Thehistory of Alexandria dates back to the city's founding, byAlexander the Great, in 331 BC.[1] Yet, before that, there were large port cities just east ofAlexandria, at the western edge of what is nowAbu Qir Bay. The Canopic (westernmost) branch of theNile Delta still existed at that time, and was widely used for shipping.
After its foundation, Alexandria became the seat of thePtolemaic Kingdom, and quickly grew to be one of the greatest cities of theHellenistic world. OnlyRome, which gainedcontrol of Egypt in 30 BC, eclipsed Alexandria in size and wealth.
The cityfell to the Arabs in AD 641, and a newcapital of Egypt,Fustat, was founded on theNile. After Alexandria's status as the country's capital ended, it fell into a long decline, which by the lateOttoman period, had seen it reduced to little more than a small fishing village. The French army under Napoleoncaptured the city in 1798 and the British sooncaptured it from the French, retaining Alexandria within theirsphere of influence for 150 years. The city grew in the early 19th century under the industrialization program ofMohammad Ali, theviceroy of Egypt.
The current city is theRepublic of Egypt's leading port, a commercial, tourism and transportation center, and the heart of a major industrial area where refinedpetroleum,asphalt, cotton textiles, processed food,paper,plastics andstyrofoam are produced.
Just east of Alexandria in ancient times (where now isAbu Qir Bay) there was marshland and several islands. As early as the 7th century BC, there existed important port cities ofCanopus andHeracleion. The latter was recently rediscovered under water. Part of Canopus is still on the shore above water, and had been studied by archaeologists the longest. There was also the town ofMenouthis. TheNile Delta had long been politically significant as the point of entry for anyone wishing to trade with Egypt.[2]
An Egyptian city or town,Rhakotis, existed on the shore where Alexandria is now. Behind it were five villages scattered along the strip betweenLake Mareotis and the sea, according to theRomance of Alexander.
Alexandria was founded byAlexander the Great in 331 BC (the exact date is disputed) asἈλεξάνδρεια (Aleksándreia). Alexander's chief architect for the project wasDinocrates. Ancient accounts are extremely numerous and varied, and much influenced by subsequent developments. One of the more sober descriptions, given by the historianArrian, tells how Alexander undertook to lay out the city's general plan, but lacking chalk or other means, resorted to sketching it out with grain. A number of more fanciful foundation myths are found in theAlexander Romance and were picked up by medieval historians.
A few months after the foundation, Alexander left Egypt for the East and never returned to his city. After Alexander departed, his viceroy,Cleomenes, continued the expansion of the city.
In a struggle with the other successors of Alexander, his general, Ptolemy (laterPtolemy I of Egypt) succeeded in bringing Alexander's body to Alexandria.Alexander's tomb became a famous tourist destination for ancient travelers (includingJulius Caesar). With the symbols of the tomb and theLighthouse, the Ptolemies promoted the legend of Alexandria as an element of their legitimacy to rule.[3]
Alexandria was intended to supersedeNaucratis as aHellenistic center in Egypt, and to be the link betweenGreece and the richNile Valley. If such a city was to be on the Egyptian coast, there was only one possible site, behind the screen of thePharos island and removed from the silt thrown out by the Nile, just west of the westernmost "Canopic" mouth of the river. At the same time, the city could enjoy a fresh water supply by means of a canal from the Nile.[4] The site also offered unique protection against invading armies: the vastLibyan Desert to the west and theNile Delta to the east.
Though Cleomenoes was mainly in charge of seeing to Alexandria's continuous development, theHeptastadion (causeway to Pharos Island) and the main-land quarters seem to have been mainly Ptolemaic work. Demographic details of how Alexandria rose quickly to its great size remain unknown.[5]
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Inheriting the trade of ruinedTyre and becoming the center of the new commerce betweenEurope and theArabian andIndian East, the city grew in less than a generation to be larger thanCarthage. In a century, Alexandria had become thelargest city in the world,[6] and for some centuries more, was second only toRome. It became the main Greek city of Egypt, with an extraordinary mix of Greeks from many cities and backgrounds.[7] Nominally a freeHellenistic city, Alexandria retained itssenate of Roman times and the judicial functions of that body were restored bySeptimius Severus after temporary abolition byAugustus.
