- Istanbul Haydarpaşa railway station
Istanbul Haydarpaşa is a terminus main station of the
Turkish State Railways (TCDD) in Haydarpaşa close toKadiköy at theAnatolia n part ofIstanbul ,Turkey . International, domestic and regional trains running to east- and southbound destinations depart from this major terminal which was built as the terminus of the Istanbul-Baghdad and Istanbul-Damascus-Medina railways during the final years of theOttoman Empire .History
The first station there was built in 1872 when the railroad was opened to
Gebze . However, as the line was extended, traffic increased and a new and larger building was needed. Its construction started in 1906 byOtto Ritter andHelmut Conu , two German architects who chose aneo-renaissance German style. They designed a large building, much in accordance with the ambitions of the German investors who were building the Istanbul-Baghdad Railway and undertaking the consultancy works for the Istanbul-Damascus-Medina Railway. Haydarpaşa was an important link in the railway chain of theBerlin -to-Baghdad railway scheme, part of theGerman Empire 's strategic plans to gain control over the trade routes between the East and the West in the late 19th century by building a railway connection betweenGermany and thePersian Gulf , thus by-passing theSuez Canal . The station was put into service onAugust 19 ,1908 and formally inaugurated onNovember 4 ,1909 .Architecture
The structure was built on 1100 wooden piles hammered into the seabed and is therefore surrounded by water on three sides, a unique feature for a railway station. The
Teutonic pseudo-castle railway station was built between 1906 and 1908 by the Anatolia-Baghdad Corporation, and was a gift to Sultan Abdülhamid II from his allyKaiser Wilhelm II . Its foundation is 1100 wooden piles, each 21 meters long, driven into the mushy shore by steam hammer. The station building has a very distinctive style, definitely standing out in Istanbul. Thanks to its location, it has been very well preserved, even restored following the damages caused by a burning tanker ship in 1979. The building is best seen from the sea, by taking a boat that calls just in front of the station to cross theBosphorus .Destinations served
Vicinity
There are tombs and monuments in the
Haydarpaşa Cemetery near the military hospital, dedicated to the British andCommonwealth soldiers, who lost their lives during theCrimean War (1854-1856)and the two World Wars.The northwest wing of the 19th century
Selimiye Barracks , once housed the hospital, where nursing pioneerFlorence Nightingale cared wounded and infected British soldiers, is turned into a museum exhibiting remains to honor her memory.The buildings of
Haydarpaşa Numune Hospital ,GATA Military Hospital ,Dr Siyami Ersek Hospital and Haydarpaşa Campus of theMarmara University (former Haydarpaşa High school) are located around the station.Port of Haydarpaşa at the north is one of the maincontainer terminal s of Turkey.Public transport links
*Suburban train Haydarpaşa-Gebze
*Ferryboat Kadiköy-Haydarpaşa-Karaköy
*Sea bus Haydarpaşa-Kabataş
*Train-ferryboat Haydarpaşa Terminal-Sirkeci Terminal ee also
*
Istanbul Sirkeci railway station , the other major train terminal of Istanbul on the European side
*List of train stations in Turkey
*Public transport in Istanbul
*Baghdad Railway
*Hejaz RailwayReferences
External links
* [http://www.pointsfromturkey.com/haydarpasa.html Haydarpasa Train Station]
* [http://www.trainsofturkey.com/w/pmwiki.php/Stations/IstanbulHaydarpasa]
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