Qaitbay Fort(Citadel)
The Citadel of Qaitbay is a 15th-century defensive fortress located on the Mediterranean Sea coast, in Alexandria, Egypt. It was established in 1477 AD by Sultan Al-Ashraf Sayf al-Din Qa’it Bay.
The Citadel is situated on the eastern side of the northern tip of Pharos Island at the mouth of Alexandria’s Eastern Harbour.
The Qaitbay Citadel is considered one of the most important defensive strongholds in Egypt and along the Mediterranean Sea coast. It formulated an important part of the fortification system of Alexandria in the 15th century AD.
The citadel was built on the exact site of The Lighthouse of Alexandria which was one of the ‘Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
The Pharos lighthouse, which had been in use for some 17 centuries, was destroyed by an earthquake and lay in ruins for more than 100 years before Qaitbey ordered the fortification of the city’s harbour. Material from the fallen Pharos was reused, and if you get close to the outer walls you can pick out some great pillars of red granite, which in all likelihood came from the ancient lighthouse. Other parts of the ancient building are scattered around the nearby seabed.
