Topkapi Palace Museum

Topkapi Palace was the home of all the Ottoman sultans until the reign I (1839-1860) Abdulmecid, a period of almost four centuries. The contract for the construction of the Topkapi Palace on the Seraglio Point overlooking both Marmara and Bosphorus was given by Mehmed II after the conquest of Constantinapolis in 1453. The place was then an ancient olive grove. The final form of the first palace covered an area 700m ², and was with fortified walls 1400 meters in length enclosed.

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The walls were broken by a series of gates, namely the Otluk goal, a goal Demir and the Imperial Gate (Bab-i Humayun), and a number of small-angle goals between them. After the reign of Mehmed II the Conqueror, the castle grew steadily to a city like complex of buildings and facilities, including a shore palace of Topkapi Palace shore known form, as it is near the cannon gate Topkapi-of the old city wall was located in Istanbul. When the shore palace was burned down in 1863, he lent his name to the great complex we now know as Topkapi Palace. The main portal, the Bab-i Humayun, was near the mosque of Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia Church), suitable and this resulted in a series of four courts surrounded by various structures. The courts, chambers, pavilions and other parts can be seen in the floor plan of Topkapi Palace.
On this page you can reference the images of the illuminated manuscript pages in the museum sections and pictures of the Sections, which related to the architecture of the palace. Please visit the pages in the left frame to get more information about the castle and museum.

The museum director Prof. İlber Ortaylı writes daily Milliyet once a week. Here are some of his articles: Divan-i Humayun, Harem, Enderun.

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