About
Known as the “Steering Building,” this structure was commissioned by Sultan Abdulhamid II and completed in 1892 during the construction of the Baghdad Railway. Between December 27, 1919, when Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk arrived in Ankara, and 1922, the building served as the headquarters and residence of the Commander-in-Chief, hosting some of the most significant domestic and foreign decisions of the era. The Turkish State Railways (TCDD) restored this valuable historic asset, which sheds light on our recent history and especially the early years of the Republic, and inaugurated it as a museum on December 24, 1964, contributing it to Ankara’s cultural heritage. Conservation, maintenance, and restoration work on Atatürk’s personal belongings as well as furniture and artifacts from the National Struggle period commenced on April 16, 2012. Following the completion of these efforts, the museum was reopened to visitors on September 23, 2012, coinciding with the 156th anniversary of TCDD’s establishment