Discover Cairo

Cairo has been the living heart of Egypt for over 1000 years. As the capital of the country and the seat of government, it accommodates all the most important Egyptian political, economic, and cultural institutions. It is also the undisputed international center of Sunni Islam. As the largest city on the African continent, with a population estimated at ca. 18 million, Cairo exerts great fascination through its strongly contrasting aspects, combining Islamic traditions with the requirements of the modern age.

The city center is threatened daily by the imminent collapse of its traffic system, and the many measures taken to improve the infrastructure, for instance the building of overpasses and a modern subway, have not really succeeded in bringing relief to the Moloch that is Cairo. The first capital on the site dates from the time of Amr Ibn al-As, Caliph Omar’s army commander, who founded a city in 641 A.D. in Fustat (now Old Cairo). However, it was destroyed by fire in the year 750 A.D. Over the next 200 years the center of power moved northward twice. The true date of the founding of Cairo was 969 A.D., when the Fatimids conquered Egypt and built a new capital, which they called al-Qahirah (Arab.: the Victorious).

Cairo has been the living heart of Egypt for over 1000 year. As the capital of the country and the seat of the government, it accommodates all the most important Egyptian political, economic, and cultural institutions.

It is also the undisputed international center of Sunni Islam. As the largest city on the African continent, with a population estimated at ca. 18 millions.

Cairo monuments and Giza saw the rise of a whole necropolis with the great pyramid as its center. The pyramid exerted a magical fascination from an early date, attracting scholars and archeologists as well as adventurers and dreamers of every kind.

The part of the city now known as Old Cairo consists of the Coptic quarter of Qasr el Shama (fortress of the candle) and the city Fustat, founded in the 7th century as the capital of Egypt.