Ömer Aymalı / World Bulletin – History
One of the most prestigious houses of worship in the Byzantine Empire, the Hagia Sofia, was transformed into a mosque after the Ottoman sultan Mehmet II conquered Istanbul. With the intention of maintaining the mosque, Sultan Mehmet II turned the Hagia Sofia into a foundation, and built a market, an inn, a public bath and shops in the area surrounding it to cover its expenses.
After serving as a mosque for 500 years, it was transformed into a museum in 1934. Celal Bayar’s claims are some of the most important explanations as to why and how the Hagia Sofia became a museum. According to Celal Bayar, Turkey was in the process of forming a pact with the Balkan countries in order to ward off a threat from Italy. During this process, Celal Bayar visited Greece, only to be told by the Greek prime minister that turning the Hagia Sofia into a museum would convince the other nations to include Turkey in the pact. Celal Bayar passed on the Greek prime minister’s message to the founder and first president of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who responded by saying “The Director of Foundations was here just earlier. He said that he couldn’t find the funds to renovate Hagia Sofia. It is currently in ruins, neglected and a dump. If we turn the Hagia Sofia into a museum, could we save it from decay? In doing the Greeks this favor, could we also save the Balkan pact? If we can, then we should do so.”
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How was the Hagia Sofia transformed into a museum? | Islam | World Bulletin