A gift returned
The municipality gave it to Atatürk in 1923; he handed it back by letter in February 1938, months before his death.
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This house was given to Atatürk as a present, and he gave it back by letter. On his second visit to Bursa, in January 1923, the municipality bought the elegant timber mansion on Çekirge Caddesi from its owner, Colonel (Miralay) Mehmet Bey, who is also credited with building it, and handed it to him; it became his home whenever he came to the city. On 1 February 1938, months before his death, he wrote to the municipality returning it. The building was later sold to the Pension Fund, passed to the General Directorate of Museums in 1968, and opened as a museum on 29 October 1973, the Republic's fiftieth birthday. The house itself, finished in 1895 in a French manner, is the best part of the visit: balconies, pedimented eaves and finely worked timber, one of the few civil buildings of its era still standing in Bursa. Inside are two floors over a basement and attic. On the ground floor the reception hall is to the right and the dining room to the left, with a small corner for tea and coffee; upstairs his bedroom is on the right and his study on the left, with a little sun-filled glasshouse next to it. The furniture and objects are the originals he used. The basement held the kitchen and staff quarters, and in the garden stands a small pergola whose ceiling is painted with hand-drawn motifs. Be honest with yourself about this one. It is for people who care about the history of the Turkish Republic or enjoy late-Ottoman domestic architecture, and half an hour covers it without hurrying. The rooms are small, the labelling is sparse and there is nothing to hold a child's attention. But it is free, and it sits where almost every visitor to Bursa passes anyway: next door to the historic Çelik Palas hotel in Çekirge, the thermal-bath quarter, and directly opposite Kültürpark, where the Archaeological Museum stands. Fold it into a single outing with the park and that museum, or give it ten minutes on the way to one of the Çekirge hammams. It opens at 08:00 and closes at 17:00, shuts on Mondays, and the entrance desk closes at 16:30. The internal staircase is narrow and wooden, so pushchairs and anyone who struggles with stairs will manage only the ground floor, which on its own gives a fair idea. The small garden is shaded and pleasant in August heat.
The municipality gave it to Atatürk in 1923; he handed it back by letter in February 1938, months before his death.
Balconies, pedimented eaves and fine French-style timber detailing from 1895, a rare survivor of its kind in Bursa.
Bedroom, study and glasshouse upstairs, furnished with the original pieces he used.
Çekirge Caddesi No. 77, Çekirge, Osmangazi, Bursa
Bursa Archaeological MuseumTurkey's third-oldest museum is not in Istanbul or Ankara but in a quiet corner 2 min walk
Muradiye ComplexThere is a hole in the dome over Sultan Murad II so that Bursa's rain falls dire9 min walk
Tophane Clock Tower and the Tombs of Osman and Orhan GaziOn this hilltop lies the man the whole Ottoman state is named after, and the son22 min walk
Hüdavendigar Mosque and Tomb of Murad INowhere else in Ottoman architecture did anyone build a religious college on top23 min walkHonestly no, unless Republican history is your thing; the Grand Mosque, the Ottoman village of Cumalıkızık and the cable car up Uludağ all come first. But if you are already in Kültürpark or staying in the Çekirge hotels, a free quarter of an hour here costs you nothing.
Not really. The rooms are small, the exhibits are furniture and personal effects with nothing hands-on, and the narrow wooden stairs mean a pushchair stays on the ground floor. The small shaded garden is the only part young children will enjoy.
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