Validebag Grove (Validebağ Korusu) is located between Altunizade, Acıbadem and Koşuyolu districts in Üsküdar. About 200 years ago, Sultan III. Selim (1798–1807) built a vineyard for his mother, Mihrişah Valide Sultan, on the land on the outskirts of Çamlıca. When Sultan Abdulmecid took the throne, he gifted the building to his mother Bezmialem Valide Sultan.
After the death of Bezmialem Valide Sultan, Validebağ land became the property of Altunizade family. Altunizade İsmail Zühtü Pasha built an attractive mansion in Validebağ in 1860. Then, the lodge presents it to Sultan Abdülaziz, who likes it.
In 1853, Sultan Abdülaziz demolished the mansion he liked and built the building today, and gave his mother Pertevniyal Valide Sultan a hunting lodge. The building was given to Adile Sultan as a summer palace in 1863. Validebağ Grove, the second largest green area of the Anatolian side. It is located between Altunizade, Acıbadem and Koşuyolu districts in Üsküdar.
Validebag Grove (Validebağ Korusu) is not just a grove area. It also has a special texture as it is a place that witnesses history. It acts as an ecological shelter in the city with its monumental trees, which are between 100 and 400 years old, which defy the years, with more than 40 species, over 100 kinds of animals and insects.
In 1850, Validebag Grove (Validebağ Korusu) begins to transform the land into a modern botanical garden with the tree and plant species brought by Bezmialem Valide Sultan from home and abroad. Later, Sultan Abdülaziz takes over the grove for his sister.
There are also structures in the grove that have survived to the present day. One of these structures is the famous Adile Sultan Summer Palace, where the legendary movie “The Class of Hababam” was shot.
Another building is the Abdülaziz Hunting Pavilion, which is used today as the ‘Scout Museum’ with its aged look. In addition, Teachers House Hotel and Nursing Home are among the other numbered buildings in the land.
