The ruins of Saint John’s of the Knights Catholic church

The ruins are located across from Grand Master’s Palace. On December 27th 1522 A.D., the day the Knights officially handed over the island’s command to the ottomans, sultan Suleiman the Magnificent prayed at this church which later on became the most important Muslim temple, the Great Mosque of Rhodes.

The temple was a three-aisled gothic basilica with a wooden roof. The temple was destroyed by an explosion. This was caused by lightening hitting a barrel of gunpowder forgotten in the basement. The Metropolitan church of Virgin Mary’s Annunciation was built based on the patterns of this temple.