CHAPTER IV.TURKEY.

CONTENTS.

Mosques of Mahomet II.—Suleimanie and Ahmedjie Mosques—Mosques of Sultanas Validé, and of Osman III.—Civil and Domestic Architecture, Fountains, &c.

CHRONOLOGY.

Thelatter half of the 15th century witnessed some strange vicissitudes in the fate of the Mahomedan faith in Europe. In 1492 Granada was conquered, and the Moors expelled from the country which they had so long adorned by their arts, and rendered illustrious by their cultivation of the sciences. Of all the races who, at various times, have adopted the faith of Islam, the Spanish Moors seem to have been among the most enlightened and industrious, and the most capable of retaining permanently the civilisation they had acquired. They have made way for a people less progressive and more bigoted than any other population in Europe.

Before, however, this misfortune happened in the West, the fairest city of the Christian world, and its most fertile provinces, had fallen a prey to the most barbarous horde of all those who had adopted the Mahomedan religion. For two centuries the Turks had gradually been progressing westward from their original seats in Central Asia, and at last, in 1453, Constantinople itself fell into their power, and for more than a century after this, the fate of Europe trembled in the balance. The failure of the siege of Vienna (1683) turned the tide. Since that time the Christians have slowly and surely been recovering their lost ground; but the Crescent still surmounts the dome of Sta. Sophia.

Had the Turks obtained possession of Constantinople at an earlier date, it is possible that their architecture might have taken a different form from that in which we now find it. But before that eventthe foundation of St. Peter’s at Rome had already been laid. The old principles of art were already losing their hold on the architects of Europe, a revolution was taking place, and though this would hardly be much felt so far east as the Bosphorus, or materially influence strangers like the Turks, still it must have had some influence, and modified their style to some extent. Be this as it may, we are struck at Constantinople with the same phenomenon which meets us everywhere in the Mahomedan world. Wherever the various nationalities settled who had embraced that faith, they at once adopted the architectural forms of their new country, and set to work to mould and modify them, so as to bring them more into conformity with their special requirements. Nowhere do they seem to have brought their style with them, or thought of forcing that on their new subjects. In this they were wise; and it is what probably all nations would do who had any true knowledge of art, or any true feeling for its purposes. In nine cases out of ten the original people of a country find out the arrangements most suited to their climate, and the forms of construction best adapted to the materials which are available; and to attempt to substitute for these, forms suited to other climates and another class of materials, is what only an Aryan would think of doing. The Turks, though barbarous, belonged to one of the great building races of the world; and so soon as they entered Constantinople, set to work vigorously to vindicate the characteristics of the family.

Besides appropriating seven or eight of the principal churches of the city—with Sta. Sophia at the head of the list—to the new worship, Mahomet II. founded six or seven new mosques, some of them of great magnificence. The chief of these is that which still bears his name, and crowns the highest of the seven hills on which the city stands. To make way for it, he pulled down the Church of the Apostles, which had been the burying-place of the Christian emperors apparently since the time of Constantine, and was consequently an edifice of considerable magnificence. It had, however, been plundered by the Latin barbarians who sacked the city some time before the Moslems, and it was also so crippled by earthquakes as to be in a dangerous state. In order to effect his purpose, Mahomet employed Christodulos, a Christian resident in Constantinople, to erect on the spot a mosque, which he intended should surpass all others in his empire. How far he was successful we have now little means of judging. An earthquake in 1763 so completely ruined this mosque that the repairs amounted almost to a rebuilding; and as these were carried out with the quasi-Italian details of the latter half of the 18th century, its present appearance probably conveys very little idea either of the form or of the magnificence of the original building. Enough of its form, however, still remains to tell us that, like all Turkish mosques, itwas a copy of Sta. Sophia. There is, indeed, nothing in the style we are now speaking of so remarkable as the admiration which that great creation of the Christians excited in the minds of its Moslem possessors. There are in or about Constantinople at least 100 mosques erected in the four centuries during which the Turks have possessed that city. Not one of these is a pillared court, like those of Egypt or Syria, nor an arcaded square, like those of Persia or India—none are even extended basilicas, like those of Barbary or Spain. All are copies, more or less modified, of Sta. Sophia; and many of the modifications are no doubt improvements; but none are erected with the same dimensions, none possess the same wonderful richness of decoration, or approach the poetry of design, of their prototype. In all that constitutes greatness in architectural art, the Christian Church still stands unrivalled. No one who has stood beneath the dome of Sta. Sophia will hesitate to admit that the Turks were perfectly justified in their admiration of Justinian’s great creation; but the curious thing is, that no Christian ever appreciated its beauties. When, after the troubles of the 7th and 8th centuries, the Greeks again took to building churches, it was such as Sta. Irene, or the Theotokos, churches like those at Pitzounda or Ani, or those of Greece or Mount Athos. Not one single direct copy of Sta. Sophia by Christian hands exists, so far as is known, in the whole world. But the Turk saw and seized its beauties at a glance; and, by constancy to his first affection, saved his architecture from the utter feebleness which has characterized that of Western Europe during the four centuries in which he has been encamped on this side of the Bosphorus.

