Heybeliada, or Heybeli Ada, () is the second largest of the

Princes' Islands The Princes' Islands (; the word "princes" is plural, because the name means "Islands of the Princes", , ''Pringiponisia''), officially just Adalar (); alternatively the Princes' Archipelago; is an archipelago off the coast of Istanbul, Turkey, ...

in the

Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara, also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, is a small inland sea entirely within the borders of Turkey. It links the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea via the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, separating Turkey's E ...

, near

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. It is officially a neighbourhood in the municipality and district of

Adalar The Princes' Islands (; the word "princes" is plural, because the name means "Islands of the Princes", , ''Pringiponisia''), officially just Adalar (); alternatively the Princes' Archipelago; is an archipelago off the coast of Istanbul, Istanbul ...

Istanbul Province Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. Its population is 4,424 (2022). Its name, meaning 'with a saddlebag' in Turkish, in supposed reference to the valley between two hills. The island was known as ''Halki'', ''Halkitis'' () and ''Demonesos'' () in antiquity, the first two toponyms deriving from the Greek word ''halkos'' (), meaning

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

. The island was famous for its copper and copper ores in antiquity. In winter the island's population is only about 4,400, but in summer, the owners of summer houses return and the population swells to approximately 30,000. Launched in 2008, TCG ''Heybeliada'', used by the

Turkish Navy The Turkish Naval Forces (), or Turkish Navy (), is the naval warfare service branch of the TAF. The modern naval traditions and customs of the Turkish Navy can be traced back to 10 July 1920, when it was established as the ''Directorate o ...

is named after the island. Until 2020, the only vehicles permitted on the island were ambulances, fire tenders, police cars etc.; the only official form of transport was by horse-drawn phaeton. However, as tourism steadily increased animal-rights activists became increasingly concerned about the horses' welfare and so the phaetons were withdrawn in favour of electric vehicles. The island is served by Şehir Hatları ferries from Kabataş and

Eminönü Eminönü, historically known as Pérama, is a predominantly commercial waterfront area of Istanbul within the Fatih district near the confluence of the Golden Horn with the southern entrance of the Bosphorus strait and the Sea of Marmara. It is l ...

on the European side of İstanbul and

Kadıköy Kadıköy () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district on the Asian side of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 25 km2, and its population is 467,919 (2023). It is a large and populous area in the Asian si ...

and Bostanci on the Asian side.

Geography

Heybeli only covers 2.35 sqm but has four hills - Ümit Tepesi (Hope Hill, 85m/278 ft), Değirmen Tepesi (Mill Hill, 136m/446 ft), Köy Tepesi (Village Hill, 128m/420 ft) and Baltıcıoğlu Tepes (Woodcutter's Son Hill, 98m/322 ft). Climate Data Heybeliada is a place where winters are quite mild. In the coldest month, the day is 9 degrees and the night is 6 degrees, and there is almost no frost throughout the year. The lowest temperature in winter is 0 degrees. This climate supports many tropical plants. Therefore, species such as Bougainvillea, Duranta Erecta, Brugmansia and Canna Indica grow easily on the island.

Attractions

The island's main attractions in summer are small-scale open-air concerts and a swimming and fitness club beside the sea. The annual Independence Day march on 29 October is celebrated by the resident naval band touring the island. A large Naval High School, originally founded in 1773, overlooks the jetty. In its grounds is ''Kamariotissa'', the only remaining

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

church on the island, and, more importantly, the last church to be built before the conquest of

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. It is not open to the public. Also in the grounds is the grave of Edward Barton, the second English Ambassador sent to Constantinople by

Elizabeth I of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

, who spent his last days on Heybeli to escape an outbreak of plague raging through the city in 1598. His gravestone was later relocated to the British War Graves Cemetery in the

Haydarpaşa Haydarpaşa is a locality 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 and ...

quarter of

Üsküdar Üsküdar () is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 35 km2, and its population is 524,452 (2022). It is a large and densely populated district on the Anatolian (Asian) shore of the Bosphorus. It is border ...

