Kadı Ali Mosque

Kadı Ali Mosque, Gazi Mosque, Gazi Ali Bey Mosque, Old Mosque or Kadı Mosque, is a historic Ottoman-era mosque located within the boundaries of Lüleburgaz district, Kırklareli province. It is situated opposite the Sokollu Mehmed Pasha Bridge in Lüleburgaz.

History

Although it is stated that the mosque was commissioned by Hacı İlbey in the reign of I. Murad in the years 1360-1363 in the name of his son Gazi Ali Bey, the architectural features of the building suggest that it may be dated to the 1500s and could be the first mosque in Lüleburgaz. Previously known as Gazi Ali Bey Mosque, the mosque began to be called Kadı Ali Mosque or Kadı Mosque over time because of the Kırkkadı graves in its cemetery. The mosque’s minaret was built with stones brought from Pınarhisar. The author of the Menâzırü’l-avâlim work, Âşık Mehmed, who stayed in Lüleburgaz for a while, mentions this mosque together with the Sokollu Mehmed Pasha Bath.

In the 1877-1878 Ottoman-Russian War, after the Ottoman Empire lost its lands west of Edirne, it was used as an armory together with two caravanserais and a military barracks in Lüleburgaz. During the Balkan Wars it was damaged by artillery fire from the Bulgarian army. In later years it was damaged by an earthquake.

In a undated photograph in the SALT Research – Ali Saim Ülgen Archive that shows the mosque, the fountain that appears to be next to the mosque entrance has not survived to the present day.

Restorations

In the year 1158 AH (1745/1746 AD) it was repaired by two women named Ayşe, daughter of Ahmet, and Fatma, daughter of Mehmet.

In the Republican period, in 1957, it was restored by the General Directorate of Foundations.

Included in the area defined as "the surroundings of the Sokullu Mehmed Pasha Complex together with the Taşköprü, Kadı Ali Mosque and the line of the wall and its surroundings" within the "Feasibility of Organizing Historical Areas in Lüleburgaz" Project, whose expenses will be covered by the Thrace Development Agency, accepted in 2013 and stated to start in 2014.

In 2019, repair works began, including the renewal of the lead in the minaret's dome. The entrance part of the mosque is surrounded by an aluminum frame entrance section, and a storage space has been added to the corner where it joins the minaret at the northwest of the building.

It was registered by decision dated 11.09.1991 and numbered 949. The Conservation Area Board approved excavation, restitution and restoration projects. The mosque is currently open for worship.

Architecture

The building, with a square plan, is covered by a lead‑covered dome sitting on an octagonal drum, and its walls are constructed of cut stone material. The upper row of windows placed in two rows has pointed arches, while the lower tier is rectangular. The single‑shrine, cut‑stone minaret is located at the northwest corner of the building.