Topkapi Palace | Istanbul, Turkey

[Jakob]

When Sultan Mehmed II captured Constantinople in 1453, he found the palaces of the Byzantine Emperors in such ruins as to be uninhabitable. He chose a large area on the broad peak of the Third Hill as the site of his first imperial residence. He constructed a great complex of buildings and gardens here and they came to be known as "Eski Saray" which means "The Old Palace". A few years later, he decided to have his palace on the N side of the First Hill which had been the acropolis of the ancient Byzantium. He constructed a massive wall surrounding the area along the Sea of Marmara to the Golden Horn. This took place during the period 1459-65 after the Sultan left the former palace to women of his father's harem. The Harem in Topkapi Palace in its present state dates back to the reign of Murat III(1574-95), Mehmed IV(1648-87) and Osman III(1754-57).

Topkapi Palace was more than just the private residence of the Sultan and his court. It was the seat of the supreme executive and judiciary council, the Divan and the training school, the Palace School. In the First Courtyard, there were a hospital, bakery,arsenal, a state mint, a part of the treasury and the Outer Service. It was open to public. The Second Courtyard was open to people who had business with the council. The Third Courtyard was reserved to the Sultan's household and palace children. The Fourth Courtyard was exclusively reserved for the Sultan's use.

Topkapi Palace continued to be the principal residence for four centuries until in 1853, Sultan Abdul Mecid I moved into the new palace of Dolmabahce on the Bosphorus. The old palace was used as house for the women of the departed sultans and their servants until the Harem was officially disbanded in 1909. In 1924, Topkapi Palace was converted to a museum with the order of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The final step was the opening of the Harem to the public in 1960.



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[Jakob]

Full of history and Art, breathtaking architecture, the famous Harem, beutyful gardens, amazing collection of arms and jewels --> 9.5/10

[Matthieu]

I like it, 8,5/10.

[www.sercan.de]

mmmh... i think the topkapi palace is a whole complex which consits of many buildings. Or am i wrong?
i think it is the the first and the only "oriental style" palace in Istanbul

[Ellatur]

beautiful place nonetheless

[Brett]

Do you have a map show all the different sections of the palace?

[Sky | Kai]

great palace with breathtaking architecture and an astonishing view!
9/10!

[Jakob]

Do you have a map show all the different sections of the palace?

Couldn't find a better one, but it's ok...

http://www.trailmonkey.com/Europe/Turkey/maps/tmap_topkapipalace1.JPG


And here a map of Istanbul's Sultanahmet district:

http://www.seoultrd.com.tr/tour/tmages/istmapeng.GIF

[Urban Girl]

10/10
this is my favourite historical building in istanbul

[Raine]

9,5/10 :)

[www.sercan.de]

Do you have a map show all the different sections of the palace?
http://img70.exs.cx/img70/4431/top7pc.jpg

[DamienK]

8/10

[Fabio]

9/10

quite amazing

[normandb]

10/10 very very very beautiful and elegant.

[unals]

awesome...Ive been there twice...still couldnt finish all the sections...:)

[Arpels]

10/10 to this historic building with great views and beautiful gardens!!

[Cliff]

Nice setting!!! And nice palace, but I don't really like old architecture much.:)
7.5/10

[nova]

9.5/10. :)

[Mistrzu]

I visited Topkapi in summer 2004 on trip Warsaw-Istanbul. 10/10

[superskyline]

wow! All the different sections are different! So massive!
Great details!
9/10

[forvine]

9/10

[Sinjin P.]

9.5/10

[Phobos]

9/10

[Vrysxy]

More pix plz

[crossbowman]

9/10

[www.sercan.de]

Hagia Sophia (532) and Blue Mosque/Sultan Ahmet mosque (1616) in the background
http://img48.imageshack.us/img48/8928/onur35topkapi27fi.jpg

[marpa]

9/10

[LordMarshall]

10/10

[Mosaic]

9/10

[gutooo]

8.5/10

[delmaule]

9/10

[LMCA1990]

9/10

[Nikkodemo]

9/10

[W!CKED]

8/10

[Popiel]

8,5/10

[CreaTurco]

and there are also a lot of precious such as kasikci diamond which is one of the biggest diamonds in the world.

[Fred_]

10

[stasiua]

8,5/10