Islamic Cairo

Islamic Cairo is the historic core of Cairo which gave our country capital its name, Al-Qahirah, which means “The Omnipotent Conqueror” since it was founded by the Fatimids when planet Mars (called the conquering star in Arabic) was rising. The area is filled with mosques from an array of the different Muslim dynasties and Islamic caliphate empires that have conquered Egypt in the past, giving the Cairo the nickname, the “City of a Thousand Minarets.” This area includes the Cairo Citadel, proclaimed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site for being the "center of the Islamic world, reaching its golden age in the 14th century." It includes the fortress built by Saladin to defeat the Crusades and the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, the founder of modern-day Egypt.