Alexandria

Alexandria, named after Alexander the Great, is considered the second capital of Egypt due to its historical importance and population. It is the second largest city in Egypt. In 332 B.C.E., a young 25-year-old Alexander founded the city. The chief architect, Dinocrates, was appointed to lead this project which was to see Alexandria replace Naucratis as the Hellenistic center of Egypt, and be the link between Greece and the rich Nile Valley. The Egyptian fishing village of Rakotis (Ra Kedit, in Egyptian) was already on the shore, and later gave its name to Alexandria, becoming the Egyptian quarter of the new city. Only a few months after its founding, Alexander left the city named after him, never to return. One of his favorite generals, Ptolemy, struggled with other successors to Alexander.

Having become ruler of Egypt, Ptolemy succeeded in bringing Alexander’s body to support Alexandria (Aelian, Varia Historia, 12.64). The primary Ptolemaic work in the city appears to have been the Heptastadion and its mainland quarters, although Cleomenes was mainly responsible for overseeing the continued development of Alexandria. Having inherited the ruined trade of Tyre, Alexandria grew to be larger than Carthage in less than a generation, and became a center of new trade between Europe, the Arab East, and the Indian East. Just a century after its founding, Alexandria became the largest city in the world, and centuries later, it was second only to Rome. It became the main Greek city in Egypt, with an unusual mix of Greeks from several cities and backgrounds. In addition to being a center of Hellenism, Alexandria was home to the largest Jewish community in the world. It was here that the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible was written. The early Ptolemies fostered the development of a temple of inspiration (hence the word museum) into what later became the great Library of Alexandria, the leading center of Hellenistic learning worldwide. While the Ptolemies carefully maintained ethnic distinctions between the Greek, Jewish, and Egyptian populations, these population groups generated divisions and tensions that began under Ptolemy Philopater, who ruled from 221 to 204 BC.

Civil unrest arising from these tensions developed into civil war and purges of Ptolemy VIII Phygon who ruled from 144 to 116 BC (Josephus, Antiquities 12.235.243; 13.267.268; 14.250). While Alexandria had been under Roman influence for more than a hundred years, in 80 BC it was under Roman jurisdiction, according to the will of Ptolemy Alexander. Civil war broke out between King Ptolemy XIII and his advisors against the famous Queen Cleopatra VII. Julius Caesar intervened in the civil war in 47 BC and captured the city. On August 1, 30 BC, Octavian, the future Emperor Augustus, finally invaded Egypt. The name of the month was later changed to August to commemorate his victory. A large part of the city of Alexandria was destroyed during the Kitos War in 115 AD. This gave Emperor Hadrian an opportunity to rebuild the city through the works of the architect Decrianus. Emperor Caracalla visited the city in AD 215 and, offended by some derogatory ridicule directed at him by the citizens, ordered his troops to kill those youths able to bear arms. Alexandria was destroyed by a tsunami on July 21, 365 (365 Crete earthquake), [3]. Seventeen hundred years later, this tragedy is still celebrated as a day of horror.

The persecution of pagans by the newly Christianized Romans intensified in the late 3rd century AD, culminating in the destruction of all pagan temples in Alexandria by Patriarch Theophilos who was acting at the behest of Emperor Theodosius I. On the mainland, life seems to revolve around the Serapeum and Caesarum, and both buildings became Christian churches. However, the neighborhoods of Pharos and Heptastadium remained densely populated and intact. [citation needed] Alexandria fell to the Persian Sassanids in their conquest in 619 and was briefly reconquered by Emperor Heraclius in 629. In 641, after a fourteen-month siege, the city was captured by General Amr ibn al-Aas. It played a prominent role in Napoleon’s military operations during his expedition to Egypt in 1798 until the British defeated the French in a notable victory at the Battle of Alexandria on 21 March 1801. The subsequent siege of the city led to the fall of Alexandria. To the British on September 2, 1801. Reconstruction and redevelopment of the city began around 1810 during the reign of Muhammad Ali, the Ottoman ruler of Egypt. By 1850, Alexandria had regained something of its former glory. [5] It was bombarded by British naval forces in July 1882, and occupied. In July of 1954, the city became the target of an Israeli bombing campaign that later became known as the Lavon Affair. An attempt to assassinate Gamal Abdel Nasser in Mansheya Square in Alexandria in October of the same year failed.

What time is it in Alexandria, Egypt?

The time zone in Alexandria, Egypt is GMT+2.

Is Alexandria Egypt safe?

Violent crime is extremely rare in Alexandria, just as it is in Egypt’s major cities. There is no real threat of violent crimes like muggings and armed assaults in Alexandria.

written by Memphis Tours