Levantine Mansions Of İzmir
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Levantine mansions of İzmir () refer to about thirty stately residences in
İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
,
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 ...
, dating principally from the 19th century and of which a significant number remain intact by being restored and continuing to be used and visited. These residences differ from the traditional Ottoman mansions ( konak) in the city by a number of features, as well as by their history. The families who owned them, the notable visitors they hosted in these houses, their testimonial destinies through the historic events of the city, make them an important part of İzmir's common heritage. Levantine mansions were the favoured residential quarters for the city's richer classes of
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origins and are mostly situated in the modern-day metropolitan districts of Buca and
Bornova Bornova is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 220 km2, and its population is 454,470 (2022). It is the third largest district in İzmir's metropolitan area and is almost fully urbanized at ...
, which are located slightly inland, or in the case of a few built more recently, in the coastal district of
Karşıyaka Karşıyaka () is a municipality and district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 51 km2, and its population is 346,264 (2022). The district extends for twelve kilometres along the northern and eastern coastline of the tip of the Gulf of ...
.


Origins

Although the term "
Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...
" was used more frequently, as an imprecise geographical notion, in reference to the region considered to be starting from the easternmost shores of the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
, roughly covering present-day
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
, the historic community generally known under the denomination of the "Levantines" gained prominence principally in
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 ...
,
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
and
Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
. The term became current in
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as of the 16th century, along with the first merchant adventurers in the region and the
Levant Company The Levant Company was an English chartered company formed in 1592. Elizabeth I of England approved its initial charter on 11 September 1592 when the Venice Company (1583) and the Turkey Company (1581) merged, because their charters had expired, ...
. It was applied primarily, but not exclusively, to people of Venetian, Genoese, French, or other Mediterranean origin who lived in
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 ...
and its former provinces since the Ottoman period. During the 19th century and early 20th century,
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,
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, as well as people who were originally issued from the
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or
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Ottoman minorities or even Turks, also followed suit, as long as they could introduce themselves to the tightly knit community. And although they usually shunned the term, it could be applied to settlers of
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or American background as well, in function of their adoption of the elusive Levantine culture and lifestyle or integration into the local economy and social life. Typical Levantines acted at the top of the hierarchy of class of intermediaries governing the relations of the Ottoman Empire with the outside world; coming before, generally richer than, and individually collaborating and socially in competition with the locals, all on the background of the decline of the Empire, in a regime characterized by the capitulations and other privileges, foreign debt and outside intervention into politics. Practically extinguished in the course of the political upheavals that shook Egypt and Lebanon in the 20th century, Levantine background and culture remains the most vivacious in Turkey, where it is considered one of the inherent elements of the overall social tissue. While many migrated back to
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, many others continue to live in
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 ...
(mostly in the districts of
Beyoğlu Beyoğlu (; ) is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 9 km2, and its population is 225,920 (2022). It is on the European side of Istanbul, Turkey, separated from the o ...
and Nişantaşı) and
İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
(mostly in the districts of
Bornova Bornova is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 220 km2, and its population is 454,470 (2022). It is the third largest district in İzmir's metropolitan area and is almost fully urbanized at ...
and Buca). They characteristically preserve intense international ties.


