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History–Tours
969969–972 · Historic Cairo

Founding of Fatimid Cairo and al-Azhar

Marble courtyard of al-Azhar Mosque ringed by arcades, with a minaret in early light
Photo: Mohamed Ouda. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In 969 the Fatimid general Jawhar conquered Egypt and laid out a walled royal city, al-Qahira, north of the old capital at Fustat. Its great mosque, al-Azhar, opened in 972 and soon became a centre of teaching that still runs today. The stone gates added by the vizier Badr al-Jamali in the 1080s and 1090s still mark the medieval city's edges.

Sites

  1. Site 1: Al-Azhar MosqueMarble courtyard ringed by arcades and minarets from several dynasties.Map ↗
  2. Site 2: Bab ZuwaylaFatimid south gate; climb its minarets for views over the old city.Map ↗
  3. Site 3: Bab al-Futuh and al-Muizz StreetNorthern gate and the medieval high street of mosques and madrasas.Map ↗

Guides who take you there

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