Egypt With Omar Sharif

Saladin was renowned in both the Christian and Muslim worlds for his leadership and military prowess tempered by his chivalry and merciful nature, during his struggle against the Crusaders.

He was born into a Kurdish family in Tikrit and was sent to Damascus to finish his education. His father, Najm ad-Din Ayyub, was governor of Baalbek. For ten years Saladin lived in Damascus, at the court of Nur ad-Din (Nureddin). After an initial military education under the command of his uncle, Nur ad-Din's lieutenant Shirkuh, who was representing Nur ad-Din on campaigns against a faction of the Fatimid caliphate of Egypt in the 1160s, Saladin eventually succeeded the defeated faction and his uncle as vizier in 1169. There, he inherited a difficult role defending Egypt against the incursions of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem, under Amalric I. His position was tenuous at first; no one expected him to last long in Egypt where there had been many changes of government in previous years due to a long line of child caliphs fought over by competing viziers. As the leader of a foreign army from Syria, he also had no control over the Shi'ite Egyptian army, which was led in the name of the now otherwise powerless caliph Al-Adid. When the caliph died, in September 1171, Saladin had the imams pronounce the name of Al-Mustadi, the Abbassid caliph in Baghdad, at Friday prayers, and the weight of authority simply deposed the old line. Now Saladin ruled Egypt, but officially as the representative of Nur ad-Din, who himself conventionally recognised the Abbassid caliph. Saladin revitalised the economy of Egypt, reorganised the military forces and, following his father's advice, stayed away from any conflicts with Nur ad-Din, his formal lord, after he had become the real ruler of Egypt. He waited until Nur ad-Din's death before starting serious military actions: at first against smaller Muslim states, then directing them against the Crusaders. With Nur ad-Din's death (1174), he assumed the title of sultan in Egypt. There he declared independence from the Seljuks, and he proved to be the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty and restored Sunnism in Egypt. He extended his territory westwards in the maghreb, and when his uncle was sent up the Nile to pacify some resistance of the former Fatimid supporters, he continued on down the Red Sea to conquer yemen

Saladin and Crussaders

On two occasions, in 1171 and 1173, Saladin retreated from an invasion of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. These had been launched by Nur ad-Din, and Saladin hoped that the Crusader kingdom would remain intact, as a buffer state between Egypt and Syria, until Saladin could gain control of Syria as well. Nur ad-Din and Saladin were headed towards open war on these counts when Nur ad-Din died in 1174. Nur ad-Din's heir as-Salih Ismail al-Malik was a mere boy, in the hands of court eunuchs, and died in 1181.

Immediately after Nur ad-Din's death, Saladin marched on Damascus, and was welcomed into the city. He reinforced his legitimacy there in the time-honoured way, by marrying Nur ad-Din's widow. Aleppo and Mosul, on the other hand, the two other largest cities that Nur ad-Din had ruled, were never taken, but Saladin managed to impose his influence and authority on them in 1176 and 1186 respectively. While he was occupied in besieging Aleppo, on May 22, 1176 the "Hashshashins" attempted to murder him.

While Saladin was consolidating his power in Syria, he generally left the Crusader kingdom alone, although he was usually victorious whenever he did meet the Crusaders in battle. One exception was the Battle of Montgisard on November 25, 1177. He was defeated by the combined forces of Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, Raynald of Chatillon and the Knights Templar. Only one tenth of his army made it back to Egypt.

There was peace between Saladin and the Crusader States in 1178. He was actually recovering from his defeat and rebuilding his army. Saladin renewed his attacks in 1179, defeating the Crusaders at the Battle of Jacob's Ford within the same year. However, the Crusaders repeatedly provoked him. Raynald of Chatillon, in particular, harassed Muslim trading and pilgrimage routes with a fleet on the Red Sea, a water route that Saladin needed to keep open. Worse, and what made him a legendary monster in the Muslim world, Raynald threatened to attack the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. In retaliation, Saladin besieged Kerak, Raynald's fortress in Oultrejordain, in 1183 and 1184. Then Raynald looted a caravan of pilgrims on the Hajj in 1185.

In July 1187, Saladin invaded the Kingdom of Jerusalem. On July 4, 1187 he faced at the Battle of Hattin the combined forces Guy of Lusignan, King consort of Jerusalem, and Raymond III of Tripoli. The exhausted and thirst-crazed Crusader army was largely annihilated in what was a major disaster for the Crusaders and a turning point in the history of the Crusades. Saladin captured Raynald de Chatillon and was personally responsible for his decapitation. Guy of Lusignan was also captured but his life was spared.

