Memories of Grand Rue de Pera

Once called the Grand Rue de Pera but renamed İstiklal (Independence) in the early years of the Republic, Beyoğlu's premier boulevard is a perfect metaphor for 21st-century Turkey, being an exciting mix of modernity and tradition. Contemporary boutiques and cutting-edge cultural centres are housed in its grand 19th-century buildings, and an antique tram traverses its length alongside crowds of pedestrians making their way to the bustling cafes, bistros and bars that Beyoğlu is known for. 

At the boulevard's northern end is frantically busy Taksim Meydanı, the symbolic heart of the modern city and the scene of often-violent protests in recent years. Another square, Galatasaray Meydanı, is at the boulevard's midpoint, close to Beyoğlu's much-loved Balık Pazarı (Fish Market) and Çiçek Pasajı (Flower Passage). 

At its southern end is Tünel Meydanı and the relatively tranquil district of Galata, home to atmospheric cobblestone lanes and traces of a fortified settlement built by Genoese merchants in the 13th century.  SOURCE 

Originally the street was simply called Grand Avenue (Cadde-i Kebir). With the arrival and settlement of non-Muslims and European foreigners in the 17th century, Istiklal Caddesi was referred to as ‘Grand Rue de Pera’. 

At the end of the 18th century French, English, Dutch, Greek, Venetian, Spanish, Russian, Swiss and Prussian diplomats built their winter manors in the area. Along with this multi-national population came the still existing variety in religious buildings such as the Roman Catholic churches of Santa Maria and St. Anthony of Padua Cathedral, the Greek Orthodox Haghia Triada, the Armenian Church, and many other churches and synagogues. 

In the second half of the 19th century, due to the development of the transportation and increased foreign trade of the Ottoman Empire, the area between Taksim and Galatasaray improved and became a cosmopolite settlement for the merchants, businessmen, bankers, foreigners and rich people who followed the fashion in Paris. At the end of the century all basic facilities that a modern society requires such as water, gas and the tramway were constructed. Three theatres also simultaneously staged the most famous Paris plays of those times. 

In the 20th century, the connection of the first electrical tramway from Taksim to Şişli made the Taksim-Galatasaray stretch more popular than the Galatasaray-Tünel part.

 1919 Cité de Péra

Cité de Péra

1928

Tokatliyan Hotel

Mavi Boncuk |