Bodrum Castle is situated on a
rocky promontory between two bays.
In 1496/1407, the Knights of St. John
commenced building on the site of
an ancient Byzantine and Turkish castle.
The construction continued until 1522.
The plan of the castle is virtually
square. Apart from the east rampart.
The rest of the fortifications are
strengthened by double outer walls.
As they possossed a powerful fleet,
the Knights were confident that they
could easily ward off any potential
danger from the sea, and the sea walls
were relatively weak. The ramparts
facing the mainland, however, were
heavily fortified.
There are five main towers in the
castle. These are known to the people
of Bodrum by alternative names. They
are the English Tower (The Lion Tower),
the French Tower (The Embroidery Tower),
The Italian Tower (The Releif Tower),
The German Tower (The Strong Tower) and the Spanish Tower (The Snake Tower).
If one looks down between the Snake
Tower and the German Tower, it is
possible to see two further towers
in the inner moat below the thick
walls of the rampart. These little
-known towers are the Gatineau and
the Caretto. The Caretto tower was
built in the name of Magnus Magister
(Grand Master) Fabrico del Caretto
(1513-1521), and the Gatineau Tower
was constructed under Jacques Gatineau
(1512-1514), one of the castle commanders.
In the Gatineau Tower the cannon embrasures
and the ventilation shafts were blocked
up, and during the years 1513 to 1522
the tower was used as a dungeon and
torture chamber.
On the 29th of July 1522, Sultan Suleyman
the Magnificent and the Ottoman Turks,
aware of the supremacy and invincibility
of the Knights of St. John, commenced
a siege on the Knights of St. John,
commenced a siege on the Knights castle
on the island of Rhodes. During the
siege, which lasted 4 months 23 days,
both sides sustained significant losses.
The Knights finally surrendered on
the 20th of December 1522 and an agreement
was signed to the effect that the
Castle of Rhodes and its island, togetherwith
12 other Islands, including Cos (Istankoy),
and Bodrum Castle would be handed
over to the Turks within 10 days.
Bodrum Castle was surrendered without
a struggle on the 5th of January 1523
and the Turks proceeded to bury the
shameful room beneath a 3 meter thick
stone wall in order to erease it from
history.
On the outer wall of the Ganiteau
Tower are three coats of arms. The
central of these comprises the arms
of Magnus Magister Emery d'Amboise
(1503-1512), and those on either side
are the arms of Jacques Gatineau,
the commanders responsible for the
construction of the tower. The tower
is entered by a flight of 23 steps
leading down. Above the inner door
is an inscription in Latin -INDE DEUS
ABEST, meaning 'God is absent from
this place'. Just within the entrance
is a balcony from which the torture
chamber can be seen. Within each of
the walls to east and west are two
small chambers, the old cannon embrasures,
each with a ventilation shaft above.
One of these shafts was blocked by
the arms in the shape of an anchored
cross of Magnus Magister Pierre d'Aubusson
(1476-1503). In the north-west corner
of the main room is the gibbet ditch,
in the front of which is a very small
cramped cell in the ground. Attached
to the wall are manacles, on the floor
is a heavy ball and chain, and, hanging
from the ceiling are the gibbet irons.
During its period of use, certain
important Turks were held captive
in the castle dungeons. Among these
was Oruc Reis, the elder brother of
the famous Admiral Barbaros Hayrettin
Pasha, On his return voyage from the
Trablussam victory, he was besieged
by the Knights. His brother Ilyas
was killed in the battle and Oruc
Reis himself was wounded and taken
prisoner. He was in captivity from
1503 to 1506, spending the first year
of his imprisonment in the castle
dungeon. The Knights later regarded
him as more trustworthy and transferred
him to the island of Rhodes.
'The Gazavat - i Barbaros Hayrettin',
the memories of Barbaros Hayrettin
Pasha, written by Seyidi Muradi, recounts
the imprisonment of his brother:
"...they threw Oruc Reis into
the dungeon and ordered that he should
be severely tortured. His hands and
feet were beaten with heavy iron chains,
and he was made to suffer terrible
afflictions. He was given only enough
bread to keep hem alive."
Through the centuries the most honorable
efforts of mankind have been in working
towards enabling people to live without
torture, without pain and without
cruelty, their most important right,
and a dungeon is always reminiscent
of suspicion, fear and pain. The doors
of the dungeon of Bodrum Castle are
being opened as an example to the
whole of humanity, in the hope that
the pains suffered for centuries by
mankind might end and the darkness
be filled with light.
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