Audio Guide: Rhodes Introduction Walking Tour (Self Guided), Rhodes

Roman writer Pliny the Elder once claimed that Rhodes was home to more than three thousand statues. The most famous of them was, without doubt, the Colossus of Rhodes, a monumental bronze statue of the sun god Helios, erected in the early 3rd century BC and later counted among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Rhodes is one of the most historically layered islands in the eastern Mediterranean, shaped by its strategic position between the Greek mainland, Anatolia, and the Levant. Its recorded history begins in antiquity, when three major Doric cities-Lindos, Ialyssos, and Kamiros-dominated local political and economic life.

The name Rhodes is commonly linked to Rodos, a nymph associated with Helios. According to myth, the sun god claimed the island as his own, and Rhodes became closely associated with solar imagery that echoed through its art, religion, and identity.

In 408 BC, the three ancient cities united to found the city of Rhodes at the island’s northern tip, creating a carefully planned urban center with a sophisticated harbor system that would secure the island’s prosperity.

Following the Roman conquest in the 2nd century BC, Rhodes retained a degree of autonomy and cultural prestige. It became an important center of education, particularly in rhetoric and philosophy, attracting students from across the Mediterranean world. Under Byzantine rule, the island remained strategically significant, though it endured repeated attacks due to its exposed position along key maritime routes.

A major turning point came in 1309, when the Knights Hospitaller, a Catholic military and religious order, seized Rhodes and transformed it into a heavily fortified stronghold. They rebuilt the city with massive walls, hospitals, and administrative buildings. In 1522, after a prolonged siege, the Ottomans captured the island, ushering in nearly four centuries of Ottoman rule.

Rhodes passed to Italy in 1912 and was shaped by ambitious urban projects during the interwar period. After World War II, it was formally united with Greece in 1948.

Walking through Rhodes’ Old Town, visitors follow stone lanes framed by the Fortifications of Rhodes, pass along the Street of the Knights, and approach the Palace of the Grand Master. The Medieval Clock Tower rises above the rooftops, while the Archaeological Museum of Rhodes occupies a former hospital nearby. Beyond the walls, the route opens toward Mandraki Harbor, marked by its windmills and the Fort of Saint Nicholas guarding the entrance.

As you walk these streets, imagine the world Pliny described: a city once crowded with statues, crowned by a giant of bronze that caught the sun itself. The Colossus no longer stands, but Rhodes remains a living monument-one best discovered step by step.