The holy month of Ramadan has a unique cultural flavour in Egypt, and among its special traditions is the firing of the Ramadan Cannon. "Ramadan cannon, fire!" is a phrase echoed on TV channels and radio stations signaling the call to Maghreb is seconds away.
The historical roots of this tradition vary.
According to the Ramadan Dictionary, the tradition dates back to 1465 AD, during the reign of Mamluk Sultan Khoush Adam, who was trying out a new cannon right before the call to Maghreb. The people, unaware, thought it was an action to remind them to break their fast and thanked the sultan for it, which is why he decided to keep it as a tradition.
The second theory suggests the same, but it argues that it took place during the reign of Mohamed Ali in 1805 AD.
However, the third theory says that a cannon was accidentally fired before Maghreb during the reign of Khedive Ismail, and his daughter, Princess Fatma, liked it so much that she issued a royal decree to fire the cannon at Fajr and Maghreb prayers during the month of Ramadan and official state festivals.
This is why the Ramadan Cannon is known as Madfaa El-Hagga Fatma [The Cannon of Hajja Fatma] till today.
The cannon was fired using live ammunition until 1859 when the interior ministry switched to Feshenk (sound only). The Cannon bullets are specially formed with only enough gunpowder to make a loud noise, and their firing is supervised by four security men.
During the Eid El-Fitr call to prayer signaling the end of Ramadan, the cannon is fired 21 times.
Cairo is home to six cannons, two at the Citadel of Saladin, two in the Abbassia district, one in Heliopolis, and another in Helwan.
The cannons are fired on four other occasions, the Mulid of Prophet Mohammed [Prophet Mohammed's Birthday], Eid El-Adha, the Hejra New Year, and the 23 July revolution anniversary.
The Cannon's use was eventually adopted outside of Cairo, and its sound was broadcast live, first on local radio in 1934 and on television in 1960.
In the 1990s, the Ministry of Antiquities halted the tradition, fearing for the safety of the historic areas surrounding the cannons, especially in the Citadel, which is akin to an open-air museum of Islamic monuments.
Since then, the sound broadcast on local media has been recorded.
Local stories of Ramadan Cannon of Luxor
In 1932, an extreme fog blocked the vision of the soldier in charge of the Ramadan Cannon in Luxor, leading him to fire the cannon 10 minutes earlier than the Maghreb prayer time, which made swathes of people break their fast before fasting hours were over.
On a separate occasion, a soldier trying to extract a gun shell from the cannon accidentally fired it, losing his arm in the process.
In 1945, one of King Farouk's friends complained about the Cannon's sound during Fajr, so King Farouk asked Prime Minister El-Noqrashi Pasha to hold on firing the cannon during the visitor's stay.
However, the Luxor Chief of Police refused to break tradition, which led to his transfer as punishment for his disobedience. The people of Luxor gathered at the train station ahead of his departure to bid him farewell in a very moving scene.
A few months later, El-Noqrashi Pasha was assassinated, and the people of Luxor thought it was divine intervention for not firing the cannon for four consecutive days during Ramadan.
Short link: