The Bayezid II Mosque and
külliye is one of the oldest examples of an imperial mosque complex in Istanbul (preceded only by the
Fatih Mosque complex). It was constructed between 1500 and 1505 and the complex included an
imaret (
public kitchen), a
caravanserai, several mausoleums (
türbes) and a
medrese (
madrasa), completed in 1507. The architect's name has not been firmly established although Yakubşah ibn Islamşah is the most likely chief architect, the other likely candidate being Hayreddin; at least one of Yakubşah's assistants helped finish off the
medrese. The Bayezid Hamam is mentioned in historical documents of 1507, meaning it must have been completed before that date. Soon after construction the hamam was donated to a
vakfiye (
waqf) for another
külliye commissioned by
Gülbahar Hatun, Bayezid's wife and the mother of
Selim I. but by the end of the 20th century they were in a state of disrepair. In 2000 the hamam was expropriated and transferred to the ownership of
Istanbul University. It then underwent a long restoration process starting in 2003 and continuing until 2010. It is also possible to view the remains of a couple of Byzantine churches that were uncovered during the restoration process.
The Patrona Halil uprising They are popularly associated with
Patrona Halil, the Albanian leader of an uprising that deposed
Ahmed III in 1730, who is said to have been employed as an hamam attendant (
tellak) here. == Architecture ==