The Lower Bosphorus’ European Shore - Strolling Through Istanbul: The Classic Guide to the City - page 424

TOPHANE
Opposite, on an eminence, is the cannon foundry from which the
district takes its name, Tophane. A foundry was established here by
Fatih himself and was extended and improved by Beyazit II. However,
according to Evliya, Süleyman the Magnificent “pulled down the gun
foundry built by his ancestors and built a new one, which no one
who has not seen it is able to judge of what may be accomplished by
human strength and understanding.” This he did, Evliya explains,
because he was constantly at war with the Emperor of Germany:
“These Germans are strong, warlike, cunning, devilish, coarse infidels
whom, excelling in artillery, Sultan Süleyman endeavoured to equal
by assembling gunners and artillerymen by rich presents from all
countries,” and by improving the gun foundry. He goes on to give
a detailed description of the methods used in casting the cannon.
Süleyman's foundry has long since disappeared and the present
structure was built by Selim III in 1803, doubtless in connection
with his own attempt to reform and modernize the army. It is a
large rectangular building of brick and stone with eight great domes
supported by three lofty piers. Beyond the foundry itself, along the
height overlooking the street, a series of ruined substructures, walls
and domes once formed part of the general complex, which included
extensive barracks for the artillerymen. The foundry has now been
restored and is open to the public as an exhibition hall. Across the
street beside the Nusretiye mosque a small kiosk in the Empire style,
built by Abdül Aziz, was a review pavilion where the sultan came to
inspect his artillery troops.
NUSRETİYE CAMİİ
Nusretiye Camii was built between 1822 and 1826 by Mahmut II,
its architect being Kirkor Balyan, the founder of that large family
of Armenian architects who served the sultans throughout most of
the nineteenth century and built so many of whose mosques and
palaces we shall encounter along the shores of the Bosphorus. Kirkor
Balyan (1764-1831) had studied in Paris and his mosque shows a
curious blend of baroque and Empire motifs, highly un-Turkish, but
not without a certain charm. This mosque abandons the traditional