kids encyclopedia robot

Cemil Topuzlu facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Cemil Topuzlu
Cemiltopuzlu.jpg
Personal details
Born 18 March 1866
Istanbul, Ottoman Empire
Died 25 January 1958(1958-01-25) (aged 91)
Istanbul, Turkey
Occupation Physician, politician

Professor Cemil Topuzlu (born March 18, 1866 – died January 25, 1958), also known as Cemil Pasha, was an important Turkish social democratic politician. He served as the mayor of Istanbul two times. During his time as mayor, he helped make big improvements in the city. One famous project was creating Gülhane Park, a beautiful public park.

He was also a very skilled surgeon in Turkey. People all over the world knew about his amazing work. He was a pioneer in many areas, like performing open chest cardiac massage (a special way to help a heart that has stopped). He wrote about his discoveries in many papers, first in Ottoman Turkish, then in modern Turkish, French, and German.

A Life of Service

Cemil
Cemil Topuzlu during his military service

Cemil Topuzlu was a very brave and innovative doctor. On August 27, 1903, one of his patients had a heart stop during surgery. Cemil Topuzlu quickly performed an open chest cardiac massage. This meant he directly massaged the patient's heart to try and get it beating again.

He also thought about difficult medical choices. He talked about when it might be best not to try and restart a heart, especially for people with very serious illnesses where life wouldn't be long or comfortable. This idea is sometimes called "Do not resuscitate".

A Skilled Surgeon

Cemil Topuzlu developed new ways to sew up blood vessels. This was a very important skill for surgeons. He shared his new techniques at big medical meetings. He presented his ideas at the International Medical Congress in Moscow in 1897. He also shared his work at a meeting in Paris in 1904. There, he told doctors about two times he successfully repaired blood vessels that were torn during operations.

In 1903, he performed another amazing surgery. He removed a pen cap from the main breathing tube of a 7-year-old girl. He did this through a special opening in her neck called a tracheotomy.

Early in his career, he worked for three years with a famous French surgeon named Jules-Émile Péan. After that, he became a favorite surgeon for the Ottoman Imperial family in Istanbul.

A Leader for Istanbul

Later in his life, Cemil Topuzlu also became a politician. He served as the Mayor of Istanbul and even as the Construction Minister during the late Ottoman period. This was at the beginning of the 20th century. After his time in politics, he went back to his main passion: surgery.

His Lasting Impact

Cemil Topuzlu was a very important person for Istanbul. Because of his great work as a citizen and as mayor, many places are named after him.

Places Named After Him

In the Kadıköy district of Istanbul, there is an avenue called Opr. Cemil Topuzlu Cad. ("Opr." stands for "Operatör," meaning surgeon).

There is also a very large open-air theater in Istanbul named the Cemil Topuzlu Open-Air Theatre. It can hold almost 4,000 people! This theater was finished in 1947. It is located in the Harbiye neighborhood of Şişli, on the European side of the city. You can find it across from the Istanbul Lütfi Kırdar International Convention and Exhibition Center.

Another place named after him is Cemil Topuzlu Park. This park is located along the Bosphorus strait in the Kuruçeşme district of Beşiktaş, Istanbul.

See also

  • Cemil Topuzlu Open-Air Theatre
kids search engine
Cemil Topuzlu Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.