Mosques Converted from Churches by the Ottoman Empire

Book excerpt: Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 45. Chapters: Mosques converted from churches in Istanbul, Hagia Sophia, Gul Mosque, Chora Church, Fenari Isa Mosque, Little Hagia Sophia, Koca Mustafa Pasha Mosque, Bodrum Mosque, Zeyrek Mosque, Eski Imaret Mosque, Kalenderhane Mosque, Arap Mosque, Atik Mustafa Pasha Mosque, Pammakaristos Church, Vefa Kilise Mosque, Sancaktar Hayrettin Mosque, Monastery of Stoudios, Kefeli Mosque, Manast r Mosque, Istanbul, Hirami Ahmet Pasha Mosque, Hagios Demetrios, Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque, Church of the Holy Apostles, Church of the Acheiropoietos, Matthias Church, Hagia Sophia Church, eyh Suleyman Mosque, Cathedral of Kars, Jezzar Pasha Mosque, Church of Panagia Chalkeon, Selimiye Mosque, Haydarpasha Mosque. Excerpt: Hagia Sophia (from the Greek: , "Holy Wisdom"; Latin: or Sancta Sapientia; Turkish: ) is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey. From the date of its dedication in 360 until 1453, it served as the Greek Patriarchal cathedral of Constantinople, except between 1204 and 1261, when it was converted to a Roman Catholic cathedral under the Latin Patriarch of Constantinople of the Western Crusader established Latin Empire. The building was a mosque from 29 May 1453 until 1931, when it was secularized. It was opened as a museum on 1 February 1935. The Church was dedicated to the Logos, the second person of the Holy Trinity, its dedication feast taking place on 25 December, the anniversary of the incarnation of the Logos in Christ. Although it is sometimes referred to as Sancta Sophia (as though it were named after Saint Sophia), sophia is the phonetic spelling in Latin of the Greek word for wisdom - the full name in Greek being, "Church of the Holy Wisdom of God." Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to...