Kuleli Military High School was the oldest

military high school Military high schools are a type of high school that include military cadet education and so are a form of military academy. They are found in several countries and offer a regular high school education but with an extra military training curriculu ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, located in

Çengelköy Çengelköy is a neighborhood in the Üsküdar district on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul, Turkey, between the neighborhoods of Beylerbeyi and Kuleli. It is mainly a residential district. Many mansions were built there in th ...

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

, on the Asian shore of the

Bosphorus The Bosporus Strait (; grc, Βόσπορος ; tr, İstanbul Boğazı 'Istanbul strait', colloquially ''Boğaz'') or Bosphorus Strait is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul in northwestern Tu ...

strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...

. It was founded on September 21, 1845, by Ottoman Sultan

Abdülmecid I Abdulmejid I ( ota, عبد المجيد اول, ʿAbdü'l-Mecîd-i evvel, tr, I. Abdülmecid; 25 April 182325 June 1861) was the 31st Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and succeeded his father Mahmud II on 2 July 1839. His reign was notable for the r ...

. After the 2016 Turkish coup d état attempt Kuleli Military High School along with other Military High Schools was closed and turned into a museum.

History

Ottoman Period (1845-1923)

Kuleli Military High School was established on September 21, 1845, under the name of "Mekteb-i Fünun-ı İdadiye" at the

Maçka Maçka ( el, Ματζούκα, Matzoúka, the "club"; Laz: მაჩხა ''Maçxa'') is a town and district of Trabzon Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. The name derives from the medieval Greek '' Matzouka'', which was one of the pro ...

Barracks Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...

, now used by the

Istanbul Technical University Istanbul Technical University ( tr, İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, commonly referred to as ITU or The Technical University) is an international technical university located in Istanbul, Turkey. It is the world's third-oldest technical university ...

. Due to the building's renewal, the school completed its first year at the Tiled Kiosk (''Çinili Köşk'') building, which housed the "Mızıka-i Hümayün" (Imperial Music Band) and "Zülüflü Baltacılar Ocağı" (Logistics and Communications Unit) in that period. Following the renewal of the Maçka Barracks, “Mekteb-i Fünun-ı İdadîye” started its second education year with a ceremony at the presence of Sultan

Abdülmecid ʻAbd al-Majīd (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد المجيد) is a Muslim male given name and, in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Majīd'', one of the names of God in the Qur'an, which give rise to th ...

on October 10, 1846. The Kuleli Military High School building, originally the Kuleli Cavalry Barracks, was designed by

Ottoman Armenian Armenians in the Ottoman Empire (or Ottoman Armenians) mostly belonged to either the Armenian Apostolic Church or the Armenian Catholic Church. They were part of the Armenian millet until the Tanzimat reforms in the nineteenth century equa ...

architect

Garabet Balyan The Balyan family ( hy, Պալեաններ; tr, Balyan ailesi or ''Palyan ailesi'') was a prominent Armenian family in the Ottoman Empire consisting of court architects in the service of Ottoman sultans and other members of the Ottoman dyna ...

and its construction was completed in 1843. In 1868, all military high schools were decided to be combined. At that time, four military high schools, including Kuleli, were combined under the name of "Umum Mekteb-i İdadî Şahane" and transferred to the Galatasaray Barracks. When the combination of military high schools turned out to be a failure, it was decided that the schools should go on their own education system separately. For this reason, “Mekteb-i Fünun-ı İdadîye” and “Deniz İdadîsi” ( Naval High School) moved to the Kuleli Barracks in 1872. Afterwards, the school came to be known as the "Kuleli İdadîsi" (Kuleli Military High School). During the

Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 ( tr, 93 Harbi, lit=War of ’93, named for the year 1293 in the Islamic calendar; russian: Русско-турецкая война, Russko-turetskaya voyna, "Russian–Turkish war") was a conflict between th ...

between the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, the school was transformed into a hospital. Therefore, the students and academic staff of Kuleli moved to the Turkish Military Academy building in

Pangaltı Pangaltı (spelled Pangaaltı or Pancaldi in some older sources) is one of the four neighborhoods (together with Teşvikiye, Maçka and Osmanbey) within the Nişantaşı quarter of the Şişli district in Istanbul, Turkey. It is home to the Cathe ...

, Istanbul. When the war ended, the school returned to its building in Çengelköy with the "Askeri Tıbbiye İdadisi" (Military Medical High School) in 1879. The hospital on the ridge outside the school was evacuated and sent to the Military Medical School, because the building had become too crowded. The hospital later moved to the

Beylerbeyi Beylerbeyi is a neighborhood in the Üsküdar municipality of Istanbul, Turkey. It is located on the Asian shore of the Bosporus, to the north of the Bosphorus Bridge. It is bordered on the northeast by the neighborhood of Çengelköy, on the eas ...

quarter. The "Askeri Tıbbiye İdadisi" (Military Medical High School) was transferred to the

Haydarpaşa Haydarpaşa is a neighborhood within the Kadıköy and Üsküdar districts on the Asian part of Istanbul, Turkey. Haydarpaşa is named after Ottoman Vizier Haydar Pasha. The place, on the coast of Sea of Marmara, borders to Harem in the northwest ...

quarter in 1910. During the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

in 1912–1913 (

First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...

