Yıldız Palace opens doors after 6 years of restoration

ISTANBUL

Yıldız Palace, the last palace of the Ottoman Empire, will be inaugurated after six years of restoration works today, with visitors able to delve into the history and charm of the palace from July 20 onward.

"I wish our Yıldız Palace, which we have restored to its former splendor and beauty and put at the disposal of our nation, to be auspicious and prosperous," President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said during the ceremony held in Istanbul's Beşiktaş district.

A press conference was recently held regarding the renovation process of the Yıldız Palace complex, which was built during the reign of Sultan Selim III and expanded and turned into a state palace during the reign of Sultan Abdulhamid II.

The Department of National Palaces President Yasin Yıldız mentioned the importance of the opening of the complex in terms of Türkiye's historical and cultural heritage and said, "We announce that one of the five largest palaces that have survived from the Ottoman Empire in our country will meet our local and foreign visitors.”

Emphasizing that the palace has been closed to visitors for approximately 100 years, Yıldız said: “After 1924, Yıldız Palace was evaluated in different ways with different missions under the administration of various state institutions. For this reason, it was not open to visitors. Some work has been done in certain parts for many years, but each institution has different operating systems, restoration practices and opportunities. For this reason, these studies remained distant from our society. In 2015, the structures of Yıldız Palace, which were distributed among eight different institutions as of that date, were brought together. Then, in 2018, the Presidency of National Palaces took over the works."

Adding that this is a historical point for Türkiye, Yıldız said, "We made great achievements during the restoration works carried out here for five and a half years with the efforts of hundreds of people. We have largely completed the restoration of the palace section.”

Speaking about the ticket prices of the palace, Yıldız said, "The places belonging to the National Palaces can be visited free of charge for a certain period of time when they are first opened. We have not determined an entrance fee for this place at the moment. But we always have the Museum Card facility for our citizens. So, we welcome all our visitors here.”

Yıldız stated that the Edirne Palace, whose restoration has been ongoing under the leadership of the National Palaces Scientific Board since 2022, will be opened to visitors in the coming years, too.

Yıldız Palace will accept visitors starting from July 20.

Located on top of a steep hill overlooking the Bosphorus, the Yıldız Palace was the seat of the Ottoman government and the residence of Sultan Abdülhamid II for 33 years (1876-1909). The property is a vast complex of pavilions and gardens surrounding the courtyards and designed in different styles.

Many years of restoration, conservation and landscaping works have been completed in the palace; many buildings, including the "Great Mabeyn Pavilion," "Çit Pavilion," "Small Mabeyn Pavilion" and "Harem Room," will meet visitors for the first time in its history.

The Great Mabeyn Pavilion, where foreign dignitaries were hosted during the Ottoman period, served for Presidential receptions until recently.

The garden, called "Hamid Garden" in history, which attracts with its plant diversity, natural river-like waterway and landscape design, can also be visited.

Among the buildings that will be opened to visitors for the first time are the "Limonluk," "Turkish Bath," "Selim III Fountain," "Island Pavilion" and "Cihannüma Pavillion.”

Works that shed light on the life, personality and leadership of Sultan Abdulhamid II, the library and carpentry shop identified with him, which are among the largest in Europe and the Middle East, as well as photographs selected from the Yıldız Albums, will be presented to visitors for the first time.

Thousands of rare works — from military to geography, from philosophy to espionage novels, from astronomy to botany and zoology — were unearthed in the library section.