Soon Saladin had taken back almost every Crusader city. He recaptured Jerusalem on October 2, 1187, after 88 years of Crusader rule (see Siege of Jerusalem). Only Tyre held out: Saladin had allowed the remnants of the Christian armies and people to escape there, and the city was now commanded by the formidable Conrad of Montferrat. He strengthened Tyre's defences and withstood two sieges by Saladin. In 1188, Saladin released Guy of Lusignan and returned him to his wife Queen regnant Sibylla of Jerusalem. Both rulers were allowed to seek refuge at Tyre, but were turned away by Conrad, who did not recognise Guy as King. Guy then set about besieging Acre

Hattin and the fall of Jerusalem prompted the Third Crusade, financed in England by a special "Saladin tithe". This Crusade took back Acre, and Saladin's army met King Richard I of England at the Battle of Arsuf on September 7, 1191. Saladin's relationship with Richard was one of chivalrous mutual respect as well as military rivalry; both were celebrated in the courtly romances that developed in Northern Europe. When Richard was wounded, Saladin even offered the services of his personal physician, a signal favour, for Muslim medical practice was the best in the Western world. At Arsuf, when Richard lost his horse, Saladin sent him two replacements. They even considered making peace by marrying Richard's sister Joan to Saladin's brother Al-Adil, with Jerusalem to be their dowry, although these negotiations fell through due to religious concerns on both sides.

The two came to an agreement over Jerusalem in the Treaty of Ramla in 1192, whereby the city would remain in Muslim hands but would be open to Christian pilgrimages; the treaty reduced the Latin Kingdom to a strip along the coast from Tyre to Jaffa.

Saladin died on March 4, 1193 at Damascus, not long after Richard's departure. When they opened Saladin's treasury they found there was not enough money to pay for his funeral; he had given most of his money away in charity. His tomb, located in the Umayyad mosque, is now a major tourist attraction. His tomb is one of the most visited in the Muslim world.

The fortress of Saladin

One of Cairo's most popular tourist attractions is the Citadel which houses a number of museums, ancient mosques and other sites, located on a spur of limestone that had been detached from its parent Moqattam Hills by quarrying. The Citadel is one of the world's greatest monuments to medieval warfare, as well as a highly visible landmark on Cairo's eastern skyline. Particularly when viewed from the back side (from the north), the Citadel reveals a very medieval character.

The area where the Citadel is now located began it's life not as a great military base of operations, but as the "Dome of the Wind", a pavilion created in 810 by Hatim Ibn Hartama, who was then governor. Indeed this area was well known for its cool breeze. These early governors, not realizing its strategic importance, simply used the pavilion for its view of Cairo. Between 1176 and 1183, Salah ad-Din (Saladin to Westerners 1171-1193 AD), an Abbasid Ruler, fortified the area to protect it against attacks by the Crusaders, and since then, it has never been without a military garrison. Originally it served as both a fortress and a royal city.

Legend has it that Salah ad-Din chose the site for its healthy air. The story goes that he hung pieces of meat up all around Cairo. Everywhere the meat spoilt within a day, with the exception of the Citadel area where it remained fresh for several days. But in reality this location provides a strategic advantage both to dominate Cairo and to defend outside attackers. Salah ad-Din had come from Syria where each town had some sort of fortress to act as a stronghold for the local ruler so it was only natural that he would carry this custom to Egypt.

Salah ad-din used the most modern fortress building techniques of that time to construct the original Citadel. Great, round towers were build protruding from the walls so that defenders could direct flanking fire on those who might scale the walls. The walls themselves were ten meters (30 ft) high and three meters (10 ft) thick.

The Bir Yusuf (Salah ad-Din's Well) was dug in order to supply the occupants of the fortress with an inexhaustible supply of drinking water. Some 87 meters (285 ft) deep, it was cut though solid rock down to the water table. It is not simply a shaft. There is a ramp large enough so that animals could descend into the well in order to power the machinery that lifted the water. Regrettably, the well is closed to tourists these days.

Most of the fortification was built after Salah ad-Din's rule, being added to by almost every invader including the British, some of whom destroyed much of what existed before them.

