Akbaba Mahallesi

Who was Akbaba Sultan? Akbaba Mahallesi in Istanbul holds the answer. This neighborhood, just 5 kilometers from Beykoz, cradles the tomb of a revered figure. Akbaba Sultan, also known as Akbaba Mehmed Efendi or Akmehmet Efendi, was a Bektashi Sufi baba. He played a role in the Conquest of Constantinople and served as a mentor to Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror. After the conquest, Akbaba Sultan retreated to this valley. It was known for its abundant springs. He established a tekke, a Sufi lodge, with his dervish followers. The tekke saw a revival under Naqshbandi Shaykh Abdulhakim Efendi of Bukhara between 1876 and 1889. Akbaba Mahallesi also boasts the Canfeda Hatun Mosque. Canfeda Hatun was an attendant to Sultan Murad III’s mother. She completed the mosque’s construction in 1588. The Sufi complex faced periods of closure and revival. The Auspicious Incident of 1826 led to the closure of Bektashi lodges. The tekke’s followers were exiled. Decades later, during Sultan Abdulhamid II’s reign, Abdulkadir Pasha, commander of Istanbul’s central command, entrusted the complex to Shaykh Abdulhakim. The complex was rebuilt. After Shaykh Abdulhakim’s death in 1889, he was buried near Akbaba Sultan. The area became the Akbaba Cemetery. The legacy continued with his son, Ahmed Mansur Mukerrem Efendi, until 1925. A law passed that year declared tekkes illegal. The mosque and its attached harem section survived. The harem became an imam’s office. The mosque was restored in the 2000s with support from President Erdogan’s AK Party. Another restoration in the 2010s preserved its wooden structure and stone foundation. Akbaba Mahallesi, once a place of spiritual retreat, now blends history with modern life. It remains a testament to Akbaba Sultan and those who followed.