‘Aydhab, possibly established during the Ptolemaic period,…

‘Aydhab, possibly established during the Ptolemaic period, had been occupied by the Beja before its conquest by Fatimid Egypt in the tenth century.

Located about twenty kilometers north of the modern port of Halayeb, ‘Aydhab became an important port for eastern trade (particularly with Yemen) and for Muslim pilgrims from Africa on their way to Mecca during the tenth and eleventh centuries.

The rediscovery of the Egyptian mines of the Wadi Allaqi led to a gold rush between the tenth and fourteenth centuries.

The establishment of the Fatimid caliphate had increased the relative importance of Egypt in Middle Eastern trade, while piracy and instability in the Persian Gulf had moved more international trade into the Red Sea.

‘Aydhab’s location needed to be this far down the coast because steady southerly winds made it difficult for large ships to travel to Suez before the age of steam.

‘Aydhab is close to Jiddah and linked by a regular ferry; caravans connect it to Aswan and other cities on the Nile.

The travelers ibn Jubayr and ibn Battuta had both passed through the town.

Maimonides's brother David had drowned on his way from ‘Aydhab to India.

Nasir Khusraw believed the region to have the best camels in the world.

The town's customs are divided between the Egyptians and the Beja nomads, who in turn protect the town and merchants.

The town had been sacked in 1182 by the crusader Raynald of Châtillon and again in around 1270 by King Dawud of Nubia.

The retaliatory raid of Dongola by the Sultan Baybars had brought that country under Egyptian vassalage.

The town had declined at the end of the Crusades and development of Suakin increased competition with other ports.

Ibn Battuta intended in 1326 to travel from Egypt to Mecca via 'Aydhab—which was at the time considered the least-traveled of three possible routes.

However, upon approaching ‘Aydhab he was forced to turn back due to a local rebellion, return to Cairo and go to Mecca by a different route.

After the rise of the Mamluks, Jiddah received preferential treatment for Indian trade.