Monumental buildings were erected in Alexandria through the third century BC. TheHeptastadion connectedPharos with the city and theLighthouse of Alexandria followed soon after, as did theSerapeum, all under Ptolemy I. TheMuseion was built underPtolemy II; the Serapeum expanded byPtolemy III Euergetes; and mausolea for Alexander and the Ptolemies built underPtolemy IV.[8]
The Ptolemies fostered the development of theLibrary of Alexandria and associatedMusaeum into a renowned center for Hellenistic learning.
Luminaries associated with the Musaeum included the geometry and number-theoristEuclid; the astronomerHipparchus; andEratosthenes, known for calculating the Earth's circumference and for hisalgorithm for finding prime numbers, who became head librarian.
Strabo lists Alexandria, withTarsus andAthens, among the learned cities of the world, observing also that Alexandria both admits foreign scholars and sends its natives abroad for further education.[9]
The early Ptolemies were careful to maintain the distinction of its population's three largest ethnicities:Greek,Jewish, andEgyptian. (At first, Egyptians were probably the plurality of residents, while the Jewish community remained small.Slavery, a normal institution in Greece, was likely present but details about its extent and about the identity of slaves are unknown.)[10] Alexandrian Greeks placed an emphasis onHellenistic culture, in part to exclude and subjugate non-Greeks.[11]
Thelaw in Alexandria was based on Greek—especiallyAttic—law.[12] There were two institutions in Alexandria devoted to the preservation and study of Greek culture, which helped to exclude non-Greeks. In literature, non-Greek texts entered thelibrary only once they had been translated into Greek. Notably, there were few references to Egypt or native Egyptians in Alexandrian poetry; one of the few references to native Egyptians presents them as "muggers."[11] There were ostentatious religious processions in the streets that displayed the wealth and power of the Ptolemies, but also celebrated and affirmed Greekness. These processions were used to shout Greek superiority over any non-Greeks that were watching, thereby widening the divide between cultures.[13]
From this division arose much of the later turbulence, which began to manifest itself under the rule ofPtolemy Philopater (221–204 BC). The reign ofPtolemy VIII Physcon from 144–116 BC was marked by purges and civil warfare (including the expulsion of intellectuals such asApollodorus of Athens), as well as intrigues associated with the king's wives and sons.
Alexandria was also home to the largestJewish community in the ancient world. TheSeptuagint, aGreek translation of theHebrew Bible (the Torah and other writings), was produced there. Jews occupied two of the city's five quarters and worshipped atsynagogues.
Having been under Roman influence for more than a hundred years, the city was placed formally within Roman jurisdiction by the will ofPtolemy Alexander in 80 BC.Julius Caesar dallied withCleopatra in Alexandria in 47 BC andwas besieged in the city by Cleopatra's brother and rival. His example was followed byMark Antony, for whose favor the city paid dearly toOctavian. Following Antony's defeat at theBattle of Actium, Octavian took Egypt aspersonal property of the emperor, appointing a prefect who reported personally to him rather than to the Roman Senate[citation needed]. While in Alexandria, Octavian took time to visit Alexander's tomb and inspected the late king's remains. On being offered a viewing into the tombs of the pharaohs, he refused, saying, "I came to see a king, not a collection of corpses."[14]
From the time of annexation and onwards, Alexandria seemed to have regained its old prosperity, commanding, as it did, an important granary of Rome. This was one of the chief reasons that inducedOctavian to place it directly underimperial power.
Jewish–Greek ethnic tensions in the era of Roman administration led to riotsin AD 38 andagain in 66. Buildings were burned during theKitos War (Tumultus Iudaicus) of AD 115, givingHadrian and his architect,Decriannus, an opportunity to rebuild.
