In particular, it houses the tombs of many Levantine families (Corpi, Botter, Tubini, Glavani, etc.) who lived in Istanbul in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The term Levantine was used to identify residents of European or mixed descent of the Ottoman Empire of Catholic or to a lesser extent Protestant faith.
The present day Catholic-Latin cemetery of Feriköy is a continuation of the old cemetery of the Grands-Champs de Taksim or Grand-Champs de Morts (now partly occupied by the municipal garden "Taksim Gezisi).
From 1615, following the formation of the new city, the Grands-Champs cemetery was one of the largest cemeteries for Muslims and soon became common to all Catholic-Latin burials.
By the mid-nineteenth century, the cemetery was no longer outside the city and the Pera district, including Taksim and its surroundings, had acquired such demographic importance that the presence of the cemetery was deemed dangerous for public health.
In 1852 the Ottoman government sent a memorandum to various foreign legations requesting the abandonment of the Grands-Champs cemetery.
The exhumation of the graves was to be completed within three years from the date of the memorandum.
In return, the Ottoman government offered land near Feriköy. But the Crimean War (1853-1856) prevented the execution of this decision. But in the meantime, in this new land, surrounded by a wall built by the French army, the French officers and soldiers who died in various hospitals were buried.
Already in 1863, the exhumation of a bishop, three officers and 134 soldiers of the French army of the Orient had been carried out.
The previously promised general exhumation took place from February 29 to March 12, 1864. From March 14 to March 19, all the stones covering the unclaimed graves were removed.
The bones unearthed from the old Grands-Champs cemetery were placed in a general ossuary built for this purpose in the new Catholic-Latin Cemetery.
Work for the construction of a commemorative monument began in 1869 and was completed in 1871. Some additional work was carried out in 1872 and 1873.
The shape of this monument is that of a rectangular sarcophagus, pierced in the eastern sub-base, with an arched door opening into the vault. At each of the four angles rises an obelisk. The monument and the four obelisks are covered with tombstones collected from the ancient cemetery of the Grands-Champs, and cut so that they can be combined with each other. One hundred and seventy-eight tombstones have been used for the coating of this monument.
The anterior (east) façade of the monument
DIES MEI TRANSIERUNT. ET IN NIHILUM REDACTI SUNT OMNES ARTUS MEI
(MY DAYS HAVE COME TO AN END. AND ALL MY LIMBS ARE BROUGHT TO NAUGHT)
The east and south façades of the monument
The east and north façades of the monument
The west façade of the monument
Above the door of the vault, there is a 14th century tombstone on which we read a Latin inscription engraved in Gothic characters. This stone which was originally at the cemetery of Saint-François of Galata was transported, from there, in 1697, to the cemetery of Grands-Champs. During the general exhumation it was transported here.
It bears the following inscription SEPULCRUM DOMINI ANDRIOLI DE PAGANA, ET HÆREDUM SUORUM QUI OBIIT ANNO DNI MCCCXXXV DIE XV JUNII
(SEPULCHER OF MR ANDRİOLA PAGANA, AND THEIR HEIRS, DEAD IN THE YEAR 1335
OF OUR LORD ON THE FIFTEENTH DAY OF JUNE
Today, six squares separated from each other by alleys divide this cemetery: Saints-Pierre-et-Paul, Saint-Joseph, Saint-Albert, Saint-Laurent, Saints-Anges Gardiens, Saint-Jean Chrysostome
Map of the cemetery
Several monuments have been erected in this cemetery in memory of the French and Italian soldiers who died during the Crimean War.
In the middle of the large alley which connects the entrance of the cemetery to the chapel, at the roundabout of the Saints-Pierre-et-Paul, Saint-Joseph, Saint-Laurent and Saints-Anges Gardiens squares, there is a high obelisk in memory of the French doctors and pharmacists of the Army of the East, who died during the Crimean War.
Interior view of the cemetery from the gate. On the right the square St. Joseph, on the left the square of Saints-Pierre-et-Paul.
Just opposite the obelisk erected in memory of French military doctors.
Obelisk erected in memory of French military doctors who died during the Crimean Wa
The pedestal of the obelisk
East façade of the obelisk North façade of the obelisk
West façade of the obelisk South façade of the obelisk
At the intersection of the Saint-Joseph, Saint-Albert, Saints-Anges Gardiens and Saint-Jean Chrysostome squares, there is an obelisk erected in memory of the soldiers of the Sardinian army, who died in the hospital of Yeniköy during the Eastern Expedition in 1855.
