Derya-i Ali Baba (Perişan Baba)

Ali Baba, whose date of birth and death are unknown, is one of the Anatolian saints lived in the fifteenth century. During the conquest of İstanbul by Fatih Sultan Mehmet Han, he was the head of the water carriers meeting water requirements of the army. He died in Istanbul and has a tomb in Kazlıçeşme. He was named Saka Ali Baba or Derya Ali Baba because he served as a water carrier.

While İstanbul was under siege by the Byzantines, Fatih Sultan Mehmet Han established an army of conquest to save the city. But because of lack of water and the thirst, the soldiers had no energy to fight. Meanwhile, they tried to get water and informed everybody accordingly to get water, howeverand no positive response was received. Meanwhile, Ali Baba sent a message to the Sultan upon these rumors and said that there was plenty of water and that there would not be a problem regarding water any longer. Fatih Sultan Mehmet Han called up the head of water carrier and asked him why he insisted on saying that they have plenty of water even though they had none.

Ali Baba told the sultan that he could look at the leather bottle on his back if he wanted.

Looking into the leather bottle, the sultan saw a huge ocean and when he realized that there was enough water for not only one army but also thousands of armies, he asked why these rumors exist. Ali Baba turned to the sultan and said, "Our soldiers who fought heroically sweat and become very thirsty. If I give them enough water, they will all get sick and our victory will be in danger." The sultan, who was extremely pleased with this answer, asked Ali Baba about his wish and promised to do it. Ali Baba, who had no wish, even donated the land allocated to him while he was alive. The tomb of this person, who has such an important place in our history, in Kazlıçeşme is still visited by thousands of people today.