After the death of Salah ad-Din, his nephew, Al-Kamil, reinforced the Citadel by enlarging several of the towers. Specifically, he encased the Burg al-Haddad (Blacksmith's Tower) and the Burgar-Ramlab (Sand Tower) making them fully three times larger. These two towers controlled the narrow pass between the Citadel and the Muqattam hills. Al-Kamil also built a number of great keeps (towers) around the perimeter of the walls, three of which can still be seen overlooking the Citadel parking area. These massive structures were square, up to 25 meters(80 feet) tall and 30 meters (100 ft) wide. In 1218, upon the death of al-Kamil's father, now Sultan al-Kamil moved his residence to the Citadel where he built his palace in what is now the Southern Enclosure. While the palace no longer exits, until the construction of the Abdeen Palace in the mid-19th century, it was the seat of government for the Country of Egypt.

When the Mumluks finally overthrew the Ayyubid rulers in 1250, their sultan Baybars al-Bunduqdari (1260-77) moved into al-Kamil's palace. He isolated the palace compound by building a wall that divided the fortress into two separate enclosures linked by the Bab (gate) al-Qullah. The area where the palace once stood is referred to as the Southern Enclosure, while the larger part of the Citadel proper is referred to as the Northern Enclosure.

An-Nasir Muhammad, an interesting Sultan of this era who ruled during three separate periods (1294-1295, 1299-1309 and 1310-1341) tore down most of the earlier buildings in the Southern Enclosure and replaced them with considerably grander structures. Unfortunately, the only remaining facility built by him is the An-Nasir Mohammed Mosque. It was begun in 1318 and finished in 1355 and is located near the enclosure gate. We also know that he built a great Hall of Justice with a grand, green dome that towered above the other structures in the Southern Enclosure. Beside it was built the Qasr al-Ablaq (Striped Palace) with its black and yellow marble. This palace, used for official ceremonies and conducting affairs of state, had a staircase leading down to the Lower Enclosure and the Royal Stables where An-Nasir kept 4,800 horses.

The Ottomans controlled Egypt in one way or another between 1517 and the early 20th century, except for a brief French occupation. Much of what we see of the Citadel actually dates from this period. The Lower Enclosure where the stables of An-Nasir came to be known as the al-Azab because some of the Ottoman soldiers, known as the Azab regiments, were stationed in the Lower Enclosure. These soldiers were not allowed to wed until after they retired, and in fact the word Azab can be translated as "bachelor".

The Ottomans rebuilt the wall that separates the Northern and Southern Enclosures, as well as the Bab al-Quallah. They also built the largest tower in today's Citadel, the Burg al-Muqattam which rises above the entrance to the Citadel off Salah Saalem Highway. This tower is 25 meters (80 ft) tall and has a diameter of 24 meters (79 ft). In 1754 the Ottomans rebuilt the walls of the Lower Enclosure and added a fortified gate called the Bab el Azab.

From the late 16th century until the French occupation, the strict military structure of the Ottoman soldiers gradually deteriorated. During this period, the Azab troops began to marry, and were even allowed to build their own housing within the fortress. By the mid 17th century, the Citadel had become an enclosed residential district with private shops and other commercial enterprises, as well as public baths and a maze of small streets.

The Ottoman Muhammad Ali Pasha, one of the great builders of Modern Egypt, came to power in 1805, and was responsible for considerable alteration and building within the Citadel. He rebuilt much of the outer walls and replaced many of the decaying interior buildings. He also reversed the roles of the Northern and Southern Enclosures, making the Northern Enclosure his private domain, while the Southern Enclosure was opened to the public. His Mohammed Ali Mosque , built in the style called Ottoman Baroque that imitates the great religious mosques of Istanbul, today dominates the Southern Enclosure

South of the Mosque in the Hawsh is the Gawharah (Jewel) Palace. This structure was built between 1811 and 1814 and housed the Egyptian government until it was later moved to the Abdeen Palace.

Today there is also a National Police Museum at the Citadel. It was built over the site of the Mamluk Striped Palace just opposite the Mosque of an-Nasir Muhammad. It has displays of law enforcement dating back to the dynastic period. However, in 1983 a hall from the Striped Palace was discovered buried deep beneath rubble, and can be seen at the southern end of this terrace. The terrace also provides a wonderful view of Cairo.