Obelisk erected in memory of the soldiers of the Sardinian army
North façade of the obelisk
IN MEMORY
OF THE SARDINIAN
ARMY SOLDIERS
DECASED AT THE HOSPITAL
OF YENIKÖY
DURING THE EASTERN EXPEDITION
East façade of the obelisk
IN HONOR AND IN MEMORY
OF SARDINIAN ARMY
SOLDIERS
WHO PERISHED
AT YENIKÖY HOSPITAL
IN 1855
French military monuments
The site intended for the burial of the soldiers of the French army of the East is located in the "Carré Saints-Anges Gardiens".
In 1863, the French military square organised in four lines, forming a sort of quadrilateral. The ossuary, located in the 4th line, followed the first 3 which contained 96 isolated burials.
Today, the appearance of this military square is a little different from when it was created. Although the graves in the first line have not changed location, those in the other lines have been laid out differently and today there are only 46 graves.
Current view of the first line of graves
The remains and the bones of French soldiers first buried in the cemeteries of the la Paix hospital, Maslak, Levend-tchiflik, Maltepe, Davoud-pasha, Rami-tchiflik, Veli efendi, Quanlidja and prince's islands, as and when, are transferred to the Latin-Catholic cemetery of Ferikeuy.
After the first line, from south to north, we note the following monuments-ossuaries:
1. Ossuary in the shape of a small fort
2. Ossuary containing the remains of French sailors
3. Commemorative monument
4. Ossuary containing the remains of French soldiers
5. Ossuary in the shape of a small fort
6. Monument to the French soldiers who died in Adrianople
1. Ossuary in the shape of a small fort
EXHUMATION 1862
FRENCH MILITARY OSSUARY
BURIAL IN THIS CEMETERY IN 1854 55 56
2. Ossuary containing the remains of French sailors
At the end of 1882, the French Ministry of the Navy ordered the exhumation of the bones preserved in the small cemetery of Therapia and in that of the island of Khalki (today Heybeliada in Turkish) and their transfer to the military square of Feriköy.
OSSUARY
CONTAINING THE REMAINS OF THE FRENCH SAILORS
DEAD IN 1854 1855 AND 1856
DURING THE EASTERN WAR
BURIED FIRST
IN THERAPIA CEMETERY
AND IN THAT OF KHALKI ISLAND
THEN TRANSFERRED HERE IN 1882
3. Commemorative monument
The general ossuary initially contained the remains of 3,000 soldiers of the French Orient army, buried at that time in the cemetery of Feriköy. The memorial in the form of a fortress, which stands on this ossuary, was built in accordance with the drawings and by the care of Father Don Antonio Giorgiovich.
At the time, the monument bore the following inscriptions:
“FRENCH ARMY OF THE ORIENT, OSSUARY”, “HERE ARE THE REMAINS OF 3000 SOLDIERS, BURIED IN THIS CEMETERY, IN 1854, 1855, 1856. Requiescant in pace”.
From May 9 to October 31, 1864, by order of Marshal Randon, Minister of War, and under the direction of Commandant de Lalobbe, head of the French military mission in Istanbul, assisted by Father Don Antonio Giorgiovich, the works were carried out for the exhumation of the eight French military cemeteries, in order to reunite them in the Catholic-Latin cemetery of Feriköy:
Maslak cemetery…………………………. ..386 Exhumations
Levent-tchiflik cemetery…………………. 1076
Maltepe, Davoud-pacha
and Rami-tchiflik cemeteries…………… .5032
Veli efendi cemetery…………………….. .5415
Quanlidja cemetery………………………. ..385
Princes' Islands cemeteries……………........45
______
Total 12339 Exhumations
These remains were placed in the military square, inside 6 vaults, on the same line of the already existing ossuary.
The main monument (commemorative), in the center, erected in 1865, is a large sarcophagus with 6.28m wide and 4.5m deep. It is surmounted by a cross. Under the cross and carved in stone, are, the imperial coat of arms of France, on the west and the cross of the Legion of Honor, on the east
The commemorative monument
West (anterior) façade of the monument. The imperial coat of arms of France
East (posterior) façade of the monument. The cross of the Legion of Honor.
