Fatih Mosque
Encyclopedia
The Fatih Mosque or Conqueror's Mosque in English
) is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Fatih
district of Istanbul
, Turkey
. It was one of the largest examples of Turkish-Islamic architecture in Istanbul and represented an important stage in the development of classic Turkish architecture.
Church of the Holy Apostles
, which had been a ruin since the Fourth Crusade
. It was built by the royal architect Atik Sinan
. The Fatih mosque was the first monumental project in the Ottoman imperial architectural tradition.
The original complex included a set of well-planned buildings constructed around the mosque. They include eight medrese, library, hospital, hospice, caravanserai
, market, hamam
, primary school and public kitchen (imaret
) which served food to the poor. Various türbe
were added at a later dates. The original complex covered an almost square area 325 meters on a side, extending along the Golden Horn
side of Fevzipasa Street..
The original mosque was badly damaged in the 1509 earthquake
, after that it was repaired, but was then damaged again by earthquakes in 1557 and 1754 and repaired yet again. It was then completely destroyed by an earthquake on 22 May 1766 when the main dome collapsed and the walls were irreparably damaged. The current mosque (designed on a completely different plan) was completed in 1771 under Sultan Mustafa III
by the architect, Mimar Mehmet Tahir.
The second mosque which was built (1771) by Sultan Mustafa III
after the 1766 earthquake, was built on a square plan. It has one central dome supported by four semi-domes.
The courtyard, main entrance portal and lower portions of the minarets remain from the original construction, with the remainder consisting of the 1771 Baroque
reconstruction.
re-used repeatedly by himself and his successors throughout Istanbul (this technique is emulative of the Hagia Sophia). The 26 meter diameter center dome is supported by four semi-domes on each axis supported by four large marble columns. There are two minaret
s each with twin galleries. The calligraphy
within the mosque and the mimbar exhibit a Baroque
influence, but the white tiles of inferior quality are a poor comparison with the İznik
tiled splendor of mosques such as the Rüstem Pasha Mosque
. The mihrab
dates from the original construction.
, or complex with adjacent structures to service both religious and cultural needs.
To the north and south of the mosque are eight great medrese, four to each side. These buildings are symmetrical, and each contains 18 cells for students (each housing four youths) and a dershane. Behind each was an annex, about half as large as the medrese itself, all of which have been destroyed as a result of road construction. The medreses provided for about a thousand students, making it a large university for its time.
The Hospice (taphane) is outside the southeast corner of the mosque precincts. The building has a beautiful courtyard supported by 16 exceptional columns of verd antique
and granite, which were probably salvaged from the Church of the Holy Apostles. Opposite the hospice is the large türbe of Sultan Mahmud II
's mother, Naksh-i Dil Sultana.
In the graveyard on the kiblah side behind the mosque are the türbe
of Sultan Mehmet II and his wife Gulbahar Hatun
. Both were reconstructed after the earthquake. The türbe of the Conqueror is very baroque with a lavishly decorated interior. The türbe of Gulbahar is simple, with classic lines, and may closely resemble the original. In addition, the graveyard has a large number of graves belonging to leading state officials, including Osman Nuri Pasha.
On the kiblah side of the mosque, connected to it, is a domed library which was built in 1724. One of its doors opens onto the street, while the two other open onto the inner courtyard of the mosque. The library is presently undergoing repairs, and the books are under protection at the Suleymaniye Library.
The caravanserai
in the complex was repaired in the 1980s and combined with new shops to begin functioning as a workplace. The hospital, market, kitchens and hammam belonging to the original complex no longer exist.
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Fatih
Fatih
Fatih is a municipality and district in Istanbul, Turkey that encompasses most of the peninsula coinciding with historic Constantinople. In 2009, the district of Eminönü, formerly a separate municipality located at the tip of the peninsula, was merged into Fatih...
district of Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. It was one of the largest examples of Turkish-Islamic architecture in Istanbul and represented an important stage in the development of classic Turkish architecture.
