A Heraldic Tour of the Castle of Saint Peter, Bodrum (Turkey)

Bodrum is the modern name of the ancient Halicarnassos. It is on the Western coast of Turkey, on a long peninsula, not far from Rhodes. After the fall of Smyrna (Izmir) to Tamerlane in 1402, the knights of Saint John in Rhodes decided to replace it with a stronghold on the Anatolian mainland in Bodrum. Building began almost immediately under the direction of the German architect Heinrich Schlegelholt. The knights held it until Rhodes itself fell to the forces of Süleyman II the Magnificent in 1522, at which point Bodrum was evacuated.

The castle is in excellent condition is now houses a remarkable museum (with exhibits on underwater archaeology). The walls of the castle are studded with some 249 coats of arms. A lot of the stones used in the construction come from the tomb of king Mausolus (†353 BC). One of the Seven Wonders of the world, its massive construction survived for centuries until an earthquake brought it down in medieval times. The knights used the ruins as a quarry. While reinforcing the castle in 1522, they even discovered the funerary chamber of the king, whose treasures were quickly looted. Almost nothing remains on the site of the Mausoleum, but the frieze which decorated the castle was taken to London in the 1830s, and smaller architectural elements still remain, their white marble readily visible.

View of Bodrum (45K): taken from the ruins of the Hellenistic amphitheater. The Castle sits on an outcrop in the middle of the bay. In the distance is the island of Kara Ada.
Set of 3 coats of arms (47K): in the center the arms of the Order (Gules a cross argent), at sinister the arms of the Grand Master Jacques de Milly (Gules a chief dancetty argent). The inscription is dated 1455.
Set of 3 coat of arms with inscription (27K): in the center the arms of the Grand Master Emmery d'Amboise quartered with the Order. Notice the unusual crests on the two coats on either side. The inscription reads:
```
salva nos Domine vigilantes
custodi nos dormientes 
nisis Dominus custodierit civitatem
frustra vigilat qui custodit eam
```
meaning: "Lord, save us who wake, protect us who sleep, if the LORD does not keep the city, he who watches it wakes in vain." (The last two lines from Psalm 127).
Arms sculpted in a Greek capital (38K): these arms are placed above the entrance to the Tower of Italy (each tower being named after one of the nations). Notice that the piece of marble is in fact an Ionian capital turned on its side. The word "ITALIA" can be seen above the arms which are bendy of 6 on a chief a rose between two birds affrontés.
Set of 3 Arms (28K): top sinister is the Order, top dexter is Grand Master Fabrizio del Carretto (Gules five bendlets or quartered with the Order), beneath the arms of the Captain of Bodrum. They are a bit hard to make out: Quarterly, 1 and 4: on a lozenge a fleur-de-lis, and a chief per pale pally and on a lozenge a fleur-de-lis; 2 and 3, three mascles and a chief pally, on a canton in dexter chief a lion rampant. The inscription reads F[rater] CORNELIVS DE HABROVCI CAPITANEVS 1518. Notice the unusual style of the crowned eagle above the arms.
Arms of England (45K): on the side of the Tower of England. Notice the shape of the helm, the mantling, and the lion beneath the arms.
Set of Arms (33K): unfortunately this picture is taken from a distance. The arms of Grand Master Pierre d'Aubusson are nevertheless distinct: quarterly the Order and or a cross ancrée gules, with the cardinal's hat granted to him after the successful defense of Rhodes against the Turks (1489). A similar coat is on the sea wall at Rhodes.

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