Saladin Citadel of Cairo

1900 PICTURE OF THE CITADEL

The Citadel is a medieval Islamic fortification in Cairo, Egypt located on Mokattam hill near the center of Cairo, it was once famous for its fresh breeze and grand views of the city. 

It is now a preserved historic site, with many mosques and museums. In 1976, it was proclaimed by UNESCO as a part of the World Heritage Site Historic Cairo (Islamic Cairo), which was "the new centre of the Islamic world”, reaching its golden age in the 14th century.

History

To protect the citadel from the Crusaders, the Ayyubid ruler Salah al-Din (Saladin) fortified it between 1176 and 1183 CE. After defeating the Fatimid Caliphate, Saladin set out to build a wall that would surround both Cairo and Fustat. Saladin is recorded as saying, "With a wall I will make the two [cities of Cairo and Fustat] into a unique whole, so that one army may defend them both; and I believe it is good to encircle them with a single wall from the bank of the Nile to the bank of the Nile." The Citadel would be the centerpiece of the wall. Built on a promontory beneath the Muqattam Hills, a setting that made it difficult to attack, the efficacy of the Citadel's location is further demonstrated by the fact that it remained the heart of Egyptian government until the 19th century.

The citadel stopped being the seat of government when Egypt's ruler, Khedive Ismail, moved to his newly built Abdin Palace in the Ismailiya neighborhood in the 1860s.

While the Citadel was completed in 1183–1184, the wall Saladin had envisioned was still under construction in 1238, long after his death.

THE  COURTYARD

To supply water to the Citadel, Saladin built the 85-metre (280 ft) deep Well of Joseph (so-called because Saladin's birth name, Yousef, “Joseph”), which can still be seen today. This well is also known as the Well of the Spiral because its entrance consisted of 300 stairs that wound around the inside of the well. Once water was raised from the well to the surface, it traveled to the Citadel on a series of aqueducts.

During the reign of al-Nasir Muhammad, the Well of Joseph failed to produce enough water for the numerous animals and humans then living in the Citadel. To increase the volume of water, Nasir built a water supply system that consisted of a number of water wheels on the Nile; the water was then transported to the wall and subsequently to the Citadel, via the aqueducts Saladin had constructed.

THE PULPIT

The improvements to the Citadel's water supply were not Nasir's only additions to the Citadel, which was subject to a number of different additions during the Mamluk period. Nasir's most notable contribution was the Mosque of Nasir. In 1318 rebuilding the Ayyubid structure and turned it into a mosque that bear his name. The structure underwent further additions in 1335. Other contributions to the Citadel during Nasir's reign include the structure's southern enclosure (the northern enclosure was completed by Saladin) and the residential area, which included space for the harem and the courtyard. Prior to Nasir's work on the Citadel, the Baybars constructed the Hall of Justice and the "House of Gold."

The Citadel is sometimes referred to as Mohamed Ali Citadel (Qalaʿat Muḥammad ʿAlī), because it contains the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, which was built by Muhammad Ali Pasha between 1828 and 1848, it is perched on the summit of the citadel.

This Ottoman mosque was built in memory of Tusun Pasha, Muhammad Ali's second son who died in 1816. However, it also represents Muhammad Ali's efforts to erase symbols of the Mamluk dynasty that he replaced. When Ottoman ruler Muhammad Ali Pasha took control from the Mamluks in 1805 he altered many of the additions to the Citadel that reflected Cairo's previous leaders. One obvious change that Muhammad Ali enacted pertained to the uses of the Citadel's northern and southern enclosures. During the Mamluk period the southern enclosure was the residential area, but Muhammad Ali claimed the northern enclosure as the royal residence when he took power. He then opened the southern enclosure to the public and effectively established his position as the new leader.

MINARETS

The mosque is the other feature of the Citadel that reflects the reign of Muhammad Ali. It features a large dome and overtly Ottoman influenced architecture that looms over the Citadel to this day. Recently destroyed Mamluk palaces within the Citadel provided space for the formidable mosque, which was the largest structure to be established in the early 19th century. Placing the mosque where the Mamluks had once reigned was an obvious effort to erase the memory of the older rulers and establish the importance of the new leader. The mosque also replaced the mosque of al-Nasir as the official state mosque.

Muhammad Ali chose to build his state mosque entirely in the architectural style of his former overlords, the Ottomans, unlike the Mamluks who, despite their political submission to the Ottomans, stuck to the architectural styles of the previous Mamluk dynasties.

The mosque was built with a central dome surrounded by four small and four semicircular domes. It was constructed in a square plan and measured 41x41 meters. The central dome is 21 meters in diameter and the height of the building is 52 meters. Two elegant cylindrical minarets of Turkish type with two balconies and conical caps are situated on the western side of the mosque, and rise to 82 meters.

MOHAMED ALI MOSQUE INTERIOR

The use of this style, combined with the presence of two minarets and multiple half-domes surrounding the central dome — features reserved for mosques built on the authority of the Sultan — were a defiant declaration of de facto Egyptian independence.

The main material is limestone but the lower storey and forecourt is tiled with alabaster up to 11,3 meters. The external facades are severe and angular and rise about four storey’s until the level of the lead-covered domes.