History
The Fatih mosque complex was a religious and social building of unprecedented size and complexity built in Istanbul between 1463-1470 by the order of Fatih Sultan Mehmed, on the site of the former ByzantineByzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
Church of the Holy Apostles
Church of the Holy Apostles
The Church of the Holy Apostles , also known as the Imperial Polyandreion, was a Christian church built in Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, in 550. It was second only to the Church of the Holy Wisdom among the great churches of the capital...
, which had been a ruin since the Fourth Crusade
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...
. It was built by the royal architect Atik Sinan
Atik Sinan
Sinan-i Atik, also known as Azadlı Sinan and Atik Sinan , born in Istanbul, was an Ottoman architect for Sultan Mehmed II during the 15th century...
. The Fatih mosque was the first monumental project in the Ottoman imperial architectural tradition.
The original complex included a set of well-planned buildings constructed around the mosque. They include eight medrese, library, hospital, hospice, caravanserai
Caravanserai
A caravanserai, or khan, also known as caravansary, caravansera, or caravansara in English was a roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover from the day's journey...
, market, hamam
Hamam
Hamam may refer to:* Turkish bath in Turkish* Hamam , a 1997 European film directed by Ferzan Özpetek* Hamam , brand of soap in India* Sam Hammam , Lebanese businessman and football club owner...
, primary school and public kitchen (imaret
Imaret
An imaret is one of a few names used to identify the Ottoman soup kitchens built throughout the Ottoman Empire from the 14th into the 19th century. These public kitchens were often part of a larger complex known as a Waqf, which could include hospices, mosques, caravanserais and colleges...
) which served food to the poor. Various türbe
Turbe
Türbe is the Turkish word for "tomb", and for the characteristic mausoleums, often relatively small, of Ottoman royalty and notables. It is related to the Arabic turba, which can also mean a mausoleum, but more often a funerary complex, or a plot in a cemetery.-Characteristics:A typical türbe...
were added at a later dates. The original complex covered an almost square area 325 meters on a side, extending along the Golden Horn
Golden Horn
The Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of...
side of Fevzipasa Street..
The original mosque was badly damaged in the 1509 earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
, after that it was repaired, but was then damaged again by earthquakes in 1557 and 1754 and repaired yet again. It was then completely destroyed by an earthquake on 22 May 1766 when the main dome collapsed and the walls were irreparably damaged. The current mosque (designed on a completely different plan) was completed in 1771 under Sultan Mustafa III
Mustafa III
Mustafa III was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1757 to 1774. He was a son of Sultan Ahmed III and was succeeded by his brother Abdul Hamid I . He was born in Edirne...
by the architect, Mimar Mehmet Tahir.
Exterior
The first Fatih mosque had one central dome supported by a single semi-dome of the same diameter on the qibla side and suspended on four arches, its dome was 26 meter in diameter.The second mosque which was built (1771) by Sultan Mustafa III
Mustafa III
Mustafa III was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1757 to 1774. He was a son of Sultan Ahmed III and was succeeded by his brother Abdul Hamid I . He was born in Edirne...
after the 1766 earthquake, was built on a square plan. It has one central dome supported by four semi-domes.
The courtyard, main entrance portal and lower portions of the minarets remain from the original construction, with the remainder consisting of the 1771 Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
reconstruction.
Interior
The present interior of the Fatih Mosque is essentially a copy of earlier designs invented by SinanSinan
Koca Mi'mâr Sinân Âğâ was the chief Ottoman architect and civil engineer for sultans Suleiman the Magnificent, Selim II, and Murad III...
re-used repeatedly by himself and his successors throughout Istanbul (this technique is emulative of the Hagia Sophia). The 26 meter diameter center dome is supported by four semi-domes on each axis supported by four large marble columns. There are two minaret
Minaret
A minaret مناره , sometimes مئذنه) is a distinctive architectural feature of Islamic mosques, generally a tall spire with an onion-shaped or conical crown, usually either free standing or taller than any associated support structure. The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, and gallery....
