Üsküdar Altunîzâde Mektebi’nin Kısa Tarihçesi
A Concise History of Üsküdar Altunizade School

Summary/Abstract: Changes in education, as part of Ottoman modernization, first began with the opening of new schools in the military field. This development was followed by the opening of civilian schools starting from 1838. In 1845, the Council of Education (Meclis-i Maârif) was established, and in 1857, the Ministry of Education (Maârif Nezareti) was formed. The regulation that comprehensively organized education in Ottoman educational history is the Public Education Regulation (Maârif-i Umûmiye Nizamnâmesi) enacted in 1869. This regulation provided a systematic arrangement for both existing traditional schools and those to be newly established. One of the main regulations was making primary education compulsory. Education was classified into primary, secondary, and higher levels in a form close to today’s system. One of the most important of these regulations was focused on private schools. Articles 129 and 130 of the regulation dealt with these schools. Private schools were divided into three categories: Schools opened by Muslims, non-Muslims, and foreigners. The lack of adequate public schools and the state’s financial difficulties also played a role in the establishment of these schools. In addition, an important aim was to ensure that children received education while preserving their religious, national, and moral values. At this point, the rich and comprehensive curriculum of the rüsdiye (secondary) schools is noteworthy. Thus, children who studied at a good rüsdiye graduated well-equipped. This article examines the Altunîzâde School, which was opened in 1865(?) as a private school in the Altunîzâde District, an exceptional district of Üsküdar. The educational activities, teaching staff, student numbers, and courses offered at the school, which served as both an elementary (ibtidai) and junior high (rüşdiye) school, have been examined in general outline. The fact that the school, built by İsmail Zühdü Pasha, one of the important bureaucrats of the period, has reached the present day with various changes, along with its place and importance in our collective memory, is of great significance. Therefore, not only the period during which the school was built but also its continuous existence under different names until today has been evaluated. The writing of this article, due to the lack of a separate study on Altunîzâde School, is an important contribution to educational history of modern Turkey in addition to uncovering the school's history. However, it should not be considered that the entire history of the school is covered in this article. It is a brief history of Altunîzâde School. In the article, primary historical sources, especially the Ottoman Archives, some registers belonging to the school, and previous research on Üsküdar history and Ottoman educational history were used. As a result of this research, it has been determined that Altunîzâde School experienced financial difficulties throughout its historical process; yet despite the risk of closure, efforts were made to continue education, and the school has maintained its existence to the present day.

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