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Yıldız is a neighborhood in Istanbul situated around the Yıldız Palace complex and Yıldız Park. It lies east of Barbaros Boulevard and central Beşiktaş.
Introduction to Yıldız
Yıldız was a forest during the Byzantine period and didn’t develop until the construction of Yıldız Palace in the 19th century. From 1946 through 1974, the area was populated mainly by families of soldiers and civil servants based at the military academies that occupied some of the palace buildings. Growth accelerated in 1958 after the opening of Barbaros Boulevard. Most of the neighborhood is occupied by the palace complex and park, but there are a few other attractions in the area.
Yahya Kemal Park
First, on the western edge of the neighborhood along Barbaros Boulevard is Yahya Kemal Park (Yahya Kemal Parkı), also known as Serencebey Park (Serencebey Parkı). It’s a large park named for poet Yahya Kemal (1884-1958). It features a playground, basketball courts, and plenty of places to sit and relax in the shade.
There are two monuments in the park. The statue of Yahya Kemal was made by sculptor Hüseyin Gezer (1920-2013) and added to the park in 1968.
A few steps south is a bronze statue of Mehmed the Conqueror by Sait Rüstem. It’s based on a model of a statue found in the collection of the Harbiye Military Museum. The statue, which took two months to complete, was unveiled in 2009 and weighs 2 ½ tons.
Tomb of Sheikh Muhammed Zafir
Along a road just south of the park is the Art Nouveau tomb of Sheikh Muhammed Zafir (Şeyh Muhammed Zafir Türbesi). It was commissioned by Sultan Abdülhamid II and built between 1903 and 1904 by Italian architect Raimondo D’Aronco (1857-1932).
Sheikh Muhammed Zafir (1829-1903) was born in Misrata, Libya, and first arrived in Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1870. After a few years away, he was invited by Abdülhamid II and stayed until his death. The sheikh and Sultan became very close.
The tomb sits next to the Ertuğrul Tekke Mosque (Ertuğrul Tekke Camii), which was also commissioned by Abdülhamid II and completed in 1887. Nearby is an Art Nouveau fountain. The tomb is typically locked. To enter, you’ll have to track down the caretaker.
Istanbul Fire Department Museum
On the south end of the neighborhood is the Istanbul Fire Department Museum (İtfaiye Müzesi), which opened in its current location in 1992. It chronicles the history of the Istanbul’s firefighters, who have protected the city since the 18th century. Admission is free (as of May 2025) and it’s open weekdays. All displays are in Turkish.
The story is presented in chronological order from the first quarter of the 18th century to the present, starting with water pumpers (tulumbacı) of the Ottoman period. Artifacts include historic firefighters’ uniforms, axes, leather buckets, and more.
Equipment such as water pumping tools and 19th-century steam-operated and horse-drawn pumps are on display. You’ll also see the first motorized pumps used in Istanbul.
Models and scenes, as well as paintings and photographs of some of the most devastating fires to ravage the city, are also exhibited.
Count Ödön Széchenyi Display
A special section honors Count Ödön Széchenyi (1839-1922). He was invited to Constantinople in 1871 by Sultan Abdülaziz to consult on the city’s firefighting techniques. Devastating fires in 1873 resulted in the establishment of an official fire brigade on September 2, 1874. Széchenyi returned to the city the following month and was named the head of the brigade on November 24. He then transformed it into a professional and disciplined team while implementing modern tools and techniques. Széchenyi is credited with revolutionizing the way fires were fought in the city, and is believed to be the first Christian honored with the title of Pasha without having to convert to Islam.
Little Mecidiye Mosque
At the lower entrance to Yıldız Park is the Little Mecidiye Mosque (Küçük Mecidiye Camii), which was built for Sultan Abdülmecid I and completed in 1848. It was designed in the Baroque style by Ottoman Armenian architect Garabet Balyan (1800-1866) and his son, Nigoğayos (1826-1858).
The original name was Çırağan Mosque (Çırağan Camii), and it was likely built as an addition to Çırağan Palace across the street. Servants working at both Çırağan and Yıldız Palaces attended prayers there.
The entrance to the mosque is through a narthex on the north side. The prayer hall, which is decorated in the Baroque and Rococo styles, is on a square plan roughly 12.5 meters on each side. It features a sultan’s loge on both sides.
