Atlas of Battles

siege, major, early modern

Siege of Rhodes

Siege of Rhodes was a siege conducted on 26 June 1522 at Rhodes, in what is now Greece; it lasted 6 months. It was part of the Ottoman Wars in Europe, which ran from 1354 to 1683. The recorded result: Ottoman victory.

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Ottoman Janissaries and the defending Knights of St. John, Siege of Rhodes (1522)
Ottoman Janissaries and the defending Knights of St. John, Siege of Rhodes (1522). Fethullah Çelebi Arifi (historian, poet and painter) and/or Matrakçı Nasuh (painter of landscape) and/or other painters , Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought26 June 1522lasted 6 months
WhereRhodes, Greece36.167N, 28.000E
OutcomeOttoman victory
BelligerentsOttoman EmpireagainstKnights Hospitaller; Republic of Venice
Part ofOttoman Wars in Europe1354 to 1683

Where it sits in the Ottoman Wars in Europe

Battle of Sırp Sındığı, 1364Battle of Pločnik, 1385Battle of Savra, 1385Battle of Kosovo, 1389Siege of Ohrid, 1395Battle of Tripolje, 1402Siege of Novo Brdo, 1440Battle of Hermannstadt, 1442Battle of Pollog, 1453Battle of Kruševac, 1454Siege of Berat, 1455Battle of Albulena, 1457Battle of Ohrid, 1464Battle of Meçad, 1465Battle of Vaikal, 1465Siege of Krujë, 1467Siege of Krujë, 1467Siege of Rhodes, 1480Battle of Krbava Field, 1493Battle of Dubica, 1513Siege of Knin, 1522Siege of Rhodes, 15221552 Siege of Eger, 1552Siege of Temesvár, 1552Siege of Szigetvár, 1566Léva castle's duel, 1581Battle of Slunj, 1584Siege of Bihać, 1592Battle of Brest, 1592Battle of Vezekény, 1652Battle of Petrovaradin, 1716Battle of Tendra, 1790Battle of Lopate, 1796Battle of Kolašin, 1858Battle of Tashkessen, 187713641877Siege of Rhodes, 1522
35 placed engagements of the Ottoman Wars in Europe in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date26 June 1522
to 22 December 1522
PlaceRhodes, Greece
36.167N, 28.000E
KindSiege, early modern
Territorial changeRhodes brought under Ottoman rule
Strength180,000–100,000 men; 400 ships; 72 guns and mortars6,703 men; (703 Knights Hospitallers of St. John, including men from Spain, France, Germany, Italy, England, and Portugal)
Casualties and losses60,000 dead; Christian claims: 114,000 dead (50,000 from disease & 64,000 from battle)5,020 dead
Commanders
  • Philippe Villiers de L'Isle-Adam
Siege of RhodesSiege of RhodesSiege of RhodesSiege of RhodesSiege of RhodesSiege of RhodesSiege of LindosSiege of LindosRodosKosSitiaMuğla100 km36.167N, 28.000E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Siege of Rhodes
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.

The recorded site stands at about 115 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 396 m, 396 m of relief, hilly country and today it is 52% tree cover, 24% shrubland, 13% water.

tree cover: 52%shrubland: 24%water: 13%grassland: 8%tree cover 52%shrubland 24%water 13%grassland 8%
west to east, 10.0 km0 to 212 mnorth to south, 10.0 km101 to 353 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 5 times between 305 BC and 1522.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1522

Siege of Rhodes is one of 1,390 engagements of the 16th century in the atlas and one of 493 in present-day Greece.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q767935, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Siege of Rhodes (1522), revision 1384277428, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.