Built a-top a limestone spur, the sprawling Citadel, its towering walls quarried from the nearby Muqattam hills and stone taken from a pyramid at Giza, was begun by Saladin in the 12th century to fortify the city against Crusaders. Seat of power for 700 years, great mosques and palaces (now housing not very exciting museums) were built under Mamluk and Ottoman rule.
The Citadel was used as a barracks by Napoleon’s troops and as a military base during the British occupation. On a clear day there are views to the Pyramids from its terraces.
Muhammad Ali, the founder of modern Egypt who took power 1805, built his vast Turkish-style mosque inside the Citadel and today its domes and minarets dominate the eastern skyline of the city. Look for the fancy French clock in the courtyard, a gift from King Louis Phillipe in thanks for the great obelisk that adorns the Place de la Concorde in Paris. Hardly a fair exchange, it was damaged during delivery and to this day has never worked.
Open daily until 6pm in July to September. Mosques closed during Friday prayers.
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