Citadel of Qaitbay
Alexandria’s famous fort
Built on the ruins of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, the Citadel of Qaitbay is one of the places in Alexandria that every tourist should never miss. It is along the edge of the Mediterranean giving you not only an amazing view but as well as a tour of Egypt’s rich and amazing history.
123EgyptTours.com will be happy to take you to Alexandria and experience the Citadel of Qaitbay.
History of the Fort
The history of the Fort is as amazing as the design of this whole fortress. It is built upon the foundations of one of the famous ‘7 wonders of the world’. Right after the destruction of the original Lighthouse of Alexandria due to several earthquakes from the 800 to the 11th century, the Citadel of Qaitbay was built over it. In the 14th century, the Mameluke Sultan Al-Ashraf Qaitbay had a fort built upon it.
Inside the fort was a grand plan of many architectural wonders including a mosque and many other structures. Its fortification continued even later on up to the 1800s.
The Citadel of Qaitbay’s main purpose is to stand as a defense against the occupying Ottoman Turks. Eventually the structure fell into their hands and for a long time, the Citadel was maintained by its conqueror, which actually did a decent job in maintaining it.
Later, the French took over and defeated the Turks, who then took the building as their own and found weapons that were used during the crusades which was kept inside the Citadel of Qaitbay’s walls.
Additionally as written in any history the British took over the French. When the Mohammed Ali became ruler of Egypt, he made sure that the Citadel was refortified and was in a good condition. But with the British attack in late 1800s the Citadel took significant damages.
For more than half a century after it has not been used as a fort, the Citadel of Qaitbay, was neglected and abandoned, however in recent history the Egyptian Supreme Counsel of Antiquities made sure that it is now fully maintained.
Today the Citadel of Qaitbay stands tall and mighty as one of Egypt’s finest structures and is open for tourist and locals alike.
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