Zağnos Paşa Camisi Ve Külliyesi

Zağnos Paşa Mosque and Complex is located in the city center of Balıkesir. It was commissioned in 1461 by Zağnos (Zağanos) Paşa, one of the viziers of Fatih Sultan Mehmet. Of the complex consisting of a mosque, tomb and bath, only the bath has survived to the present day in its original state. The mosque and tomb, which were destroyed in 1897, were rebuilt in 1908 by Balıkesir Mutasarrıfı Ömer Ali Bey.

The square-planned mosque was built of smoothly dressed and cut stone. Around a central dome set on four piers in the middle, there are four corner domes. The mosque has no last congregation area. The interior is entered through double-leaf wooden doors on the north, east and west. On three sides, there are porticoes carried by four-sided marble columns, with wooden ceilings, covered with lead, and roofed with a sloping roof. The mosque’s wooden women’s gallery extends along the north corridor. The gallery, resting on six fluted wooden columns, has latticework. The mihrab is one of the finest examples bearing the characteristics of late-period Turkish art. The minaret is located at the northwest corner of the mosque. In the mosque courtyard, there are a tomb, a hazire and a şadırvan. To the south of the mosque courtyard, there is also a sundial.

During his tours around the country, Gazi Mustafa Kemal Paşa, when he came to Balıkesir, performed the noon prayer on 7 February 1923 with a large congregation in Zağnos Paşa Mosque; he made an important speech here. The text of the speech that Gazi Paşa delivered after the prayer and the mevlit recited for the souls of the martyrs, by ascending a few steps of the pulpit so that he could see the entire congregation, is today also hung on the outer wall of the mosque.

Sources:

Balıkesir Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism.

Atatürk Encyclopedia website. “Atatürk’ün Balıkesir Zağnos Paşa Camii’nde Verdiği Nutku.”

Places to Visit in Balıkesir Address: Karesi, Karesi Sk 1/E, 10010 Karesi/Balıkesir