Page 167 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Greek Islands

Must See

2

1
1 The palace, built around a central
courtyard, with paved geometric tiles, is
lined with Hellenistic statues from Kos.
2 A mosaic featuring the mythical Gorgon
Medusa is found in the Medusa Chamber.
3 The grand interior of the palace is inlaid
with intricate mosaic floors and furnished
with opulent gold objects. 3

THE FIRST
GRAND MASTER
The Knights were
Did You Know? drawn from noble
Roman Catholic
The castle was families. Those who
restored in the 1930s entered the Order of
for use by Italian the Knights of St John
dictator Mussolini. swore vows of chastity,
obedience and poverty.
The first Grand Master
of the Knights, the
leader of the order who
was elected for life,
was Foulkes de Villaret
(1305–19), a French
knight. He negotiated
to buy Rhodes from
Genovese Admiral
Vignolo de Vignoli. This
left the Knights with
the task of conquering
the island’s populace.
The Knights of Rhodes,
as they became known,
remained here until
defeat by the Ottomans
in 1522. The Villaret
name lives on in Villaré,
one of the island’s
white wines.

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