Located in the historical peninsula of Istanbul, Vefa High School, constitute an important central part of The Ottoman Empire and The old city of Byzantion. It gives the Vefa’s name to the whole district.
Though the date of its construnction is yet to be exactly determined, the building is estimated to be edified in the 19th century. It is considered as the first example of masonary mansions that were made after the Tanzimat reforms era. The name of the mansion itself is taken after Mütercim RüĢdü PaĢa (1811-1882), a military high dignity that served as a grand minister successively under Sultan Abdülmecit, Sultan Abdülaziz, Sultan Murat The 5th and Sultan Abdülhamit The 2nd. Due to his proficency in Arabic, Persian and French and to the fact that he was commissioned to translate books from French to Turkish, RüĢdü PaĢa gained the title of “Mütercim” which means translator. Later, with the changing of its owner who became Gazi Ahmet Muhtar PaĢa, the building now on named “Vefa Lisesi” turned to be the first Ottoman high school after 1894