In 215 AD theemperorCaracalla visited the city and, because of some insultingsatires that the inhabitants had directed at him, abruptly commanded his troops to put to death all youths capable of bearing arms[citation needed]. This brutal order seems to have been carried out even beyond the letter, for a general massacre ensued. According to historianCassius Dio, over 20,000 people were killed.
In the 3rd century AD, Alexander's tomb was closed to the public, and now its location has been forgotten.
Even as its main historical importance had sprung from pagan learning, Alexandria now acquired new importance as a center ofChristiantheology and church government. There,Arianism came to prominence, and there alsoAthanasius opposed Arianism and the pagan reaction against Christianity, experiencing success against both and continuing thePatriarch of Alexandria's major influence on Christianity into the next two centuries.
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Persecution of Christians underDiocletian (beginning in AD 284) marks the beginning of theEra of Martyrs in theCoptic calendar.[15]
As native influences began to reassert themselves in theNile valley, Alexandria gradually became an alien city, more and more detached from Egypt and losing much of its commerce as the peace of the empire broke up during the 3rd century, followed by a fast decline in population and splendor.
In 365, a tsunami caused byan earthquake in Crete hit Alexandria.[16][17]
In the late 4th century, persecution ofpagans by Christians had reached new levels of intensity. Temples and statues were destroyed throughout the Roman empire: pagan rituals became forbidden under punishment of death, and libraries were closed. In 391, EmperorTheodosius I ordered the destruction of all pagan temples, and the PatriarchTheophilus complied with his request. TheSerapeum of the Great Library was destroyed, possibly effecting the finaldestruction of the Library of Alexandria.[18][19] Theneoplatonist philosopherHypatia was publicly murdered by a Christian mob.
TheBrucheum and Jewish quarters were desolate in the 5th century, and the central monuments, theSoma and Museum, fell into ruin. On the mainland, life seemed to have centered in the vicinity of theSerapeum andCaesareum, both which became Christian churches. ThePharos andHeptastadium quarters, however, remained populous and were left intact.
Recent archaeology atKom El Deka (heap of rubble or ballast) has found the Roman quarter of Alexandria beneath a layer of graves from the Muslim era. The remains found at this site, which are dated circa the fourth to seventh centuries AD, include workshops, storefronts, houses, a theater, apublic bath, and lecture halls, as well as Coptic frescoes. The baths and theater were built in the fourth century and the smaller buildings constructed around them, suggesting a sort ofurban renewal occurring in the wake of Diocletian.[20]
In 619, the city was taken byKhosrau II, King ofPersia. Although theByzantine EmperorHeraclius recovered it a few years later, in 641 theArabs, under the generalAmr ibn al-As during theMuslim conquest of Egypt, captured it decisively aftera siege that lasted fourteen months. The city received no aid fromConstantinople during that time; Heraclius was dead and the new EmperorConstans II was barely twelve years old. In 645 a Byzantine fleet recaptured the city, but it fell for good the following year. Thus ended a period of 975 years of Greco-Roman control over the city.
Nearly two centuries later, between the years 814 and 827, Alexandria came under the control of pirates of Andalusia (Spain today), later to return to Arab hands.[21] In the year 828, the alleged body ofMark the Evangelist was stolen by Venetian merchants, which led to theBasilica of Saint Mark. Years later, the city suffered many earthquakes during the years 956, 1303 and then in 1323.
