A Century of Integration, Loyalty and Service

London’s first purpose-built mosque marks its centenary with message of hope

LONDON — The Fazl Mosque in Southfields, the first purpose-built mosque in London, marked its centenary on Saturday 3 October with a reception attended by parliamentarians, civic leaders, diplomats, faith representatives and local residents, and the opening of a permanent exhibition on the mosque’s hundred-year history. The event was livestreamed and broadcast to regional centenary events held the same day at Ahmadiyya Muslim mosques in nine regions across the United Kingdom. The programme included a special video on the hundred-year history of the Fazl Mosque.

A street party earlier in the day was attended by more than 2,000 community members and neighbours, and 1,500 people attended the centenary reception at the mosque in the evening.

The keynote address was delivered by His Holiness Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, the Fifth Caliph and Worldwide Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, from Islamabad, Tilford, and the recording was played at the event and livestreamed as well.

Speaking of the purpose of a mosque, His Holiness said:

“The purpose of a mosque is simply to serve as a place where people can gather to worship God Almighty and draw closer to Him. A mosque inspires those who enter its doors to serve others and fulfil the rights of all mankind. Consequently, rather than being a source of conflict, a true mosque is built to foster peace and harmony in the local community and the wider world.”

“No true mosque can ever be a source of harm or disorder. Any mosque used to spread extremism or fuel intolerance directly violates Islam’s teachings and is to be condemned in the strongest possible terms.”

Speaking of the mosque’s hundred years in London, His Holiness said:

“With the grace of God, for the past century, the Fazl Mosque has always manifested peace and compassion and, God willing, shall forever continue to reflect these noble values.”

Turning to the state of the world, His Holiness said:

“With all my heart, I pray that instead of hurtling toward such a calamitous war, the world governments and leaders see sense before it is too late and do whatever they can to bring about peace.”

“Today we must not think only of fulfilling our objectives or desires, but we must consider and prioritise the rights and needs of our children and future generations.”

His Holiness also said that the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community believes in the right to worship for all religious people, and will always be grateful to the people of this nation for allowing it to open mosques in various towns and cities, the first of which was the Fazl Mosque.

Following the keynote address attendees were led in silent prayer.

A message was also received from His Majesty King Charles III. Writing from Buckingham Palace, His Majesty’s said that he had been touched to learn of the Fazl Mosque’s pioneering and unique place in the religious and cultural heritage of the United Kingdom. His Majesty also extended his warmest good wishes to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community UK and to everyone present to mark the occasion.

A message to mark the centenary was received from the Rt Hon Andy Burnham MP, Prime Minister, , in which he wrote:

“I am delighted to send my best wishes as you mark 100 years since the inauguration of the Fazl Mosque, London’s first purpose-built mosque.

This important anniversary offers an opportunity to celebrate the mosque’s rich history and its longstanding commitment to peace, dialogue, loyalty and service. It is also a fitting moment to recognise the valuable contribution that the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has made, and continues to make, to communities across the United Kingdom.

I wish everyone attending the centenary dinner and exhibition a memorable and enjoyable occasion, and the Fazl Mosque continued success in the years ahead.”

Earlier in the evening, Rafiq Hayat, National President of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community UK, welcomed guests and said that it was one hundred years to the very day since the mosque was inaugurated. Noting that it was funded entirely by members of the community, he said:

“The women of the community, particularly from India and also from Africa and the US, contributed most generously, covering most of the costs of the mosque. It is appropriate that we display their names in our exhibition to recognise their contribution, knowing that they may never have seen the mosque for which they made this great sacrifice.”

He added,

“This mosque was built so that the people of this country might benefit from it, and a hundred years later that remains our undertaking. In that century it has been a place of worship, an international headquarters, a refuge, a global broadcasting centre and, in 2021, a vaccination centre for the streets around it. It has received princes and prime ministers, and it has fed people who had nothing to eat. In the life of a mosque, those are the same work.”

Speaking of his own association with the mosque over more than sixty years, he added that he did not simply see a beautiful building, but memories stretching back across generations, and that from the day it opened the mosque was intended not solely for those who prayed but for the whole community.

Mrs Colleen Harris MVO DL, Deputy Lieutenant for Wandsworth, said:

“For a century this mosque has been a place of prayer, reflection, learning and friendship. It stands not apart from Britain’s story, but within it — a reminder that Islam and Muslims have been part of British life for generations.”

She noted that His Majesty The King has spoken many times of the importance of understanding between faiths, and that those things which unite us are greater than those which divide, adding that The King has described Britain as “a community of communities.”