Sheikh Yahyâ Efendi Complex
Up a steep street just east of the mosque is the Sheikh Yahyâ Efendi Complex (Şeyh Yahyâ Efendi Külliyesi), which is one of the most visited places in Istanbul. The complex was founded in 1538 by Yahyâ Efendi (1494-1570), a Sufi scholar and teacher of sacred sciences during the reign of Süleyman the Magnificent. He also advised the Sultan from time to time. It consists of a mosque, dervish lodge, library, fountain, cemetery, and tomb.
After Yahyâ Efendi’s death, Sultan Selim III built a mausoleum designed by Mimar Sinan (c. 1490-1588) and the lodge was expanded. A fountain was added by Cezayirli Gazi Hasan Pasha (1713-1790) in 1777. New dervish cells were added and the lodge was further enlarged in 1812. Land from the complex was later annexed by Yıldız and Çırağan palaces in the 19th century. Hacı Mahmud Efendi built a library in 1901. After the lodge was shut down by the Turkish Republic in 1925, the complex continued to be used as a mosque.
Entrance to the Complex
While walking up the hill to the complex, you’ll come to a white marble fountain on the righthand side. It was placed there by Yahyâ Efendi in 1538 as the first fountain on the site. From there, the road turns sharply to the right and a narrow lane leads to the complex entrance.
The Hacı Mahmud Efendi Library is right next to the entrance. It’s a one-story rectangular brick building with a wooden roof. The books were transferred to the Süleymaniye Library in 1940.
Main Building
The main building of the complex contains the lodge, mosque, and two tombs. The entrance opens to a long corridor. At the end and to the right is another corridor lined with a few burials.
Tomb of Yahyâ Efendi
On the right side is the entrance portal to the tomb of Yahyâ Efendi. The tomb of measures 9 x 9 meters with an opening to the mosque on the south wall. The sarcophagus of Yahyâ Efendi is next to the opening.
There are 10 other burials in the tomb. They include Sultan Abdülhamid II‘s daughter Hatice Sultan (d. 1897-1898) and son Mehmed Bedrettin Efendi (1901-1903); Tasasız Râziye Sultan (c. 1519-c. 1520), the daughter of Süleyman the Magnificent; Yahyâ Efendi’s mother Afife Hatun, wife Şerife Hatun, and son Sheikh Ibrahim Efendi; Dervish Ali and his son Sheikh Ali Efendi; and Sheikh Mehmed Nûri Şemseddin Efendi and his grandson Sheikh Hasan Hayri Efendi. Each grave is surrounded by wooden railings inlaid with mother-of-pearl.
Tomb of Güzelce Ali Pasha
Continuing out of the tomb and down the corridor is a third corridor. If you follow the corridor to the left, it connects to the tomb of Güzelce Ali Pasha (d. 1621), a Grand Admiral of the Ottoman Navy and Grand Vizier under Sultan Osman II from 1619 to 1621. It’s on a square plan measuring 7 x 7 meters and topped by a dome.
There’s a total of six 17th century marble sarcophagi in the room, each elegantly decorated with golden motifs. The other five belong to members of Güzelce Ali Pasha’s family.
Yahyâ Efendi Mosque
If you follow the corridor to the right, you’ll find the Yahyâ Efendi Mosque (Yahyâ Efendi Camii). It’s rectangular in shape and covers an area measuring 15.5 x 9 meters. The windows on the south wall, on both sides of the mihrab provide fantastic views of the Bosporus.
A narrow stairway outside the entrance lead to the Sultan’s loge and the women’s section. The Sultan’s loge is on the east side of the prayer hall and is covered by a gilded screen believed to be crafted at the carpentry workshop of Yıldız Palace. The women’s section is on the west side. The ceiling is formed by a low dome and on the north wall is graffiti in Arabic script protected by a plastic screen.
To enjoy the views, you can walk around the outside of the building to the exterior wall of the mosque.
Cemetery
Since the second half of the 16th century, thousands of people have been buried in the cemetery at the Sheikh Yahyâ Efendi Complex. They include Ottoman officials, religious leaders, members of the Imperial Court, and many others.
The so-called Tomb of the Princes (Şehzadeler Türbesi), on the west side of the cemetery, was built in the late 19th century by Sultan Abdülhamid II. Inside are the burials of 14 princes and princesses, the children of Sultans Abdülmecid I, Murad V, and Abdülhamid II.
