Feriye Palaces

In later years of the Ottoman Empire, especially after Abdülmecid died in 1861, the Empire needed new residences for Abdülmecid’s family (25 wives and 43 children) and the other extended royal family members. Instead of sending them away, they kept them in the palace. Therefore, they built private residence buildings next to the Palace toward Ortaköy, Feriye Palaces, as the word “feriye” means “secondary or auxiliary” in Arabic. These royal family residences were actually not palaces, but they were part of the Çırağan Palace Complex.

The neoclassic Feriye palaces, commissioned to Sarkis Balyan, consists of three 3-floor buildings and one 2-floor building along the seashore of the Bosphorus, situated next to the Çırağan Palace toward the north. The rooms are located on the seaside, and the halls on the landside.

The history of Feriye includes many sad events, one of which is regarding the person who built it. After his dethronement, Sultan Abdülaziz and his family ended up in the Feriye Apartments. In the morning of 5 June 1876, 46-year-old Sultan was found dead in his room. His tragic death left many questions regarding whether it was a suicide or an assassination. It is still unknown, but it is obvious that it was a dark, sad day for his mother, Pertevniyal Valide Sultan who was then 64 years old.
Today, Feriye Palaces houses Kabataş High School, Feriye Restaurant, Galatasaray University, Marine College, and the Kempinski Hotel.

The fire caused by an electrical issue on 22 January 2013 unfortunately destroyed the building used by Galatasaray Universitesi.