Topkapi Palace travel guide

Visit the Ottoman Sultans' Original Home

Topkapı Palace was the center of the Ottoman Empire for more than four centuries. The sultan, the political and religious head of the Muslims, and his harem lived here, business conducted, the head of the Ottoman bureaucracy trained, and the elite corps of the sultan, the Janissaries, accommodated. Sultan Mehmet II, conquerer of Constantinople, spurned the old palace of the Byzantine emperors; just a few years after his victory, Topkapı Palace was built. He selected the most exposed part of the city for it, the tip of the peninsula, where Constantinople had been built, buffeted on one side by the Sea of Marmara and on the other by the Golden Horn. Even though the palace is very large – at times, more than 5,000 people lived there – it somehow avoids an overly monumental impression. There are one- or two-story buildings throughout which captivate more in their filigree architecture than in their majestic force – visitors think it’s like a camp turned to stone. Even though many changes have been made over the centuries, the basic structure of the palace has not been changed to this day. A highlight of any visit is the halls on the right side of the yard. Beautiful dresses, rare weapons, and precious treasures of the Ottoman empire are exhibited there. Festive clothes, famous swords of the sultans and treasures like jeweled panaches, the famous Topkapı dagger, and the 86-carat spoon diamond – the worldy splendor of the Ottomans is on display here. Directly opposite, on the other side of the yard, are religious treasures, among them relics like the proverbial hair of the beard of the prophet, a footprint of Mohammed, and parts of the gates of the Kaaba in Mecca. The Koran is recited during visiting hours. The last, so-called fourth yard, is not an enclosed area but a large garden, where several pavilions served the rest and relaxation of the Sultans. On the right side, a part of the palace has been converted to a café with a wonderful view of the entry into the Bosporus, the quarters of the Genovian and the Asian part of İstanbul -- here you can recover from your exhausting palace tour.

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