The Roman City
(30 BC - AD 641)
There were not only Greeks and Italians, but also Syrians, Libyans, Cilicians and yet others from farther countries - Ethiopians, Arabs, as well as Bactrians, Scythians, Persians, and a few Indians.
Dion Chrysostum the Orator
about his audience at the Great Theatre
By the time the Romans conquered Egypt, Alexandria had already attracted immigrants from the Mediterranean and beyond. There was the Egyptian community, centered around the old site of Rhakotis (Kom-el-Dikka), the Greek community downtown, and the Jewish community occupying the eastern districts.
Octavian, the new Roman Emperor, having had bitter memories about Alexandria, Cleopatra, and Mark Antony, founded a new town, Nicopolis, just east of Alexandria (now part of the greater city, known as El-Raml). Higher taxes were imposed, may be as a sort of "punishment" to the Egyptians, and were collected by the local appointee who served as the regional ruler of the new Roman province. Octavian's successors were less harsh and more appreciative. Matters improved further when the Red Sea Canal was recut to link the Nile to the Red Sea, serving the purpose of the modern Suez Canal.
During the early rule of the Romans in Egypt, the world witnessed one of the most important events in history: the birth of Christianity. The new religion was introduced into Alexandria By St. Mark who was martyred in AD 62 for protesting against the worship of Serapis. Early Christian centers, such as the oratory of Saint-Mark, and, later, the Catechetical School were among the first of their kind in the world. As the Christian population grew, so did the persecution from Roman Emperors - Decius, Severus, and Diocletian to name a few. Persecution reached unprecedented levels during the "Era of the Martyrs" around AD 284, when an estimated 144,000 martyrs including St. Menas, Ste. Catherine, and St. Peter of Alexandria died over a nine year period. However, the Catechetical School, where Clement of Alexandria and Origen taught around AD 200, grew in size and influence. And when in October 312 the Roman Emperor Constantine announced Christianity as the official religion of the Empire, Alexandria was ready for the change.
Towards the end of the fourth century, events took a tragic turn with conflicts growing, again, between the Christian community and the Pagans - the Catechetical School and the Mouseion. In AD 389, the Temple of Serapis at Canopus (Abou-Qir) fell. Sentiments reached a peak during the eventful year of AD 391, when the Roman Emperor Theodosius issued a decree which authorized the destruction of the Temple of Serapis at Alexandria, the last refuge of the Pagans and home of the Mouseion. Fourteen years later, the Neo-Platonist mathematician and the last person known to have taught at the Mouseion, Hypatia, was murdered, marking the end of Paganism in Alexandria.
During the next two centuries, the spiritual power of the Coptic Church in Alexandria grew among Egyptians. The power of the "Royal" Patriarchs, appointed by the Roman Emperor, was more political than religious. The Coptic Patriarchs, on the other hand, had no political interests.
In the early seventh century, both the Persian and the Roman Empire started to fall apart. In 617, the Persians peacefully captured Alexandria for a short period of 5 years. By the time the Roman Emperor Heraclius regained his forces and captured the lost provinces back, the world was ready to witness the birth of a new power. Out of the Arabian peninsula, and spiritually powered by the new religion of Islam, came the Arab forces that swept both the Romans and the Persians, and established an Empire that would last for over a thousand years. After negociating with the Roman Patriarch, Cyrus, who was also serving as the Roman ruler of Egypt, Alexandria was peacefully captured by the Arab general Amr Ibn-el-'Aas in AD 642.
More on Egypt's History from ArabNet and the LOC
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