The 1522 Siege of Rhodes

In 1522, the Ottomans attacked the island of Rhodes and, after a six-month siege, the Hospitallers surrendered on terms. The Knights Hospitaller had ruled Rhodes since 1309, and the Ottomans had attempted to capture the island 40 years before in 1480, but were defeated by the Knights. The Ottoman victory in 1522 resulted in the Knights being expelled from the island and eventually settling in Malta, Gozo, and Tripoli and the Ottomans obtaining domination over the Eastern Mediterranean and its trade. This collection of essays, published on the 500th anniversary of the siege, explores such question as why Suleiman the Magnificent attacked Rhodes, what made the 1522 siege successful, and how the Rhodian population, the Knights Hospitaller, the Eastern and Western Mediterranean, and Europe in general were affected by the loss of Rhodes. The answers to these questions are explored in new research by expert historians and archaeologists in their field. This book will appeal to all those interested in the Knights Hospitaller, Ottoman History, Crusader Studies, and Early Modern European History.

Simon David Phillips is a research fellow in late medieval and early modern history at the University of Cyprus. His main research interests are on the Knights Hospitaller on Rhodes, ecclesiastical history, and the history of islands. His publications include the monograph The Prior of the Knights Hospitaller in Late Medieval England and, with Emanuel Buttigieg, the collected volume Islands and Military Orders, c. 1291-c.1798. In 2013, he was a visiting lecturer at the University of Malta in the Spring semester on the Hospitaller Studies Masters course. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

Introduction / Part I: Causes / Hospitallers and Ottomans between the two great sieges of Rhodes (1480-1522) / How much did the Hospitallers know? Information, Misinformation and Preparation / Part II: Course / The Hospitallers' Dodecanese Islands Before and During the 1522 Siege of Rhodes: Help or Hindrance? / How the Sultan Won: Suleiman's Successful Siege Tactics at Rhodes / The last days of Hospitaller Rhodes: The 'Greek View' of the siege of 1522 / Part III: Consequences / 'Vol veder di aver Brandizo ovvero Malta': A Hospitaller Odyssey from Rhodes to Malta, 1523-1530 / The Fortress and Town of Rhodes according to the Ottoman Survey after the 1522 Siege / The effects of the 1522 siege on the town of Rhodes and its fortifications / The Siege of Rhodes and the Kingdom of Hungary / 'In tot acerrimis conflictibus': Citations for Good Conduct during the 1522 Siege of Rhodes in Hospitaller Records