In the beautiful Istanbul, a city at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, there is the Sehzade Mosque. This small, but very beautiful mosque was built during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, and in honor of his late son, Prince Mehmet, who died very young, with only 22 years.
This mosque was designed and built by architect Mimar Sinan, on the Sultan's orders, and this was his first in a series of mosque where he worked for the already mentioned Sultan. Suleiman ordered Sehzade complex after the death of his son whom toward the traditions was the most loved and believed worthy to inherit the throne. The mosque has one dome and four half-domes. There are also two minarets, each has one Sheref or balcony. The garden is surrounded by domes and there are nine of them, all the same height and size.
The complex has Madras with 20 rooms, as well as additional space called the Tabhane where the Dervishes occasionally spent time and slept. At an earlier time, there was a soup kitchen, but it is now converted into a restaurant. According to some stories, this mosque was originally intended to get the Sultan’s name, but when he realized that he could build even bigger and richer structure, Suleiman changed his mind and appointed the Sehzade Mosque. In the courtyard of the mosque is the tomb of the young Prince Mehmet, then tomb of the youngest son of Sultan, Prince Cihangir, but also a tomb of his daughter Humusah. This mosque is not visited by many tourists, which is otherwise very wrong because it is a real pearl of Istanbul.
Fans of mosques and tourists who want to hear some new stories and feel the spirit of the Turkish tradition, can devote part of their time and visit some other mosques such as Ortakoy, Suleymaniye Mosque that Suleiman later built for himself, and Rustem Pasha Mosque, the endowment of Suleiman's Grand Vizier and son-in-law.