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The Süleymaniye Mosque (Süleymaniye Camii) is one of the most important mosques in Istanbul. It’s located in the Süleymaniye neighborhood and is included in the UNESCO World Heritage listing of the Historic Areas of Istanbul.
History of the Süleymaniye Mosque
The Süleymaniye Mosque was built by Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan (c. 1490-1588) between June 13, 1550, and October 15, 1557. It was commissioned by Süleyman the Magnificent and sits on the highest hill in the old city.
A total of 3,523 workers, 1,713 of whom were Muslims, were employed during its construction. Stones and materials were brought from all over the Ottoman Empire.
The Süleymaniye Mosque was damaged by the Great Fire of 1660 and restored by Sultan Mehmed IV. Part of the dome collapsed in a 1766 earthquake.
The mosque also suffered damage during World War I. The courtyard was being used as a weapons depot and some ammunition ignited, setting the mosque on fire.
Features of the Süleymaniye Mosque
The Süleymaniye Mosque is an architectural gem. There are several features of the mosque that serve architectural or aesthetic purposes. Some features have symbolic meanings.
Minarets of the Süleymaniye Mosque
The Süleymaniye Mosque has four minarets, representing Süleyman the Magnificent as the fourth Ottoman sultan after the Conquest of Constantinople. The 2 minarets attached to the mosque have 3 balconies each and stand 76 meters (249 feet) high. The 2 minarets attached to the entrance façade of the courtyard have 2 balconies each and stand 56 meters (184 feet) high. The total number of balconies is 10, representing Sülyeman the Magnificent as the 10th Ottoman sultan.
Courtyard of the Süleymaniye Mosque
The monumental courtyard has a large entrance façade facing to the northwest. The inner courtyard is surrounded by 28 porticoes. In the center of the courtyard is a rectangular fountain that dispensed drinking water.
Prayer Hall of the Süleymaniye Mosque
The prayer hall of the mosque is almost square in shape, at 59 x 58 meters (194 x 190 feet). Visitors are asked to stay behind a wooden barrier in order to not disturb anyone praying.
The Süleymaniye Mosque was designed to create an air flow that allows soot coming out of oil lamps to be collected at a single point. The soot was collected in a room above the main entrance and was used in ink production.
On the north and south sides of the prayer hall are tympana filled with windows. They’re supported by huge marble columns. On the other side of each tympanum is an aisle with a two story gallery.
Decorations in the Süleymaniye Mosque
The prayer hall is decorated with Iznik tiles around the mihrab and stained glass windows on the qibla wall. Due to the fires and earthquake, most of the original decorations by Mimar Sinan have not survived.
There are also calligraphic medallions with the names of Allah, Mohammed, and the Caliphs, as well as floral patterns and other calligraphy throughout. The calligrapher was Hasan Çelebi (d. 1594).
Dome of the Süleymaniye Mosque
The dome is 53 meters (174 feet) high with a diameter of 26.5 meters (86.9 feet). It was based on the dome of Hagia Sophia and is supported by semi domes on four huge columns. There are 32 windows in the drum of the dome.
Süleymaniye Mosque Complex
The huge Süleymaniye Mosque Complex (Süleymaniye Külliyesi) was designed to benefit the citizens of Constantinople. It was designed by Mimar Sinan. The mosque, as previously mentioned, was completed in 1557, and the rest of the structures by 1559.
When finished, the complex contained 15 sections, including a hospital, soup kitchen, primary school, guesthouse, hamam, caravanserai, four madrasas, a medical school, and the tombs of Süleyman the Magnificent and his family. Most of the buildings still exist to this day.
Guesthouse
Starting on the west side of the complex and working our way counterclockwise, first is the guesthouse (tabhane). It was built on a rectangular plan with rooms under a portico surrounding a courtyard. The rooms are covered with domes. The lower floors of the guesthouse and soup kitchen (see below), located on sloping land to the north, were used as a caravanserai (kervansaray).
Soup Kitchen
Next door to the guesthouse is the soup kitchen (imaret). It consists of different sized spaces planned around a square courtyard with a portico. Two ovens were located in the northern corner of the building. The soup kitchen distributed food to the poor, regardless of religion or ethnicity. The soup kitchen served as a restaurant for many years and was under restoration during my last visit in October 2023.
