El Tor ( ar, الطور ''/'' ), also romanized as ''Al-Tur'' and ''At-Tur'' and known as ''Tur Sinai'', formerly Raithu, is a small city and the capital of the

South Sinai Governorate South Sinai Governorate ( ar, محافظة جنوب سيناء ') is the least populated governorate of Egypt. It is located in the east of the country, encompassing the southern half of the Sinai Peninsula. Saint Catherine's Monastery, an Easte ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

. The name of the city comes from the Arabic term for the mountain where the prophet Moses received the Tablets of the Law from God; this mountain is designated ''Jabal Al Tor''. At-Tur itself appears to have been founded in the 13th century near the site of the ancient Raythou (medieval ''Raya''). The

El Tor El Tor is a particular strain of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae'', the causative agent of cholera. Also known as ''V. cholerae'' biotype eltor, it has been the dominant strain in the seventh global cholera pandemic. It is distinguished from t ...

strain of cholera was discovered there in 1905. It was a

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

camp for Muslim pilgrims returning from Hajj (the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca).

History

Monastery

The Raithu desert is situated around El Tor, between Saint Catherine and the

Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...

. It is part of the

Archdiocese of Mount Sinai and Raithu The following is a list of Orthodox Archbishops of Mount Sinai and Raithu ( el, Αρχιεπίσκοπος Σινά και Ραϊθώ). The Church of Sinai is an autonomous (given that the Archbishop, and abbot of the monastery, is elected by the ...

of the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The " Martyrs of Raithu" were 43 anchorites (early Christian hermits) murdered by bedouins (desert dwellers) during the reign of Emperor Diocletian (284-305CE). Christian monks fleeing persecutions had been present since the 3rd century, and the Raithu monastery (or Rutho) was commissioned in the 6th century by Byzantine emperor

Justinian Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...

. The latter was proposed as a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

site on November 1, 1994, in the Cultural category.Rutho Monastery - UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Retrieved on 2009-03-26.

Theodore of Raithu Theodore of Raithu (fl. late 6th or early 7th century) was a Christian theologian considered the last of the Neo-Chalcedonians.. Theodore was a monk at Raithu on the Sinai Peninsula, active after 550. He may be identified with the Theodore who wa ...

was champion of

neo-Chalcedonism Neo-Chalcedonism (also neo-Chalcedonianism) was a sixth-century theological movement in the Byzantine empire.Karl-Heinz Uthemann, ''Christus, Kosmos, Diatribe: Themen der frühen Kirche als Beitrag zu einer historischen Theologie'', De Gruyter, 20 ...

in the early 7th century.

Portuguese attack

En route to Suez with the objective to seek and destroy the Ottoman fleet, a Portuguese Armada was sent in 1541 to Red Sea. After several days sailing, the commander Estevão da Gama gives the order to direct a surprise attack. The troops were able to disembark and the defenders came out to the shore but were pushed to the city not managing to close the city doors. The Portuguese as the city fell, were ready to loot, but two Priests came to the Commander, and appeal to him avoiding the destruction. Several soldiers were armed Knights after a mass, and the armada stayed for a few days preparing to sail and attack Suez.

Modern Egypt

El Tor was captured by

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

during the Six Day War of 1967. However, Egypt’s victory in the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by E ...

of 1973 forced the Israelis to retreat from Sinai for peace and it was returned to

in 1979.

Climate

Its climate is classified by Köppen-Geiger system as hot desert (BWh).

References

External links

* Portuguese Sea Battles Volume III - From Brazil to Japan 1539 - 1579 - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Books-Saturnino-Monteiro/s?rh=n%3A266239%2Cp_27%3ASaturnino+Monteiro {{Authority control Governorate capitals in Egypt Populated places in South Sinai Governorate Populated coastal places in Egypt