Just through the Bab al-Qullah in the Northern Enclosure one finds Muhammad Ali's Harem Palace that was built in the same Ottoman style as the Jewel Palace. The statue in front is of Ibrahim Pasha by Charles Cordier. The Palace served as a family residence for the Khedive until the government was moved to Abdeen Palace. It was a military hospital during the British occupation and was only returned to Egyptian control after World War II. Since 1949, it has been the Military Museum of Egypt (founded by King Faruq). While the Museum has many artifacts illustrating warfare in Egypt, one of the most interesting attractions is the Summer Room. This room contains an elaborate system of marble fountains, basins and channels meant as a cooling system, and is probably the last such example in Cairo. In the livery court behind the carriage gate of the museum is a statue of Sulayman Pasha that originally stood in the city center. Just beyond this museum is a small Carriage Museum in what was the British Officer's mess until 1946. Borrowed from the larger Carriage Museum in Bulaq, it contains eight carriages used by the Muhammad Ali family. Just behind this museum is the Burg at-Turfah (Masterpiece Tower), one of the largest of the square towers built by al-Kamil in 1207.

Near the far end of the Northern Enclosure is the Suleyman Pasha Mosque. It was the first Ottoman style mosque built in Egypt and dates from 1528. It was built to serve the early Ottoman troops.

Today the Citadel is one of Egypt main attractions and is often the most popular non-pharaonic monuments. One may walk through time here, from the medieval era onward. In addition, many other wonderful Islamic structures are nearby.

For those with a little extra energy, a walk from the Citadel to the Khan el-Khalili is a delightful experiences.

Mohamed Ali Pasha mosque

Though certainly not one of the most ancient mosques in Cairo, nor even one of the most historic, because of its grandeur and its location in the Citadel, the Mosque of Muhammad Ali is the most popular Islamic mosque among tourists. This mosque is also sometimes referred to as the Alabaster Mosque due to its extensive use of that stone on some of the exterior walls and other surfaces. Sometimes it is popularly known as al-qal'a, meaning citadel, and thus confused with the fortress in which it is located.

The mosque, the largest such structure built during the first half of the 19th century, is more impressive at a distance than close up. Though there its artistic merit is questionable, it is an unparalleled contribution to the skyline of Cairo, visible high atop the Citadel grounds. Indeed, its great dome and towering minarets give the Citadel a romantic, oriental quality that makes up for any shortcomings in its detail. It is almost certainly the first feature that catches ones eyes at the fortress.

Mohamed Ali Pasha

Mohamed Ali tore down the remains of Mamluk palaces and their dependencies, which were luckily described only a short time before by Napoleon's scholars as the most impressive buildings in Cairo despite their dilapidated condition. Recent excavations demonstrate that, in order to build the mosque on top of the preexisting structures, some ten meters of rubble was filled in. Muhammad Ali, who was more eager to build modern factories than religious foundations, then erected this mosque, where he is buried, as a monument to himself. It is also an imperial mosque which challenged those of Istanbul much in the same way that Muhammad Ali did militarily.

Indeed, just as Salah al-Din, many centuries earlier, had abolished all traces of Fatimid power and status by refusing to live in their palaces and having them dismantled and parceled out to his courtiers, so Muhammad Ali destroyed all traces of the Mamluk palaces from which Egypt had been ruled since the thirteenth century. This is the reason why, among Cairo's wealth of historic Islamic monuments, there is not one royal palace left from these periods.

It should be noted that the Mosque of Muhammad Ali is not typical of such structures in Cairo. In its architecture, Muhammad Ali Pasha, viceroy and effectively king of Egypt, as well as the founder of Egypt's modern era, achieved a radical break with all traditional characteristics of Cairo architecture from the Mamluk to the late Ottoman period. This departure is emphasized by the choice of sites. Now, because it is the most visible of Islamic monuments in Cairo, Muhammad Ali's mosque became a symbol of the city, even though it is the least Egyptian of these monuments.

It is interesting, as well as paradoxical in a certain respect, that while politically Muhammad Ali acted very independently of Istanbul, architecturally during his reign style came closer to that of Istanbul than ever before, including even its Western, and particularly French, influence. However, one must remember that he came close to taking the Ottoman Empire as his own, and he set out in Cairo to abandon the oriental Middle Ages and built a city that would surpass Istanbul.

Description

Originally, the planning of this mosque was assigned to Muhammad Ali's French architect, Pascal Coste, who probably would have built it in the local Mamluk style judging from his interest in Cairo's traditional architecture. However, for some unknown reason, Muhammad Ali changed his mind and hired a Greek architect, Yusuf Bushnaq, to design the mosque on a plan similar to that of the Mosque of Sultan Ahmad in Istanbul (known as the Blue Mosque).

