Bodrum Castle

Historical Site

The symbol of Bodrum; built in 1402 by the Knights of St John as the Castle of St Peter, partly from the stones of the Mausoleum. Today it houses the world-renowned Museum of Underwater Archaeology.

Rising on a peninsula that commands Bodrum's harbour, Bodrum Castle is the town's most recognisable landmark. Construction began in 1402 by the Rhodes-based Knights of St John (Hospitallers) under the name "Castle of St Peter" (Petronium) — and the town's modern name, "Bodrum", derives from that very word.

To build it, the Knights reused the dressed stone and marble of the ruined Mausoleum at Halicarnassus — which is why fragments of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World can still be seen in the castle walls today. Its several towers are known, after the nationalities of the knights who helped raise them, as the English, French, Italian and German towers.

Since 1962 the castle has housed one of the most important collections of underwater archaeology in the world. Its masterpiece is the Uluburun shipwreck of the 14th century BC — among the oldest shipwrecks ever discovered — whose copper ingots, glass beads and antiquities shed light on Bronze Age trade. The Glass Wreck Hall and the Hall of the Carian Princess are further highlights of the collection.

Within walking distance of our hotel, the castle is an essential stop in any visit to Bodrum, as much for its history as for the sweeping views of the harbour and the Aegean from its ramparts.