SAIT HALIM PASHA MANSION
Yeniköy - Istanbul - Turkey
BASEMENT HALLS
HUNTING HALL
Area 68 m2, U-Shape 25, Round Table 50, Block Table 30, Cocktail 50, Classroom 46, Theatre 60 m
HAREM
Area 202 m2, Round Table 144, Cocktail 200
STUDY HALL
Area 33 m2, U-Shape 8, Round Table 20, Block Table 10, Cocktail 15, Classroom 8, Theatre 12
RECEPTION HALL
Area 60 m2, U-Shape 20, Round Table 50, Block Table 25, Cocktail 50, Classroom 32, Theatre 50
WAITING HALL
Area 35 m2, U-Shape 9, Round Table 20, Block Table 12, Cocktail 15
SELAMLIK
Area 165 m2, Round Table 120, Cocktail 150
FIRST FLOOR HALLS
BIG HALL
Area 125 m2, U Shape 40, Round Table 120, Block Table 45, Cocktail 150, Classroom 90, Theatre 140
JAPANESE HALL
Area 33 m2, U Shape 5, Round Table 20, Block Table 10, Cocktail 15, Classroom 8, Theatre 12
GOLDEN HALL
Area 60 m2, U Shape 20, Round Table 50, Block Table 25, Cocktail 50, Classroom 32, Theatre 50
VENETIAN HALL
Area 33 m2, U Shape 5, Round Table 20, Block Table 10, Cocktail 15, Classroom 8, Theatre 12 
OUTDOOR
FRONT GARDEN
Area 1380 m2, Round Table 600, Cocktail 900
BACK GARDEN
Area 770 m2, Round Table 200, Cocktail 300
QUAY
Area 700 m2, Round 300, Cocktail 450 
SERVICES
* A LA CARTE RESTAURANT
* MEETINGS & CORPORATE EVENTS
* SPECIAL EVENTS
* WEDDINGS
* OUTSIDE CATERING
SAIT HALIM PAŞA (1863-1921)
Sait Halim Paşa was the eldest of Prince Abdulhalim Paşa’ four sons and the grandson of Kavalalı Mehmet Ali Paşa, Governor of Egypt. Born in Cairo in 1863, his early schooling was in the form of private tutelage where he was taught Arabic, Persian, English and French. He later studied political science for five years in Switzerland.
In 1888 he was appointed Provincial Governor and became a member of the State Council being awarded the Mecidi decoration. In 1889 he received the 2nd order and in 1892 the 1st order of the Ottoman Empire. In 1899 he received the special Mecidi decoration and in 1900 was appointed to the post of Governor General of the European provinces.
He was removed from his post as State Council member in 1908. Meanwhile he was appointed mayor of Yeniköy in the municipal elections and later elected vice-president of the General Municipality Corporation. In 1908 Sait Halim Paşa was elected to the Senate and was appointed as president of the State Council in 1912. 
Sait Halim Paşa resigned from the presidency of the State Council in 1912 and elected post of general of the Committee of Union and Progress. During the Grand Vizierate of Mahmut Şevket Paşa he was elected president of the State Council for the second time and appointed as the Minister of Foreign affairs in the following three days. After Mahmut Şevket Paşa’s death he became the official representative of the Grand Vizier with the rank of Vizier.
In September 1913 by a treaty signed between the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria, Edirne was restored to the Ottomans with the Maritza River was established as the border. For his achievement in the conclusion of the this treaty an order of special privilege was bestowed upon Sait Halim Paşa by the Sultan.
In 1914 the Ottoman Empire joined the First World War. The Ottoman-German alliance treaty was signed in Sait Halim Paşa’s mansion with the German Envoy Baron Wangenheim. 
In March 1919, Sait Halim Paşa was arrested together with several members of the government and of the parliament. Following his release Sait Halim Paşa went to Rome, where, on Tuesday, 6 December 1921 he was assassinated by an armed Armenian agent as he stepped out of his car to enter his house. His corpse was brought to Istanbul and on 30 December 1921 and was taken from his mansion at Yeniköy to be buried in gardens of the Sultan Mahmut Mausoleum.
ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES OF THE MANSION
The structural and decorative characteristics of the building are typical innovations of its time, with the building set back off the waterfront by a jetty and the faзade and windows typically neo-classical (empire-style). The mansion’s plan includes a central grand hall-sofa-with an alcove overlooking the seafront with a stairway on the opposite side.
