Topkapı (meaning "Cannon Gate" in
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
) is a neighbourhood in
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, ...
,
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 ...
. Topkapı is a part of the district of
Fatih
Fatih () is a district of and a municipality (''belediye'') in Istanbul, Turkey, and home to almost all of the provincial authorities (including the governor's office, police headquarters, metropolitan municipality and tax office) but not the co ...
.
Location
Topkapı lies in the west end of Fatih district, under the ancient city walls. It is centred on the
Kara Ahmed Pasha Mosque
The Kara Ahmed Pasha Mosque or Gazi Ahmed Pasha Mosque ( tr, Kara Ahmet Paşa Camii) is a 16th-century Ottoman mosque near the city walls in Istanbul, Turkey. It was designed by the imperial architect Mimar Sinan and completed in around 1572.
H ...
, which stands off Topkapı Caddesi, and is bounded by Vatan Caddesi to the north, and Turgut Ozal Millet Caddesi to the south.
Name
Topkapı is so named because it was the site at which the Ottoman cannon known as "
The Basilic" was deployed during the
siege of 1453, against the St Romanus gate in
the city walls. The gate was the point at which
Sultan Mehmed II
Mehmed II ( ota, محمد ثانى, translit=Meḥmed-i s̱ānī; tr, II. Mehmed, ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror ( ota, ابو الفتح, Ebū'l-fetḥ, lit=the Father of Conquest, links=no; tr, Fâtih Su ...
entered the city after it fell. The gate was renamed to commemorate this, and the neighbourhood takes its name from there.
Transport
Topkapı was the site of Istanbul's main bus station, which lay outside the city wall, until 1994 when it was moved to
Bayrampaşa
Bayrampaşa (pronounced ) is a suburban district of Istanbul, Turkey on the European side of the city.
The mayor is Atila Aydıner (AK Party).
History
Up to 1936, Bayrampaşa was part of Fatih district. It was then part of Eyüp district betwe ...
.
It is served by the
Topkapı—Ulubatlı metro station, on
M1, inside the wall, and by the
Topkapı station
Topkapı ("cannonball gate"), sometimes spelled Topkapi outside of Turkey, is a Turkish word that may refer to:
* Topkapı Palace, a museum in Istanbul, Turkey
* Topkapı Scroll, a Timurid dynasty pattern scroll in the museum's collection
* Topka ...
outside the wall, which is an interchange between
T1 and
T4 tram lines, and
Metrobus.
References
Sources
*
External links
{{Fatih, Istanbul
Neighbourhoods of Fatih