“A palace fit for a poet,” they said of Adile Sultan Sarayı. Here before us stands the former royal residence of Ottoman princess Adile Sultan. It is now a cultural center in Istanbul’s Kandilli neighborhood.
Adile Sultan Sarayı’s story began with Sultan Mahmud II. He was the father of Adile Sultan. Later, Sultans Abdülmecid I and Abdülaziz were her brothers. Court architect Sarkis Balyan designed the palace. It replaced a kiosk given to her by Sultan Abdülmecid in 1856. Sultan Abdülaziz commissioned the palace. Balyan built it in 1861.
Perched atop a hill on the Bosphorus’ Asian shore, Adile Sultan Sarayı commands attention. Its location offers panoramic views. You can see from the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea. This is possible from all three sides of the building. The palace has 55 rooms. It sits on 17000 square meters of land.
Adile Sultan was no ordinary princess. She was a great poet. She even had a Diwan. She lived here until her husband Mehmet Ali Pasha died in 1868. After her own death in 1899, she donated the palace to the state. It was to be used as a girls’ high school.
However, the palace briefly served the Ministry of War during World War I. In 1916, it became Adile Sultan İnas Mekteb-i Sultanisi. This translates to “Adile Sultan Imperial Girls School.” The first class graduated in 1920. In 1924, the school was renamed Kandilli Secondary School. It later became Kandilli High School for Girls in 1931. This was a respected institution.
In 1969, the high school classes moved to a new building. The old palace became a dormitory. It housed boarding girls until 1986. A devastating electrical fire left only the four walls standing.
But the story doesn’t end in ashes. Alumni of Kandilli High School formed a foundation. They raised funds to rebuild Adile Sultan Sarayı. Billionaire Sakıp Sabancı and Governor Muammer Güler provided crucial financial support. Sabancı donated funds shortly before his death in 2004.
After ten years of restoration costing 9.5 million YTL, Adile Sultan Sarayı reopened on June 28, 2006. Today, the building is named “Sakıp Sabancı Kandilli Education and Culture Center.”
The palace now covers 5,625 square meters. It features an oval hall for 500 people. Two halls accommodate 200 each. There is also a 1,300 square meter hall for cocktails and exhibitions. Twenty seminar rooms seat 30-40 people. A museum, a dining hall for 150, and a cafeteria for 60 are also inside. The palace garden can host 2,000 people.
So as you wander through Adile Sultan Sarayı, remember its journey. It was a princess’s home. It was a school. It was a ruin. Now, it is a symbol of Istanbul’s enduring spirit. It is a place of education and culture for all to enjoy.