Embassy of Turkey, Washington D.C.

The Embassy of Turkey in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of the Republic of Turkey to the United States. It is located at 2525 Massachusetts Avenue, Northwest in the Embassy Row neighborhood.

Embassy of Turkey, Washington, D.C.

LocationWashington, D.C.
Address2525 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
Coordinates38°54′59″N 77°03′21″W
Websitewashington.emb.mfa.gov.tr
The statue of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in Turkish Embassy, Washington D.C.

History

Previously, the embassy had been housed in a mansion farther south, at Sheridan Circle and 23rd Street, N.W. The building today serves as the Turkish ambassador's residence. It was originally built for Edward Hamlin Everett, a bottling millionaire, in 1915. The Everett House was designed by George Oakley Totten, Jr., a Washingtonian who had spent a brief period in Turkey as the official architect for Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II. The Turkish government leased the building in 1932 and purchased it four years later.

In the 1930s and 1940s, the embassy held numerous parties and musical sessions for famous jazz artists, such as Duke Ellington's band, organized by Ahmet and Nesuhi, the sons of then-ambassador Munir Ertegun and later the founders of Atlantic Records.[1] Notably, these sessions were not racially segregated, with both black and white musicians being invited, and the Ertegun brothers also managed D.C.'s first integrated public concert in 1942.[2]

The chancery is currently housed in a new building, inaugurated by Turkish President Süleyman Demirel on April 23, 1999. Designed by Shalom Baranes Associates, it reflects aspects of Turkish vernacular architecture while harmonizing with the styles of the Sheridan-Kalorama neighborhood.

2017 violent clashes
Main article: Clashes at the Turkish Ambassador's Residence in Washington, D.C.

On May 16, 2017, armed Turkish security forces attacked pro Kurdish protesters demonstrating on behalf of the North American Kurdish Alliance outside the ambassador's residence during a visit by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, forcing intervention by the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia.[3] On March 31, 2016, Turkish security forces had attacked protesters and journalists further down Embassy Row during a speech by President Erdoğan at the Brookings Institution.[4]

Turkish ambassador's residence in Washington, D.C.

See also

References
  1. "When Turkey Meant Jazz". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-03-21.
  2. "'It Was A Social Revolution': The Turkish Embassy's Surprising Role In Desegregating D.C. Jazz". Retrieved 2021-03-21.
  3. Fandos, Nicholas; Mele, Christopher (18 May 2017). "Erdogan Security Forces Launch 'Brutal Attack' on Washington Protesters, Officials Say". The New York Times. p. A17. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  4. Kirişci, Kemal (19 May 2017). "Turkey's downward spiral and the scuffles at Erdoğan's Brookings speech". Brookings Institution. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
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