Rhodes Island in the XVIIIth century in the Ottoman administration

Rhodes Island had a strong location as central transit point for the maritime campaigns of the navy in the State of Cezâyir-i Bahr-i Sefîd in the XVIIIth century. The island was an important place for ship building and repair; also that sent of the exiled statesmen. It was a center for the providing of security in the Eastern Mediterranean and that benefited in the Ottoman?s new conquests. The island was a central place for trade and piracy in the period of the Knights of Rhodes; whereas in the period of the Ottoman, it continued its presence as a sanjak. It was governed by a sanjak bey that selected from among people who know about marine because of the island had a strategic place and a strong connection with navy in campaign times. The population of Rhodes had the Greek majority in times that after the conquest and in XVIIIth century too. Turks and Jews only were dense as the population in the town that inside of the castle; as for Greeks were the majority in villages. Although Rhodes Island wasn?t ahead of agricultural aspect; it was a place that grown different products, fruits and vegetables. Most of the vicinity islands had similar conditions too. Even if Rhodes protected its importance after the conquest owing to it was a transit point from trading and strategic aspects; it was devoid of former activity and power in the period of the Ottoman. Its trading power had also begun to wane from XVIIth century on. Hereafter it would be a place of the exile for the Ottoman statesmen. It had been affected from Çeşme Raid that between the Ottoman Empire and the Russia in 1770 and from Napoleon?s occupation to Egypt in 1798. It had removed deficiencies that relevant to XVIIIth century of the island thanks to the Ottoman archival sources. The research sources had generally lit on the earlier periods of the island. KEY WORDS The Ottoman Empire, Rhodes Island, Knights, Marine, Shipbuilding, Exile