Castles & Palaces in Turkey

Turkey's castle and palace heritage spans three of the world's greatest imperial traditions: Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman. The two sites that dominate this ranking are both in Istanbul and together draw over 12 million visitors per year. Topkapi Palace (Topkapı Sarayı) was the primary residence of the Ottoman sultans for nearly 400 years (1465–1856) and the administrative heart of an empire that at its peak stretched from Algeria to the Persian Gulf. Commissioned by Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror after his capture of Constantinople in 1453, the palace sits at the confluence of the Golden Horn, the Bosphorus, and the Sea of Marmara — the most commanding position in Istanbul. Its four courtyards contain the Imperial Treasury (with the Topkapi Dagger and the 86-carat Spoonmaker's Diamond), the Harem (400+ rooms), the Sacred Relics chamber (possessions attributed to the Prophet Muhammad), and the Imperial Council Hall. Dolmabahçe Palace, completed in 1856 as the Ottomans' response to Versailles, is a later counterpart: its European Baroque facade on the Bosphorus hides a 285-room interior that cost 14 tonnes of gold to decorate. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, used Dolmabahçe as his residence and died there on 10 November 1938 — a date still marked by a moment of national silence.