courtyard was where the outer gardens were. These gardens included some of the rarest plants and flowers at the request of Sultan Abdulhamid II. Also, the third courtyard is where the Yildiz Tile Factory was located as well. There, the Ottomans created tiles and other forms of art like vases from porcelain. State apartments Government officials working for Abdülhamid II had their offices in this building. Şale Kiosk The sultan's residence was in the Şale Kiosk or pavilion. The building has two floors and a basement and constructed from a mix of wood and stone. It was constructed in three phases. The first part was built in the 1870s and was designed to resemble a Swiss chalet, hence the name Şale. Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle were among the visitors to this part of the palace. The second section was added in 1889 to accommodate Kaiser Wilhelm II, who was the first foreign monarch to visit Constantinople. It was during this phase that the Sedefli Salon Mother-of-Pearl Salon was added. The name derives from the extensive use of mother-of-pearl that covered almost all of its surfaces. There are also detailed painted landscapes on the ceiling. The third section was also built for Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1898. The reception chamber was built during this period and remains the most impressive room in the entire Şale Pavilion. There is a single carpet on the floor that has an area greater than 400 square meters and was hand woven by 60 weavers. Elegant features of the chamber include a gilded, coffered ceiling and large mirrors. Abdülhamid II was a skilled carpenter and actually made some of the pieces of furniture that can be found in the Şale Pavilion. Malta Kiosk The Malta Kiosk, designed by the architect Sarkis Balyan, is a pavilion located in Yıldız Park to the north side of the wall separating Yıldız Palace. There are also two watching and resting pavilions in the grove being the rear garden of Çırağan Palace from the Abdül Aziz I period. The origin of the name is not certain: during the Ottoman era certain parts of palaces were called after the names of conquered places or important battles, so this name is given after the Siege of Malta 1565 siege of Malta; a siege that the Ottoman Empire lost to the Knights of Malta. Malta was never conquered by the Ottoman Turks.