Throughout the late medieval period and after a long decline, Alexandria emerged as a major metropolis and the most important commercial port in Egypt and one of the most important in the Mediterranean. The jewish travellerBenjamin of Tudela even described it as “a trading market for all nations”.[22] Indeed, Alexandria was the outlet for all goods coming from Arabia, such asincense, and from India and South-East Asia, such as spices (pepper,cloves,cinnamon, etc.), precious stones, pearls and exotic woods likebrazilwood. But it was also the outlet for goods from Africa, such as ivory and precious woods. These goods arrived in Alexandria after passing throughAden on their way to theRed Sea, then headed up the Red Sea to be unloaded in the port ofAydhab. From Aydhab, a caravan took the goods to the Nile, probably to the town ofQus.[23] From there, the goods sailed to Alexandria. These goods then found their way to the Alexandria market alongside Egyptian products.[23][24]
This route was the cheapest and fastest in comparison with the land routes that reached the Mediterranean from Syria or Constantinople. Latin merchants (Venetians,Genoese,Pisans,Aragonese,Provençals, etc.) thus entered this market. As early as the 12th century, the major trading cities hadfunduqs and consuls in Alexandria. A funduq, in this context is an area, often fortified, within the city dedicated to the community of a trading nation under the authority of a consul. This funduq usually included an inn, a chapel, a notary, warehouses and sometimes even craftsmen's workshops and mills.The consul was responsible for adjudicating disputes between merchants of his nation, and also when a subject of the sultan lodged a complaint against a merchant of their nation.The terms of this installation were often set out in treaties between the sultans and the consuls. In 1290, for example,Genoa signed a treaty withSultan Qalawun providing for preferential tariffs for Genoese merchants who came to trade in Alexandria via a commercial circuit controlled by the sultan at Alexandria customs. The treaty also reaffirmed the rights of the Genoese, notably that of keeping a funduq.[25] This treaty was part of a policy pursued by the early Mamluk sultans, who encouraged the arrival of merchants from Europe in Alexandria, since this trade not only brought the sultan considerable revenue, but also enabled him to obtain supplies of wood and iron from Europe. Later, in the 14th century, the Latin trade in Alexandria was also very important for the sultans, as it enabled them to obtain supplies ofmameluks (slave-soldiers) often sold by Genoese merchants.[26]
As this trade was very important to the sultans, they were keen to control the city's institutions. Indeed, in Alexandria, in addition to anEmir (governor), the sultan sent a customs inspector who answered directly to thenazir al-khas (person in charge of managing the sultan's patrimony). Customs was not only responsible for collecting customs duties, but also for the security of the port and its warehouses. Alexandria customs also played a role in commercial arbitration and was the preferred circuit for the sale of products brought in by the merchants, which took place at auction. These sales were set up to encourage the merchants to sell their products to or through the sultan, rather than selling them freely on the city's markets. Latin merchants also had jurisdictional privileges : in addition to being judged by their consul if a subject of the sultan lodged a complaint against them, Latin merchants could not be judged by theqadis (civil judges) but had to be judged by themazalim (the sultan's courts).[24]
It formed an emirate of theAyyubid Empire, whereSaladin's elder brotherTuran Shah was granted a sinecure to keep him from the front lines of thecrusades. In the year 1365, Alexandria was brutally sacked after being taken by the armies of the Crusaders, led by KingPeter of Cyprus. By the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, Venice had eliminated the jurisdiction and its Alexandrian warehouse became the center of the distribution of spices to the Portuguese Cape route to open in 1498, which marked the commercial decline, worsened by the Turkish invasion.
There has been a persistent belief that theLibrary of Alexandria and its contents were destroyed in 642 during the Arab invasion.[19][18]
The Lighthouse was destroyed by earthquakes in the 14th century,[27] and by 1700 the city was just a small town amidst the ruins.
Though smaller, the city remained a significant port for Mediterranean trade well through the medieval period under theMamluk sultanate, playing a part in the trade network of Italian city-states.[28] However, it declined still further under theOttoman Empire, losing its water supply from the Nile, and its commercial importance, as Rosetta (Rashid) became more useful as a port.[29]
Alexandria figured prominently in the military operations ofNapoleon's expedition to Egypt in 1798. French troops stormed the city on July 2, 1798 and it remained in their hands until the British victory at theBattle of Alexandria on March 21, 1801, following which the Britishbesieged the city whichfell to them on 2 September 1801.
Two French savants assessing the population of Alexandria in 1798 estimated 8,000 and 15,000.[30]
Muhammad Ali, the Ottoman Governor of Egypt, began rebuilding the city around 1810, and by 1850, Alexandria had returned to something akin to its former glory.
