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Laleli is a neighborhood in Istanbul, Turkey, with a few points of interest. It’s located in the Fatih district between Beyazıt Square and Aksaray.
Introduction to Laleli
Laleli runs along Ordu Street (Ordu Caddesi), which is part of the historic Divan Yolu. This ancient road dates back to Roman times and led from the Hippodrome to the Golden Gate on the Theodosian Walls. It has recently been pedestrianized.
The area is popular with Russian and Eastern European tourists and is full of hotels and shops. It’s also known for its textile wholesaling businesses.
Laleli Mosque
The Laleli Mosque (Laleli Camii) is the centerpiece of the Laleli neighborhood. It was built between 1760 and 1763 by Sultan Mustafa III. The architect was Hacı Ahmed Ağa, who designed it in the Baroque style. It was completed by another architect, Mehmed Tahir Ağa. The mosque was destroyed by fire in 1783 and immediately rebuilt.
The mosque was named after Laleli Baba, who Sultan Mustafa III considered his guardian. It was built on a terrace above a series of shops meant to provide it with financial support. The terrace sits three to four meters higher than the street level.
Features of the Laleli Mosque
The Laleli Mosque has some interesting features, both architectural and aesthetic.
Courtyard
The courtyard of the mosque sits behind a monumental entrance. It’s rectangular in shape and about twice the size of the prayer hall. It contains an ablutions fountain (şadırvan) in the center.
An arcade containing 18 domed bays surrounds the courtyard. They’re supported by 14 columns. Two minarets stand on the corners of the courtyard entrances closest to the mosque.
Prayer Hall
The prayer hall is on a square plan and is lit by several windows, both clear and stained glass. The walls are covered with colored marble. The mihrab and minbar are also made with colored marble. The sultan’s loge sits on the upper left side of the back.
Dome
The dome is 12.5 meters (41 feet) in diameter and 24.5 meters (80.4 feet) high. It sits atop an octagonal drum supported by eight arches and a series of semi domes.
Laleli Mosque Complex
The complex once contained a madrasa, soup kitchen, hamam, caravanserai, fountain, tomb and timing house. The Koska Madrasa (Koska Medresesi) was damaged by an earthquake in 1894 and completely destroyed by fire in 1911. The Tayyare Apartments were built in its place. Road construction in the 1950s destroyed other structures. Only the Tomb of Mustafa III and the fountain remain today.
Tomb of Mustafa III
The Tomb of Mustafa III (III. Mustafa Türbesi) contains the burials of two Ottoman sultans, Mustafa III and Selim III. It was built in the Baroque style between 1759 and 1763 by Mehmed Tahir Ağa. It’s on a decagonal plan and topped by a single dome with three sides covered in marble. Pay attention to the upper corners on the façade and you’ll spot built-in birdhouses.
The tomb was under restoration when I visited in May 2022 and June 2023, but still closed during my latest visit in May 2024. I look forward to seeing the results on a future trip to Istanbul.
The interior of the tomb is lavishly decorated with colorful tiles and calligraphy. The sarcophagi of the sultans are surrounded by wooden railings inlaid with mother-of-pearl.
The two sultans are buried next to six more people, including the daughters of Mustafa III, Hibetullah Sultan (1759-1762), Mihrimah Sultan (1762-1764), Mihrişah Sultan (1762-1769), and Fatma Sultan (1770-1772); his son Şehzade Mehmed (1767-1772); and his granddaughter Şerife Havva Sultan (d. 1780 at six months of age).
The consorts of Mustafa III, Aynülhayat Kadın (d. 1764) and Adilşah Kadın (d. 1803), are both buried in other tombs in the complex.
There’s also a footprint apparently belonging to the Prophet Muhammad inside the tomb. It’s one of four in Istanbul.
Biography of Mustafa III
Mustafa III (b. 1717, Edirne – d. 1774, Constantinople) was the 26th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (r. 1757-1774). He reformed the military and established educational facilities. He also established a strict fiscal policy in order to bring prosperity to Ottoman citizens in Constantinople. Mustafa III often traveled around the city to make sure the laws he enacted were being followed.
Biography of Selim III
Selim III (b. 1761, Constantinople – d. 1808, Constantinople) was the 28th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (r. 1789-1807). He was a talented calligrapher, musician, and poet who was fluent in both Arabic and Persian. He was very religious and patriotic. Selim III was a reformer who was deposed by the Janissaries in 1807 and executed a year later by his cousin, Sultan Mustafa IV. The assassins also attempted to kill the young Mahmud II but failed, and Mustafa IV was deposed. Selim III was the only Ottoman Sultan to die by the sword.
Taşhan
Just north of the mosque complex is Taşhan. It was built in 1763 by Sultan Mustafa III to shelter the Sipahi, an Ottoman calvary corps. It has also been known as Sipahiler Han, Çukurçeşme Han, and Katırcıoğlu Han.
The building has two floors and three courtyards. The façade is made of cut stone. Today, it hosts several shops. It was restored in 1993.
