Category: Educational
Type: University
Location: Harbiye, Taşkışla Ave. Şişli
Date: 1846-1852
Designer: Williams James Smith
Period: Ottoman Empire
Photos: Aksan İnşaat (aksan-insaat.com), Kaan Çorbacı
The building was constructed between 1846 and 1852 by the British architect William James Smith and his assistant, the Ottoman foreman Stefan, originally intended as a hospital for the Imperial Medical School (Mekteb-i Tıbbiye-i Şahane). During the Crimean War (1853–1856), it served as a medical facility for the wounded soldiers of the French, who were allies of the Ottoman Empire. Having fallen into a state of neglect due to remaining vacant for an extended period after the war, the structure was renovated in 1860 and repurposed as a military barracks. It later became a site of significant conflict during the March 31 Incident, witnessing clashes between the Hunter Battalion stationed within and the units of the Action Army. Following the establishment of the Republic, the building was transferred to the Ministry of Education. After undergoing an extensive restoration and reorganization process between 1943 and 1950, it was allocated to Istanbul Technical University, housing the Rectorate and the Faculties of Architecture and Civil Engineering in 1950. In 1983, the High Council of Real Estate Antiquities and Monuments officially designated it as a first-degree historical monument to be preserved in its original state.
