Monuments of Egypt 2

The Fortress Of Babylon

The fortress of Babylon at old Cairo, within which lies the Coptic museum was erected inside it, was built by (Trajan) in 98 B.C. on the river Nile.

Doubles it was smaller than in the next period, because the Emperor ( Arcadias) renewed it and enlarged some parts of it in 395 A.D.

But some people say that it goes back to ancient Egyptian period. It was also said that the fortress was built instead of the Babylon citadel which was built by the Persians near here on the top of the mountain, and the Arab historians say that the Persians began its architecture then the Romans completed it. Diodorus the historian said : the prisoners of the war who were captured by Ramses II disobeyed him and occupied the Habnin citadel on the river side towards Memphis to the north; they fought with the provinces nearby and not stop fighting until Ramses gave them their freedom and security. And since they obeyed him and became calm by permitting them to live in the region which they called Babylon, in the name of the capital of their home country.

John Bishop of Nikius wrote about this fortress in the 7^th century A.D. the following : Nabuchad nezzar built at this place an old citadel and he called it the citadel of Babylon, this was after his conquest of Egypt. And after exiling the Jews to it, in the wake of the destruction of Jerusalem.

This citadel was called Babylon after the name of the capital of Assyrians and this co-ordinates with Jeremiah ( 46:13-27).

Classical historians agreed that the fortress took its name from the town where it was built which was called Babylon probably derived from the ancient Egyptian name ( pr.Hap.n.Iwn) or the place of the god Hapi at Heliopolis.

Doubtless this fortress resemble the Roman Fortresses in Europe and North Africa and from which we can understand its construction.

In the building the fortress lime stones and the red stones were used. The walls of the towers are about 60 F (18 m height) and their diameter 100 F (31 m). the thickness of the walls is about 8 F ( 3m). the floor of the fortress is lower than the height of St. George street by 6 meters, and that is because of the accumulations during the ages. The exterior entrance of the museum is built on the west gate of the fortress.

It is flanked by 2 enormous towers. One can still be seen, while the other is hidden beneath the Greek church of St. George. The Nile flowed under these towers and boats were moored there. Recent excavations show that there was a river harbor between these 2 enormous towers. In the interior of the museum we can visit the south part of the fortress where 2 enormous bastions still stand with a magnificent ancient gate way between them.

In one of the bastions there was a mill; near which was an oven for baking bread on one of the 2 bastions the hanging church ( Moallaka) it rests on a huge pillar built of burnt- bricks the other part of the church and part of the old wing of the museum are built on the columned hall on the 2 other halls.