Throughout Egyptian history, certain cities have risen to be political, cultural and commercial capitals. These cities were usually built on the Nile, which gave the rulers control over the movement of ships and goods on the river. After King Mena united Egypt around 3000 BC, he established what is known as the "Enbo Hadj" or the White Wall; now Memphis is located at the summit of the Nile Delta. It became a huge religious and administrative center during the Old Kingdom era. The idol was the Lord, protector of the city. The neighboring cemetery in Saqqara was the preferred burial area of the Pharaohs. Memphis remained prosperous until the time of the Romans; however, it deteriorated from then until the time of the Arab conquest; when it took advantage of the stones that were brought from its ruins; in the construction of Cairo.
After a period of political unrest at the end of the Old Kingdom, Montopep II re-unified Egypt in the 11th Dynasty; and moved the political capital southward to Thebes, the current Luxor. The Lord was the protector of the good is the idol of Amun "the Hidden One," which formed a good triad with the idol "Death and Khonsu". The rulers were buried in the great funerary collections at the Valley of the Kings (west of Tiba). Then Tiba deteriorated after being attacked by the Assyrians and the Romans.
After Alexander the Great took over Egypt in 332 BC. Shortly after the Ptolemies, the capital was moved to Alexandria; it is located on the western edge of the Nile Delta on a sandy strip of land near Lake Mariout, on the Mediterranean Sea. Under the rule of the Greeks, Alexandria became the cultural and economic capital of the ancient world; it was famous for its great library and museum, the Miozion. It had the "Serapium"; where the Lord the protector "Serapis" was worshiped. The port of Alexandria was one of the busiest ports, and it embraced the great lighthouse of Alexandria (Pharos). Alexandria remained an important port and a major center for shipbuilding during the reigns of Muslim rulers.
After the dissolution of the Roman Empire, after the Byzantine rule, Amr ibn al-Aas opened Egypt in 641 AD and founded Fustat; a new capital of Egypt, on the eastern side of the river near the fort of Babylonian Roman. Because Fustat was located on the Nile between Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt, it became a center of trade with China, India, Yemen and Europe; the point of convergence between Muslims from West Asia and North Africa.
From the reign of Muhammad ibn Taqq al-Ikhshidi (936 AD) until the reign of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun, the shipbuilding industry was an important industry in Egypt. Ahmed ibn Tulun (868 AD) founded al-Qata'i, a new capital of the country, and remained until 969 AD when the Fatimids seized power and established a royal city surrounded by walls. And the expulsion of Saladin Fatimids, and authorized the public to build around the royal city, which became "Cairo". Saladin built the castle between 1176 and 1177 over the best protected Cairo hills, protecting. And extended in the walls; to contain the expanded city. The project of building schools and mosques, from Cairo, has become a major city of knowledge among all Muslims.

Tags: Politics
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