Guide
The meadow at Gebze is called the Sovereign's Meadow because Mehmed II stopped here with his army on Friday 27 April 1481, on the campaign he was leading towards Italy — the source says he halted here, or had his tent pitched here, without settling which. He died on 3 May of that year.
The fountain on the meadow carries an inscription. The source says in one place that it was built in memory of Mehmed II, and in another that it was built in 1659, in the reign of Mehmed IV, by the grand vizier İbrahim Paşa; it has stood since, with repairs. People also call it the Fatih sebil, and hold it to mark the spot where the tent stood. A monument to Mehmed II has been raised in front of it. The meadow was laid out again in 1995 as a park and festival ground, and traditional wrestling festivities are held there every year for the anniversary of the conquest of İstanbul. Municipal buses run out from the city centre.