Below, the following inscriptions are engraved:
France has its 26,000 Crimean dead resting here
TO THE MEMORY
OF THE FRENCH MILITARIES
DECEASED AT CONSTANTINOPLE
DURING THE EASTERN WAR
1854 – 56
East (posterior) façade of the monument
ERECTED IN 1865
DURING THE REIGN OF NAPOLEON III
BY ORDER OF THE MINISTER OF WAR
MARSHAL COUNT RANDON
North façade of the monument
EXHUMATIONS
1864
CANLIDJA
MASLAK
LEVEND TCHIFLIK
South façade of the monument
EXHUMATIONS
1864
MALTEPE
PHILDAMY
PRINKIPO
4. Ossuary containing the remains of French soldiers
In 1889, captain Léon Berger, military attaché of the French embassy, had the remains of six officers and ten thousand five hundred soldiers transferred to the military square, from the cemetery of the La Paix hospital in Chichli.
OSSUARY
CONTAINING THE REMAINS OF THE FRENCH MILITARIES
DIED IN 1854 1855 AND 1856
DURING THE EASTERN WAR
BURIED FIRST
AT THE LA PAIX HOSPITAL CEMETERY IN CHICHLI
TRANSFERRED HERE IN 1889
5. Ossuary in the shape of a small fort (It bears the same inscriptions as the first)
In 1855, a second ossuary still in the form of a fort was built, and Thouzery, as he had already done for the first, offered two cannons which appear on the platform.
EXHUMATION 1862
FRENCH MILITARY OSSUARY
BURIED IN THIS CEMETERY IN 1854 - 55 – 56
6. Monument in memory on the French soldiers who died in Adrianople (Edirne)
HERE REST
THE REMAINS OF 400 FRENCH SOLDIERS
DEAD IN ANDRINOPLE 1935
Italian military monument
In 1882, at the meeting of the Standing Committee on August 17, the delegate of the Italian Embassy requested a land for the burial of the remains of Sardinian soldiers and officers who died during the Crimean War, buried in the Sardinian military cemetery of Yeniköy .
On September 1st of the same year, Father Charles Testa, Vicar General and Managing Director of the Cemetery, sent to the Italian Ambassador the title deed of a free and perpetual concession, of a piece of land, facing the Grands-Champs commemorative monument, intended to house the remains of Sardinian soldiers and officers.
This concession is located in the Saint-Laurent square. A pyramid-shaped memorial was erected in 1883.
Memorial monument to soldiers and officers of the Sardinian army
The front façade of the monument
The inscription above the door of the monument
THEIR GRATEFUL HOMELAND
DESIGNATED THIS SITE
AS THE HONORABLE REST PLACE
OF THE REMAINS OF ITALIAN SOLDIERS
WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN YENIKÖY HOSPITAL
DURING THE WAR OF 1855-56
__________
1 8 8 3
The coat of arms above the inscription
To commemorate the hundredth anniversary of the Crimean War, the Republic of Italy had a commemorative plaque affixed to the monument.
TO THE HEROIC SOLDIERS OF THE SARDINIAN ARMY
FALLEN DURING THE CRIMEAN EXPEDITION
WITH THE BROTHERS IN ARMS
FROM FRANCE, GREAT BRITAIN AND TURKEY
FOR THE DEFENSE OF COMMON IDEALS
AND FOR THE FUTURE UNITY OF THE FATHERLAND
THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC IS GRATEFUL
AT THE FIRST CENTENARY OF THIS CAMPAIGN
1855 - 1955
Italian military square of the 1914-1918 war
Next to the memorial,were buried the Italian soldiers who died during the war of 1914-1918 .
Italian military square
French military square of the 1914-1918 war
In the Saint-Jean Chrysostome square is the French military square from the First World War. The memorial is preceded by three rows of 36 graves each, making a total of 108 individual graves.
French military square of the 1914-1918 war
On the outside of the commemorative monument we read:
-1914 - FRANCE HAS ITS SONS - 1918-
The inscription in the inside of the monument:
"From the veterans to their comrades of STAMBOUL died for FRANCE 1914-1918", is followed by a list of names of French from Istanbul, therefore Levantine.
Below this list are four lines from a poem by Charles Peguy entitled "Happy are those who are dead".
Happy are those who died for the carnal earth,
Laying on the ground in the face of God.
Happy are those who died for their hearth and fire,
And for the poor honors of the father's houses.