Among the other mosques built by Mahomet II., the most sacred is that of Eyub, the standard-bearer of the Prophet, whose body is said to have been found on the site of the mosque. Plans and drawings of this mosque might easily have been obtained while our armies occupied Constantinople during the Crimean war; but the opportunity was neglected, and all we have to depend upon is an eye-sketch by Ali Bey.[165]As the mosque in which each Sultan on his accession is girt with the sacred sword, and as the most holy in the empire, it would be interesting to know more about it, but we must wait.

The mosque of Bayazid, 1497-1505, is of the usual type, but not characterized by any extraordinary magnificence. In the mosque of Selim, 1520-26, the dome and its pendentives are carried by eight octagonal piers, reverting therefore to the principle of St. Sergius as regards supports; these piers, however, stand free within the walls, so that there is apparently greater space provided; the dome has a diameter of 108 ft., being the largest built by the Turks, that of Suleimanie mosque being 93 ft. in diameter, and of Sultan Ahmed 63 ft.

Suleimanie.

All these were, however, surpassed by that which was erected by Suleiman the Magnificent, between the years 1550-1555. It is still quite perfect in all its constructive parts, and little altered in detail; and as there is every reason to suppose that it equalled, or even surpassed, all others of its class, if it be illustrated the rest will be easily understood.

997. Plan of Suleimanie Mosque. (By Texier.) Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.

As will be seen from the plan,[166]the mosque itself is nearly square, 225 ft. by 205 over all externally, and covering between 45,000 and 46,000 sq. ft. In front is a forecourt, 150 ft. by 190 internally, surrounded by an arcade on all sides, and containing the fountains, which are the indispensable accompaniment of all mosques. Behind is the “garden” containing the tomb of the founder and those of his favourite wife and other members of the family. All this, properly speaking, is one design and onebuilding; and all these parts are requisite to complete the establishment of a great imperial mosque.

998. Section of Suleimanie Mosque. (By Texier.) Scale 50 ft. to 1 in.

Internally the construction rests on four great piers of pleasing and appropriate design; and the screen of windows on each side, under the great lateral arches of the dome, is borne by four monolithic shafts of porphyry of great beauty. These formerly supported statues in the hippodrome, and most probably were brought originally from Egypt. Each is 28 ft. in height, or, with the base and capital, 35 ft. The dome itself is 86 ft. in diameter internally, and 156 ft. in height. This seems even a better proportion of height to diameter than that of Sta. Sophia, though the dimensions are so much less that it has not, of course, the same grandeur of effect. At Sta. Sophia the dome is 108 ft. in diameter, and 175 ft. in height, or 21 and 19 ft. more respectively. These smaller dimensions, as well as the absence in the mosque of all the mosaic magnificence of the church, and the presence of a good deal of modern vulgarity, render it extremely difficult to institute any fair comparison between the two buildings. On the whole, it may, perhaps, be said with truth, that the mosque is more perfect mechanically than the church; that the constructive parts are better disposed and better proportioned; but that, for artistic effect and poetry of design, the church still far surpasses its rival, in so far at least as the interior is concerned.

