Polonezköy (or Adampol) is a small and picturesque village in Istanbul Province, on the Asian side of Istanbul, in the Beykoz district. It was instigated and commissioned by Prince Adam Jerzy Czartoryski and first settled by a small group of Polish emigrės in 1842, after the failed November Uprising 1830–31 (also known as the Polish–Russian War). There is still a Polish community there today, with its own church and cemetery.
At the beginning, the village was inhabited by just 12 people; there were never more than 220 Poles even at the peak of its population. After (many historical periods and) Polish independence in 1918, many returned to Poland and the remaining inhabitants took Turkish citizenship in 1938. Today, there are about 1,000 people in Polonezköy of whom around 40 speak fluent Polish.
Already before World War II, the first tourists started arriving in the village. Polonezköy’s village chronicles record the visits of famous people such as Franz Liszt (1847), French writer, Gustave Flaubert (1850), Czech writer, Karel Droz (1904) and the first President of the Turkish Republic Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1937).
The flow of tourists has continued to this day. But during our own nature vacation, early spring in April, we were able to enjoy almost complete peace and breathe in the fresh and empowering enchantment of nature. And all this almost in the center of Istanbul! Istanbul always surprises me.
A hike in the forest
Istanbul.
Thank you Polonezköy, you enchanted us with your beauty!