Red Madrasa of Cizre

Red Madrasa or Red Medrese (Kurdish: Medresa Sor Arabic: Medreset-ül Hamra), a historic building located in the Dağkapı Neighborhood in the center of the district of Cizre, Şırnak Province.

It is situated on the ruins of the city walls on the western side of the town. The majority is built of red bricks in a square four‑corner shape and takes its name from this material. It was constructed together with the mosque and tomb to its south. Although it is in a ruined state today, the structure, which has become synonymous with the city of Cizre, was renovated in 2007 by the General Directorate of Foundations and opened for use as a mosque and Quran course.

The red madrasa is also known among the public by the Kurdish name Medresa sor. In Arabic sources it is referred to as Medreset’ü’l Hamra. It is located in an area that also contains other important structures dated to different periods, such as the Tomb of Noah, which is believed to have been built after the Flood, and the tomb of the famous medieval physicist and artist Al‑Jazari.

It was commissioned in the 14th century by II. Han Şeref Bey during the period of the Cizre Beylik. It is thought to be part of a complex that II. Han Şeref Bey had built as a vow after ending Akkoyunlu dominance and taking Cizre.

Red Madrasa is a complex in which madrasa, mosque and tomb buildings are combined and related to each other. It is a courtyard‑type madrasa; rectangular in plan on a north‑south axis and with two eyvans. The courtyard is surrounded on all sides by arcades; the southern wing houses the mosque, the chief instructor’s rooms and the tomb, while the other wings are allocated to instructor and student rooms. It is thought that the Kurdish scholar Molla Ahmed‑i Cezirî taught at this madrasa.

Through a triple arch on the south side of the courtyard, a low‑arched door leads to the prayer room; from the south wall of the prayer room, a door reached by two steps leads to the tomb. The tomb, known as the Molla Ahmed Cezîrî Tomb, is two‑storeyed. The lower floor is the burial chamber, and the upper floor is said to have been used as a debate hall where important meetings were held and religious discussions took place. Seven tombstones are found in the burial chamber. Among the tomb witnesses whose inscriptions can be read, no one is found under the name Melayê Cizîrî, but the tombstone of Mîr İmadeddin bin Şeref el‑Bohti is known among the people as the tomb of Melayê Cizîrî.