Fazl Mosque, London
| Fazl Mosque | |
|---|---|
Front entrance of the Fazl Mosque
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| Basic information | |
| Location |
SW18, London United Kingdom
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| Geographic coordinates | 51°27′04″N 00°12′27″W / 51.45111°N 0.20750°WCoordinates: 51°27′04″N 00°12′27″W / 51.45111°N 0.20750°W |
| Affiliation | Ahmadiyya Islam |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Website | www.ahmadiyya.org.uk/ |
| Architectural description | |
| Architectural type | Mosque |
| Architectural style | Indo Style |
| Completed | 1926 |
| Specifications | |
| Dome(s) | 1 |
| Minaret(s) | 0 |
The Fazl Mosque, also known as The London Mosque is a mosque in Southfields, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. Inaugurated on October 23, 1926, it is the first purpose built mosque in London. At a cost of £6,223, the construction of the mosque and the purchase of the land on which it sits, was financed entirely by the donations of Ahmadi Muslim women in Qadian, India. Since 1984, the mosque and its surrounding buildings have been the residence of the caliphs of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and therefore, the international headquarters of the Community.
The design of the mosque is credited to Thomas Mawson. The plans form part of the Mawson archive held by the Cumbria Archive Service. The foundation stone was laid in 1924 by Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad, the second Caliph, who was visiting London as the representative of Islam at The Conference of Living Religions that was being held at the Imperial Institute in South Kensington. The foundation ceremony was attended by 200 guests. The construction of the mosque started in September 1925 and ten months later the work was completed. It was named the Fazal Mosque by the Caliph (Fazal meaning Grace). Khan Bahadur Sheikh Adbul Qadir, ex-Minister of Punjab Legislative Council, formally opened the Mosque in October 1926. Six hundred distinguished guests who were representing numerous countries, as well as local MPs and other dignitaries attended the ceremony and the function was well reported in the press.
The mosque accommodates 150 worshippers and is also known colloquially among Ahmadi Muslims as the London Mosque. Its first Imam was Maulana Abdur-Rahim Dard, and since 1926 The London Mosque has had eleven Imams; the current being Maulana Ataul Mujeeb Rashed who has been serving as its Imam since 1983.
In 1984, Ordinance XX was promulgated by the Government of Pakistan which prohibited Ahmadi Muslims from any public expression of the Islamic faith, rendering the caliph unable to perform his duties as the leader of the community. Due to these circumstances, Mirza Tahir Ahmad, the 4th Caliph, left Pakistan and migrated to London, provisionally moving the Ahmadiyya headquarters from Rabwah, Pakistan to the Fazl Mosque in London.
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Wikipedia