Şazeli Tekke Mosque

Audio Narration

Construction Year:

18th-19th century

Location:

Fatih, İstanbul

Ordered by:

Ahmed Halil Ağa

Architects:

Unknown

- Changes after its construction
  • t was built as a dervish lodge, a mosque and a tevhidhane (the name given to the place where rituals are performed and daily prayers are performed in dervish lodges).
  • It suffered a fire in the third quarter of the 19th century and was rebuilt by Sultan Abdulhamid II in 1886-1887.
  • The building, which was left abandoned after the dervish lodges were closed in 1925, was used for illegitimate purposes for many years and became a shelter for the drunkards in the area.
  • The mosque was used as a club building by the Zeyrek Sports Club for a while but was evacuated by court order in 1988.
  • In 1989, it was reopened for worship on the Laylat al-Qadr of Ramadan with the support of philanthropist Osman Topbaş.
  • In 2023, the courtyard gate of the mosque and the inscription on it were restored by Fatih Municipality.
- Prominent features
  • The first sheikh of the lodge was El-Hac Ahmed Efendi, who passed away in 1826.
  • It is one of the first lodges representing the Shadhili Sufi Order in Istanbul.
  • It has a rectangular plan, its walls are made of stone and brick, and its roof is made of wood.
  • The ceiling is covered with concrete and wood.
  • The minaret has a structure that can be accessed from the outside and is made of concrete, like the women’s gallery.
  • Its mihrab is covered with Kütahya tiles and has the inscription “Ya Seyyid el-Imam Ali Ebu’l-Hasan eş-Şazeli” on it.
  • There are two windows on each wall.
  • The rectangular window and door openings are surrounded by jambs made of limestone.
  • Its minbar is made of wood and decorated with decorative motifs.
  • The inscription above the courtyard gate of the mosque bears the signature of Sultan Abdulhamid II.
  • It has a very large garden and there are entrances from two sides.
  • The main entrance door of the mosque is single and located in the middle.