The Imperial Medical School of Istanbul – Establishment, Edifices, Funding and Activities (1872–1876)

Subsequent to the Sultan’s edict of 26 December 1826, an Imperial Medical School was inaugurated as early as January 1827 with the objective of improving the healthcare of the nascent army. Throughout the decades, the Imperial Medical School proved to be instrumental in shaping the trajectory of modern healthcare in the Ottoman Empire and subsequently in the Republic of Turkey. This article focuses on issues such as the establishment of the Imperial Medical School, its edifices, funding and social activities between 1827 and 1876. It draws on Ottoman documents, newspaper notes and journal comments. It argues that the Imperial Medical School had somewhat limited development options following the unfortunate conflagration of the Galatasaray complex, due to its location in buildings that were not entirely suitable for medical instruction. It is possible that the Sublime Porte’s decision to repurpose the edifice designed for it may have contributed to this. Nevertheless, the Imperial Medical School remained committed to its public responsibilities, consistently addressing the most pressing health issues faced by the Ottoman society throughout the 1840s–1870s.