Who is Cacabey?
Cacaoğlu Nureddin Cebrail, the son of Emir Bahaddin Caca, the lord of the Ceceli tribe, was born in Kırşehir in 1240. Cacaoğlu Nureddin Cebrail, an important figure who provided great services to Kırşehir, gained fame with the name “Cacabey”. Since the order was disrupted in the last years of the Seljuks, the provinces were governed by governors. Cacabey, who was seen as the Emir of Eskişehir, became the bey of Kırşehir after staying in Tokat for a while. Cacabey was martyred in 1301 while fighting against the Greeks, and his body was brought to Kırşehir and buried in the tomb next to the madrasah he had built in 1272.
Cacabey had many charitable institutions built in Anatolia. He had a mosque and an inn built in Eskişehir and contributed to the repair of 17 mosques and zawiyas. However, the most important work he built is the Cacabey Madrasah, which rises as an architectural monument in Kırşehir. Islamic Law, philosophy and Sufism courses were also taught in this building, which was regarded as the faculty of the period.
Cacabey Madrasa
Cacabey Madrasa, located in Kırşehir city center, is the only example in Anatolia with three different brickwork systems applied on its minaret. It is a madrasah with a closed courtyard built on a rectangular, almost square, seating area extending in the east-west direction.
According to the Arabic inscription on the crown gate, the madrasah was built by Seljuk Sultan III. It was built in 1272-73 by Cacaoğlu Nureddin Cebrail, who was the Emir of Kırşehir during the time of Gıyâseddin Keyhüsrev.