The Bulgarian

St. Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...

Church ( bg, Църква "Свети Стефан"; tr, Sveti Stefan Kilisesi), also known as the Bulgarian Iron Church, is a

Bulgarian Orthodox The Bulgarian Orthodox Church ( bg, Българска православна църква, translit=Balgarska pravoslavna tsarkva), legally the Patriarchate of Bulgaria ( bg, Българска патриаршия, links=no, translit=Balgarsk ...

church in Balat,

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

. It is famous for being made of prefabricated

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuri ...

elements in the

Neo-Byzantine style Neo-Byzantine architecture (also referred to as Byzantine Revival) was a revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It incorporates elements of the Byzantine style associated with Eastern and Ortho ...

. The church belongs to the Bulgarian Christian minority in the city.

History

The Bulgarian Orthodox Christians of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

used to pray at the churches of the

Phanar Fener (; Greek: Φανάρι, ''Phanári''; in English also: Phanar) is a quarter midway up the Golden Horn in the district of Fatih in Istanbul, Turkey. Its name is a Turkish transliteration of the word "phanarion" (Medieval Greek: Φανάρι� ...

Orthodox Patriarchate, as they were part of the

Rum Millet Rūm millet (millet-i Rûm), or "''Roman nation''", was the name of the Eastern Orthodox Christian community in the Ottoman Empire. Despite being subordinated within the Ottoman political system, the community maintained a certain internal auto ...

—that is, the Orthodox Christian community of the Ottoman Empire—but the Bulgarian nationalist movement of the 19th century advocated the creation of a separate Bulgarian ecclesiastical organization for Bulgarian Orthodox Christians, as they considered the Phanar Patriarchate a predominantly

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...

institution. These efforts culminated in the recognition of the

Bulgarian Exarchate The Bulgarian Exarchate ( bg, Българска екзархия, Balgarska ekzarhiya; tr, Bulgar Eksarhlığı) was the official name of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church before its autocephaly was recognized by the Ecumenical See in 1945 and th ...

through a

firman A firman ( fa, , translit=farmân; ), at the constitutional level, was a royal mandate or decree issued by a sovereign in an Islamic state. During various periods they were collected and applied as traditional bodies of law. The word firman co ...

issued by the

Ottoman sultan The sultans of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its hei ...

Abdülaziz Abdulaziz ( ota, عبد العزيز, ʿAbdü'l-ʿAzîz; tr, Abdülaziz; 8 February 18304 June 1876) was the 32nd Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and reigned from 25 June 1861 to 30 May 1876, when he was overthrown in a government coup. He was a ...

in 1870. The richly ornamented church is a three-domed cross-shaped

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its nam ...

. The

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in pagan ...

faces the

Golden Horn The Golden Horn ( tr, Altın Boynuz or ''Haliç''; grc, Χρυσόκερας, ''Chrysókeras''; la, Sinus Ceratinus) is a major urban waterway and the primary inlet of the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey. As a natural estuary that connects with t ...

and a 40 m-high belfry, the six bells of which were cast in

Yaroslavl Yaroslavl ( rus, Ярослáвль, p=jɪrɐˈsɫavlʲ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluenc ...

, rises above the

narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or lobby area, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narth ...

. Initially, a small wooden church was erected on the shore of the

between Balat and Fener squares (near

Eyüp Eyüp () or Eyüpsultan is a district of the city of Istanbul, Turkey. The district extends from the Golden Horn all the way to the shore of the Black Sea. Eyüp is also the name of a prominent neighborhood and former village in the district, l ...

District), where the current church is located. A house was donated by the statesman Stefan Bogoridi, and it was reorganized as a wooden church. It was inaugurated on 9 October 1849 and became an important site of the Bulgarian National Revival. The Ottoman

royal decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state (such as the president of a republic or a monarch), according to certain procedures (usually established in a constitution). It has the force of law. The particular term used for ...

of 28 February 1870 establishing the Bulgarian Exarchate was first read in the church. After the original wooden structure suffered from a fire, the larger current building was constructed at its place. An iron frame was preferred to concrete reinforcement because of the weak ground conditions. The construction plans were prepared by the Istanbul-based Ottoman Armenian

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Hovsep Aznavur Hovsep Aznavur ( hy, Հովսեփ Ազնավուր, hyw, Յովսէփ Ազնաւուր; 1854 in London – June 1935 in Cairo) was an Ottoman Armenian architect. He is noted for his construction plans for the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church of I ...

. An international competition was conducted to produce the prefabricated cast iron parts of the church, won by an

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n company
R. Ph. Waagner
The prefabricated elements, weighing 500

ton Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean * the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds ...

s, were produced in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1893 to 1896 and transported to Istanbul by ship through the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

and the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

. After one-and-a-half years, the church was completed in 1898 and inaugurated by Exarch Joseph on 8 September that year. The main skeleton of the church was made of

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistan ...

and covered by metal boards. All the pieces were attached together with nuts, bolts, rivets or

welding Welding is a fabrication process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by using high heat to melt the parts together and allowing them to cool, causing fusion. Welding is distinct from lower temperature techniques such as b ...

. In terms of architectural style, the church combines Neo-Byzantine and Neo-Baroque influences. St. Stephen was the product of 19th-century experimentation with prefabricated iron churches. The British, who invented the corrugated iron in 1829, manufactured portable iron churches to send to far-flung colonies like

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. The

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nicknamed ...

's creator, French engineer

Gustave Eiffel Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (born Bonickhausen dit Eiffel; ; ; 15 December 1832 – 27 December 1923) was a French civil engineer. A graduate of École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures, he made his name with various bridges for the French railway ...

