BODRUM - THE AEGEAN PEARL OF TURKEY

The sun shines differently here. The nights are longer, the drinks more enjoyable. And then there is love in Bodrum ... You have to experience it to truly understand the attraction of Bodrum.
Situated on a beautiful peninsula, Bodrum, home of the famous Greek historian Herodotus, is these days better known as a popular holiday resort. Enchanting villages of houses painted in white and trimmed with purple bougainvillea together with miles of sandy beaches and ideal locations for water sports.
Bodrum casts a magic spell. It exerts a lasting fascination on everyone who visits, irrespective of age, nationality or sex.
Bodrum retains its charm despite the crowds and development. Women feel more beautiful, men feel more intriguing. This is Bodrum's spell.

BODRUM THE CASTLE OF ST. PETER

Bodrum Castle (Bodrum Kalesi), located in southwest Turkey in the city of Bodrum the Castle of St. Peter or Petronium.

Confronted with the invasion of Seljuk Turks, the Knights Hospitaller, with their headquarters on the island of Rhodes, needed another stronghold on the mainland. They chose a suitable site across the island of Kos, where there was already a castle of the Order. This location had been the site of a fortification in Doric times (1110 BC) and of a small Seljuk castle in the 11th century.

The construction of the castle started in 1402 Construction workers were guaranteed a reservation in Heaven by a papal decree of 1409. The first walls were completed in 1437. The chapel was among the first completed inner structures (probably 1406). It was reconstructed by Spanish Knights in 1519-1520. Their names can be found on two cornerstones of the facade. Fourteen cisterns for collecting rainwater were excavated in the rocks under the castle.

For over a century St. Peter's Castle remained the second most important castle of the Order. It served as a refuge for all Christians in Asia Minor. The castle came under attack with the rise of the Ottoman Empire, first after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and again in 1480 by sultan Mehmed II. The attacks were repelled by the Knights. When the Knights decided to fortify the castle in 1494, they thickened walls to withstand the increasing destructive power of canons.

Finished in 1522, faced by attack from Sultan Suleiman, the Castle was strengthened again. In June 1522 the sultan attacked the Order's headquarters in Rhodes with 200,000 soldiers. The castle of Rhodes fell in December 1522. The terms of surrender included the handing over of the Knights' fortresses in Kos and St Peter's Castle in Bodrum.

After the surrender, the chapel was turned into a mosque and a minaret was added. This mosque was called the Süleymaniye Camii. The minaret was destroyed on 26 May 1915 by rounds fired by a French warship during the World War I. It has been reconstructed in its original shape in 1997.

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