Built between 1830 and 1848, the long time it took to complete this monument may be due to its size, gigantic by Cairo's architectural standards. That, combined with its prominent location and its profile of domes flanked by a pair of slender high minarets, contribute to its prestige. The Egyptians themselves place a great deal of pride in this monument.

The pencil shaped minarets, over eighty meters high, stand on bases only three meters wide. Though the architecture of the mosque is entirely Ottoman, the domes are, relative to their width, higher and less squat than those in Istanbul.

The complex consists of two parts, the mosque proper to the east and the open courtyard, or sahn, to the west.

The plan of the mosque is a central dome carried on four piers and spherical pendentives, flanked by four half-domes, and four smaller domes on each corner. There is also a dome that separates the mihrab ceiling from the Qibla wall. Measuring 41 meters square, the interior is impressive because of its size, and it shows the wonderful arrangement of mass and space that is characteristic of Istanbul mosques. The main, high dome of the mosque soars 52 meters high, with a diameter of 21 meters.

The grandeur of this single, large chamber is enhanced by the circle of small lamps hung in the middle of the praying area, and just above the main dome of the mosque. Other smaller lamps, many of them more modern, are hung elsewhere in the mosque, creating a spectacle of light that is grand in its own right.

Within the mosque are two minbars, or pulpits. The larger one of wood is decorated with gilt ornament, and is original. It is said to be one of the largest in Egypt, incorporating significant gold in its decorations. The smaller one of alabaster was a gift from King Faruq, dating to 1939. The mihrab, or prayer niche, is made of Egyptian marble. It is rather simple, but very beautiful at the same time.

In the southwest corner of the sanctuary, within an enclosure richly decorated with bronze openwork, is the magnificent, white marble cenoteaph of Muhammad Ali. However, Muhammad Ali was not originally interred here. He was originally buried at Housh el Basha, but one of his successors, King Abbas I, had his body moved to this location.

The mosque has three entrances, on the north, west and east walls. The western entrance opens onto the courtyard.

The courtyard, as at the mosques of Sulayman Pasha and Malika Safiyya, is surrounded by rounded arcades carrying small domes. These domes are supported by large, though relatively simple marble columns. The courtyard is almost square, measuring 54 by 53 meters. The courtyard has a northern and southern entrance from the mosque. In the middle of the courtyard is a marble ablution fountain with a carved wooden roof on columns. The fountain is lavishly decorated in a style similar to that of the sabil-kuttab facing the madrasa of al-Nasir on Mu'izz street. That structure was built by Ismail Pasha in 1828. The sabil and the upper part of the courtyard facade are decorated with small oval wall paintings on which Mediterranean landscapes are represented.

On the west wall of the courtyard is an iron clock, presented to Muhammad Ali by the French King Louis Philippe, with a tea salon on the upper level. Its style is a mixture of neo-gothic and oriental elements. It has never worked, and probably never will.

The clock, given as a gift in exchange for the obelisk now in the Palace de la Concorde, Paris, somehow does not seem to be out of place,even though by all rights it should be. Perhaps this is due to the other European influences in the mosque, or that it's colors are well coordinated with other decorations nearby. Though the architecture is entirely Ottoman, the decoration of the building is alien to Cairene traditions, and in fact, to Islamic art. There are no stalactites, geometric shapes or arabesques. Only the inscription bands continue any type of Islamic tradition. Six large medallions around the dome enclose the names of God, Muhammad and the first four Khalifs. The script written over a royal blue that often adorns windows in the mosque actually represent verses from the poem, "Al Burda", written by Imam al Buseiry.

Even the marble chosen for decoration is different from that of earlier mosques. In fact, the decorations, which were not finished until 1857, are at odds with the simplicity of the architectural structure itself. And yet, many tourists and Egyptians themselves, who are not especially trained in art or architecture, find the mosque decorations very beautiful. Its use of greens, golds and reds can be very appealing to many.

The walls and piers of the mosque are paneled with alabaster from Upper Egypt (Beni Suef), which is inappropriate for architecture as it deteriorates quickly. A gesture of baroque luxe, unless frequently cleaned, the stone also becomes terribly grimy.

In 1931 serious structural deviancies were found in the dome and it had to be totally rebuilt.

It took two years. Between 1937 and 1939 the decoration was renewed and in the middle of the 1980s the whole Citadel complex was once again renovated.