s each with twin galleries. The calligraphy
Calligraphy
Calligraphy is a type of visual art. It is often called the art of fancy lettering . A contemporary definition of calligraphic practice is "the art of giving form to signs in an expressive, harmonious and skillful manner"...
within the mosque and the mimbar exhibit a Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
influence, but the white tiles of inferior quality are a poor comparison with the İznik
Iznik pottery
İznik pottery, named after the town in western Anatolia where it was made, is highly decorated ceramics that was produced between the late 15th and 17th centuries....
tiled splendor of mosques such as the Rüstem Pasha Mosque
Rüstem Pasha Mosque
-External links:* ** *...
. The mihrab
Mihrab
A mihrab is semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the qibla; that is, the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca and hence the direction that Muslims should face when praying...
dates from the original construction.
Complex
As with other imperial mosques in Istanbul, the Fatih Mosque was designed as a kulliyeKulliye
Kollyaii refers to the regions Songhor سنقر and Koliai . Kollyaii is a mountainous county in Kermanshah Province, which is in the west of Iran. According to 1996 census, Sonqor had a population of 112,214. It consists of two districts: the central district and nine townships...
, or complex with adjacent structures to service both religious and cultural needs.
To the north and south of the mosque are eight great medrese, four to each side. These buildings are symmetrical, and each contains 18 cells for students (each housing four youths) and a dershane. Behind each was an annex, about half as large as the medrese itself, all of which have been destroyed as a result of road construction. The medreses provided for about a thousand students, making it a large university for its time.
The Hospice (taphane) is outside the southeast corner of the mosque precincts. The building has a beautiful courtyard supported by 16 exceptional columns of verd antique
Verd antique
Verd antique , or verde antique, is a serpentinite breccia popular since ancient times as a decorative facing stone. It is a dark, dull green, white-mottled serpentine, mixed with calcite, dolomite, or magnesite, which takes a high polish...
and granite, which were probably salvaged from the Church of the Holy Apostles. Opposite the hospice is the large türbe of Sultan Mahmud II
Mahmud II
Mahmud II was the 30th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1808 until his death in 1839. He was born in the Topkapi Palace, Istanbul, the son of Sultan Abdulhamid I...
's mother, Naksh-i Dil Sultana.
In the graveyard on the kiblah side behind the mosque are the türbe
Turbe
Türbe is the Turkish word for "tomb", and for the characteristic mausoleums, often relatively small, of Ottoman royalty and notables. It is related to the Arabic turba, which can also mean a mausoleum, but more often a funerary complex, or a plot in a cemetery.-Characteristics:A typical türbe...
of Sultan Mehmet II and his wife Gulbahar Hatun
Gülbahar Hatun
Gülbahar Hatun can refer to:*Amina Gul-Bahar, the wife of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, and Valide Sultan as the step mother of Sultan Bayezid II.*Gülbahar Sultan, the wife of Ottoman Sultan Bayezid II and the mother of Sultan Selim I....
. Both were reconstructed after the earthquake. The türbe of the Conqueror is very baroque with a lavishly decorated interior. The türbe of Gulbahar is simple, with classic lines, and may closely resemble the original. In addition, the graveyard has a large number of graves belonging to leading state officials, including Osman Nuri Pasha.
On the kiblah side of the mosque, connected to it, is a domed library which was built in 1724. One of its doors opens onto the street, while the two other open onto the inner courtyard of the mosque. The library is presently undergoing repairs, and the books are under protection at the Suleymaniye Library.
The caravanserai
Caravanserai
A caravanserai, or khan, also known as caravansary, caravansera, or caravansara in English was a roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover from the day's journey...
in the complex was repaired in the 1980s and combined with new shops to begin functioning as a workplace. The hospital, market, kitchens and hammam belonging to the original complex no longer exist.
External links
- Images of the Fatih Mosque
- Fatih Camii (Turkish)