According to the mosque’s inscription, this edifice was built by Kanuni Sultan Suleyman (Solomon the Magnificent) in 1522 A.D. / 929 A.H. in the name of his father Yavuz Sultan Selim.
The mosque is in the centre of a complex comprising “tabhânes” (a cer- tain type of guest-house), “imâret” (a gathering place for the poor and the students to have meals offered by the Sultan), a “sibyan” school (a kind of pre-school) and tombs. The “imâret” building (for the poor and needy) has not survived to our present time.
This plain-looking work of art, built on a square plan with faceted stone, is covered with a unique large dome. The “tabhâne” rooms adjacent to the mosque reflect the transition from early Ottoman to classical Ottoman archi- tecture. Yavuz Sultan Selim and Abdulmejid’s tombs are present among the tombs surrounding the mihrab.