The Beginnings of the Architecture of the Turkish Republic

Text: Máté Gergő Kovács

Of the civilisation of Turkey we typically – and of its architecture almost exclusively -know of the Osmanli, the era of which ended with the peace treaty of Sévres in 1920 after World War I. This also meant a „tabula rasa re-start for the whole nation”. This is when the Modern Age history of Turkey began, starring Mustafa Kemal who – on the ruins of „the sick man of Europe” was able to lay down the foundations of a country competitive ever since as wel as that of contemporary Turkish architecture. Regarding architecture, Mustafa Kemal’s era (1923-50) is referred to as the architecture of the early-republican period which I am analysing in this study with its antecedents also covering all three periods. This span of time is also that of contradictions: of tradition and reception, European influences and their critical selection too. However, this global-local, or European-national dialogue is also educational for us.