Şamlar Powder Mill (Azatlı Baruthanesi)

Başakşehir district on the European side of Istanbul is home to the remains of a facility built based on gunpowder production for firearms, which increased in importance day by day towards the end of the 18th century. The structure on the borders of Şahintepe district near Küçükçekmece Lake is now in an empty land, among Meadows and is in ruins. 

It is known that the Şamlar Baruthanesi, located in the capital of the Ottoman Empire, outside the densely populated area of today's Fatih district and its surroundings, and was founded in 1795. The structure, which was established by the efforts of one of the leading soldiers, Baruthane Minister Mehmet Şerif Efendi, becomes more important after the closure of the Baruthane (Powder Mill) in Bulgaria.

The Ottoman-Russian War between 1877-1878 brought another unknown result, such as the destruction of the Şamlar Power Mill and did not operate anymore. The Russians, who had won the war in question, had come to the borders of Bakırköy district and threatened the capital, and the Ottoman Empire was forced to accept the peace agreement with heavy conditions.

It is known that the Ottoman-Russian war of 1877-1878, which resulted in significant territorial losses of the Ottoman Empire, caused the wave migration of Turks who immigrated from the Lost Lands to Anatolia, and intense economic, cultural, social effects were encountered after this war which is also known as the Battle of 93. A pool for water storage and the remains of the warehouse can also be seen around the powder mill ruins. A large farm also very close to the ruins attracts attention.