Madrasa and Mausoleum of Sultan Al-Salih Nagm Al-Din Ayyub

Rising within the beating heart of medieval Cairo, the Madrasa and Mausoleum of Sultan al Salih Najm al Din Ayyub is one of the most important surviving monuments of the Ayyubid age, founded in 1242 along the great processional street of Bayn al Qasrayn. Cairo, al Qahirah al Mu'izziyyah, the Victorious, was founded in 969 by the Fatimid general Jawhar al Siqilli, and over the following centuries grew into the largest city of the Muslim world west of Baghdad. The Ayyubid dynasty, founded by Salah al Din al Ayyubi (may God have mercy on him) after his reconquest of Jerusalem in 1187, ruled Egypt, Syria, and the Hejaz, and its rulers were celebrated patrons of religion, scholarship, and monumental architecture.
Sultan al Salih Najm al Din Ayyub was the last effective Ayyubid sultan of Egypt. He died in 1249 while leading the defence of the Delta against the Seventh Crusade led by King Louis IX of France. His widow Shajar al Durr (may God have mercy on her) famously concealed his death to preserve the morale of the troops, and the Mamluks whom he had raised in the barracks of al Rawda ultimately defeated the Crusaders at the battle of al Mansurah in 1250. The madrasa he founded taught the four schools of jurisprudence simultaneously for the first time in Cairo, establishing a model that later Mamluk sultans imitated across the city. His tomb chamber adjoins the madrasa and draws visitors and students to this day.
Architecturally the complex displays the transition from Ayyubid to early Mamluk style. A slender minaret with cushion shaped finial rises above the street, the mausoleum is crowned with one of the earliest stone domes in Cairo, and the carved stucco decoration of the qiblah wall features a harmonious blend of Qur'anic calligraphy and geometric patterns. The Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him and his family, taught that righteous rulers are shaded on the Day of Judgement. Accurate daily prayer times for Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, and Isha appear on this page for every historian, pilgrim, and worshipper in Cairo visiting this blessed site of memory and learning.