Private Bomonti Armenian Catholic Schools

Audio Narration:

Construction Year:

19th century

Location:

Şişli, İstanbul

Ordered By:

Unknown

Architect:

Unknown

Changes After Construction:
  • The building was constructed not as a school, but as a historic mansion known as “Ekrem Bey Mansion”; it was purchased by the foundation from Emine Tevfika Ayaşlı in 1958.
  • The foundation began to use the building as “Private Bomonti Armenian Catholic Primary School” from the 1964-1965 academic year onward.
  • After the lawsuit process opened in 1979, because of the loss of rights over the property, the building turned into a school building that the foundation used for a long time as a tenant on its own property; in 1985, the ownership was transferred to Ayaş Municipality.
  • Education continued through a lease agreement in 1998, and the eviction process in 1999 was stopped through social initiatives.
  • In 2022, the Constitutional Court ruled that there had been a violation of property rights; as of 2025, with the return of the title deed of the building to the foundation, the restoration and strengthening process gained speed.
  • In 2025, a process of earthquake strengthening, restoration, and infrastructure renewal was initiated for the building; in the same statement, it was stated that the building has the status of a second-degree historic monument.
Prominent Features:
  • The building is also known as “Ekrem Bey Mansion”; around the school, the name “Bomonti Mıhitaryan” is widely used.
  • Its most striking aspect is that a historic mansion was converted into a school building and that the foundation was forced to remain a tenant for many years in its own building that it had purchased. This story makes the building exceptional not only architecturally but also in terms of legal and community history.
  • Today, the building is regarded not only as a school building, but also as a mansion with second-degree historic monument status subject to preservation board procedures.