İlber Ortaylı to be laid to rest today: An emotional farewell from his daughter

Details have been announced for the funeral program of Prof. Dr. İlber Ortaylı, one of Turkey's leading historians, who passed away at the age of 78 due to multiple organ failure.

The first ceremony for Ortaylı will be held at 11:00 AM at Galatasaray University. Memorial speeches will be delivered at the university, where he served for many years, mentored students, and conducted his research.

A memorial service is being held for İlber Hoca at Galatasaray University pic.twitter.com/YeUrYFKV0m

— 2.Sayfaofficial (@2_sayfaofficial) March 16, 2026

The renowned historian will be interred in the Fatih Mosque courtyard following the afternoon prayer at the mosque.

THE COURTYARD HOUSING HISTORICAL FIGURES

The Fatih Mosque courtyard contains the graves of significant figures from both the Ottoman and Republican eras. The tomb of the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror is also located in the mausoleum built in his name.

The courtyard also houses the graves of historian Halil İnalcık, who was Ortaylı's mentor, art historian Semavi Eyice, historian Kemal Karpat, and former Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Kadir Topbaş.

HIGH ATTENDANCE AT THE CEREMONY

CHP leader Özgür Özel, CHP Group Deputy Chairman Ali Mahir Başarır, and Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavaş attended the memorial service held at Galatasaray University.

Özgür Özel and Mansur Yavaş arrived at Galatasaray University, where the ceremony for İlber Ortaylı is being held. https://t.co/bP0D8vOdqT pic.twitter.com/hK0D0FfTSZ

— Popüler Gazete (@populergazeteTR) March 16, 2026

Meanwhile, in addition to Fatih Altaylı and Celal Şengör, Yasemin Minguzzi and Galatasaray President Dursun Özbek did not leave İlber Ortaylı alone on his final journey.

Galatasaray President Dursun Özbek at the memorial service for İlber Ortaylı… pic.twitter.com/bJtcIdcBA4

— 2.Sayfaofficial (@2_sayfaofficial) March 16, 2026

?? Yasemin Minguzzi, mother of Ahmet Minguzzi, attended the ceremony held for İlber Ortaylı at Galatasaray University.

?? İlber Ortaylı had most recently attended Ahmet Minguzzi's trial. pic.twitter.com/Cgx9shqVpY

— Çağdaş Evren Şenlik (@CagdasEvren) March 16, 2026

?? Prof. Dr. Celal Şengör and Fatih Altaylı attended the memorial service held for İlber Ortaylı.pic.twitter.com/MKjlqBKVl5

— SİYAH SANCAK (@siyahsancakx) March 16, 2026

SECURITY MEASURES TAKEN

Preparations are ongoing at Fatih Mosque and its surroundings, where Prof. Dr. İlber Ortaylı will be laid to rest. While some roads around the mosque have been closed to traffic, security measures have been implemented in the area. The crowd gathered in the mosque courtyard has begun waiting for the afternoon prayer time when the funeral prayer will be held.

Vehicles parked near the mosque were towed after their owners were notified.

HIS BODY BROUGHT TO FATİH MOSQUE

After being washed and shrouded at the Kozlu Cemetery mortuary, Ortaylı's body was brought to Fatih Mosque in a coffin draped with the Turkish flag.

AN EMOTIONAL FAREWELL FROM HIS DAUGHTER

Unable to hold back her tears while speaking at the memorial service, İlber Ortaylı's daughter, Tuna Ortaylı, bid farewell to her father with these words:

"During his hospital stay, while he was surrounded by newspapers, books, and dictionaries, he was also proofreading his upcoming book. It pained me to see the unfinished proofreading of his last book on his desk.

With this man who lived his life to the fullest but still wasn't satisfied with living, there were many more places to visit as a father, much more time to spend with his grandchildren, much more work to be done, and many more moments to laugh.

I only regret these things regarding him. I hope that when you think of İlber Hoca, you only feel the bitterness of things left undone together."

Prof. Dr. Sezai Enis Tulça shared for the first time at the memorial service a response İlber Ortaylı gave to a Greek academic at a panel:

"At a panel, a Greek academic—you know, Macedonia always had a naming issue with Greece. Well, the Greeks wouldn't call it Macedonia directly. The Greek was presenting a paper in Skopje.

Even though he was there, he kept saying 'the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia' and so on... and the professor (İlber Ortaylı) was sitting right next to us. He said, 'watch what I'm going to do to him now.' It was the professor's turn to present.

In his speech, instead of Greece, he said 'the former Ottoman Republic of Greece.' In other words, he didn't say Greece. So, that was another point where he didn't mince his words."

SOME ROADS TO BE CLOSED DUE TO THE FUNERAL

The Istanbul Police Department's Traffic Inspection Branch announced that some roads will be closed to traffic starting from 09:00 AM tomorrow due to the funeral ceremony to be held in Fatih.

The routes to be closed to traffic are as follows:

"İtfaiye Street, Büyük Karaman Street, Aslanhane Street, Mıhçılar Street, Manisalı Fırın Street, Taylasan Street, Hulusi Noyan Street, Nalbant Demir Street, Hattat Nazif Street, Fatih Tomb Street."

It was stated that Kız Taşı Street and Haydar Bey Street can be used as alternative routes.

News Source: 12punto