Reign of El Hakim Ibn El Aziz

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El Hakim was the only son of El Aziz by a Christian mother . He was about 11 years old when his father died , so he was put under the regency of a man called Bargawan . Bargawan spent on his time with the singers , listening to music . Therefore , he lost the control on the country and , finally , he was killed by El Hakim , who became the sole ruler of Egypt at the age of 15 .
El-Hakim is famous for his peculiarity , as he was behaving in a very strange and unused way and his acts were contradictory . He loved darkness , night and he used to hold his meetings at night . Moreover , he ordered that all shops should be opened at night and should be closed by day . In his time , women were not allowed to leave their homes . Moreover , the shoemakers were not allowed to make boots for women and he ordered that all women must not enter public baths .
Beer , wine and vine were forbidden; moreover , people were forbidden from eating Molukhiya (Jew's mallow) and marrow . Honey was poured into the Nile . Games such as chess were forbidden , and he treated the Jews and Christians very badly: their churches were destroyed and their lands usurped . He offered the Christians three choices: convert to Islam , leave the country or wear a heavy cross , so many Copts accepted to escape from persecution . Later on , he changed his behavior towards Copts and allowing them to rebuild their churches .
He ill-treated the Sunnis , changed the time of the prayers and cancelled the pilgrimage and Kharaj , but once again he changed his behavior and treated the Sunnis in a good way .
Sometimes he liked to gaze at the stars counting them and , although he hated the astronomers and prevented them from work .
El-Hakim imagined himself as "the image of the God" and he forced people to worship his name .
His sister had frequently warned , but he did not listen to her . So , she plotted against him . When he was alone in the desert , after some days his donkey was found burned and El-Hakim's body was never discovered .
He built the Mosque , which still carries his name , situated close to Bab-el-Nasr . He also built Hall of Science , known as "Dar El-Hikma" or "Dar El-Ilm" . It was built to teach the religious affairs of Shi'a as well as astronomy , grammar , poetry , law , medicine , etc . Also , he established a library inside Dar El-Hikma in order to supply all learners with books . Also , he built an observatory on the Mokattam Hills .