Bodrum Mosque
Two blocks south of the Laleli Mosque is the Bodrum Mosque (Bodrum Camii), a former Byzantine church. It was originally built in the 10th century as the Myrelaion Church (Eκκλησία του Μυρελαίου) by Byzantine Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos (870-948), an Armenian Byzantine naval commander who took control of the government.
The church was part of Romanos’ Myrelaion Palace, which was built atop a 5th century rotunda converted to a cistern. The rotunda happened to be the second largest of the ancient world after the Pantheon in Rome. Romanos intended to use the church as a burial place for his family.
Romanos turned the palace into a nunnery before he was deposed and exiled as a monk on the island of Proti (now Kınalıada). He died in June 948 and was buried at the Myrelaion Church with his wife Theodora (d. 922) and his son and co-emperor Christopher (d. 931). This interrupted a six century old tradition of Byzantine emperors being buried at the Church of the Holy Apostles (now the site of the Fatih Mosque).
The church was destroyed by fire in 1203 during the Fourth Crusade and abandoned during the Latin occupation of Constantinople. It was restored at the end of the 13th century by the Palaiologos dynasty.
History as a Mosque
After the Fall of Constantinople, the Myrelaion Church was converted into a mosque around 1500 by Mesih Pasha (1443-1501). He was a Byzantine Greek with royal blood and possibly the nephew of the last emperor, Constantine XI Palaiologos. He had been conscripted into the devşirme system and later served as Grand Vizier under Sultan Bayezid II.
The Bodrum Mosque was damaged by fires in 1784 and 1911, when it was abandoned again. It was excavated in 1930 by English archaeologist David Talbot Rice (1903-1972). The Istanbul Archaeology Museums restored the exterior walls from 1964 to 1965, and another restoration in 1986 saw it reopened as a mosque. The cistern hosted shops for many years but is now used as a prayer hall for women.
Architecture of the Bodrum Mosque
The Bodrum Mosque was built entirely out of bricks and sits on a foundation made of bricks and stone. It’s made up of a narthex, nave, and bema covered by barrel vaults. An exonarthex once existed but it was replaced by a wooden portico.
The nave is separated by four piers, which the Ottomans used to replace the original columns. The central nave is topped by a dome with a drum containing arched windows. The interior was once decorated with marble and mosaics that haven’t survived.
Tayyare Apartments
Across the street to the east of the Laleli Mosque is a large complex of four buildings, the Tayyare Apartments (Tayyare Apartmanları). They were built between 1919 and 1922 as a housing project for victims of a fire in 1918. The architect was Mimar Kemaleddin (1870-1927), and they were originally named the Apartments for Fire Victims (Harikzedegân Apartmanları).
The Tayyare Apartments sit on the site of the Laleli Mosque’s Koska Madrasa (Koska Medresesi), which was damaged in an 1894 earthquake and destroyed by fire in 1911. They were the first modern buildings constructed with reinforced concrete and the first public housing project within the walled city. They later became a residential complex until 1985, when they were renovated and turned into a five star hotel.
Koca Ragıp Pasha Library
Across the street to the east of the Tayyare Apartments is the Koca Ragıp Pasha Library (Koca Ragıp Paşa Kütüphanesi). It was built by Koca Ragıp Pasha (1698-1763) and designed by architect Mehmed Tahir Ağa. The library opened on March 2, 1763, and Koca Ragıp Pasha died just 40 days later. The reading room is topped by a dome 12.3 meters high and the walls are decorated with 18th century Iznik tiles. The library was closed after the earthquake of 1999 and has been under restoration since 2010.
Istanbul University Rıdvan Çelikel Archaeology Museum
Back across the street heading east towards Beyazıt Square is the Istanbul University Rıdvan Çelikel Archaeology Museum. It’s open daily on weekdays and admission is free (as of May 2024), but all information is in Turkish.
The small museum displays a collection of artifacts unearthed on digs conducted by Istanbul University. They range from the prehistoric through the Ottoman period.
One of the more interesting items is a carbonized oak tree trunk found 6 meters underground in the Northern Moravia region of the Czech Republic. It was gifted to the museum by the Subfossil Oak Company and is approximately 6,500 years old. It’s one of the rarest ancient wood materials ever discovered.
Istanbul University Faculty of Literature
Next door is the Istanbul University Faculty of Literature (İstanbul Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi). It was founded in 1873 but closed before it became operational. A year later, the Faculty of Literature reopened and was reorganized a few times over the years. It has operated in its present form since August 1, 1933.
Hasan Pasha Han
Finally, across the street is the Hasan Pasha Han. It was built in 1745 by Seyyid Hasan Pasha (d. 1748), a Grand Vizier under Sultan Mahmud I. The architect was Mustafa Çelebi.
Hasan Pasha Han fell victim to road expansion in 1958. It was cut in half and the original façade was lost. Today, it hosts a popular restaurant and shops.