999. View of Suleimanie Mosque. (From a Photograph by Bedford.)

Externally the mosque suffers, like all the buildings of the capital, from the badness of the materials with which it is constructed. Its walls are covered with stucco, its dome with lead, and all the sloping abutments of the dome, though built with masonry, have also to be protected by a metal covering. This, no doubt, detracts from the effect; but still the whole is so massive—every window, every dome, every projection, is so truthful, and tells so exactly the purpose for which it was placed where we find it—that the general result is most satisfactory, and as impressive an external effect has been produced with one-half the expense of adornment requisite for a Gothic building of the same pretensions.

The tomb of the founder, which stands in the garden behind, avoids these defects. It is built in marble of various colours, and every detail is most carefully elaborated. It is too small—only 46 ft. in diameter externally—to produce any grandeur of effect; but it suffices to show that the architects of those days were quite competent to produce satisfactory designs for the exteriors of their buildings, if they had found appropriate materials in which to execute them.

Next in importance to the Suleimanie, among the Imperial mosques of Constantinople, is that which the Sultan Ahmed commencedA.D.1608. The mosque itself is in plan somewhat larger than the preceding, measuring 235 ft. by 210, and covering nearly 50,000 sq. ft.; but it is inferior both in design and in the richness or taste of its decorations. As will be seen from the plan (Woodcut No.1000), it deviates still further than the Suleimanie from the design of Sta. Sophia; and in the exact ratio in which it diverges from that type, does it fail in producing an artistic effect. Its great defect is, that it is too mechanically regular. In the nave of Sta. Sophia the proportion of length to breadth is practically as two-and-a-half to one. In the Suleimanie it is nearly two to one, but the Ahmedjie is absolutely square. Without asking for the extreme difference between length and breadth which prevails in Gothic cathedrals, a design must have sides—there must be some point towards which the effect tends. In this mosque, as in the Pantheon at Rome, if the plan were divided into quarters, each of the four quadrants would be found to be identical, and the effect is consequently painfully mechanical and prosaic. The design of each wall is also nearly the same; they have the same number of windows spaced in the same manner, and the side of the Kibleh is scarcely more richly decorated than the others. Add to this, that all the windows are glazed with white glass, and that, above the marble wainscotting, whitewash has been unsparingly employed, and it will be easy to understand how the mosque fails in producing the effect which might fairly be expected from its dimensions and the general features of its design. Still, a hall nearly200 ft. square, with a stone roof supported by only four great fluted piers, is a grand and imposing object, and has very narrowly missed producing the effect its builders were aiming at.

The external effect is more pleasing than the internal; the mode in which the smaller domes and semi-domes lead up to the centre produces a pyramidal effect that gives a very pleasing air of stability to the outline, and the six tall minarets go far to relieve what otherwise might be monotonous. It is said that this is the only mosque in the Moslem world which has so many of these graceful adjuncts, except the mosque at Mecca, which has seven. The Suleimanie and Sta. Sophia have four; most of the others two, and some only one; but, whatever their number, the form of all is nearly identical with those of the Suleimanie (Woodcut No.999). They are graceful, no doubt, but infinitely inferior to those of Cairo, or, indeed, of any country where this form of tower was long employed. We do not know whence the Turks first got this form, and it is very difficult to understand why they persevered so long in adhering to it, after so many other more beautiful forms had been introduced among their co-religionists in other countries. But so it is; and everywhere its tall extinguisher roof is one of the first objects that warns the traveller that he has passed within the boundaries of the Turkish Empire.

1000. Plan of Ahmedjie Mosque. (By Texier.) Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.

Though very much smaller than those just described, that known as the Prince’s Mosque is one of the most pleasing in Constantinople. It was erected in 1548, by order of Sultan Suleiman, by the samearchitect—Sinan—who designed the great mosque, and who seems to have been the great architect of the reign of that magnificent monarch. The smaller mosque was erected in memory of his son Mahomet, and as a place of burial for him; and another of his sons—Mustafa—was also laid by his side. In accordance with this destination, this mosque bore a more solemn and gloomier aspect than the great mosques of the city. Their principal defect is the glare introduced through their numerous scattered windows, a defect which in this mosque is remedied with the most satisfactory results.

