''Borg El-Qahira''
, native_name_lang =
, image = Cairotower.jpg
, image_alt =
, map_alt =
, map_caption =
, caption = Cairo tower in 2008
, status = Complete
, building_type = Communications, observation, restaurants, visitor attraction
, architectural_style =
Ancient Egypt
, location =
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, coordinates =
, start_date = 1956
, completion_date = 1961
, opening = 1961
, cost = Around $US1-3 million
, owner =
Government of Egypt
The politics of Egypt are based on republicanism, with a semi-presidential system of government. The current political system was established following the 2013 Egyptian military coup d'état, and the takeover of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. ...
, management =
, architectural =
, antenna_spire =
, roof =
, top_floor =
, observatory =
, material = Concrete
, floor_count = 62
, floor_area =
, elevator_count = 3
, architect =
Naoum Shebib
Naoum Shebib (1915–1985), (or Naoum Chebib,نعوم شبيب) was an Egyptian architect. He is considered one of the leading Egyptian architects and the precursor of modern architecture in Egypt. He was also a structural engineer and entrepr ...
, developer =
, structural_engineer =
, main_contractor =
, website
cairotower.netbr>
(requires Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash and FutureSplash) is a multimedia Computing platform, software platform used for production of Flash animation, animations, rich web applications, application software, desktop applications, mobile apps, mo ...
; in English)
, references =
The Cairo Tower ( arz, برج القاهرة, ''Borg El-Qāhira'') is a free-standing concrete
tower
A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...
in
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
. At , it was the tallest structure in Egypt for 37 years until 1998, when it was surpassed by the
Suez Canal overhead powerline crossing
The Suez Canal overhead powerline crossing is a major electrical power line built across the Suez Canal in 1998, located near Suez, Egypt. It is designed for two 500 kV circuits.
Because the required clearance over the Suez Canal is , the overhe ...
. It was the tallest structure in
North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
for 21 years until 1982, when it was surpassed by the
Nador transmitter
Nador transmitter is the main transmission facility for longwave and shortwave of Medi 1 Radio, a privately owned broadcasting company of Morocco. It is situated approximately 18 kilometres south of the city of Nador and a few kilometres s ...
in
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
. It was the tallest structure in Africa for one year until 1962, when it was surpassed by
Sentech Tower
The Sentech Tower, previously named the Albert Hertzog Tower and commonly known as the Brixton Tower, is a concrete television tower in the Brixton suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, near the top of the Brixton Ridge. It is a well-known and e ...
in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
.
One of Cairo's well-known modern monuments, sometimes considered Egypt's second most famous landmark after the
Pyramids of Giza
The Giza pyramid complex ( ar, مجمع أهرامات الجيزة), also called the Giza necropolis, is the site on the Giza Plateau in Greater Cairo, Egypt that includes the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Pyramid of Khafre, and the Pyramid of Men ...
, it stands in the Gezira district on
Gezira Island
Gezira is an island in the Nile, in central Cairo, Egypt. The southern portion of the island contains the Gezira district, and the northern third contains the Zamalek district.
Gezira is west of downtown Cairo and Tahrir Square, connected acr ...
in the
River Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...
, close to
downtown Cairo
Downtown Cairo ( arz, وسط البلد '' "middle of town")'', has been the urban center of Cairo, Egypt, since the late 19th century, when the district was designed and built.
History
Downtown Cairo was designed by prestigious French archit ...
.
History
Built from 1956 to 1961, the tower was designed by the Egyptian architect
Naoum Shebib
Naoum Shebib (1915–1985), (or Naoum Chebib,نعوم شبيب) was an Egyptian architect. He is considered one of the leading Egyptian architects and the precursor of modern architecture in Egypt. He was also a structural engineer and entrepr ...
, inspired by the
Ancient Egyptian Architecture
Spanning over three thousand years, ancient Egypt was not one stable civilization but in constant change and upheaval, commonly split into periods by historians. Likewise, ancient Egyptian architecture is not one style, but a set of styles diff ...
.
Its partially open
lattice-work design is intended to evoke a pharaonic
lotus plant, an iconic symbol of
Ancient Egypt.
The tower is crowned by a circular observation deck and a revolving restaurant that rotate around its axis occasionally with a view over
greater Cairo
The Greater Cairo Region (GCR; ar, القاهرة الكبرى, Al-Qāhira al-Kubrā) is th an economic region with no administrative body comprising the three governorates of Cairo, Giza and Qalyubia. Within it lies the largest metopolitan are ...
.
