Julius Caesar tried to destroy Alexandria with only partial success, and the city famed for its cosmopolitan intellectual life has weathered many cultural changes since its foundation by Alexander the Great. This anthology starts with the ancient writer Plutarch describing the city's foundation and concludes with atmospheric pieces from the 20th century in which Jean Cocteau regrets that the city is losing its character following World War II and Naguib Mahfouz describes love and loss on returning to his homeland. Alexandria's fame in the ancient world was associated with the Lighthouse of Pharos, and when the Arabs captured the city in AD 642 the country's centre moved to Cairo. In 1183 Ibn Jubayr praised the city's beautiful structures, commenting like many others on the subterranean system of wells and watercourses that harvested water from the Nile to supply the population in times of drought. The Turkish invasion of 1517 turned the country into a backwater of the Ottoman Empire and building materials were taken from Alexandria to Cairo. In the 18th century the traveller James Bruce commented that Cleopatra would not recognise her own city. Conquest by Napoleon was followed by the rule of Mohammed Ali and a big building programme. 19th century travellers include Florence Nightingale and Mark Twain, while 20th century Alexandria attracted E. M. Forster, Constantine Cavafy, and Noel Coward, who scandalised the Yacht Club by wearing shorts. An entertaining and informative pocket anthology. Designed on cream paper stock and beautifully illustrated with line drawings and archival photographs. 158pp.
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