The Muslim Conquest

Fighting was frequent between the Byzantine and Persian empires. In 616, the Persians seized Egypt, but the Byzantines soon regained it. The warring countries were ill prepared to meet the threat posed by Muslim invaders, who emerged from Arabia in 633. The Arab army advanced into Egypt in 639, and the last Byzantine forces withdrew in 642. The Arab capital, El Fustat, was established at a site that is now within Cairo. The Egyptians were permitted religious freedom, but conversion to Islam (the Muslim religion) was very rapid. The Coptic language was gradually supplanted by Arabic.

Meanwhile, the Muslim empire was undergoing change. The caliph (supreme ruler) moved his capital from Arabia to Syria, and then in 750 to Persia. Eventually most of the government officials in Egypt were hired professional soldiers of non-Arab ancestry, such as Turkish and Kurdish. Twice Turkish officials made themselves independent rulers in Egypt. The first Turkish regime lasted from 868 to 905. The second, 935–69, was ended by an invasion from Tunisia of the Fatimids, a new Muslim faction. Cairo was founded as the Fatimid capital, and Egypt thrived as the center of an empire extending to Asia Minor.