|
Bab Al-Barqiyya
Bab al-Barqiyya was a gate in the city walls of Cairo, Egypt. It acted as one of the main eastern city gates until falling into disuse and disappearing. It was excavated and restored as part of the creation of Al-Azhar Park in the 2000s. History Bab al-Barqiyya (also known as Bab al-Tawfiq) was originally an eastern gate in the Fatimid walls built by the vizier Badr al-Gamali.Raymond, André. 1993. ''Le Caire''. Fayard. It was rebuilt in the 12th to 13th centuries under an ambitious fortification project begun in 1176 by Salah ad-Din (Saladin) and continued by his Ayyubid successors. This project included the construction of the Citadel of Cairo and of a 20 kilometer-long wall to defend both Cairo (originally the royal city of the Fatimid caliphs) and Fustat (the earlier capital of Egypt to the southwest). The entirety of the envisioned course of the wall was never quite completed, but long stretches of the wall, especially north of the Citadel, were built. Bab al-Barqiyya w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
City Gate
A city gate is a gate which is, or was, set within a city wall. It is a type of fortified gateway. Uses City gates were traditionally built to provide a point of controlled access to and departure from a walled city for people, vehicles, goods and animals. Depending on their historical context they filled functions relating to defense, security, health, trade, taxation, and representation, and were correspondingly staffed by military or municipal authorities. The city gate was also commonly used to display diverse kinds of public information such as announcements, tax and toll schedules, standards of local measures, and legal texts. It could be heavily fortified, ornamented with heraldic shields, sculpture or inscriptions, or used as a location for warning or intimidation, for example by displaying the heads of beheaded criminals or public enemies. Notably in Denmark, many market towns used to have at least one city gate mostly as part of the city's fortifications, but duri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baibars
Al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Bunduqdari ( ar, الملك الظاهر ركن الدين بيبرس البندقداري, ''al-Malik al-Ẓāhir Rukn al-Dīn Baybars al-Bunduqdārī'') (1223/1228 – 1 July 1277), of Turkic Kipchak origin, commonly known as Baibars or Baybars ( ar, بيبرس, ''Baybars'') – nicknamed Abu al-Futuh (; English: ''Father of Conquests'', referring to his victories) – was the fourth Mamluk sultan of Egypt and Syria in the Bahri dynasty, succeeding Qutuz. He was one of the commanders of the Egyptian forces that inflicted a defeat on the Seventh Crusade of King Louis IX of France. He also led the vanguard of the Egyptian army at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, which marked the first substantial defeat of the Mongol army and is considered a turning point in history. The reign of Baybars marked the start of an age of Mamluk dominance in the Eastern Mediterranean and solidified the durability of their military system. He managed to pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bent Entrance
A bent or indirect entrance is a defensive feature in medieval fortification.Adrian Boas, On a Necessary Vulnerability, https://www.adrianjboas.com/post/on-a-necessary-vulnerability In a castle with a bent entrance, the gate passage is narrow and turns sharply. Its purpose is to slow down attackers attempting to rush the gate and impede the use of battering rams against doors. It is often combined with means for an active defence, such as machicolations, in effect confining intruders to a narrow killing zone. Its defensive function is related to that of a barbican in front of the gate. Indirect entrances are typical of Arab and Armenian fortifications, as well as crusader castles. The Citadel of Aleppo is a good example of the former, with a massive gate tower enclosing a complicated passage. The most elaborate bent entrance among crusader castles is the turning entrance ramp at Crac des Chevaliers, which is defensible from several towers and via machicolations, but the indirect e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al-Darb Al-Ahmar
Al-Darb al-Ahmar is a historic neighbourhood in Cairo, Egypt. It is also the name of an administrative district ('' qism'') within the Cairo Governorate that includes most of the neighbourhood. Its name means "the Red Street" in Arabic. History The area south of Cairo's city walls, between Bab Zuweila and the Citadel, was initially the site of Fatimid and Ayyubid-era cemeteries. Under the prosperous reign of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad (between 1293 and 1341) the population of the city reached its peak and the area began to be developed in earnest. The city expanded southwards and many Mamluk elites were eager to build new establishments closer to the Citadel, the seat of the sultan's power. Al-Nasir himself encouraged this development and even built some of the palaces northwest of the Citadel for his amirs (such as the Palace of Amir Qawsun), just as he was building his own palaces inside the Citadel. The Bab al-Wazir Cemetery also developed next to the neighbourhood at this ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al-Azhar Park
Al-Azhar Park ( ar, حديقة الأزهر ) is a public park located in Cairo, Egypt. Among several honors, this park is listed as one of the world's sixty great public spaces by the Project for Public Spaces. The park was created by the Historic Cities Support Programme of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, an entity of the Aga Khan Development Network. The park was developed at a cost in excess of USD $30 million, its funding a gift to Cairo from Aga Khan IV, a descendant of the Fatimid Caliphs of Cairo. The park project, an urbanism initiative, included: * the development of the park * archeology involving a 12th-century Ayyubid wall * historic building rehabilitation (the 14th Century Umm Sultan Shaban Mosque, the 13th century Khayrbek complex, and the Darb Shoughlan School) * several quality of life improvement initiatives requiring skills training, area rehabilitation, microfinance, and support in the areas of health and education, among others. The gardens of al-Azhar P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aga Khan Trust For Culture
The Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC) is an agency of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), a family of institutions created by Aga Khan IV with distinct but complementary mandates to improve the welfare and prospects of people in the developing world, particularly in Asia and Africa. It focuses on the revitalization of communities in the Muslim world—physical, social, cultural, and economic. The AKTC was founded in 1988 and is registered in Geneva, Switzerland, as a private non-denominational philanthropic foundation. Programs * Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA) is an architectural prize that recognizes architectural excellence in the Muslim world. * Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme (HCP) supports the revitalization of historic sites in the Muslim world. * Aga Khan Music Initiative (AKMI) provides financial resources and technical assistance to support the preservation and promotion of professional oral tradition music in Central Asia and other regions. * Aga K ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
City Of The Dead (Cairo)
The City of the Dead, or Cairo Necropolis, also referred to as the Qarafa ( ar, القرافة, al-Qarafa; locally pronounced as ''al-'arafa''), is a series of vast Islamic-era necropolises and cemeteries in Cairo, Egypt. They extend to the north and to the south of the Cairo Citadel, below the Mokattam Hills and outside the historic city walls, covering an area roughly 4 miles long. They are included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of " Historic Cairo". The necropolis is separated roughly into two regions: the Northern Cemetery to the north of the Citadel (also called the Eastern Cemetery or ''Qarafat ash-sharq'' in Arabic because it is east of the old city walls), and the older Southern Cemetery to the south of the Citadel. There is also another smaller cemetery north of Bab al-Nasr. The necropolis that makes up "the City of the Dead" has been developed over many centuries and contains both the graves of Cairo's common population as well as the elaborate mausoleums of many ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burji Dynasty
The Burji or Circassian Mamluk ( ar, المماليك الشركس) dynasty of Circassian origin, ruled Egypt from 1382 until 1517, during the Mamluk Sultanate. The Circassian community in Cairo especially flourished during this time. Political power-plays often became important in designating a new sultan. During this time Mamluks fought Timur and conquered Cyprus. Constant bickering may have contributed to the ability of the Ottomans to challenge them. Their name means 'of the tower', referring to them ruling from the Citadel east of Cairo. History From 1250, Egypt had been ruled by the first Mamluk dynasty, the mostly Cuman- Kipchak Turkic Bahri dynasty. In 1377 a revolt broke out in Syria which spread to Egypt, and the government was taken over by the Circassians Barakah and Barquq; Barquq was proclaimed '' sultan'' in 1382, ending the Bahri dynasty. He was expelled in 1389 but recaptured Cairo in 1390. Early on, the Zahiri Revolt threatened to overthrow Barquq ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
An-Nasir Muhammad
Al-Malik an-Nasir Nasir ad-Din Muhammad ibn Qalawun ( ar, الملك الناصر ناصر الدين محمد بن قلاوون), commonly known as an-Nasir Muhammad ( ar, الناصر محمد), or by his kunya: Abu al-Ma'ali () or as Ibn Qalawun (1285–1341) was the ninth Bahri Mamluk sultan of Egypt who ruled between 1293–1294, 1299–1309, and 1310 until his death in 1341. During his first reign he was dominated by Kitbugha and al-Shuja‘i, while during his second reign he was dominated by Baibars and Salar. Not wanting to be dominated or deprived of his full rights as a sultan by his third reign, an-Nasir executed Baibars and accepted the resignation of Salar as vice Sultan. An-Nasir was known to appoint non-Mamluks loyal to himself to senior military positions and remove capable officers of their duty whose loyalty he doubted. Although, he did annul taxes and surcharges that were imposed on commoners for the benefit of the emirs and officials. Also, he employe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)
The Mamluk Sultanate ( ar, سلطنة المماليك, translit=Salṭanat al-Mamālīk), also known as Mamluk Egypt or the Mamluk Empire, was a state that ruled Egypt, the Levant and the Hejaz (western Arabia) from the mid-13th to early 16th centuries. It was ruled by a military caste of mamluks (manumitted slave soldiers) headed by the sultan. The Abbasid caliphs were the nominal sovereigns. The sultanate was established with the overthrow of the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt in 1250 and was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1517. Mamluk history is generally divided into the Turkic or Bahri period (1250–1382) and the Circassian or Burji period (1382–1517), called after the predominant ethnicity or corps of the ruling Mamluks during these respective eras.Levanoni 1995, p. 17. The first rulers of the sultanate hailed from the mamluk regiments of the Ayyubid sultan as-Salih Ayyub (), usurping power from his successor in 1250. The Mamluks under Sultan Qutuz and Baybars r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metropolitan area, with a population of 21.9 million, is the 12th-largest in the world by population. Cairo is associated with ancient Egypt, as the Giza pyramid complex and the ancient cities of Memphis and Heliopolis are located in its geographical area. Located near the Nile Delta, the city first developed as Fustat, a settlement founded after the Muslim conquest of Egypt in 640 next to an existing ancient Roman fortress, Babylon. Under the Fatimid dynasty a new city, ''al-Qāhirah'', was founded nearby in 969. It later superseded Fustat as the main urban centre during the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods (12th–16th centuries). Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life, and is titled "the city of a thousa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ayyubid Dynasty
The Ayyubid dynasty ( ar, الأيوبيون '; ) was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. A Sunni Muslim of Kurdish origin, Saladin had originally served Nur ad-Din of Syria, leading Nur ad-Din's army in battle against the Crusaders in Fatimid Egypt, where he was made Vizier. Following Nur ad-Din's death, Saladin was proclaimed as the first Sultan of Egypt, and rapidly expanded the new sultanate beyond the frontiers of Egypt to encompass most of the Levant (including the former territories of Nur ad-Din), in addition to Hijaz, Yemen, northern Nubia, Tarabulus, Cyrenaica, southern Anatolia, and northern Iraq, the homeland of his Kurdish family. By virtue of his sultanate including Hijaz, the location of the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina, he was the first ruler to be hailed as the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, a title that would be held by all subs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