. The monastery of Hagios Georgios tou Kremnou (St George on the Cliff) was founded in the late 16th century and was often used as a haven for the local Greek population when plague hit the mainland. Another monastery, built in the late 19th century and dedicated to Hagios Spyridon, is in ruins. Mavromatakis Köşkü, a house belonging to

İsmet İnönü Mustafa İsmet İnönü (24 September 1884 – 25 December 1973) was a Turkish politician and military officer who served as the second List of Presidents of Turkey, president of Turkey from 1938 to 1950, and as its Prime Minister of Turkey, pr ...

, the second President of Turkey who was a regular visitor to the island, is sometimes open as a museum. In the centre of Halki Town is the Greek Orthodox church of Hagios Nikoloas (St Nicholas), built in 1857 on the site of an older Byzantine church. It contains a spring (''ayazma'') dedicated to Hagia Paraskevi. Nearby are the Ben Yazkor synagogue and Heybeliada Cami, their proximity recalling more cosmopolitan times. Like

Büyükada Büyükada (, rendered ''Prinkipos'' or ''Prinkipo''), meaning "Big Island" in Turkish, is the largest of the Princes' Islands in the Sea of Marmara, near Istanbul, with an area of about . It is made up of the Maden and Nizam neighbourhoods in ...

, Heybeliada has many fine 19th-century mansions especially on Lozan Zeferi and Refah Şehitler Streets. They are all listed in John Freely's book on the islands. Published in 2006 Mary Ann Whitten's book, ''An Island in Istanbul: At Home on Heybeliada'', recounts the story of an American couple who bought one of the old houses to live in.

The Halki Seminary

On Ümit Tepesi (Hope Hill) in the centre of the island is the

Greek Orthodox Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

of Hagia Triada (; "Monastery of the Holy Trinity"). Its origins are shrouded in mystery but it was restored by patriarch

Photios I of Constantinople Photius I of Constantinople (, ''Phōtios''; 815 – 6 February 893), also spelled ''Photius''Fr. Justin Taylor, essay "Canon Law in the Age of the Fathers" (published in Jordan Hite, T.O.R., and Daniel J. Ward, O.S.B., "Readings, Cases, Mate ...

who was buried there in the 9th century. The monastery was destroyed in 1453 but rebuilt and given an extensive library in 1550. It burned down again in 1821, and was finally reconstructed by patriarch

Germanus IV of Constantinople Germanus IV of Constantinople (; 1788 – 16 September 1853) served two terms as Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, from 1842 to 1845 and from 1852 until his death on 16 September 1853. In 1826–1830, he was bishop of Vidin, then bishop ...

in 1844 when it became home to the Halki Theological Seminary () of the

Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (, ; ; , "Roman Orthodox Patriarchate, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul") is one of the fifteen to seventeen autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is heade ...

, the main Greek Orthodox

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

in Turkey. In 1894 it was again destroyed, this time by an earthquake, only to be rebuilt two years later by Perikles Photiades. The Seminary has had a very chequered history and in 1971, parts of Turkey's Private University Law were ruled unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court, forcing all private institutions of higher education to become parts of state universities or close down. Halki's Board of Trustees refused to let it become part of the

University of Istanbul Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks, it was reformed as the fi ...

so the seminary was shuttered. Its closure made it impossible to train any more Greek Orthodox clergy within Turkey and has proved very controversial, with President Erdoğan suggesting in 2021 that it might be reopened independently if Greece improved conditions for the Turkish Muslim population of Thrace.

Famous Residents of Heybeliada

* İsmet Inönü, second president of Turkey * Edward Barton, second ambassador of Queen Elizabeth I to Constantinople *

Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpınar Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpınar (August 17, 1864 – March 8, 1944) was a Turkish writer, civil servant, and politician. Biography Born in Istanbul, Gürpınar was the son of a family close to the Ottoman court. Having lost his mother at an early ...

, Turkish novelist and politician * Nicodemus I, patriarch of Jerusalem * Ahmet Rasım, Turkish writer and historian

References

External links