Abstract:

Casinos became one of the entertainment venues of the Ottoman society after the Tanzimat. Although new casinos were built in the second half of the 19th century, other venues, most of which were coffee houses, were converted into use. From meddah to pantomime, from Karagöz to theater plays, the casinos, where both traditional and western forms of entertainment are offered, are under the strict control of the administration. In an environment where actors, viewers and entertainment programs are inspected, various rules have been brought to the agenda for taking security measures with the sale of drinks. In the article, the attempts to open a casino in the Ottoman Empire, the difficulties in the operation of the casinos, the venues and entertainments of the casino are discussed in general under various headings. Casinos, which are seen as marginal places, were allowed to open in certain districts and the management aimed to make the casinos less harmful to public safety by limiting the time and place of drinking and entertainment.

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