The mihrab (pulpit) on the southeastern wall is three storey’s high and covered with a semicircular dome. There are two arcades on the second storey, rising on columns and covered with domes. Although there are three entrances on each side of the forecourt, the usual entry is through the northeastern gate. The forecourt measures 50x50 meters. It is enclosed by arched riwaks (Courtyard) rising on pillars and covered by domes.

There is a brass clock tower in the middle of the northwestern riwak, that was a gift to Muhammad Ali by King Louis Philippe of France in 1845. The clock was reciprocated with the obelisk of Luxor now standing in Place de la Concorde in Paris.

NAPOLEONIC AQUARELLE OF THE CITADEL

The interior has a measure of 41x41 meters and gives a great feeling of space. The use of two levels of domes gives a much greater sense of space than there actually is. The central dome rises on four arches standing on colossal piers. There are four semicircular domes around the central dome. There are four smaller domes on the corners as well. The domes are painted and embellished with motifs in relief. The walls and pillars are covered with alabaster up to 11 meters high.

Mosques

There are three main mosques at the Citadel:

  

Al-Nasir Muhammad Mosque

Built in 1318, during the early Bahri Mamluk period, as the royal mosque of the Citadel where the sultans of Cairo performed their Friday prayers, today this hypostyle mosque is still similar to how it looked in the 1300 though many repairs have been made. It is open to the public though infrequently visited by tourists. The parts of the building relying on plastered walls have been reinforced. There have also been attempts to restore the light-blue color of the ceiling.

Mosque of Sulayman Pasha

Built in 1528, it was first of the Citadel's Ottoman-style mosques. It was built on the ruins of an old mosque of Abu Mansur Qusta.

FORTIFICATION TOWER

Mosque of Muhammad Ali

The mosque was built between 1830 and 1848, although not completed until the reign of Said Pasha in 1857. The architect was Yusuf Bushnak from Istanbul and its model was the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in that city. Muhammad Ali Pasha was buried in a tomb carved from Carrara marble, in the courtyard of the mosque. His body was transferred here from Hawsh al-Basha in 1857.

Museums

The Citadel also contains three museums:

Al-Gawhara Palace Museum

Also known as Bijou Palace, is a palace and museum commissioned by Muhammad Ali Pasha in 1814. The palace was designed and constructed by artisans contracted from a variety of countries, including Greeks, Turks, Bulgarians and Albanians. Muhammad Ali's official divan or audience hall, where the pasha received guests, contains a 1000kg chandelier sent to him by Louis-Philippe I of France. The palace also contains the throne of Muhammad Ali Pasha that was a gift from the King of Italy.

Carriage Museum

Inaugurated in 1983, it houses a collection of unique Royal Carriages attributed to different historical periods, from the reign of Khedive Ismail until the reign of King Farouk, in addition to other collection of unique antiques related to the carriages.

INTERIOR OF MILITARY MUSEUM

Egyptian Military museum

The Egyptian Army museum was established in 1937 at the old building of the Egyptian Ministry of War in downtown Cairo. It was later moved to a temporary location in the Garden City district of Cairo. In November 1949 the museum was moved to the Haram Palace at the Cairo citadel. It has been renovated several times since, in 1982 and 1993.

Some Cairo Citadel Facts

When the Cairo Citadel construction was completed, it accommodated the ruler of Egypt Al Malek El Kamel . He was the first king to live in it. It was the seat of the government and palace until 1860 when Egypt's ruler Khedive Ismail moved out of the Citadel of Cairo into his own new castle.  The Citadel was home to the rulers of Egypt for 700 years.

OLD CATAPULT IN MUSEUM

- The wall that Saladin had begun to build to protect Cairo and Fustat was still under construction after he died. It was near completion only in 1238.

- The Citadel was enlarged in the 13th to 14th century.

- The Cairo Citadel is considered to be one the most elegant of the fortresses that were built during the Middle Ages.

- When the French invaded Cairo in 1798. The Citadel was important in helping to protect the city but eventually after a long battle Napoleon Bonaparte's army took control.

View of Citadel from new Aga Khan Gardens

- The Citadel of Cairo is considered to be one of the ‘greatest monuments of medieval warfare'.

- To avoid losing his governance over Egypt threatened by the Mamlukes, Mohamed Ali prepared for an official banquet and invited all the Mamlukes dignitaries and officers. They all came dressed in formal dress with almost no combat weapons; as they were leaving the citadel after the banquet they were taken by surprise at the gate called Bab El-Wazer. Mohamed Ali had ordered his troops to close the doors of the gate and kill all the high-ranking Mamlukes.
Due to the surprise factor all the mamlukes perished, except for one that survived the Massacre and fled to Syria.

This Massacre was called "The Citadel Massacre" or in Arabic "mazbahat el qala’a"

- The Eagle of Saladin depicted on the citadel became the coat of arms of Egypt (seen on the Egyptian flag) and it later was used by other Arab nations.

This eagle is on the west wall of the citadel and the head is missing. Studies suggested that it used to be a double headed eagle. It only appeared on the walls of the citadel around  1670 from an unknown location.

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VIDEO OF THE CITADEL OF CAIRO IN ALL IT'S SPLENDOR