Fustat

Fustat الفسطاط
Capital of Egypt, 641–750, 905–1168
A drawing of Fustat, from Rappoport's History of Egypt
Nickname:  City of the Tents
Fustat Historical location in Egypt
Coordinates: 30°00′18″N 31°14′15″E / 30.00500°N 31.23750°E / 30.00500; 31.23750
Currently part of	Old Cairo
Rashidun Caliphate	641–661
Umayyad Caliphate	661–750
Abbasid Caliphate	750–969
Fatimid Caliphate	969–1168
Founded	641
Founded by	'Amr ibn al-'As
Population  (12th century)
• Total	200,000

Fustat (Arabic: الفُسطاط, romanized: al-Fusṭāṭ), also Fostat, was the first capital of Egypt under Muslim rule, and the historical centre of modern Cairo. It was built adjacent to what is now known as Old Cairo by the Rashidun Muslim general 'Amr ibn al-'As immediately after the Muslim conquest of Egypt in AD 641, and featured the Mosque of Amr, the first mosque built in Egypt.

The city reached its peak in the 12th century, with a population of approximately 200,000.^[1] It was the centre of administrative power in Egypt, until it was ordered burnt in 1168 by its own vizier, Shawar, to keep its wealth out of the hands of the invading Crusaders. The remains of the city were eventually absorbed by nearby Cairo, which had been built to the north of Fustat in 969 when the Fatimids conquered the region and created a new city as a royal enclosure for the Caliph. The area fell into disrepair for hundreds of years and was used as a rubbish dump.

Today, the ruins of Fustat lie within the modern district of Old Cairo, with few buildings remaining from its days as a capital. Many archaeological digs have revealed the wealth of buried material in the area. Many ancient items recovered from the site are on display in Cairo's Museum of Islamic Art.