The citadel was built by Salah El Din on the Muqattam hills in 1183 AD overlooking the whole city to be his defensive point against the attacks of the Crusaders. Salah El Din appointed to be the governor of Egypt after the death of Sultan Noor-el-Din . the reason of building the citadel to defend Cairo from the armies of the Crusaders and to become the center of Salah El Din's government. after the death of Salah El Din, his nephew, Al Kamel, reinforced the Citadel by enlarging several of the towers. The citadel has two entrances : one opening on Salah Salem road and the other is the old gate that has existed since Salah El Din's age
. In the reign of sultan El-Nasir Muhammed many parts of the citadel were destroyed including the mosque , library , the audience hall and other places . In the Mamluk period , the building witnessed a great process of restoration .Another process of restoration was made in the reign of Mohammed Ali who attached his remarkable mosque in it .
although Egypt's rulers moved out of their medieval quarters in the 1870s to the newly built Abdeen Palace, but the Citadel retained its military role until the 1970s. Soldires still have a foothold and some areas are out of bounds, but today most of the complex is open to visitors and it is quite possible to spend half a day visiting the various mosques, museums and other monuments within the complex
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