Royal digs

THERE are three structures that define the Istanbul skyline.

There’s the Blue Mosque and its six minarets, the sturdy wings of Hagia Sophia’s crowned by a grand dome, and the regal structures of Topkapi Palace.

Topkapi Palace – the complex built by Mehmet II between 1459 and 1465 as a humble abode on the shores of The Bosphorus – was on the itinerary today and I spent a couple of hours fighting a swarm of tourists to explore this iconic Istanbul abode.

Rather than throwing up a single structure, Mehmet built a collection of pavilions set in four regal courtyards with the assorted rooms and gardens designed to look like a "stone version of the tented encampments from which the nomadic Ottomans had emerged".

The first courtyard was for the public – with a mint, a hospital, schools, and even a bakery – while the second courtyard was a little more exclusive and the spot where the entrance to the harem was located as well as the compound of kitchens that cooked the Mehmet’s meals.

The third courtyard was the place Mehmet was all business and home to his library, the building where subjects were granted an audience with the big boss, and the Privy Chamber where some of Islam’s holiest relics are now on display.

The library in the third courtyard was my favourite space, and when I visited today the sun was pushing through the stained-glass windows with the smoky beams of light falling on the stone and wood surfaces that decorated this peaceful space.

I’m sure that library has changed a lot since the days of the Ottoman Empire, when sultans of all shapes and sizes would seek sanctuary to study and find the answers to the questions that came with ruling a settlement that sat at the crossroads between Asia and Europe, but I could imagine the robust men sitting on the colourful cushions.

The fourth courtyard, another pretty garden dotted with yet more pavilions, was his private haven and the one corner of the palace kept quiet so Mehmet could contemplate the challenges of ruling the Ottoman Empire and enjoy the view over two continents.

The buildings in the fourth courtyard were decorated with the elegant blue Iznik tiles that seem to define both Istanbul and the greatest days of the Ottoman Empire, with every surface so carefully decorated it looked like an intricate tapestry or mural.

Murat IV, one of the royal rulers that followed in Mehmet’s footsteps to live in Topkapi, added to the fourth courtyard during his days in residence building the Baghdad Pavilion in 1639 to celebrate his capture of the Persian settlement during one of his warmongering campaigns.