| Konak
is a district of Izmir Province of Turkey and one of the metropolitan
districts of Izmir city. It is also the historic center of
Izmir.
The name Konak was previously used for the historic central
quarter as well as for the key central square (Konak Meydani)
of the quarter in Izmir. For example, Karsiyaka along the
opposing northern shore did not always consider itself strictly
part of Izmir, or in any case, it had marking specifities
and points of rivalry. In 1987, the territory of former district
of Izmir central city of was re-named as the district of Konak
(excepting the quarter of Buca which was turned into a separate
district), and the name Izmir implies the entire metropolitan
area since then.
Konak district starts at the tip of the Gulf of Izmir and
follows the southern shoreline, englobing such prominent quarters
of Izmir as, respectively from east to west, Alsancak, Konak
Square proper and Kemeralti bazaar area, Karatas, Göztepe
(famous for its football team) among others along the coast,
as well as the hillside zone behind these, notably the quarter
of Hatay. The district of Konak has an urban tissue in its
entirety.
Konak Square by nightFor both the metropolitan area and the
Izmir Province in general, Konak still represents the administrative
nerve center, with the governorship, the offices of Izmir
Metropolitan Municipality, the historic bazaar area of Kemeralti
and other important administrative and private headquarters
situated within the boundaries of Konak. The name konak itself
means, inter alia, government house or official residence
in Turkish and refers in the case of Konak to the still-standing
residence built for the governor when the seat of the vilayet
of Aydin was transferred to Izmir in 1865.
In recent years, there is a move toward decentralization and
extension, notably with the building of a new and huge courthouse
in Bornova.
The
core areas of Konak Square and Kemeralti were formed with
the filling in due course during the 17th century of the shallow
inner bay of Izmir and immediate outer coastal reaches. Kemeralti
bazaar came into existence with the filling between 1650-1670
of the shallowest parts of the bay and the process of gaining
ground from the sea bay was pursued progressively. The shoreline
took its present form by the end of the 18th century in approximate
terms, although some of the land along the berth remained
unused till the mid-19th century.
General view of Konak Square end of 19th century, with the
Ottoman casern Sarikisla (the Yellow Casern) and the yet unused
landfill in the foreground, and the governor's residence,
the square and the ships at the quay in the backgroundIn 1829,
Sari Kisla, the Yellow Casern, the principal Ottoman casern
of the city, gigantic for its time, was built at immediate
sea-side, and a private residence (konak) situated slightly
diagonally behind the casern was extended and converted into
the governor's mansion, demarcating Konak Square that holds
its name from the mansion, and which in its turn gave the
name to the central metropolitan district of Izmir (Konak),
and at the level of which Kemeralti is considered to start.
The Yellow Casern was demolished in 1955 under express instructions
from the then Prime Minister Adnan Menderes, who wanted to
see Konak Square re-shaped, to the continuing regret of many
Smyrniots who had come to adopt the oversize building as one
of the main landmarks of their city. |