Inside the enclosure of this square stands a beautiful monument with the following inscriptions: TO THE SOLDIERS AND SEAMEN OF THE OCCUPATIONAL FORCES DEAD FOR FRANCE 1918-1923
The cemetery chapel
The Ottoman government had handed over to the French embassy the firman dated 1862-63 necessary for the construction of a chapel in the cemetery.
On April 23, 1863, Mgr. Brunoni laid the first stone of the chapel, which bore the following inscription: “Beati mortui qui moriuntur in Domino” (Blessed are those who died in the Lord).
On October 11, 1866, almost four years after the blessing of the first stone, the chapel was almost finished.
Built in the shape of a rotunda, the chapel is surmounted by a dome covered with lead.
The rotunda-shaped cemetery chapel
The exterior part is built in freestone from Cursola Island (Stone of Trieste), while the interior is in Livorno bricks.
The altar is placed in a projecting quadrangular reinforcement, supported on the perimeter wall. The sacristy and the mortuary waiting room are placed on the right and left wings of the chapel.
In the apse of the chapel, above the altar is a copy of the painting called the Assumption of the Virgin by Murillo (Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, 1617-1682, Spanish Baroque painter). On the lower part of the frame there is the following inscription:“Gift of the Emperor”. Indeed this painting was offered by Napoleon III, and transmitted by Marshal Niel, Minister of War.
The interior of the chapel
The copy of the Assumption of the Virgin by Murillo
The floor of the chapel is covered with a marble paving of black and white tiles, arranged in rays escaping towards the periphery. The central part is occupied by a circle of 1.38m in diameter, formed of marble inlay of various colors.
The floor of the chapel
Inside, the chapel is divided into eight sections or figured porticoes. One of them is occupied by the front door, the one opposite by the sanctuary. The two side porticoes give an entrance, the one on the right, to the sacristy, the one on the left, to the mortuary waiting room, formerly the forensic medicine operations room.
Right side portal
Left side portal
The other porticoes, four in number, offer only simulated doors, occupied either by commemorative stones or by inscriptions from pious foundations.
Two of the four simulated porticoes
On one of the panes of the simulated door on the right, at the entrance, we read the following inscription:
1865
French Military Mission
MASS
to be celebrated annually
August 17th
for the rest of the soul
of the deceased soldiers
of the French army of the Orient
Another inscription is as follows:
FUNERAL MASS
in memory
of the Italian Soldiers
died during the war
of Crimea 1855-56
to celebrate on August 18th
_________
1895
COMMANDER TOMMASO CATALANI
Italian Ambassador
July 28
Another inscription is dedicated to François Alphonse Belin:
1877
ANNIVERSARY MASS
to celebrate on April 16
for the peace of the soul
of François Alphonse Belin
Officer of the Legion of Honor
Consul General of France
Secretary Interpreter
Delegate of the Embassy
at the Cemetery Commission
Latin Catholic of Feriköy
Testimony of gratitude
for the part he took
in the foundation of the cemetery
and for the dedication
with which he devoted himself
for fourteen years
to the organization of this work
The dome, which rests on the cornice and rises with elegant boldness, receives the daylight from eight windows, the arch key of which is formed by a pretty molding representing a cherub.
The dome of the chapel
The windows of the dome with the cherubin
The altar, originally made of wood, was restored and completed with an all-marble table and cornice in 1890. The work had been financed, in large part, by the donation of a sum of 500 francs offered by the Belin family. The administration had the following inscription engraved at the bottom of the altar, to perpetuate the memory of the benefactress: "RESTORED BY Mrs. Vve BELIN, 1890".
The current altar of the chapel dates from 2010
On either side of the chapel door are two inscriptions, one in French, the other in Turkish, summarizing the history of the chapel.
On April 23, 1863, Mgr. Paulo Brunoni
laid the first stone of this Chapel:
It bears the following inscription:
BEATI MORTUI QUI MORIUNTUR IN DOMINO
(Blessed are those who died in the Lord)
On October 11, 1866, the dome was definitively closed.
In 1868, Napoleon III offered
a copy of the painting known as
Virgin of Murillo which is above the altar.
In 1890, Mme Belin, widow of the historian and Consul of France
replaced the wooden altar with a marble altar.
In 2010, the new Committee, created by Mgr. Louis PELATRE,
restored the chapel and endowed it with a new marble altar
facing the audience.
