The Citadel

Within the citadel's towering walls are the Mohammed Ali Mosque (built in the image of the blue Mosque in Turkey).

Mohammed Ali, an Albanian, came to Cairo as a Turkish officer under the Ottoman Empire and in 1806 named himself ruler of Egypt. Mohammed Ali was very much against the Mamluk's (Egypt's rulers prior to the Ottomans), and had most of their mosques and monuments destroyed. When he set out to build his own mosque within the walls of the Cairo Citadel, he broke with all previous traditions and designed it in a manner unprecedented in Egypt's Islamic history.

The design of the mosque is very intricate and of a Turkish genre. The prayer hall, in its magnitude, is a beautiful and inspiring sight. Upon entering, numerous ceiling lamps light and guide the way through this magestic edifice. The mosque is believed to be the most magnificent Islamic monument in Egypt.

Visitors are requested to wear slippers over their shoes or to remove their shoes as is customary Muslim practice.