city, but eventually spared his life after other senior officials had pleaded with him for mercy. Another major assault at the end of November was repelled, but both sides were now exhausted—the Knights because they were reaching the end of their capacity to resist and no relief forces could be expected to arrive in time.

On 22 December, the representatives of the city's Latin and Greek inhabitants accepted Suleiman's terms, which were surprisingly generous. The knights were given 12 days to leave the island and would be allowed to take with them their weapons and any valuables or religious icons they desired. Islanders who wished to leave could do so at any time within a three-year period. No church would be desecrated or turned into a mosque. Those remaining on the island would be free of Ottoman taxation for five years.

On 1 January 1523, with much fanfare, the remaining knights and soldiers marched out of the town with banners flying, drums beating and in battle armour. They boarded the 50 ships which had been made available to them and sailed to Crete (a Venetian possession), accompanied by several thousand civilians.

Copyright:

Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Credit:

Pictures From History

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Ottoman Empire,