Salah El Din Citadel

Salah El Din Citadel

Salah El Din Citadel in Cairo is located in the area of El Muqattam on Salah Salem Street. It was established mainly by Saladin, the nephew of Sultan Nur El Din Mahmud who succeeded in conquering the Crusaders. He assumed power in Egypt in 1169 founding the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt. Also, He established this military Citadel to be the center of government and placed it on the Muqattam hills in a very strategic location overlooking the cities of Cairo and El Fustat.

The Salah El Din Citadel in Cairo of two separate inlays: those of the north and those of the south. The northern part is distinguished by the semicircular towers and the curtain wall. In 1207, Sultan El-Adel paid great attention to strengthening the citadel towers and established two towers now known as Burg El-Ramla and Burg El-Haddad. In the reign of El-kamil, Saladin’s nephew who ruled Egypt for about 20 years used the citadel as his residence.

The Citadel of Saladin contains many buildings, the Alabaster Mosque of the Turkish Sultan Mohamed Ali, built in 1814, the palace of El Gawhara, now destroyed, Correspondingly, the mosque of Sultan El Naser Mohamed in 1335 of the Mamluk period, Alson, the military museum and the museum of the Egyptian police. Also mosques of different periods and a well for water reserve, the well of Joseph.

Salah El Din Citadel in Cairo was the residence of the military and the ruling sultan of Egypt, until the ninth century when another Ottoman Sultan “Ismael” built a palace in the neighborhood of Abdeen for the residence of the royal family, descendants of the Turks.

Where is the Citadel located?

Its location on a promontory in the Mokattam Hills near the center of Cairo commands a strategic position overlooking the city and dominating its skyline.
It is located on the Muqatam plateau or mountain which allows it to be quite visible to the general public.

Who built it and why?

Saladin began to build it in 1176 to fortify the city against the possible attack of the Crusaders, who were wreaking havoc in Palestine.
After overthrowing Saladin’s Ayyubid dynasty, the Mamluks expanded the complex, adding sumptuous palaces and harems.
Under the Ottomans (1517-1798), the fortress was extended westward and a new main gate, Bab al-Azab, was built, while the Mamluk palaces fell into disrepair.
finally, when Napoleon’s French expedition took over in 1798, the emperor’s scholars considered these buildings to be among the finest Islamic monuments in Cairo.