BODRUM CASTLE
the castle area was an island in ancient times known as Zephyrîon. Astral Mausolos, who moved the capital of Caria from Mylasa to Halicarnassus in the 4th century BC, built a temple of Apollo and a palace there.
The Knights of Rhodes built today’s Bodrum Castle on a small rocky peninsula at the beginning of the 15th century. The Knights of Rhodes, who reigned in the castle for approximately 120 years until Suleiman the Magnificent conquered Rhodes in 1522, brought the castle to its current state by adding new sections and towers and raising the walls.
Since the Knights of Rhodes are a multinational group, each nation built its tower in its style. The castle contains French, Spanish, German, Italian, and English Towers. Two hundred forty-nine of the coats of arms, consisting of the personal coats of arms of grandmasters, castle commanders, knights, and religious figures, still adorn the castle walls. Since the stones of the Mausoleum, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, were used by the knights in the castle, traces of the Mausoleum stones can also be seen on the walls.
The castle, which housed a garrison during the Ottoman Period, was converted into a prison in 1895. The castle, bombed and severely damaged by a French warship during World War I, was also used as a headquarters by the Italians. Following the success of the War of Independence, Italian troops left the castle on July 5, 1921.
During World War II, the castle was used as a military base but was evacuated after the war. Bodrum Castle, which offers a multi-layered historical and cultural perspective with the structures added during the Ottoman Period, is on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List.
Today, Bodrum Castle hosts one of the world’s most respected Underwater Archeology Museums. In Bodrum Castle, the famous Glass shipwreck artifacts, the Yassıada shipwreck finds that sank into the shallows near Turgutreis, the Tektaş shipwreck artifacts discovered near Çeşme and dated to the fifth century BC, and the Bozukkale shipwreck artifacts found near Marmaris and dated to the 6th century BC are exhibited. In the museum, visitors also enjoy the finds from the Gelidonya shipwreck, dating back to the 12th century BC, and the famous Uluburun shipwreck, dating back to the 14th century. The museum also contains finds from the tomb of a Carian Princess in Bodrum, artifacts from Pedesa, an important Leleg city, artifacts from old Bronze Age cemeteries, and artifacts from the Milas gate cemetery of Halicarnassus. In addition, the Mycenaean Artifacts found in the Late Mycenaean period cemetery in Ortakent are one of the most important collections in the museum.