Lane-Poole — Blohammadan Treaties with Christians. 239 



Fustat, and Cairo. That there was at the time oi: the Arab conquest 

 a city called Misr, and known to the Greek historians as Babylon, the 

 successor of the partly ruined city of Memphis, is evident from all the 

 authorities, though its extent is doubtful. "We know only that it was 

 dominated by the fortress of Babylon which gave its name to the city 

 in both earlier and later times, and supported by at least two other 

 forts. To judge by other treaties, such as those of Damascus, 

 Jerusalem, and Lydda, it was the custom of the conquering Arabs to 

 make treaties with a city, not with a country as a whole. It may be 

 urged against this view, that the amount of tribute is altogether out 

 of proportion to a single city,"^ and must refer to Egypt at large ; and 

 the reference to 'lands and waters' also suggests a wider meaning 

 than Misr the city. But the same occiu-red in the case of the Treaty 

 of Lydda, which was made to include the neighbouring people of 

 Palestine, but was formally contracted with the town of Lydda. I 

 think 'Amr made the treaty with the capital of the Copts (ignoring 

 the as yet unconquered Eoman capital, Alexandria), and made the 

 capital responsible for all the rest of the country. Tabarl's phrase, 

 however, ' So the people of Misr, all of them, entered into that and 

 accepted the Treaty, and horses were collected,' <^1 j , J jJ>--\J 

 fjj^\ t::-^«..oJ^[j j_U\ ^jLij j^ j^ JiA , seems to imply a 

 general acceptance. The double meaning of Misr is a perpetual cause of 

 confusion, and it would be rash to insist on either interpretation. 



It is abundantly evident, however, that this was a treaty with the 

 Copts, not with the Romans. The Eoman garrisons arc mentionctl, 

 but only in a subordinate manner. The people of Misr, not tlie 

 Eoman army of occupation, still less the emperor Heraclius, were the 

 contracting parties on the other side. As there is no indication in 

 the treaty itself that the Eomans were consulted in the matter, we 



