The Golden Age of the Ottoman Empire

In the morning we head out to the line of the four-mile long, superbly-preserved Walls of Theodosius and visit the Panorama 1453 Museum; with its painted dome and diorama it gives an incredible visual introduction to the epoch-ending Ottoman siege of Constantinople in 1453. A walk along the walls brings us to Sinan’s light filled Mihrimah Mosque complex. It commands the summit of the historic city’s 6^th hill and is one of the architect’s often overlooked gems. In the afternoon we return to the tip of the peninsula to explore the nerve-centre of the Ottoman Empire, the Topkapi Palace complex. This splendid series of pavilions looks across the Bosphorus to Asia, and is home to the exotic Harem, a panoply of Iznik tilework and Sinan-designed kitchen complex – amongst many other treasures.

A masterful architectural achievement and the embodiment in stone of the compassion at the heart of Islam, Sinan’s Süleymaniye Mosque complex comprises an austerely beautiful mosque, a hospital, soup kitchen, bath-house, caravanserai and madrassas – as well as the tombs of Süleyman the Magnificent and Sinan himself. We spend much of the morning here, before heading down through atmospheric back alleys to the Galata waterfront to experience the heady aromas of the Ottoman-era Spice Bazaar. In the afternoon we cross over to Asia and travel around the Sea of Marmara to ‘Green’ Bursa, the Ottoman’s first capital, magnificently located at the foot of the eight thousand feet high Mt Olympos (Uludağ).

Today we explore Bursa, an erstwhile Byzantine city which became the first Ottoman capital in 1326 and, as a result, home to many architecturally important and distinguished buildings. In the morning we will explore modern Bursa’s historic core, taking in the substantial domed Ulu Cami (Great Mosque) and Yeşil Cami (Green Mosque), the busy bazaar area and the delightful Koza Han, which once traded in valuable silk cocoons but makes do today selling gorgeous silk scarves and black tea served in tulip-shaped glasses. After lunch we drive a short distance west of the city to the incredibly well-preserved, UNESCO-listed Ottoman village of Cumalıkızık to wander cobbled streets lined with superb examples of half-timbered Ottoman domestic architecture.

We drive along the attractive southern shores of the Sea of Marmara to the famous Dardanelles, the narrow strait which connects the Aegean and Black seas (via the Marmara Sea and Bosphorus) dividing Europe and Asia. An examination of Cimenlik fortress in Çanakkale, twin of a sister fortification across the strait in Europe, will give us a good idea of the state of Ottoman military engineering at the time of Mehmet the Conqueror in the mid-fifteenth century. After lunch we follow in the wakes of Xerxes, Alexander the Great and Lord Byron in crossing the Dardanelles before driving through the fertile, rolling hills of Thrace to the second Ottoman capital city, Edirne, close to the border with Bulgaria.

We spend the entire day in Edirne, the ancient city of Hadrianopolis which succeeded Bursa as the Ottoman capital in 1361. We start with the Selimiye Mosque, arguably the most impressive of all Sinan’s four hundred plus buildings. We’ll gaze up at the soaring dome of which Sinan was so proud of, as it was here that his ambition to construct a dome exceeding that of the Haghia Sophia was realised. We continue to the earlier Eski and Üç Şerefeli mosques and wander around the multi-domed Bedesten, a fine Ottoman-era covered market. In the afternoon we explore the ruins of the Edirne Palace a magnificent complex housing the Ottoman sultans and abandoned in the 18^th century. We proceed to the twin rivers to see a pair of elegantly arched Ottoman bridges, the remains of the fourteenth century palace and the Beyazıt II Mosque complex.

We start the day with Lüleburgaz to see another major Sinan work, the Sokullu Mehmet Pasha Mosque complex. Commissioned by a grand vizier to Suleyman the Magnificent, Sokullu Mehmet Pasha, it comprises a mosque, madrassa, caravanserai and hospice. As we approach the Ottoman’s third imperial capital, Istanbul, we stop to admire the impressive Sinan-designed Süleyman the Magnificent Bridge at Büyükçekmece, with its multi-arched, 636 metre span. Back in Istanbul, we spend the afternoon visiting the excellent Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, housed in the former residence of the grand vizier Ibrahim Pasha; we, then drop down the hill to another Sinan masterpiece, the exquisite Sokullu Mehmet Pasha Mosque, its beauty enhanced by the careful use of prime-period Iznik tiles, its sanctity enhanced by inlaid pieces of the Kaaba from Mecca.

This morning we have a last glimpse of glorious Istanbul, time permitting, and then transfer to the airport for our independent onward journeys.