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This was the nerve center of the far-flung Ottoman Empire
until construction of the Dolmabahce Palace on the shores of
the Bosphorus. The Dolmabahce Palace rivals the grand
Palaces of Europe while the Topaki Palace is now the
storehouse of priceless Ottoman treasures.
Topaki Palace was a city within a city with over 50,000 people living and working on the palace grounds.
Here is a picture of the entrance to Topaki Palace, the Gate
of Salutations (Bab-u-Selam)
Interesting is the fact that some ten years ago, a smuggled
shipment of South American parrots was released below the
hill on the waters of the Golden Horn. The flock took refuge
on the grounds of Topaki and are still there.
This picture is of Chris inside one of
the ancient trees that are abundant on the Palace grounds.
The Harem was not a den of unfettered sex .. quite to the
contrary. The Valide Sultan (mother of the Sultan) was the
queen of that domain of over 300 rooms, and as such,
maintained strict order and discipline. Under Islamic law,
the Sultan could only have four wives who had born him
children. He could divorce those who were barren. Submission
to the whims of the sultan was not a foregone conclusion ..
there were concubines who refused the sultan's favors and
lived to tell about it.
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