Turkey‘s largest and most magnificent railway station, Haydarpasa was built in the early 20th century by the German architects Otto Ritter and Helmuth Cuno. A monument to the close Turkish-German relations of the time, the station is in neo-renaissance style and has a U-plan. The inauguration ceremony took place on 19 August 1908, just after the proclamation of the Second Constitution.
The façade is revested in textured sandstone, and the main façade overlooking Kadikoy Bay rests on a foundation of 1100 timber piles. The steep pitched roof is slated, and the interior is decorated with trailing foliage cartouches and garlands, and stained glass window. The ceiling of the circular room at the base of the southeast tower has ribbed vaults, and the upper landings have groin vaults. Flights of marble steps lead up from the quay to the monumental façade flanked by circular turrets with conical roofs, clock tower rising in the form of a crest at the centre, baroque decoration, balconies, moulded cornices, and pilasters.
Haydarpasa Terminal is a terminus main station of the Turkish State Railways (TCDD) in Haydarpasa close to Kadikoy at the Anatolian part of Istanbul, Turkey. International, domestic and regional trains running to east- and southbound destinations depart from this major terminal which was built as the terminus of the Istanbul-Baghdad and Istanbul-Damascus-Medina railways during the final years of the Ottoman Empire.
The first station there was built in 1872 when the railroad was opened to Gebze. However, as the line was extended, traffic increased and a new and larger building was needed. Its construction started in 1906 by Otto Ritter and Helmut Conu, two German architects who chose a neo-renaissance German style. They designed a large building, much in accordance with the ambitions of the German investors who were building the Istanbul-Baghdad Railway and undertaking the consultancy works for the Istanbul-Damascus-Medina Railway. Haydarpasa was an important link in the railway chain of the Berlin-to-Baghdad railway scheme, part of the German Empire’s strategic plans to gain control over the trade routes between the East and the West in the late 19th century by building a railway connection between Germany and the Persian Gulf, thus by-passing the Suez Canal. The station was put into service on August 19, 1908 and formally inaugurated on November 4, 1909.
The structure was built on 1100 wooden piles hammered into the seabed and is therefore surrounded by water on three sides, a unique feature for a railway station. The Teutonic pseudo-castle railway station was built between 1906 and 1908 by the Anatolia-Baghdad Corporation, and was a gift to Sultan Abdulhamid II from his ally Kaiser Wilhelm II. Its foundation is 1100 wooden piles, each 21 meters long, driven into the mushy shore by steam hammer. The station building has a very distinctive style, definitely standing out in Istanbul. Thanks to its location, it has been very well preserved, even restored following the damages caused by a burning tanker ship in 1979. The building is best seen from the sea, by taking a boat that calls just in front of the station to cross the Bosphorus.
There are tombs and monuments in the Haydarpasa Cemetery near the military hospital, dedicated to the British and Commonwealth soldiers, who lost their lives during the Crimean War (1854-1856)and the two World Wars.
The northwest wing of the 19th century Selimiye Barracks, once housed the hospital, where nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale cared wounded and infected British soldiers, is turned into a museum exhibiting remains to honor her memory.
The buildings of Haydarpasa Numune Hospital, GATA Military Hospital, Dr Siyami Ersek Hospital and Haydarpasa Campus of the Marmara University (former Haydarpasa High school) are located around the station.
Port of Haydarpasa at the north is one of the main container terminals of Turkey.
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Haydarpaşa Railway Station, the beginning point of the Anatolian railways is the most important station building in Turkey on both architectural and historical characteristics. The area on which the building is standing has been covered by sea until 1903. The first building has been located about 1 km. inwards on 1872 and due to the developments on the railway between Haydarpaşa and Izmit the building became insufficient and it was decided to build a new Railway Station and a German company named “Anatolia – Baghdad Company” was commissioned with the construction and running of Haydarpasa Port and Railway Station.
The breakwater was first built and a column was put up in memoriam for the 25th year of Sultan Abdülhamid’s reigning and both the breakwater and the lighthouses are opened with a ceremony on Abdülhamid’s birthday.
The construction of the station building has begun at 1906 and finished at 1909. The area that was 2.525 square meters wide was expanded to 3.836 square meters up to day.
The building is en example of German architectural with Neo-Renaissance style. The west wing of the building is shorter while the eastern wing is a long “U” shape. There are wide corridors in the middle of the “U” shaped plan and large and high-ceilinged rooms are located on both sides of these corridors. There are peek holes opening either from outside or inside on the doors. Winged wheels, symbol of railway, are pictured to the ceilings but today the only example is on the ceiling of the “Permit Room”.
The roof of the building is wooden and very steep and covered by slate. A big clock in Baroque style stands on the roof level of southern façade. The clock-face was first fancied with a wheeled eagle wing, the symbol of German Railways. Later on, this figure has been stylized and became the symbol of Turkish Railways.
The tiles of the Gar Lokantası (Railway Station Restaurant), located on the eastern wing of the building, are the work of Master Mehmet Emin.
The building had great damage due to sabotage by exploding the ammunition to be conveyed to the fronts. The towers have been burned and hundreds of soldiers have died. The windows and historical stained glasses were broken as a result of exploding a Romanian oil tanker “Independanta” just near the breakwater in 1979. The outer façade was restored between 1973-1981 and 80% of the outer layover was renewed.
Everyday, 140 district and 28 express transfers are made reciprocally and about 100.000 passengers travel.
Reservation: Tel: (216) 336 44 70, (216) 337 87 24
Information: (216) 348 80 20/336, (216) 336 04 75, (216) 336 20 63
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