Located within the Yıldız Palace complex in Beşiktaş, Istanbul, the Forward Outer Guardhouse Building is situated on plot 51, block 486, parcel 1, and has a total usable area of 608 m². According to the inscription on the western façade, the building was constructed during the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid II between 1885 and 1886. Originally used for military and administrative purposes, it served as the Headquarters of the Military Academy Service Battalion in 1950, and has been under the use of the Ministry of National Defense since 1979.

The Forward Outer Guardhouse is built on a triangular-shaped parcel and follows an L-shaped layout on a north-south axis. The structure consists of a basement, ground floor, and mezzanine level. On the southern side of the building, there is a cistern connected to the main structure via an arched passage.

The building’s main entrance, located on the western façade, is designed to be more ornate than the other façades. The northwest façade features three flat-arched windows, each bordered on both sides by grooved pilasters, adding a sense of rhythm and dynamism to the exterior.

The monumental western façade is symmetrically arranged and visually perceived as a two-story elevation. Access to the basement and ground floor is provided separately. The basement is entered through a flat-arched, double-leaf wooden door, flanked symmetrically by four decorative flat-arched windows with keystones on either side, all fitted with iron grilles.

The entrance to the ground floor is aligned with the basement door axis and features a round-arched, double-leaf door. This main entrance is reached via a set of curved, symmetrically arranged stairs. On either side of the stair landing, there are two Doric columns, supporting a projecting eave above the landing. The eave bears both an inscription and the Ottoman Empire coat of arms.

As ALBA İnşaat, we completed the restoration of the building between 2018 and 2019.