Hospital
On the northwest corner of the Süleymaniye Mosque Complex is the hospital (dârüşşifa). It’s a rectangular structure with two courtyards side by side. Domed rooms surround the rear courtyard on three sides while the front courtyard has rooms on two sides. Near the end of the Ottoman period, the hospital was used as military printing house (matbaa-i askerî). The hospital was under restoration during my last visit in October 2023.
Tiryaki Bazaar
Around the next corner is a wide avenue with another row of buildings. These buildings, which are discussed below, all had a row of vaulted shops on the lower level that made up the Tiryaki Bazaar (Tiryaki Çarşısı). There are still shops there today as well as restaurants, many specializing in kurufasulye.
Medical School
The first building on the corner is the medical school (tıp medresesi). Only 1 row of 12 cells survives today, and it may have originally been a square building with a courtyard. With the Süleymaniye Mosque Complex, theoretical medicine became a separate institution. Before that, medical education was carried out in hospitals themselves. The medical school functioned until the 19th century when modern medical schools began to open.
Sani and Evvel Madrasas
Past the medical school are the Sani Madrasa (Sani Medresesi) and Evvel Madrasa (Evvel Medresesi). They’re identical in plan with a U shape around a square courtyard. Each madrasa has 22 cells separated from the courtyard by a portico. The classroom is on the south side.
Today, the madrasas house the Süleymaniye Library (Süleymaniye Kütüphanesi). It’s the largest manuscript library in Turkey and preserves one of the world’s most extensive collections of Islamic manuscripts. The library was founded in 1918.
Primary School
On the southwest corner of the Süleymaniye Mosque Complex is the primary school (sıbyan mektebi). It was built with cut stone and has two sections. The square domed entrance is at the front, and a rectangular room covered with a vault and a dome is at the back.
Süleymaniye Square Fountain
Outside the primary school is the Süleymaniye Square Fountain (Süleymaniye Meydan Çeşmesi). This Baroque-style fountain was constructed between 1792 and 1793 for the use of local workers. It has a square plan with a pointed dome.
Darülkurra
Rounding the next corner, at the edge of the cemetery is the Darülkurra. It’s a square building with a dome. The Darülkurra was a place for memorization of the Quran as well as Arabic and Quran recitation lessons. Someone who has completely memorized the Quran is called a hafiz.
Dar-ül Hadis
Opposite the Darülkurra, at the southeast end of the complex, is the Dar-ül Hadis. It consists of a row of student cells with a fireplace and niche. The Dar-ül Hadis is where students would study the Hadith. The row of vaulted shops underneath the cells was known as the Casters Bazaar (Dökmeciler Çarşısı).
Süleymaniye Hamam
Behind the Dar-ül Hadis, the Süleymaniye Hamam (Süleymaniye Hamamı) was built for students and personnel of the Süleymaniye Mosque Complex. Originally called the Casters Hamam (Dökmeciler Hamamı), it was built on a trapezoidal plan. A large dome tops the square dressing room, and there are four private rooms in the hot section. The hamam closed in 1924 and was converted to a workshop in the 1930s. It was then renovated and reopened as a public bath in 2004. The hamam is located on the east corner of the complex.
The Süleymaniye Hamam is one of the most beautiful baths in the city. It’s open daily for mixed and family bathing, catering mostly to tourists. Services cost 70€ per person (as of March 2024), including washing, peeling and scrubbing, slippers, a towel for men, and bra and shorts for women. The full hamam experience takes 60 to 90 minutes. Reservations are required and only cash is accepted.
Salis and Rabi Madrasas
On the eastern side of the Süleymaniye Mosque Complex are two more madrasas. The Sali Madrasa (Salis Medresesi) and Rabi Madrasa (Rabi Medresesi) were built with cut stone on land sloping down towards the Golden Horn. They have identical plans and there’s an empty courtyard between the two madrasas. Each madrasa has a square classroom topped with a dome located on the west side. Surrounding the other 3 sides are 20 domed cells with fireplaces and niches, all behind a domed portico. Both madrasas were under restoration during my last visit in October 2023.
Cemetery at the Süleymaniye Mosque
A small enclosure behind the Süleymaniye Mosque contains a cemetery with two large tombs. The entrance is through a gate on the north side of the mosque.
Tomb of Süleyman the Magnificent
The first structure is the tomb of Süleyman the Magnificent (Kanuni Sultan Süleyman Türbesi), which was built in 1566. It contains a peristyle with a roof supported by 24 columns. The entrance is decorated with Iznik tiles.
