Haydarpaşa railway station

HAYDARPAŞA
Istanbul-Ankara railway
Platforms	6 Bay platforms
Tracks	9
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Parking	For employees only
Architect	Otto Ritter, Helmuth Conu
Architectural style	German Neoclassical
Other information
Status	Under renovation
History
Opened	22 September 1872 (1872-09-22)
Closed	19 June 2013 (2013-06-19)
Rebuilt	1908
Electrified	29 May 1969 25 kV AC, 60 Hz
Location

Haydarpaşa station (

Haydarpaşa stands on an embankment over the Bosphorus just south of the

The closure of the station has been very controversial and a group known as the Haydarpaşa Solidarity Group (Turkish: Haydarpaşa Dayanışması) has staged regular protest sit-ins in front of it^[1] amid fears that the station and port would be sold; a plan involving seven skyscrapers provoked especially strong adverse reaction.^[2][3][4] In December 2015, the reintegration of Haydarpaşa station into the Marmaray network was theoretically approved along with the restoration and rehabilitation of the station building and platforms.^[5] However, in 2022 its future still remained unclear.^[6]

History

Ottoman era (1872–1922)

In 1871

Haydarpaşa was chosen as the northern terminus for the

World War I broke out in 1914 and the Ottoman Empire sided with the Central Powers against the Allied Powers. When the Ottomans lost İstanbul was taken over by the British Empire and Haydarpaşa fell under British military control during the occupation.

In 1917 the architect Vedat Tek designed the pretty terminal decorated with Kütahya tiles where ferries used to deposit would-be train passengers in front of the station.^[9]

Republican era (1923–present)

The

In 1979 a tanker burning on the Bosphorus damaged the terminal building, but it was restored a few months later. On 28 November 2010 a fire caused by carelessness during restoration work destroyed the station's roof and the 4th floor. Three people were sentenced to ten months in prison for "recklessly causing the fire".^[14]

In 2011 the World Monuments Fund, the New York-based heritage preservation organisation, placed the railway terminal on its 2012 Watch, drawing attention to its uncertain future.^[15] In November 2012 the station hosted a three-day art exhibition entitled Haydarpasa: Past, Present and Uncertain Future, which was organised in collaboration with the WMF, and featured Canadian and Turkish artists and photographers seeking to raise international interest in preserving the station as a transportation hub.

On 2 February 2012 Haydarpaşa Station closed to long-distance trains to allow for the construction of the

In 2018, remains of a

The small Haydarpaşa Cemetery is dedicated to the British and Commonwealth soldiers who lost their lives during the Crimean War (1854–1856) and the two World Wars. It also contains the graves of members of the Levantine community who used to live in Kadıköy and Moda.

The north-west wing of the 19th-century Selimiye Barracks was transformed into a military hospital during the Crimean War and became the place where the nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale cared for wounded and infected British soldiers. Her room is maintained in a small museum which also contains other items dating from the Crimean War. Permission from the military is required before visiting the museum.^[19]

The buildings of the Haydarpaşa Numune Hospital, GATA Military Hospital, Dr. Siyami Ersek Hospital and the present-day Haydarpaşa Campus of the

• Baghdad Railway
• Hejaz Railway
• Istanbul Sirkeci Terminal
  , the other major train terminal of Istanbul on the European side
• List of train stations in Turkey
• Public transport in Istanbul

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Haydarpaşa Terminal.

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