It was so ancient that time itself was unable to destroy it. Then he cast his gaze towards the south of the pyramids and saw the remnants of great Memphis, which filled hearts with awe with the grandeur and magnificence it contained, and its pyramids, now known as the Pyramids of Saqqara.

Amr decided to establish a fortress between the fortress and Muqattam, towards the south, for the purpose of defense. On that day, there were only a few farms and groves, and he began to explain the dangers and threats he faced in resisting this fortress. Then he looked at the Nile Valley, and it was a fertile and pleasing sight, bisected by the flowing Nile. To its west were the ruins of Memphis and the pyramids, and to its east was that fortress, where the Roman soldiers were gathered, ready for battle. He had not seen anything like it in any of the lands he had visited, and it weighed heavily on him. However, he returned to his resolve when he imagined the shame that would befall him if he returned defeated, and the spoils that would be in his hands if he achieved victory after a long struggle. And if he did not win in his struggle here and was martyred, he would have a better reward in the hereafter.

Muqawqas, it has been mentioned before, was appointed by the Roman state over Upper and Lower Egypt, most of whose inhabitants were Copts. The capital of his government was Memphis, on the west bank. As for this fortress, he had made it a military center, preventing the Arabs from reaching his capital. Muqawqas was part of the nationalist party, and it is said that he had correspondence with the Messenger. In any case, he could not do as he pleased. When the two caliphs, Abu Bakr and Umar, learned of this, they prepared an army under the command of one of their generals, named Al-A'raj, and they came with their equipment and weapons and fortified themselves in that fortress.

As for Amr, he began the siege for a while, but the conquest was slow. He wrote to the Caliph asking for reinforcements. He was reinforced with four thousand men, led by four commanders: Al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, Al-Miqdad ibn al-Aswad, Ubadah ibn al-Samit, and Maslamah ibn Mukhallad. It was said that the fourth was Kharijah ibn Hizam, not Maslamah. With them came a letter from the Commander of the Faithful, the text of which was: "I have sent you four thousand men, each thousand led by a man who is worth a thousand."

Amr sent one of his commanders, perhaps Dhul-Kala', with five hundred men. They attacked the fortress from behind the mountain. They marched at night. The Romans had dug a trench and made gates for it and scattered thorny bushes. When the morning came, the Egyptians fled until they entered the fortress. The Arabs surrounded the fortress from all sides except the Nile. Around it was a moat. The Arabs could not attack it, and the arrows continued to be shot morning and evening.