Mehmed II commissioned Topkapı Palace, and building began in 1459. The inner core is dated to 1459 to 1465, with other sources placing completion in the late 1460s. It served as the Ottoman administrative center and the sultans' main residence until the court moved to Dolmabahçe Palace in 1856.
The palace is laid out as four main courtyards linked by gates, such as the Gate of Salutation, around the Imperial Council building, the Tower of Justice, the Imperial Treasury and the Harem, which had more than 400 rooms. The style is Ottoman, with later Baroque and Rococo additions. The Baghdad Kiosk was built in 1638 to 1639 and the Circumcision Room in 1640. The complex covers roughly 14.6 to 17.3 acres (59,260 to 70,000 sq m).
A government decree of April 3, 1924, made the palace a museum. Its collections include relics, weapons and porcelain. UNESCO listed it with the Historic Areas of Istanbul in 1985.
Comments