), Kuleli Barracks was converted into a hospital again. Some of the students were sent to the Kandilli High School for Girls (

Adile Sultan Palace Adile Sultan Palace ( tr, Adile Sultan Sarayı) is the former royal residence of Ottoman princess Adile Sultan. It was donated to the state by Adile Sultan to be used as a school building for the Kandilli Anatolian High School for Girls and is ...

) and some others to the buildings next to the

Beylerbeyi Palace The Beylerbeyi Palace ( tr, Beylerbeyi Sarayı, literally meaning ''the palace of the bey of beys'') is located in the Beylerbeyi neighbourhood of Üsküdar district in Istanbul, Turkey, at the Asian side of the Bosphorus. An Imperial Ottoma ...

. At the end of 1913, the school moved back to its own building. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the school temporarily moved to the

Prinkipo Greek Orthodox Orphanage , image = File:Büyükada Rum Yetimhanesi (Old Greek Orphanage), Istanbul 01.jpg , image_alt = The orphanage in 2015 , image_size = 250px , caption = Prinkipo Greek Orphanage in 2015 , former_names ...

in Büyükada Island near Istanbul for some time. At the end of

, the building was abandoned due to the British request in the

Armistice of Mudros Concluded on 30 October 1918 and taking effect at noon the next day, the Armistice of Mudros ( tr, Mondros Mütarekesi) ended hostilities in the Middle Eastern theatre between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies of World War I. It was signed by th ...

and allocated as a dormitory for the

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

orphans and refugees who were deported during WWI. Kuleli Military High School first moved to a military camp, consisting of tents only, near Sünnet Bridge in Kağıthane, then one month later, to a police station in Maçka. Because of the British interest there, it was transferred to the old Gendarmerie School near Beylerbeyi Palace (December 26, 1920).

Turkish Republic Period (1923-2016)

The Kuleli Barracks were returned to the Turkish army at the end of the

Treaty of Lausanne The Treaty of Lausanne (french: Traité de Lausanne) was a peace treaty negotiated during the Lausanne Conference of 1922–23 and signed in the Palais de Rumine, Lausanne, Switzerland, on 24 July 1923. The treaty officially settled the conflic ...

(1923) as a result of the Turkish victory in the

Turkish War of Independence The Turkish War of Independence "War of Liberation", also known figuratively as ''İstiklâl Harbi'' "Independence War" or ''Millî Mücadele'' "National Struggle" (19 May 1919 – 24 July 1923) was a series of military campaigns waged by th ...

(1919–1923). The British evacuated the Kuleli Barracks after the controlled them for a 3-year period on October 6, 1923. The school became a civilian high school by the "Tevhid-i Tedrisat" bill (a law that regulated education) passed in 1924 and was renamed as "Kuleli Lisesi" (Kuleli High School). At the end of the same year, it became a military high school again. Also, it took its present name in 1925 as "Kuleli Military High School". In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Kuleli was transferred to

Konya Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it D ...

in May 1941 according to the mobilization plans. Kuleli Barracks was converted into a 1,000-bed military hospital and the

Transportation Command moved there as well. After the Second World War, the school moved back to Istanbul on August 18, 1947, and has been in its historical home ever since. Kuleli Military High School applied the curriculum of the Ministry of National Education for science courses until the 1975–76 academic year. Afterwards, it began to apply the college system and the education period was increased from three to four years, with the addition of a Prep Class. After the 2016 Turkish coup d état attempt Kuleli Military High School and the other military high schools were closed on July 31, 2016 with a decree.

Notable alumni

İlker Başbuğ Mehmet İlker Başbuğ (; born 29 April 1943) was the 26th Chief of the General Staff of Turkey. He was charged with contravention of Articles 309, 310, and 311 of the Turkish Penal Code. In August 2013, he was convicted on charges of "establish ...

, 26th

Chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

of the General Staff of Turkey *

Hulusi Behçet Hulusi Behçet (Ottoman Turkish: خلوصی بهجت), (; ; 20 February 1889 – 8 March 1948) was a Turkish dermatologist and scientist. He described a disease of inflamed blood vessels in 1937, which is named after him as Behçet's disease. His ...

, dermatologist and scientist *

Yaşar Büyükanıt General Mehmet Yaşar Büyükanıt (1 September 1940 – 21 November 2019) was the 25th Chief of the Turkish General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, from 28 August 2006 to 28 August 2008. Biography General Yaşar Büyükanıt was born in Is ...

, 25th Chief of the General Staff of Turkey *

Cemal Paşa Ahmed Djemal ( ota, احمد جمال پاشا, Ahmet Cemâl Paşa; 6 May 1872 – 21 July 1922), also known as Cemal Pasha, was an Ottoman military leader and one of the Three Pashas that ruled the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Djemal wa ...