There are two gates leading to the Selamlık (Men’s quarters) and Harem (Ladies’ Quarters) from the quay. There are two lion statues in front of the Selamlık gate which is why the mansion is also referred to as the "Mansion of the Lions" by the public. According to Nubar Horanyan of Yenikцy, the female lion was a gift from Italy for Sait Halim Paşa’s first promotion and the male lion a gift from Germany for his second promotion.
Towards the northern side of the Harem garden, there was a Bathing House used by the residents for swimming. The enclosed bridge built between the mansion and the estate on the slopes behind was demolished like all other annexes which were expropriated during the widening of the road in 1958. There was also a boathouse in the garden of the men’s quarters which does not exist any longer.
One might describe the late period of Bosphorus mansions and pavilions as "empire-baroque" both in terms of their architecture and their decoration. It was a stylistic trend which took hold during the reign of Abdьlmecit (1839-1861), weakening towards the reigns of Abdülaziz and Abdülhamit II, when an eclectic amalgam of western styles started to take over towards the end of the 19th century.
The building recessed from the waterfront without bay-windows and the empire style of the faзade and windows are all examples of the new style of that era.
The mansion is decorated in typical empire style, with traces of eclecticism alternating and sometimes combined. The Cubic style in the furniture and exaggerated curves in the decoration were rare between 1800 and 1830. Gilded wood disappeared, although mahogany with bronze plaque appliquй became popular. Walls were divided into panels with raised bands, with occasional pilasters. Egg and dart and garland friezes decorated the cornice and the ceilings were framed with a band of decoration with a similar circular band in the center. This interior design is seen throughout the mansion, with the single exception of the ground floor reception room which carries the Egyptian-Arabian influence in decoration.
HALLS OF THE MANSION
THE HAREM : The stairway, which occupies part of both stories, is totally empire in style, the walls divided up into panels framed with stucco relief bands. The tips of the stucco relief on the panel frames are gilded. The same kind of stucco profile frames the ceiling and surrounds a central medallion, which together with the rest of the ceiling is decorated with motifs in the empire and eclectic styles. We may call this decorative approach "high empire under the influence of Louis XVI". The columns betray typical empire motifs on the capital and base while the shaft is not fluted. The columns of the stairway and the frame of the mid-stairway mirror are original and well preserved.
THE HUNTING HALL (DINING HALL) : The second most important room in the mansion is the Hunting Hall, which was named after the decorations on the walls depicting scenes of hunting, a deep interest of Sait Halim Paşa. The room, being the most highly decorated part of the mansion, served as a dining hall The walls are paneled, with pilasters decorated in the empire-style flanking each panel. The ceiling is framed with a highly decorated empire style frieze with a similarly decorative central medallion, divided into twelve segments, each embellished with empire motifs. Decoration throughout the hall is gilded.
SELAMLIK HALL (CEREMONIAL HALL) : Another one of the most important halls of the mansion is the Ceremonial Hall. The room faces the entrance to the men’s quarters behind the stairway. Although the columns and beams of the room are highly decorated, one can hardly call it the empire style, except for the fine beam profiles of the ceiling and the wide band of panels separating the walls. Arabic inscriptions in the medallions on the friezes framing the ceiling, the general decoration of the ceiling and the doors give the room the air of an Egyptian salon.
STUDY-RECEPTION-ANTECHAMBER : The study room was decorated in empire-eclectic mode, with a central ceiling rectangular panel of the same style with motifs in each corner. A decorated medallion may be seen within the panel. Narrow wooden strips frame the wall panels which are covered with embossed wall paper.
The central of the three rooms facing the sea is the Paşa’s reception room. The four double doors are lacquered wood inlaid intricately with mother of pearl and ivory. Both the decoration and the contents of the room suggest that an Egyptian theme was intended. The third room, the nearest one to the men’s quarters was used as the guests antechamber.
THE GRAND HALL : The hall has a ceiling which is baroque in spirit. The walls are divided into panels framed with gilded stucco relief with inscriptions on them.
JAPANESE HALL :Though the room was initially decorated in the Spanish style, the name was later changed due to all the gifts presented by the Japanese Empire.
GOLDEN HALL : The room was named as the Golden Hall because all original furnishings and decorations were made in gold.
VENETIAN HALL : All decorations and furnishings brought from Venice, the room was referred to as the Venetian Hall.
HAMAM (TURKISH BATH) : The stained glass at the entrance of the Hamam have been preserved until today. The frames which were burned during the fire were replaced and the glass was then placed according to its original style.
These scripts and photographs are registered under Copyright 2006, Sait Halim Paşa / Yeniköy - Istanbul - Turkey. All Rights Reserved.