In July 1882 the city was the site of the first battle of theAnglo-Egyptian War, when it wasbombarded and occupied by theRoyal Navy. Large sections of the city were damaged in the battle, or destroyed in subsequent fires.[31]
Relations between Egypt and the United Kingdom grew strained in the 1950s, with violence periodically erupting between local police units and theBritish Army, in Alexandria as well asin Cairo. These clashes culminated in theEgyptian coup of 1952, during which the army occupied Alexandria and drove KingFarouk from his residence atMontaza Palace.[32]
In July 1954, the city was a target of an Israeli bombing campaign that later became known as theLavon Affair. Only a few months later, Alexandria's Manshia Square was the site of the famous, failed assassination attempt on the life ofGamal Abdel Nasser.
Mayors of Alexandria (since the implementation of the local-government act of 1960):[33]
You won’t find a new country, won’t find another shore.
This city will always pursue you.
You’ll walk the same streets, grow old
in the same neighborhoods, turn gray in these same houses.
You’ll always end up in this city. Don’t hope for things elsewhere:
there’s no ship for you, there’s no road.
Now that you’ve wasted your life here, in this small corner,
you’ve destroyed it everywhere in the world.
Alexandria was the home of the ethnically Greek poetConstantine P. Cavafy.E. M. Forster, who worked in Alexandria for theInternational Red Cross duringWorld War I, wrote two books about the city and promoted Cavafy's work.[34]
Lawrence Durrell, working for the British in Alexandria duringWorld War II, achieved international success with the publication ofThe Alexandria Quartet (1957–1960).[35]
In July 2018, archaeologists led by Zeinab Hashish announced the discovery of a 2,000-year-old 30-ton black granitesarcophagus. It contained three damaged skeletons in red-brown sewage water. According to archaeologistMostafa Waziri, the skeletons looked like a family burial with a middle-aged woman and two men. Researchers also revealed a small gold artifact and three thin sheets of gold.[36][37][38]
In June 2022, archaeologists from The Cairo Ministry of Antiquities announced the discovery of an alabaster bust ofAlexander the Great as well as molds and other materials for creating amulets for warriors and for statues of Alexander the Great.[39][40]
One effect of the newly created Hellenistic kingdoms was the imposition of Greek cities occupied by Greeks on an alien landscape. In Egypt there was a native Egyptian population with its own culture, history, and traditions. The Greeks who came to Egypt, to the court or to live in Alexandria, were separated from their original cultures. Alexandria was the main Greek city of Egypt and within it there was an extraordinary mix of Greeks from many cities and backgrounds.
The Ptolemaic emphasis on Greek culture establishes the Greeks of Egypt with an identity for themselves. […] But the emphasis on Greek culture does even more than this – these are Greeks ruling in a foreign land. The more Greeks can indulge in their own culture, the more they can exclude non-Greeks, in other words Egyptians, the subjects whose land has been taken over. The assertion of Greek culture serves to enforce Egyptian subjection. So the presence in Alexandria of two institutions devoted to the preservation and study of Greek culture acts as a powerful symbol of Egyptian exclusion and subjection. Texts from other cultures could be kept in the library, but only once they had been translated, that is to say Hellenized.
[…] A reading of Alexandrian poetry might easily give the impression that Egyptians did not exist at all; indeed Egypt itself is hardly mentioned except for the Nile and the Nile flood, […] This omission of the Egypt and Egyptians from poetry masks a fundamental insecurity. It is no coincidence that one of the few poetic references to Egyptians presents them as muggers.
This procession is very revealing about Ptolemaic Egypt. In essence it is a religious procession, but its magnificence and its content transform it into something more than this. For anyone watching, whether they are foreigners, who might be paying a visit or there on a diplomatic mission, or Alexandrian Greeks or native Egyptians, the procession hammers out the message of Ptolemy's enormous wealth and power. For Alexandrian Greeks, both those watching and those taking part, it will be a celebration and affirmation of Greekness. But it is even more than this it is also a procession shouting out Greek superiority to any native Egyptians who happen to be in the vicinity. Thus in a popular, visual form the procession embodies those same elements which were observed above in the case of the Library and Museum.
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