On February 27, Deniz Türker of Rutgers University delivered an insightful lecture at the University of Washington on The Last Ottoman Palace: Yıldız and Its Many Makers (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023). Organized by Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures Turkish and Ottoman Studies Program in collaboration with the Interdisciplinary PhD Program in Near and Middle Eastern Studies, and moderated by Reşat Kasaba, the event drew a diverse audience of students, faculty, and community members, all eager to learn about the history and transformation of Yıldız Palace. Türker walked attendees through her book, The Accidental Palace: Nineteenth-Century Sultans and the Making of Yıldız, 1795-1909, highlighting the palace’s role as an imperial and administrative center shaped by global influences.
Türker’s talk vividly traced Yıldız’s transformation from a rural retreat for Ottoman queen mothers to the administrative heart of the empire. She highlighted the palace’s deep ties to Istanbul’s urban development, diplomacy, and imperial identity, drawing on extensive archival research. Discussing the chalet-style architectural structures that emerged on the ridges of Yıldız’s hills, Türker noted how they sparked a trend of prefabricated mansions along the Bosphorus. Through such details, she offered a fresh perspective on Ottoman modernity and modernization—one not solely tied to, for example, bureaucratic, military or literary developments. In doing so, she demonstrated how Yıldız was not just an elite space but it also played a role in the broader socio-political shifts of the late Ottoman period.
Türker also had an opportunity to discuss her forthcoming project on the material worlds of Ottoman women with a group of graduate students from different disciplines. By closely examining an eighteenth-century letter, penned by a female member of the Ottoman dynasty, the group unpacked notions of agency, consumption, epistolary style, and women’s visibility in early modern Istanbul.
The event drew a strong turnout, with an engaged audience contributing to a dynamic discussion. Reşat Kasaba’s moderation fostered a lively exchange, and Türker thoughtfully addressed questions about her research, sources, and experiences. Attendees expressed their appreciation for the talk; those encountering Yıldız Palace for the first time through the lens of Ottoman art and architecture were struck by the field’s breadth, while those who had previously visited the site shared how the lecture deepened their understanding and sense of the place.