Öküz Mehmet Pasha Complex is a külliye in Ulukışla, Turkey.. According to Ulukışla municipality page the name Ulukışla refers to the complex. In the past a part of the complex was used as military barracks and the Ulukışla citizens called the complex Ulukışla which eventually became the name of the settlement.
Location
The complex is situated in the center of Ulukışla district of Niğde Province about north of the main state highway at.
History
The commissioner of the complex was Öküz Mehmet Pasha, a grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire. During his campaign to Safavid dynasty of Persia in 1615, he decided to spend the winter in Ulukışla. But he was unable to findadequate barracks for his soldiers and he had to distribute the troops to nearby towns. To solve the problem for the future campaigns he had the complex built in 1616. According to another theory about the origin of the complex, Ulukışla was the birth place of Öküz Mehmet Pasha and he tried to rebuild his home town. The complex underwent a renovation in 1753. In 2011 it was restored by the Directorate of Foundations. Presently the complex is used as a market place. Both the governorship and the municipality have offices in the building.
The complex
The complex is situated on a gentle slopefrom the north. The main building is a rectangular arasta situated in west to east direction. North of the bazzar, there is a square-plan courtyard with cloister. The dormitories encircle the courtyard. South of the bazaar there is a hamam and a mosque. Originally there was a golden finial in the bath. But it was later stolen. The heated water in the hamam was used to heat the complex. The complex had a sewage system. The total ground area of the complex is.
In literature
Han Duvarları is a well-knownpoem of the renowned Turkish poet Faruk Nafiz Çamlıbel. Çamlıbel wrote this poem in 1925 after his travel from Ulukışla to another city. It is claimed that Çamlıbel was inspired by Öküz Mehmet Pasha Complex.
