Christian Period
During the early Christian period (330-650 A.D.) Rhodes belonged to the eastern part of the Christianised Roman Empire, which is known in history as the Byzantine Empire.

Though less significant and prosperous than before, the city was the See of a Bishop and had a great number of churches, among them some basilicas of impressive dimensions. It was also an important military base.

The Arabs, who appeared or the first time in the Mediterranean in the 7th century, attacked Rhodes and occupied it for sïme decades. The city shrank during the following centuries and was fortified with new walls. At the same time it was divided into two zones, one reserved for the political and military leadership and the other where the laymen lived, a division that reflects the social reality of medieval times.

Due to lack of written sources we have little information concerning this period. The restoration work of the Italians neglected or even harmed surviving buildings in favour of the Knights’ period.

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Italian Preiod
Italian troops took over the island and the rest of the Dodecanese in 1912 and in 1923 Italy established a colony Isole Italiane del Egeo.

The Italians demolished the houses that had been built on and beside the walls during the Ottoman era and turned the Jewish and Ottoman cemeteries into a “green zone” surrounding the Medieval Town. They preserved the remains of the Knights’ period and removed all the Ottoman additions and also reconstructed the Grand Master’s Palace. In addition, they established an Institute for the study of the History and Culture of the region.

The Italians undertook extensive infrastructure works (roads, electricity, port, etc.) and radically transformed the town of Rhodes, which was supplied with a new urban plan, building regulations and many new public and private buildings.

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Ottomanian Period
In 1522 the Ottoman Turks conquered the city after a second long siege. New buildings were constructed: mosques, public baths and mansions for the new patrons. The Greeks were forced to abandon the fortified city and move to new suburbs outside its walls.

In the Ottoman era Rhodes lost its international character. The city maintained its main economic function as a market for the agricultural products of the interior of the island and the surrounding small islands.

After the establishment of their sovereignty ïn the island, the Ottoman Turks repaired the damaged fortifications, converted most of the churches into mosques and transformed the major houses into private mansions or public buildings. This transformation was a long-term process that aimed to adapt the buildings to the Ottoman way of living. The Knights’ period facades with their sculptured decorations, the arched gates and hewn stone walls were enriched with the random character of the Ottoman architecture adapted to the local climate and culture. In this process most ïf the architectural features of the existing buildings were preserved. The most characteristic additions were the baths (usually in the back of the buildings) and the enclosed wooden balconies ïn the facades over the narrow streets.In this this way most of the buildings of the Hospitaliers' period in the Medieval Town were well preserved. The result was a mixture of oriental architecture with imposing western architectural remains and more recent buildings, which were characteristic of the local architecture of the time.

In the l9th century the decline of the Ottoman Empire resulted in the general neglect of the town and its buildings, which further deteriorated due to the strong earthquakes that often plague the area.

Roman Period
The independence of the city came to an end in 164 B.C. when Rhodes became a Province of the Roman Empire. But even as late as the 1st century A.D. Rhodes preserved much of its splendour and developed into one of the greatest centres of learning, science and the arts.

Apart from the surviving written sources, the archaeological research which continues to this day gives us a clear idea of the level of civilization during this period.