Badr Mosque: From a Military School to a Tourist Attraction

CAIRO – 30 May 2017: Badr mosque is a well known archaeological building in Aswan. The mosque is located in Al Tabeya (military castle) area in the same place of the oldest military school in Africa and the Middle East in modern history.

The area is named after the two military castles built by Mohamed Ali in 1811 in that location. One is replaced by the current mosque. The other belongs to the military academy, the archaeologist, Hasan Gabr, said.

Gabr, who is the head of Aswan District for Coptic and Islamic monuments, clarified that Mohamed Ali selected this area characterized by its high surface to achieve military strategic targets in Africa, and to sharpen the skills of Egyptian army.

The surrounding areas, Ahmadeya and Bashareya, were the residence for thousands of Sudanese soldiers who joined the Egyptian army when Sudan was under Egypt’s rule, and were called ‘Qataneya.’

That military school was dismantled later because of the rise of modern weapons, military expansion in Africa, and the British military protection over Egypt.

The mosque was built under former Egyptian president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, in 1969 and was inaugurated under former Egyptian president, Anwar El Sadat in 1970. The mosque’s size is 700 square meters, and contains 24 columns.

The mosque has a Mamlouki design, and a view of the whole city because of its tall height. It is also used to anticipate the advent of Ramadan by prospecting the crescent of the Arab month.