, officer and mayor of Istanbul * Abdullah Çevrim, football player *

Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca (26 August 1914, Istanbul – 15 October 2008, Istanbul) was one of the most prolific Turkish poets of the Turkish Republic with more than 60 collections of his poems published as of 2007. He was a laureate of the ...

, poet *

Fevzi Çakmak Mustafa Fevzi Çakmak (12 January 1876 – 10 April 1950) was a Turkish field marshal ('' Mareşal'') and politician. He served as the Chief of General Staff from 1918 and 1919 and later the Minister of War of the Ottoman Empire in 1920. He lat ...

, Turkish

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

, politician *

Ragıp Gümüşpala Ragıp Gümüşpala (1897 – 6 June 1964) was the 11th Chief of the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces and founder of the Justice Party in 1961. He died shortly afterwards, on 6 June 1964, in Istanbul. Biography Military Life While he ...

, 11th Chief of the General Staff of Turkey *

Cemal Gürsel Cemal Gürsel (; 13 October 1895 – 14 September 1966) was a Turkish army general who became the List of Presidents of Turkey, fourth President of Turkey after a coup. Early life He was born in the city of Erzurum as the son of an Ottoman A ...

, fourth

President of Turkey The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Cumhurbaşkanı), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the government of Tu ...

Remzi Aydın Jöntürk Remzi Aydın Jöntürk (September 15, 1936 – September 2, 1987) was a Turkish filmmaker, actor, screenwriter, and producer. He directed more than 72 feature films in his long career. Jöntürk is credited for creating and directing some of t ...

, film director, producer, actor and painter *

Kâzım Karabekir Musa Kâzım Karabekir (also spelled Kiazim Karabekir in English; 1882 – 26 January 1948) was a Turkish general and politician. He was the commander of the Eastern Army of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I and served as Speaker of ...

, commander of the Eastern Army in the Ottoman Empire, politician * Tahir Tamer Kumkale, writer *

Aziz Nesin Aziz Nesin (; born Mehmet Nusret, 20 December 1915 – 6 July 1995) was a Turkish writer, humorist and the author of more than 100 books. Born in a time when Turks did not have official surnames, he had to adopt one after the Surname Law of 1 ...

, writer and humorist *

Irfan Orga İrfan Orga (October 31, 1908 – November 29, 1970) was a Turkish fighter pilot, staff officer, and author, writing in English. He published books on many areas of Turkish life, cookery, and history, as well as a life of Atatürk, and a unive ...

, fighter pilot, diplomat, writer *

Osman Pamukoğlu Osman Pamukoğlu (born December 27, 1947) is a retired major general of the Turkish Army, author and politician who founded the Rights and Equality Party The Rights and Equality Party ( tr, Hak ve Eşitlik Partisi, HEPAR) was a political part ...

, General, politician and writer * Gazi Osman Paşa, Ottoman Turkish

* Ibrahim Fehmi Pasha (1838—1896), Ottoman statesman *

Ömer Seyfettin Ömer Seyfettin (11 March 1884, Gönen – 6 March 1920, Istanbul), was a Turkish writer from the late-19th to early-20th-century, considered to be one of the greatest modern Turkish authors. His work is much praised for simplifying the Turkish ...

, writer *

Cevdet Sunay Cevdet Sunay (; 10 February 1899 – 22 May 1982) was a Turkish politician and army officer, who served as the fifth President of Turkey from 1966 to 1973. Early life and career Sunay was born in 1899 in Trabzon, in the Ottoman Empire. A ...

, fifth President of Turkey * İrfan Tansel, Commander-in-Chief of the

Turkish Air Force The Turkish Air Force ( tr, ) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The Turkish Air Force can trace its origins back to June 1911 when it was founded by the Ottoman Empire, however, the air force as it is known t ...

Cengiz Topel Cengiz Topel (September 2, 1934 – August 8, 1964) was a fighter pilot of the Turkish Air Force, who was tortured to death after his plane was shot down while supporting the Turkish army during the 1964 inter-communal conflict "Erenköy Resista ...

, fighter pilot *

Alparslan Türkeş Alparslan Türkeş (; 25 November 1917 – 4 April 1997) was a Turkish politician, who was the founder and president of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and the Grey Wolves ''(Ülkü Ocakları)''. He represented the far-right of the Turkish ...

, politician *

Tayyar Yalaz Tayyar Yalaz (1901 – 12 October 1943) was a Turkish sport wrestler, who competed at the 1924 and 1928 Olympics. He was born in 1901 in Istanbul and began wrestling at Kuleli Military High School in Istanbul. Tayyar Yalaz participated at ...

, sport wrestler * Şerif Yenen, travel specialist, travel writer and tourist guide

Notable faculty

Ali Ferit Gören ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam. ...

(1913-1987), Austrian-Turkish Olympic sprinter

References

http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action;jsessionid=FC38D40E4C02FF93602E7ECA992F5351?newsId=259050

External links

Official Site
{{Coord, 41, 03, 31, N, 29, 03, 12, E, region:TR_type:edu, display=title High schools in Istanbul Military high schools Military in Istanbul Military education and training in Turkey Üsküdar Educational institutions established in 1845 1845 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Ottoman architecture in Turkey