Establishing Islam in Britain

Abstract

AbstractThe commissioning of a mosque in Woking in early 1913 marks a seminal moment in the establishment of Islam in Britain. It was the first purpose-built Muslim place of worship to be raised at the heart of Empire, though it did not come fully into use until some years after it was built in 1889. This article problematises the accepted narrative of how the mosque became operational and highlights factors bearing on the establishment of the Woking Islamic mission that are now obscure or have not previously been analysed. Addressing the ‘afterlife’ of the events and figures at the heart of this narrative, the mnemohistorical dimension will be juxtaposed with the historiographical towards recovering recondite aspects central to the first Islamic institutional stirrings in Britain. The article complexifies what may in contemporary terms be categorised as ‘difficult history’.