A New Political Geography
Salah al-Din ended Fatimid rule in 1171 and began the Cairo Citadel. Power shifted from the palatial centre of al-Qahira toward a fortified complex above the city.
Founder and First Resident
Salah al-Din initiated the Citadel, while later rulers developed its residential role. This distinction is important: the founder of a palace complex is not always its first resident sovereign.
Why It Matters
The Ayyubid period created the place that would remain one of Cairo's principal architectural symbols of government for centuries.