The signature of Istanbul, Maiden’s Tower stands proudly in the intersection of the Bosphorus where the two continents of Asia and Europe meet. The tower’s history stretches back 2,500 years, with a wealth of legends surrounding its place in this extraordinary city. Now the tower serves as a café and restaurant, attracting guests from near and far for a romantic meal, business engagement, or even a wedding. With delicious breakfasts and international lunch and dinner menus, Maiden’s Tower can be enjoyed at
Maiden’s Tower Kiz Kulesi
The Maiden's Tower
also known as Leander's Tower (Tower of Leandros) since the medieval Byzantine period, is a tower on a small islet at the southern entrance of the Bosphorus strait 200 m (220 yd) from the coast of Üsküdar in Istanbul, Turkey.
It is one of the most unlikely romantic spots in Istanbul with its 360 panoramic views. After the naval victory at Cyzicus, the ancient Athenian general Alcibiades possibly built a custom station for ships coming from the Black Sea on a small rock in front of Chrysopolis (today's Üsküdar). In 1110 ByzantineEmperor Alexius Comnenus built a wooden tower protected by a stone wall. From the tower an iron chain stretched across to another tower erected on the European shore, at the quarter of Mangana in Constantinople.
The islet was then connected to the Asiatic shore through a defense wall, whose underwater remains are still visible today. During the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1453, the tower held a Byzantine garrison commanded by the Venetian Gabriele Trevisano. Subsequently, the structure was used as a watchtower by the Ottoman Turks during the reign of Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror.
The tower, often called Leander's Tower in reference to the legend of Hero and Leander, was destroyed during the earthquake of 1509, and then burned down in 1721. Following that it was used as a lighthouse, and the surrounding walls were repaired in 1731 and 1734, until in 1763 it was reconstructed using stone. From 1829 the tower was used as a quarantine station. In 1832 the tower was restored by Sultan Mahmud II. Restored again by the harbour authority in 1945, the most recent restoration began in 1998 for the James Bond movie The World Is Not Enough. Steel supports were added around the ancient tower as a precaution after the 17 August 1999 earthquake.
The interior of the tower has been converted into a café and restaurant, with views of the former Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman capital. Private boats make trips to the tower several times a day.
There are many legends about the construction of the tower and its location. According to one legend, an emperor had a much beloved daughter and one day, an oracle prophesied that she would be killed by a venomous snake on her 18th birthday. The emperor, in an effort to thwart his daughter's early demise by placing her away from land so as to keep her away from any snakes, had the tower built in the middle of the Bosphorus to protect his daughter until her 18th birthday. The princess was placed in the tower, where she was frequently visited only by her father.
On the 18th birthday of the princess, the emperor brought her a basket of exotic sumptuous fruits as a birthday gift, delighted that he was able to prevent the prophecy. Upon reaching into the basket, she was however bitten by a serpent that had been hiding among the fruit and died in her father's arms, just as the oracle had predicted, hence the name Maiden's Tower.
The older name Leander's Tower comes from another story about a maiden: the ancient Greek myth of Hero and Leander. Hero was a priestess of Aphrodite who lived in a tower at Sestos, at the edge of the Hellespont(Dardanelles). Leander (Leandros), a young man from Abydos on the other side of the strait, fell in love with her and would swim every night across the Hellespont to be with her. Hero would light a lamp every night at the top of her tower to guide his way.
Succumbing to Leander's soft words, and to his argument that Aphrodite, as goddess of love, would scorn the worship of a virgin, Hero allowed him to make love to her. This routine lasted through the warm summer. But one stormy winter night, the waves tossed Leander in the sea and the breeze blew out Hero's light, and Leander lost his way, and consequently drowned. Hero threw herself from the tower in grief and died as well. The name Maiden's Tower might also have its origins in this ancient story. Due to the vicinity and similarity between the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus, Leander's story was mistakenly attributed to the tower.
