Gül Baba – meaning “Father of Roses” – was a Bektashi dervish who accompanied the Ottoman army during the reign of Sultan Mehmed II as it advanced into Europe. The “rose” in his name symbolizes a spiritual rank, indicating his deep, transcendent knowledge of God.

Gül Baba arrived in Buda in 1541, alongside Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and the Ottoman forces. According to legend, he died on September 2, 1541 – the very day the town’s occupation was being commemorated. A respected figure among the Ottomans, Gül Baba was buried on a hill near the former Gunpowder Township on the northern bank of the Danube, known in Turkish as Barutháne mahallesi. Sultan Suleiman himself is said to have attended the funeral.

Between 1543 and 1548, a closed tomb (türbe) was built over his grave under the governance of Jahjapasazade Mehmed, the Bey of Buda. During the Ottoman occupation, a Bektashi dervish monastery (tekke) was also constructed on the site. It became common for Ottomans to be buried around the tomb, and gradually the northern hills of Buda evolved into a significant pilgrimage site. This area became known as Gül Baba Tepesi, or Gül Baba Hill.

Even in the 16th and 17th centuries, many legends surrounded Gül Baba. One of the most famous comes from the Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi, who visited the tomb in 1663. He wrote that Gül Baba, originally from Merzifon, died during the first Friday prayer held in the converted Notre Dame church, and again, noted the presence of the Sultan at his funeral. Gül Baba came to be seen as the spiritual guardian of the empire’s farthest reaches.

In 1686, during the second siege of Buda, the Habsburg army left the tomb untouched. Later, Jesuit priests converted it into a Catholic chapel, and it remained in this form for nearly two centuries.

In 1885, the Ottoman government commissioned Hungarian architect János Wagner to restore the tomb and its surrounding structures. Wagner not only renovated the tomb, but also built a supporting wall and incorporated his own residence into the site. Following further restoration in 1914, the tomb was declared a Hungarian national monument.

In the 19th and 20th centuries, new legends surrounding Gül Baba emerged, especially through romantic literature and music. The hill was renamed Rose Hill in his honor, and elegant villas were built in the area. Streets were renamed – including the former Niedermayer Gasse becoming Gül Baba Street – and scientific research and restoration of the site began.

Throughout the 20th century, the tomb and its surrounding structures underwent several renovations, though none were comprehensive. By the early 21st century, the complex was in serious disrepair and had to be closed to visitors.

On February 24, 2015, the deputy prime ministers of Hungary and Turkey signed an agreement in Budapest to restore the tomb and its surroundings. The project was completed in 2018 as part of a broader Hungarian-Turkish cooperation. During the project, the tomb was thoroughly studied, historical preservation was carried out, and both the immediate and wider surroundings were carefully redesigned in terms of architecture and landscaping.

Today, visitors to the complex can explore not only the restored Ottoman tomb but also a vibrant cultural center. This includes a permanent exhibition in the basement of the former Wagner villa, a tea house and café, event and workshop spaces, a souvenir shop, and a temporary exhibition hall hosting regularly changing displays. Together with the landscaped gardens, the site functions as a living cultural institution – a thoughtfully preserved and reimagined historical complex.

The Gül Baba Tomb Heritage Foundation was established by the Hungarian State in 2017 with the mission to preserve, operate, and promote the Gül Baba Tomb, its surrounding garden, and its unique cultural heritage. Our goal is to build a cultural bridge between Hungary and Turkey, and to introduce more and more people to the tomb and the surrounding complex. We strive to transform this beautiful environment into a vibrant cultural center and an integral part of the touristic and cultural life of Budapest’s 2nd district, the capital, and the entire country.

Our mission is to preserve and strengthen Hungarian–Turkish friendship by showcasing the physical and spiritual legacy of Gül Baba. Through our cultural programs and activities, we aim to foster mutual understanding and appreciation between the two nations, thereby deepening the friendship between them.

Our vision is to produce high-quality content across various areas of Hungarian and Turkish culture—including cuisine, language, traditional dress, and music—offering engaging, meaningful experiences to our visitors.

Gül Baba was renowned in his time for his compassion and commitment to timeless values such as humanism, tolerance, brotherhood, and harmony. Our Foundation continues on this path by cultivating relationships between people and nations.

One of the Foundation’s key objectives is to enhance Turkish–Hungarian cultural cooperation. In this regard, we have received a long-term mandate from the government to identify all Ottoman heritage sites in Hungary and to work with Hungarian and Turkish institutions to develop a strategy for their preservation.

By safeguarding Gül Baba’s spiritual legacy, we are also entrusted with preserving the tomb for future generations. During the renovation of the monument, its related buildings, and the surrounding garden, we successfully blended traditional elements with modern design approaches.

In addition to our permanent and temporary exhibitions, we organize concerts, book launches, and workshops, and we are constantly seeking new topics to explore. We aim to offer visitors a rich, multisensory experience: in our café, guests can enjoy authentic Turkish coffee and tea, while in the gift shop, the rose appears not only as a motif but also as a fragrance—symbolizing the spirit of Gül Baba throughout the entire experience.