A Prussian architect in Ottoman Service: August Carl Friedrich Jasmund

Abstract

This essay evaluates the activities of Prussian architect August Carl Friedrich Jasmund in the Ottoman Empire. He studied architecture at the Royal Academy of Architecture in Berlin. Following his graduation, Jasmund briefly visited Istanbul and surrounding cities to examine oriental architecture in 1888-1889. Sultan Abdülhamid II invited Jasmund to work in the service of during this stay. He was then appointed as the private architect of the sultan, as well as technical advisor for the Ottoman State and teacher for the School of Fine Arts in Istanbul. Besides these official tasks, he also designed special buildings for the state and private organizations. He left behind numerous buildings during his stay of 20 years in Istanbul. In his initial designs, for example Sirkeci Railway Station, he had a contradictory style and saw Turkish architecture as a piece of orientalism. He preferred neo-classism and neo-renaissance of Europe in the official buildings and an architectural understanding, the synthesis of Europe- Ottoman, in civil buildings. Some of his designs show the influences of the buildings that he had taken part in their construction in Germany. This situation was the result of his arrival to Istanbul at a very young age and undertaking some important tasks before he had enough experience. This study is mainly based on the information derived from the documents found in both Ottoman and German archives. Based on these data, this study aims to better interpret the biography of Jasmund and his activities in the Ottoman Empire and in Germany in relation to his individualistic architectural style.