According to documents published by Major General Adel Shaheen, the funds for the construction of the tower were originated from the Government of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
through the
CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
that represented by
Kermit Roosevelt
Kermit Roosevelt MC (October 10, 1889 – June 4, 1943) was an American businessman, soldier, explorer, and writer. A son of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, Kermit graduated from Harvard College, served in both Wo ...
, which had provided around $US1-3 million to
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein, . (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian politician who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 and introduced far-re ...
as a personal gift to him with the intent of stopping his support for
Algerian Revolution
The Algerian War, also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence,( ar, الثورة الجزائرية '; '' ber, Tagrawla Tadzayrit''; french: Guerre d'Algérie or ') and sometimes in Algeria as the War of 1 November ...
and other
African independence movements
The African independence movements took place in the 20th century, when a wave of struggles for independence in European-ruled African territories were witnessed.
Notable independence movements took place:
*Algeria (former French Algeria), see A ...
.
Affronted by the attempt to bribe him, Nasser decided to publicly rebuke the U.S. government by transferring all of the funds to the Egyptian government for the use of the tower construction, which he stated that it would be "visible from the US Embassy just across the
Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...
, as a taunting symbol of Egypt's, Africa and the Middle East's resistance, revolutions and pride".
The book also stated that the
General Intelligence Service took full responsibility for everything related to the design and planning work, including the selection of the architect who was assigned to design, the construction work, and even providing the necessary materials for the building with the aim of giving the heroic character of the president.
However, its design was controversial as the
Egyptians
Egyptians ( arz, المَصرِيُون, translit=al-Maṣriyyūn, ; arz, المَصرِيِين, translit=al-Maṣriyyīn, ; cop, ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, remenkhēmi) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian ...
called it the "waqf Roosevelt" ("Roosevelt's endowment"), which was then mistakenly interpreted by the
Embassy of Egypt in Washington, D.C.
The Embassy of Egypt in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the United States. It is located at 3521 International Court, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Cleveland Park neighborhood.
The embassy also ope ...
as the "waqef Roosevelt" ("Roosevelt's erection"). This prompted the
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
s to react by calling it "Nasser's prick".
Because of that, a local Islamic group issued a
fatwa
A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...
to demolish the tower in the 1990s, stating that it "could excite Egyptian women", but this failed to be implemented due to its influence on national history and popularity among the nation and tourists.
Between 2006 and 2009, the tower underwent an
£E15 million restoration project that included a new installation of light decoration. It was stated that the project used the LED lamp for its efficiency on energy consumption.
Gallery
File:Cairo Tower Entrance.jpg, Cairo Tower Entrance
File:Cairo Tower from below.jpg, Cairo Tower from below
File:Egypt-2A-010 - Cairo (2217349050).jpg, Cairo Tower
File:Late evening in Cairo.jpg, Cairo Tower at sunset
See also
*
List of tallest buildings in Cairo
This is a list of the tallest buildings and structures in Egypt.
Tallest structures
This list ranks Egyptian structures that stand at least tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires, architectural details and antenna ...
*
List of tallest buildings and structures in Egypt
This is a list of the tallest buildings and structures in Egypt.
Tallest structures
This list ranks Egyptian structures that stand at least tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires, architectural details and antenna ...
*
List of tallest structures in the Middle East
*
List of tallest structures in the world by country
This is a list of the tallest completed buildings, towers and other structures by country. The list includes the tallest buildings and structures for each country, and, where appropriate, it also points to more detailed country-specific lists.
...
*
List of tallest freestanding structures
This is a list of tallest freestanding structures in the world past and present. To be freestanding a structure must not be supported by guy wires, the sea or other types of support. It therefore does not include guyed masts, partially guyed tow ...
*
List of tallest towers in the world
Several extant building fulfill the engineering definition of a tower: "a tall human structure, always taller than it is wide, for public or regular operational access by humans, but not for living in or office work, and are ''self-supporting' ...
*
List of revolving restaurants
The following is a list of revolving restaurants. A revolving restaurant is usually a tower restaurant designed to rest atop a broad circular revolving platform that operates as a large turntable. The building remains stationary and the diners are ...
References
Citations
Books
*
*
External links
cairotower.net tower's official website
(requires Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash and FutureSplash) is a multimedia Computing platform, software platform used for production of Flash animation, animations, rich web applications, application software, desktop applications, mobile apps, mo ...
; in English)
{{Authority control
Gezira Island
Buildings and structures in Cairo
Towers in Egypt
Lattice shell structures
Towers with revolving restaurants
Buildings and structures completed in 1961
20th century in Egypt
Tourist attractions in Cairo
Phallic monuments