The islands of the Dodecanese are situated in the south-east of the Aegean Sea, close to the coasts of Minor Asia. Dodecanese means "the twelve islands", but there are eighteen and not twelve which are settled permanently. Rhodes, Patmos, and Kos are the most known of these islands.
Rhodes, known for its beautifully preserved medieval, was inhabited already in prehistoric times. The island gradually expanded its influence and became the main commercial link in the Mediterranean. The Knights of the Order of St. John were established in Rhodes in 1309 AD. Their stay that resulted in a city with a series of majestic buildings protected by a fortified wall.
Kos is the third largest (295 sq. m.) of the Dodecanese Islands. The history of Kos goes back more than three thousand five hundred years. Fossils found on Kos show that at one time the island was part of a vast mainland, «The Aegean Continent». It is best know as the birthplace of Hippocrates.
Patmos, situated between Leros and Ikaria, is a mountainous island with rocky soil and an abundance of small coves. Here is where St. John wrote the Apocalypse in a cave where he was imprisoned. Towering above this cave is the monastery of Patmos, which is the most visible landmark of this island. I took a tour of this monastery, and its jewels and gold were a marked contrast to the little cave lying nearby.
This webpage created by Elizabeth Van Rij