Rethinking Construction and Planning Processes in the Ottoman Provinces

Ottoman construction system is one of the significant issues in the Ottoman History. Specifically, after the Tanzimat reforms in 1839, the system encountered with a significant change not only in the capital, Istanbul, but also in the provinces. The aim of this paper is to highlight these changes on the planning and design processes in the provinces in order to understand the multifaceted relationships among the central authority, provincial authority, the architects both in the capital and in the cities, and also contractors. The archival documents and the newly published data such as the translation of cost estimates books or the drawings of the buildings are going to be used as the primary sources for this article. The sources are going to be discussed within a chronological and conceptual framework. In the first part of the article, the process of the construction and repair activities in the provinces, from the 16th to the 19th centuries, is going to be discussed briefly. In the second part, the changes and developments in the Ottoman architectural organization after the Tanzimat era are going to be discussed within the light of the changing roles and responsibilities of the architects, kalfas or contractors. It is seen that with the proclamation of the Tanzimat edicts, the system significantly changed. The institutionalization, specifically the new institution Ebniye Müdürlüğü was the focal point for these changes. The main argument of this paper is reconsidering the changes on the construction and planning activities in the provinces as a signifier for the social change in the Ottoman Empire during the 19th century.