DOLMABAHCE PALACE

The area where Dolmabahçe Palace is located has been known since ancient times as a natural harbor where ships sought refuge many times. It is also said to be the place where Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror landed his ships during the conquest of Istanbul in the 15th century, intending to launch them into the Golden Horn. During the Ottoman period, this bay, where the Grand Admiral anchored his fleet and traditional maritime ceremonies were held, was filled in from the 17th century onwards and transformed into the sultans' private garden under the name "Dolmabahçe." Until the 19th century, the collection of wooden pavilions and mansions built within this private garden was known as the "Beşiktaş Coastal Palace." During the reign of Sultan Abdülmecid (1839-1861), the Beşiktaş Coastal Palace, which had become unusable, was demolished and replaced with Dolmabahçe Palace. The construction of Dolmabahçe Palace was overseen by the Ebniye i Hümâyûn master builders (masters of imperial buildings) Karabet Balyan, Ohannes Serveryan, Nikoğos Balyan, and James William Smith; the building supervisor was Hacı Said Ağa between 1843-1850, and from that date until 1856, Esseyyid Ali Şahin Bey. From 1856 onwards, the palace was successively occupied by: Sultan Abdülmecid (1839-1861), Sultan Abdülaziz (1861-1876), Sultan V. Murad (1876), Sultan II. Abdülhamid (1876-1909), Sultan V. Mehmed Reşad (1909-1918), and Sultan VI. Six sultans, including Mehmed Vahideddin (1918-1922), and the last Caliph, Abdülmecid (1922-1924), lived in the palace. After the proclamation of the Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk stayed in the palace intermittently for four years between 1927 and 1938, conducting his work from there, and he passed away there. Used as the presidential residence until 1949 during the İsmet İnönü era, the palace was opened to the public as a museum palace in 1984, with its original furnishings as it was during the Ottoman period.