Bayoğlu Family

Bayoğlu Family

The Bayoğlu branch of the Kula Beyler lineage: a family's roots, its home, and the story that reaches today.

Thirteen members of the Bayoğlu family pose together in front of a venue in the evening; an elderly man sits on a chair in the middle.
The Bayoğlu family together.

Mehmet İlhan Bayoğlu

Mehmet İlhan Bayoğlu was brought to Istanbul at the age of 11 by his father, Esat Bayoğlu. He rose steadily in textiles and business.

He built a range of businesses covering fabric, yarn and dyeing works, and over time became one of Turkey's notable businessmen. Over the years he also built up a significant base in real estate.

Of his children, Esat and Ümit continue their work in textiles. Furkan carries on with real estate investment.

Furkan Bayoğlu (standing, right), his father Mehmet İlhan Bayoğlu (seated, middle) and grandson Mehmet İlhan (left) in front of a house door.
Mehmet İlhan Bayoğlu, Furkan Bayoğlu and grandson Mehmet İlhan.

Furkan Bayoğlu

Furkan Bayoğlu is the son of Mehmet İlhan Bayoğlu and continues in real estate investment.

More at: furkanbayoglu.com

The Kula Beyler lineage

The family's ancestor is Sungur Bey, the Germiyanids' emir in Kula. With the Surname Law of 1934 the family divided into two branches: one took the surname Sungur, the other first Bay and then Bayoğlu.

The historical information below is based on Hasan Zeki Sungur's research, Kula Beyler Sülalesi (in Turkish).

  1. 1300–1380 Sungur Bey The Germiyanids' emir in Kula. Between 1351 and 1358 he had a mosque, a bathhouse and a caravanserai built in Kula.
  2. 18th century Beyler House built Believed to have been built by Hüseyin Bey.
  3. 1919 İstihlas Vatan SocietySource Esat Bey is said to have worked on laying the foundations of the Kuvâ-yı Millîye (National Forces) movement in Kula.
  4. 1934 Surname Law The family divided into the Sungur and Bayoğlu branches.
  5. 1938 First soda factory in KulaSource Founded by Esat Bayoğlu.
  6. 1978 PTT commemorative stampStamp Beyler House appeared on a 3½-lira stamp in the "Traditional Turkish Houses" series.
  7. 2016 Beyler House Museum opened On 21 November 2016, after restoration by Manisa Metropolitan Municipality.
  8. 2016 Mehmet İlhan Bayoğlu Scholarship Platform
The two-storey Beyler House seen from a stone-walled street, with timber bay windows and wide eaves; flags and opening banners line the street.
Beyler House on its opening day, 21 November 2016. Photo: alasehirli.wordpress.com

Beyler House

The ancestral home of the Sungur and Bayoğlu families. Regarded as one of the most characteristic historic houses of Kula, it can now be visited as a museum.

  • Structure. Two storeys with an outer sofa and three rooms; mixed stone and timber construction.
  • Decoration. Fine woodwork on the upper floor, in openwork (ajur) and carved techniques.
  • History. Believed to have been built in the 18th century by Hüseyin Bey.
  • Museum. Opened on 21 November 2016.
  • Address. Zaferiye Mahallesi, 78th Street (now 150th Street), No:5, Kula/Manisa, Türkiye.

1978 commemorative stamp

In 1978 PTT issued the "Traditional Turkish Houses" series. The 3½-lira value of the five-stamp series shows Beyler House in Kula. The series went into circulation with first-day covers postmarked Ankara, 22 November 1978.

The Sungur family reproduced this stamp and gave copies to relatives; in some homes it also hangs as a hammered-copper relief in the best corner of the house.

  • Series. Traditional Turkish Houses, 1978, five stamps.
  • Beyler House stamp. 3½ lira, "Beyler Evi – Kula" (catalogue 1978.13.03).
The 1978 3½-lira stamp: under the words Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, Beyler House seen from a stone-walled street with wide eaves. The caption reads Beyler Evi – Kula.
Beyler Evi – Kula, 3½ lira, 1978.
The five stamps of the 1978 Traditional Turkish Houses series side by side: a waterfront mansion in Istanbul, a mansion in İzmir, Beyler House in Kula, a house in Milas and a house in Safranbolu.
Traditional Turkish Houses series, 1978. The third stamp is Beyler House. Image: Pulhane catalogue
First-day cover of the series with all five stamps, postmarked Ankara, 22.XI.1978.
First-day cover of the series, Ankara, 22 November 1978.

Family tree

The Bayoğlu branch from Esat Bayoğlu to today.

Esat Bayoğlu

Mehmet İlhan Bayoğlu

Son of Esat Bayoğlu

  • Uğur
    • Emirhan
      • Yasut
  • Esat
    • Begüm
    • Çiğdem
    • Ali
  • Ümit
    • Umut
    • Pınar
      • Kaan
    • Deniz
  • Furkan
    • Mehmet İlhan

Halil Bayoğlu

Son of Esat Bayoğlu

  • Tülin
  • Hatice
  • Ziya
  • Tuğrul
    • Yiğit