Abstract

Gül Baba, a Bektashi dervish who lived in the 16th century, participated in the Budin expedition upon the invitation of Sultan Süleyman and according to the recordings of Evliyâ Çelebi died on September 2, 1541, on the first Friday after the capture of the castle. The tomb of Gül Baba, one of the last representatives of Gaziyân-ı Rûm, was built by Budin Beylerbeyi (Governor General) Yahyâ Paşazâde Mehmed Pasha in the years after his death. A large Bektashi Lodge was also established in the name of Gül Baba near the tomb. With the end of Ottoman rule in Buda, the dervish lodge was demolished, and the tomb was turned into a chapel. In this way, the Tomb of Gül Baba, which was saved from extinction, was constantly repaired in parallel with the political developments at the end of the 19th century and became the symbol of Turkish-Hungarian friendship. The subject of this study is the restoration of the Shrine (Türbe) of Gül Baba, which is especially remembered after Sultan Abdülaziz’s trip to Europe. The ambassadors and consorts of the Ottoman Empire in Vienna and Pest were closely interested in the Gül Baba Tomb. As a result of the repair reports of Vienna Attache Mehmet Bey and Pest Chief Constable Feridun Bey in 1884, the shrine was restored by the architect Lajos Grill by the Ottoman Empire. Despite the obstacles of the Wágner family, who owned the property in the following years, the tomb was repaired again. During the Balkan War and after, the Chief Consort of Pest Fahreddin Bey and his predecessor Ahmed Hikmet Bey took a close interest in the tomb. With the intense efforts of Ahmed Hikmet Bey, Head-Architect Kemaleddin Bey was assigned to repair the tomb in Ottoman architectural style. For the interior arrangement of the shrine, items such as candlestick, lectern, table and censer were prepared and sent from Istanbul, and carpets were woven in the Hereke factory. After this restoration in 1915, Gül Baba Tomb became the center of Pest Muslims, and Eid prayers were held here.Keywords: Budapest, Gül Baba, Bektashi, Tomb, Shrine, Repair, Restoration.

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