The structure has a dome supported by eight columns. It’s decorated with diamonds placed between metallic plates to give the image of the sky adorned with stars.
14 windows surround the ground level while an additional 24 stained glass windows are set in the tympana. The interior is decorated with Iznik tiles, Quranic script, and fine woodwork.
Seven people, including three Ottoman sultans, are buried in the tomb. The sultans are Süleyman the Magnificent, Süleyman II, and Ahmed II. The others buried in the tomb are Rabia Sultan (1671-1712), the chief consort of Ahmed II; Mihrimah Sultan (1522-1578), the daughter of Süleyman the Magnificent and wife of Grand Vizier Rüstem Pasha (c. 1505-1561); Aşub Sultan (1627-1690), the mother of Süleyman II; and Asiye Sultan (1694-1695), the daughter of Ahmed II.
Biography of Süleyman I
The most important burial in the tomb is Süleyman I, commonly known as Süleyman the Magnificent (b. 1494, Trabzon – d. 1566, Szigetvár, Hungary). He was the 10th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (r. 1520-1566). The longest-ruling Sultan, he was very cultured, spoke five languages, and presided over the greatest period of Ottoman military, economic, and political power.
Süleyman the Magnificent issued a legal code that was to last for over 300 years and gave specific rights to Christian and Jewish subjects. He valued education and the arts, and broke with Ottoman tradition to legally marry Hürrem Sultan, a woman from his Harem. Under his rule, the Ottoman Empire conquered Baghdad, Belgrade, Rhodes, and most of Hungary, and annexed much of North Africa as far west as Algeria.
Biography of Süleyman II
To the left of Süleyman I is Süleyman II (b. 1642, Constantinople – d. 1691, Edirne), the 20th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (r. 1687-1691). In 1651, he was confined to the Twin Kiosk, or kafes, a type of luxurious cage at Topkapi Palace, and remained there for 36 years until his ascension to the throne. He replaced his half-brother Mehmed IV who was overthrown in a coup. The empire was in terrible condition when he took over. Under his rule, the Ottoman Empire recaptured Belgrade in 1690 and enacted significant fiscal and military reforms. He slipped into a coma and was taken to Edirne on June 8, 1691, where he died two weeks later.
Biography of Ahmed II
The third sultan buried in the tomb of Süleyman the Magnificent is Ahmed II (b. 1643, Constantinople – d. 1695, Edirne), the 21st Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (r. 1691-1695). He spent 43 years in the kafes before his ascension to the throne in 1691, replacing his half-brother Süleyman II. Early in his reign, Ahmed II relied heavily on his Grand Vizier, Köprülü Fazıl Mustafa Pasha (1637-1691). After the Grand Vizier was killed in the Battle of Slankamen against the Holy Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire suffered heavy military defeats and lost important territory. Two major fires also broke out in Constantinople in 1693, burning over 5,000 buildings.
Tomb of Hürrem Sultan
The second structure in the enclosure is the tomb of Hürrem Sultan (Hürrem Sultan Türbesi), the wife of Süleyman the Magnificent. It was built in 1558 and was commissioned by Süleyman after her death. It has an octagonal shape on the exterior and 16 sides on the interior.
The interior is beautifully decorated with Iznik tiles and Quranic script. There are seven rectangular windows separated by eight hooded niches resembling mihrabs. The ceiling is whitewashed but in the past was most likely painted in bright colors and designs.
Hürrem Sultan (1502-1558), also known as Roxelana, was born in Ruthenia, which was under Polish control at the time of her birth and is now part of Ukraine. Her birth name was probably Anastasia or Alexandra Lisovska and her father was a priest. She was captured by Crimean Tatars and sold into slavery in 1510, eventually ending up in the Imperial Harem at Topkapi Palace. Hürrem Sultan rose to become one of the most powerful women in Ottoman history.
Also buried in the tomb is Prince Mehmed (d. 1572), the son of Sultan Selim II; and Hanım Sultan (d. 1582), the daughter of Hatice Sultan and niece of Süleyman the Magnificent.
Ottoman Headstones
While visiting, it’s worth noting the Ottoman headstones in the cemetery. There’s a good sample of different styles scattered throughout.
Views from the Süleymaniye Mosque
Finally, the north side of the outer courtyard of the Süleymaniye Mosque is popular with both locals and visitors for the phenomenal views of Istanbul. I’ve also see families picnicking there on weekends and holidays.
