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The
Bulgarian Church
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This church belongs to the
Bulgarian minority and is
the most interesting church
in
Istanbul. The Bulgarian
minority of the
Ottoman Empire used to
pray at the churches of the
Fener Orthodox Patriarchy.
Due to the nationalistic
movements, Bulgarians were
allowed to build their own
church in the 19th century.
First, a small wooden church
was built on the shore of
the Golden Horn between
Balat and Fener squares
(near
Eyup district) where the
current church is located,
but later this was developed
into a larger building. An
iron frame was preferred to
concrete reinforcement due
to the weak ground
conditions. The construction
plans were prepared by
Hovsep Aznavur, an Armenian
of
Istanbul origin. An
international competition
was conducted to produce the
prefabricated parts of the
church. An Austrian firm, R.
Ph. Wagner, won the
competition. The
prefabricated parts were
produced in Vienna and
transported to
Istanbul by ship through
the Danube and the Black
Sea. After one and a half
years work, it was completed
in 1898. The main skeleton
of the church was made of
steel and covered by metal
boards. All the pieces were
attached together with nuts,
bolts, rivets or welding.
The architectural styles
come from the Neo-Gothic and
Neo-Baroque periods. |
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