BALAT
The problem with Balat is that it’s detached from the most central touristic areas of Istanbul. Plus, you have to know about it. With it’s rich Byzantine and Ottoman history, Istanbul is far more than just Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace and Grand Bazaar.
Interestingly, when I was in Istanbul back in 2019, I saw many new things. But I also missed a lot so, during my latest stay there, every day I saw things that I’ve never seen before.
It’s possible to walk all the way from the most central to this part of the city, but it’s better to take a tram from Eminönü.
The neighbourhood is famous for its colourful houses and cobbled narrow streets. Also, you will find numerous restaurants, coffee shops and shops selling various merchandise. But, apart from the whole area which is a true gem, churches of Balat are really the most important feature of this part of the city.
CHURCHES OF BALAT
I’m going to mention three churches in this post, that I’ve seen during my exploration of Balat. I also went to see one more church, but it was closed. Perhaps, I’ll see it next time when I go to Istanbul and if I go back to this area.
You can follow in my steps but, also, take some time to stop in one of the coffee-shops and enjoy the colourful and interesting neighbourhood.
Once you’ve seen the churches of Balat, you can go to see the near-by Yavuz Sultan Selim Mosque and the adjacent area. It’s all so interesting, more importantly there are no tourists. Thus, you get to enjoy the authentic feel of that part of the city with local people going about their daily business.
ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CHURCH
The first church that I saw was the Armenian Apostolic Church. Apparently, there are 34 active Armenian churches in Turkey today, of which 28 are all over Istanbul. I’ve seen only this one in Balat.
This stone church was built in 1835 and it remained the same since then. What’s interesting about the interior of this church is that there are sits. The Kingdom of Armenia was the first state in history to adopt Christianity as an official religion in the early 4th century. It means that the Christian Orthodox faith has great tradition in Armenia.
However, if you compare this church with Serbian Orthodox churches, you’ll note that people do not sit in Serbian churches. They stand, because you don’t sit in the presence of God.
BULGARIAN SAINT STEPHEN CHURCH
Undoubtedly, the Bulgarian Saint Stephen Church with its Neo-Byzantine and Neo-Baroque architectural style is the most beautiful of all churches in Balat. It belongs to the Bulgarian minority that lives in Istanbul.
The church is famous because it’s made of prefabricated cast iron parts. In other words, its main structure is steel, covered by metal boards. Looking at the church without knowing this, you’d never guess.
The church was constructed in 1898.
Circling back to what I’ve said earlier, you can see this church’s interior in the photo below. There are no sits in this Orthodox church. The church has a beautiful iconostasis that reminded me of Serbian churches.
SAINT GEORGE’S CHURCH
The main reason why you should go to Balat is to see the Patriarchal Cathedral Church of Saint George. This church is the main Eastern Orthodox cathedral, something like Vatican for the Catholic faith. However, the main difference between the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and Vatican is that Vatican rules over Catholics all over the world.
On the contrary, Eastern Orthodox Church is divided in 15 to 17 autocephalous churches. Thus, you have Russian, Romanian, Bulgarian, Greek, Serbian Orthodox churches and so on…
The leader of the Saint George’s Church in Istanbul is primus inter pares (first among the equals) among the Orthodox churches and acts as a spiritual leader of all Orthodox Christians in the world. Nevertheless, it’s just a ceremonial role.
Surprisingly, the Saint George’s Church is rather modest and, considering its role, you’d certainly expect to see a monumental temple. In fact, before the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Hagia Sophia was the Patriarchal Cathedral.
However, the Islamic law of the Ottoman Empire that governed the rights of dhimmis required that all non-Islamic religious buildings must be smaller and humbler than mosques.
The structure of the church that we see today is mostly from the end of the 18th century. Patriarch Gregory V arranged for major restoration works in 1797.
Although modest in its outer appearance, the interior of the church is lavishly decorated.
Had Ottoman Empire been the same as the Spanish or British Empires, everyone under their rule would’ve been converted to Islam. Both Spaniards and British were brutal. We all know that all of South America is Catholic, while British relentlessly extracted wealth from their colonies while leaving nothing. I wrote about this in my post on Accra.
On the contrary, Ottoman Empire was tolerant of other religions, the main objective was collection of taxes from their colonies.
If you go to Istanbul, visit these churches of Balat. At the same time, you’ll see a very interesting neighbourhood and will learn more about the city so rich in history and culture.
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