, designed iron churches that were sent as far as the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

. Now, St. Stephen is one of the world's few surviving prefabricated cast iron churches. On December 27, 2010, St. Stephen's feast day, a celebratory Mass was held at the church in honor of its patron saint. Attending were the Vratsa Metropolitan Kalinik, bishop Naum, Chief Secretary of the Bulgarian Holy Synod, and representatives of the "St. Stephen Church" Foundation. Honoring the celebration the dome of the church was gold-plated using funds donated by the Bulgarians of

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the ...

The church building underwent a renovation, which started under the Bulgarian-Turkish cooperation in 2011 and cost more than 15 million. On January 8, 2018, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Bulgarian Prime Minister

Boyko Borisov Boyko Metodiev Borisov ( bg, Бойко Методиев Борисов, ; born 13 June 1959) is a Bulgarian politician who served as the prime minister of Bulgaria from 2009 to 2013, 2014 to 2017, and 2017 to 2021, making him Bulgaria's second ...

were present at the inauguration of the renovated St. Stephen's Orthodox Church in Istanbul, on the occasion of its 120th anniversary.E.Tsiliopoulos.
Erdogan inaugurates renovated Orthodox Church in Constantinople
'' NewGreekTV.com. January 8, 2018. In addition to the St. Stephen Church, there is another Bulgarian Orthodox church in Istanbul, St. Demetrius Church, in

Feriköy Feriköy is a neighbourhood of Şişli, Istanbul, Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in West ...

Burials

Ilarion Makariopolski Hilarion of Makariopolis ( ''Ilarion Makariopolski'', el, Ιλαρίων Μακαριουπόλεως, born Stoyan Stoyanov Mihaylovski, bg, Стоян Стоянов Михайловски; 1812–1875) was a 19th-century Bulgarian cleric and ...

Gallery

Image:Iron-church-St-Stefan-1898.jpg, Iron church of St. Stephen in 1898 Image:Sv stefan view from back.jpg, View from the

File:Istanbul092007 8875.jpg, Exterior view of the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church Image:Sv stefan waagner imprint.jpg, Rudolph Philipp Waagner, Vienna, producer of the steel elements File:Istanbul092007 8874.jpg, Front view of the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church File:Istanbul Stephen of the Bulgars october 2018 7311.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church top

iconostasis In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis ( gr, εἰκονοστάσιον) is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand that can be placed a ...

seen through doors File:Istanbul Stephen of the Bulgars october 2018 7317.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church top iconostasis seen through doors Image:Sv stefan interior.jpg, The iconostasis inside the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church File:Stephen of the Bulgars 8857.jpg, The iconostasis inside the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church File:Saint-Stefan-interior.jpg, Interior view of the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church File:Sveti Stefan Kilisesi'nin İçi.jpg, Interior view of the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church File:Stephen of the Bulgars 8866.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, view from first floor File:Stephen of the Bulgars 7298.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church Iconostasis, detail File:Stephen of the Bulgars 7300.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church Iconostasis, detail File:Stephen of the Bulgars 7306.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church Iconostasis, detail File:Stephen of the Bulgars 7294.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, possibly the bishop's seat File:Stephen of the Bulgars 7274.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church; statue of a winged ox representing

Luke the Evangelist Luke the Evangelist (Latin: '' Lucas''; grc, Λουκᾶς, '' Loukâs''; he, לוקאס, ''Lūqās''; arc, /ܠܘܩܐ לוקא, ''Lūqā’; Ge'ez: ሉቃስ'') is one of the Four Evangelists—the four traditionally ascribed authors of t ...

. File:Stephen of the Bulgars 8878.jpg, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, emblem

References

External links

Information about the church on a site about the Bulgarians in Istanbul

The St Stephen Foundation

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20041230214414/http://www.monkeytravel.org/tur8.html Monkeytravel info and photos(incl. detail photo)
Over 100 pictures inside and outside in detail

* [http://liternet.bg/publish22/b_ivanova/sv-stefan.htm Благовеста Иванова, Ради Ганев. "Желязото" и стоманата в храма "Св. Стефан" в Истанбул]
Благовеста Иванова. Неосъщественият каменен храм "Св. Троица" на брега на Златния рог и архитектите Фосати

* ttp://liternet.bg/publish22/b_ivanova/sv-stefan_en.htm Blagovesta Ivanova, Radi Ganev, Milosh Drdacky. Architectural, Material and Damage Survey of the Bulgarian Metal Church of St. Stefan in Istanbul
Blagovesta Ivanova, Radi Ganev & Miloš Drdácký. Historical and Condition Survey of the St. Stefan Bulgarian Metal Church in Istanbul
* Tigran Khzmalyan
Armenian Architects of Istanbul: Online Exhibition
March 27, 2015
Stefan Bulgar Kilisesi
* Иванова, Бл. Невидимата страна на «желязната» църква в Истанбул. Инженерни науки, 1/2018, с. 45-60./Ivanova, Bl. NONSEEN SIDE OF THE "IRON" CHURCH IN ISTANBUL. - Engineering Sciences, LV, 2018, No. 1,p. 45-6

DOI:10.7546/EngSci.LV.18.01.04 * Ivanova-Tsotsova, Bl. The Architectural Complex at the Golden Horn a Monument of Cultural Heritage of Bulgaria and Turkey. - International Journal of Engineering and Technical Research (IJETR) ISSN: 2321-0869 (O) 2454-4698 (P) Volume-8, Issue-3, March 2018, p. 27-35

{{Authority control 1898 establishments in the Ottoman Empire, Stephen Church, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, Bulgarian St. Cast-iron architecture Stephen Church, Bulgarian St. Churches completed in 1898 Fatih Golden Horn