There are three imperial mosques in the city erected by Sultanas, and all bearing the name of Valide, which has given rise to some confusion in describing them. The most important of them is that at the end of the bridge of boats near the harbour, known as the “Mosque at the Garden Gates.” It is somewhat late in date (1665), and has been a good deal whitewashed and otherwise disfigured; but on the whole it is of more artistic design than that of Ahmed, and, when fresh, must have been, for its size, as pleasing as any of the mosques in the city.

The Turks adhered so long to this form, and repeated it over and over again with so little variation, that it is extremely difficult to draw a line between what may be said to belong to the Middle Ages, and what to modern times. As late, for instance, as 1755 the Sultan Osman III. erected a mosque in the Bazaar, which externally is as pleasing as any of those in the city, and it requires a very keen eye to detect anything which would indicate that it is more modern than those of the age of Suleiman. It has the peculiarity, however, that there are no semi-domes, and the light is introduced through screens under all the four great arches of the central dome. In another locality the effect might be pleasing, but in the latitude of Constantinople the result is a glare of light which aggravates the usual defect of these designs. Even the Turks seem to feel this, as the mosque is generally known by the name of Nur Osmanlie, or Lantern of Osman, a designation which too correctly describes its leading characteristics.

As about one-tenth part of Constantinople is burnt down every year, and the flames visit each quarter in tolerably regular succession, it would be in vain to look for anything worthy of the name of architecture among the temporary wooden structures dignified by the name of the “palaces” of the nobles. Partly from the jealousy of the Government, or partly, it may be, because the Turks have never felt quite secure in their European possessions, they never seem to have affected anything of a permanent character in their dwellings.It might, however, be expected that in the palace of the Sultan something better would be found; but there are few things more disappointing than a visit to the Seraglio. In situation it is unrivalled, and it has been the habitation of powerful and luxurious sovereigns for more than fifteen centuries, yet it contains nothing that is worthy of admiration, and hardly anything that is even interesting from its associations. There is nothing within the enclosure which will stand comparison even with the plaster glories of the Alhambra; and the contemporary palaces of Persia, or of Delhi and Agra, surpass it to such an extent as to render comparison impossible.

There is one pavilion, the walls of which are covered with Persian tiles, which is pleasing, both from its form and the mode of decoration. Besides this, the various halls being separate buildings and grouped without formality together, the effect of the whole is picturesque, though neither as parts nor as a whole have they any architectural merit.

Among the minor objects of architectural art none are more pleasing than the fountains which frequently adorn the public places in the provincial cities as well as in the capital; though their outline is by no means remarkable for beauty. They are generally a square block with a niche on each face, from a spout in which the water flows. The whole is crowned by a very deep cornice constructed in wood, but without any brackets or apparent means of support, which true architectural taste so inevitably demands. Their beauty, in consequence, depends almost wholly on their ornamentation. That, however, is of the most elaborate character, and not only pleasing in form, but rich in colour; of the same character, in fact, as that of the Alhambra, and pleasing from the same cause, in spite of defects in form.

It is probable that if the country towns, especially on the Asiatic side of the Bosphorus, were examined with care, examples might be found of domestic architecture exhibiting more care, and of a more permanent character than any in the capital. The true Turk evidently loves art, and has an instinctive appreciation of the harmonies of colour—probably, also, of form; and, if allowed an opportunity, would have produced much that is beautiful in architecture. The blood of the various races who inhabit the capital must, however, be very much mixed, and various other circumstances militate against any great development in that quarter. The subject seems worthy of more investigation than has hitherto been bestowed upon it, but the first appearance of the Turks among civilized nations was only as warriors pushing forward and fighting. When at last they settled on the shores of the Bosphorus it was at an age too late for much true architecturaldevelopment in Europe. On the whole, we ought therefore rather to be surprised that they did so much, than seek to know why they did not accomplish more. Sinan and Michel Angelo were employed simultaneously in erecting the two great religious edifices of their age in the two old capitals of the Christian world. The mosque at Constantinople is less than one-fourth the size of St. Peter’s at Rome, but notwithstanding its comparatively small dimensions, it is far better in design, and a much more impressive building than its gigantic Christian rival. If the mosque had been constructed with better materials, and with somewhat increased dimensions, it would have stood a comparison with any building of its class; and, even as it is, must be considered as one of the most successful designs of modern times.

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