Following the 1453 conquest of Constantinople, Mehmed II commissioned the Fatih Külliyesi (Fatih Mosque Complex) in Istanbul as an imperial, waqf-funded hub combining worship with social services (medreses, hospital/darüşşifa, hospice, and imaret soup kitchen), helping anchor Ottoman urbanization and welfare provision in the new capital.
The initial construction campaign for the Fatih Mosque and its surrounding külliye was completed after roughly seven years, creating a major waqf-supported complex that institutionalized education, healthcare, and food distribution in Istanbul.
Sultan Bayezid II initiated a large waqf-funded complex in Edirne integrating a mosque, guesthouses, medical school, darüşşifa (hospital), pharmacy-related spaces, and an imaret, illustrating how Ottoman public works linked healthcare and welfare services under endowments.
The Bayezid II complex in Edirne was completed, with the hospital and medical school at its core and supporting welfare and logistical units (including an imaret) structured to sustain charitable services through its waqf revenues.
Süleyman I founded the waqf-backed Süleymaniye imperial mosque complex in Istanbul under Mimar Sinan, a major public-works project designed to coordinate religious functions with education and charitable provisioning on a monumental urban scale.
Haseki Hürrem Sultan established a major waqf complex in Jerusalem that included a public soup kitchen (imaret), mosque, pilgrim hospice, and travelers’ inn (khan), extending Ottoman endowment-based social infrastructure into the provinces.
The Süleymaniye Mosque was inaugurated in 1557 (foundation inscription gives 1550–1557), while parts of the broader külliye continued to be completed after the opening—typical of large waqf-driven building programs.
The Atik Valide külliye in Üsküdar—featuring institutions such as a soup kitchen (imaret), hospital, medrese, and bath—was completed and placed into service in 1583, highlighting the major role of dynastic women’s waqf patronage in Ottoman welfare infrastructure.
Grand Vizier Köprülü Mehmed Pasha constructed the Köprülü Külliyesi in Istanbul (dated 1072 AH/1662), combining religious-educational spaces with urban services and income-generating elements (shops) plus a sebil (public water dispenser), exemplifying how waqfs financed ongoing public benefits.
Commissioned by Gülnuş Sultan, the Yeni Valide Mosque complex in Üsküdar was completed in 1710, continuing Istanbul’s tradition of waqf-supported külliyes associated with royal women and neighborhood-scale public services.
Construction began on the Nuruosmaniye Complex in Istanbul during the reign of Mahmud I, establishing a waqf-backed ensemble (mosque, madrasa, imaret, library, sebil, tomb) integrated into a dense commercial-urban setting east of the Covered Bazaar.
The Nuruosmaniye Complex was completed in 1755 under Osman III, providing waqf-funded religious, educational, and welfare facilities (including an imaret and sebil) while also marking a prominent shift toward Ottoman Baroque architecture in an imperial foundation.
Public Works, Endowments (Waqf) and Social Infrastructure (15th–18th centuries)