Bornova

Bornova was favoured very early by European/Levantine merchants and foreign consuls who sought to flee the sometimes stagnantly hot summer weather in central
İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
to seek the cooler breeze of the slopes of the Mount Yamanlar on the immediate slopes of which the town of Bornova started out, at a distance of about five kilometers inland starting from the tip of the
Gulf of İzmir The Gulf of İzmir (), formerly known as the Gulf of Smyrna, is a gulf on the Aegean Sea, with its inlet between the Karaburun Peninsula and the mainland area of Foça. It is in length by in breadth, with an excellent anchorage. The city of İz ...
. This move by the rich and by foreign representatives was actually at the origin of the growth of the town in the 19th century, which used to be a small forestry village till then. The residences these new settlers built at that time, and most of which have come to our day and saw restoration, carry the prestigious names of former owners as Whittall, Maltass, Peterson, Giraud, Edwards, Belhomme, Pandespanian. There is a small
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named the "Church of Santa Maria", also dating from the 19th century, in the main square of Bornova, as well as an
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-
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chapel. The "Grand House" in Bornova was that of the Whittall family of merchants, who originated in
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, and of whom the first generation is attested to have come to Turkey in the first quarter of the 19th century. On a visit to İzmir, the sultan
Abdülaziz Abdulaziz (; ; 8 February 18304 June 1876) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 25 June 1861 to 30 May 1876, when he was 1876 Ottoman coup d'état, overthrown in a government coup. He was a son of Sultan Mahmud II and succeeded his brother ...
stayed in their house on 20 April 1863, as well as the
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(later King
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) in 1886 for several days. Their mansion serves today as the rectorate building of
Ege University Ege University or Aegean University () is a public research university in Bornova, İzmir. It was founded in 1955 with the faculties of Medicine and Agriculture. It is the first university to start courses in İzmir and the fourth oldest unive ...
but is not closed to visitors who may drop by. Pandespanian mansion is managed by the same university as a restaurant-café, while the more discreet residences of Steinbuchel and Giraud played important roles in Turkey's power spheres. The day after the re-capture of İzmir by the
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,
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stayed in the Steinbuchel mansion, owned in 1922 by the English Wood family. A descendant of the Giraud family, Caroline Giraud Koç is the spouse of Mustafa Koç, the president of
Koç Holding Koç Holding A.Ş. () is a Turkish multinational industrial conglomerate headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey. It operates as the country's largest company, and the only to be listed on the Fortune Global 500 as of 2024. Koç Holding's contributio ...
which is one of the largest family-owned industrial conglomerates in the world. There are several other 19th-century houses of note, such as the Paggy, Charnaud, Kanalaki, Barry and Maltass houses and the Well house. Maltass house is the residence of the mayor of İzmir, Aziz Kocaoğlu. A special mention should be made for the Paterson Mansion (built in 1859), half-restored and the other half in decay, and which commands a large park in the heart of Bornova.


Buca

Buca, situated slightly inland like Bornova, on the higher ground that commands the southern shores of the tip of the Gulf of İzmir, started to develop as of the end of the 17th century when the French consulate in İzmir moved there following the 1676 plague and the 1688 earthquake that seriously shook İzmir's core as an international trade center. Its rich Levantine residents who acquired the surrounding
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typically had
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backgrounds, as opposed to those who originally came from
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and who preferred Bornova. But in the case both of Bornova and of Buca, the concentration in terms of respective backgrounds was far from having an exclusive nature. The most famous and imposing 19th-century residence in Buca is that of the David Forbes the younger, of MacAndrews and Forbes, Licorice manufacturers fame. Situated on the top of a hill, the mansion has an impressive appearance and view and is being very slowly restored. Buca municipalityMunicipality of Buca
Photographs of the residences and the park plans to coincide the restoration with the development of a vast park comprising seven artificial lakes in order to thematize the whole quarter comprising a dozen 19th-century residences. A persisting rumor attributes the unusual curve traced in Buca by the
İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
-
Aydın Aydın ( ''EYE-din''; ; formerly named ''Güzelhisar; Greek: Τράλλεις)'' is a city in and the seat of Aydın Province in Turkey's Aegean Region. The city is located at the heart of the lower valley of Büyük Menderes River (ancient ...
railway, completed in 1866 and crossing right in front of mansions, to the influence of the Forbes family, who would have wanted it closer to their residence for easier rides. But that accomplishment is disputed by the Rees and Baltazzi families who also left magnificent residences to Buca and who claim the curve to be of their own making. The Baltazzis are no other than the maternal family of Baroness Maria Vetsera, of
Mayerling Incident The Mayerling incident is the series of events surrounding the apparent murder–suicide suicide pact, pact of Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria, and his mistress, baroness Mary Vetsera. They were found dead on 30 January 1889 in an imperial ...
fame.


Karşıyaka

The three most important Levantine landmarks still existing in
Karşıyaka Karşıyaka () is a municipality and district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 51 km2, and its population is 346,264 (2022). The district extends for twelve kilometres along the northern and eastern coastline of the tip of the Gulf of ...
are the Alliotti, Van Der Zee and Löhner mansions. The first was built by a prominent family of
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origins in 1914 and was exchanged in the 1920s, when the family was moving to the then
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
island of
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, with the property there belonging to Durmuş Yaşar, the founder of Yaşar Holding and a Dodecanese Turk, who was moving into İzmir from that island. The mansion is known today under Durmuş Yaşar's name and serves as a cultural center. The two others are recently restored, and the first floor of the Van Der Zee mansion has been put by th
Municipality of Karşıyaka
to the service of the public in the form of a
café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargi ...
(Eski Ev Café).


Footnotes


Sources

*


External links


Levantine Heritage: The story of a community
{{DEFAULTSORT:Levantine Mansions Of Izmir Buildings and structures in İzmir Tourist attractions in İzmir Ottoman architecture in Izmir Italian Levantines