A study of Ottoman modernisation on the city : the sixth municipal district of İstanbul (1858-1877)
Author
Demirakın, N. Işık
Advisor
Özel, Oktay
Date
2006Publisher
Bilkent University
Language
English
Type
ThesisItem Usage Stats
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Abstract
This thesis attempts to analyse the first European style municipal administration of
the Ottoman Empire as a manifestation of its modernisation attempts and the
influence of European powers in the 19th century. The Sixth Municipal District was
established in 1858 in a wealthy area comprising Beyoğlu and Galata as a response
to growing demand on the side of the inhabitants of the area, most of whom were
non-Muslims and foreigners. Coinciding with the Ottoman reform movements of the
era, the establishment of the Sixth District had marked a major turning point in the
transformation of the Ottoman urban administration. Hence, this thesis tries to
indicate that the reforms were directly influential in the reshaping of Istanbul and
therefore the Sixth District’s history is parallel to that of Tanzimat. It also tries to
demonstrate the intensity of change by describing the municipal practices of the classical period and putting the District in historical perspective The motivation in
the selection of this area is also important hence; this thesis also tries to evaluate its
reasons within the context of foreign influence in the Empire. Also, it tries to assess
the District’s accomplishments and failures, and makes an effort to understand
whether it had reached its goals.