Councillor Emmeline Owens, Mayor of Wandsworth, said:

“A building is only as important as the people within it. For a century this community has lived by the motto ‘Love for All, Hatred for None’ — building bridges between faiths, supporting charities, giving blood, feeding those in need, and opening its doors.”

Dhruv Patel CBE, High Sheriff of Greater London, said that while his office is an ancient and non-political one concerned principally with supporting the justice system, one of its modern purposes is to encourage those who serve their communities without expectation of reward:

“One of the particular privileges of the office is the opportunity to present High Sheriff’s Special Recognition Awards to people who have gone above and beyond in the service of others. This evening I would like to recognise volunteers of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community for their outstanding service.”

The award was received by Rafiq Hayat on behalf of the community.

Luke Taylor MP, Member of Parliament for Sutton and Cheam, paid tribute to His Holiness Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, whose message of peace, justice and compassion he said continues to inspire people far beyond the Ahmadiyya Muslim community. He said:

“We must not just aim for tolerance. We must aim for understanding and celebration. That is what the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community does so well, with your frequent interfaith events and charity work, and it is a fine example for communities across our diverse country.”

Dame Siobhain McDonagh MP, Member of Parliament for Mitcham and Morden and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community since its foundation, said:

“Just imagine what it must have been like a hundred years ago to build a mosque in this part of south-west London — the great wonders that came with that, but also the great difficulties. Next week my own small church, St Joseph’s in Colliers Wood, will be sixty years old. I think about all the people I knew who worked so hard to build that church. I can only imagine that it is exactly the same here.”

Many other guests were present at the event, including Helen Maguire MP; Councillor Robert Morritt, Leader of Wandsworth Council; the Mayors of Merton, Harrow and Kingston; Hina Bokhari AM of the London Assembly; and Mrs Neelam Devesher, Lord Lieutenant of Surrey.

The diplomatic corps was represented by the High Commissioner of Tanzania, the Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Ambassador of Guinea, the Chargé d’Affaires of Peru, and senior diplomats from the High Commissions of Ghana, Australia and Malawi and the Embassies of Algeria, Brazil, Tuvalu and Honduras amongst others.

The centenary was marked under the theme Fazl Mosque: Beacon of Peace – A Century of Integration, Loyalty and Service, and it launches a year-long national programme across the United Kingdom of 10,000 meals for homeless and needy people and 10,000 hours of voluntary service by members in the towns where they live.

A centenary advertising campaign on 100 London buses begins on Monday 5 October and runs for two weeks, carrying posters marking the centenary across central London and the boroughs of Wandsworth and Merton. Further campaigns will follow across the United Kingdom.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

• The Fazl Mosque, also known as The London Mosque, 16 Gressenhall Road, London SW18 5QL. Opened 3 October 1926, it was the first purpose-built mosque in London and accommodates around 150 worshippers. It was granted listed status in 2018 and a green heritage plaque by Wandsworth Borough Council in March 2026.
• How it was built. The foundation stone was laid on 19 October 1924 by the Second Caliph, Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad, during the first visit any Caliph made to Britain. An appeal in Qadian, India, raised nearly 65,000 rupees; the land cost £2,223 in 1920 and construction £6,223. It was funded entirely by ordinary members, The greater part of the cost was contributed by Ahmadi Muslim women, particularly in India and also in Africa and the United States, whose names are displayed in the centenary exhibition. The inscription records the effort of “all the members of the Ahmadiyya Community, both women and men.”
• Home of the Caliphate, 1984–2019. The Fourth Caliph, Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad, left Pakistan in the face of persecution and settled in Southfields, making the mosque the international headquarters of a worldwide community until the move to Islamabad, Tilford. The Fifth Caliph was elected here in 2003. Humanity First and Muslim Television Ahmadiyya International, the world’s first global Muslim television channel, were both founded in this building.
• Notable visitors include Muhammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan; Sir Muhammad Zafrulla Khan, Pakistan’s first Foreign Minister and later President of the United Nations General Assembly; Professor Abdus Salam, the first Muslim Nobel Laureate in science; members of the Saudi royal family who later became Kings; and HRH Prince Edward.
• A permanent exhibition on the history of the mosque is on display on the mosque’s premises.
• The centenary bus campaign. 100 buses carry centenary posters from Monday 5 October 2026 for two weeks, operating from nine depots across London.
• Regional events. Centenary events were held on 3 October at Ahmadiyya Muslim mosques in nine regions across the United Kingdom, each joining the keynote address from the Fazl Mosque by live broadcast.
• The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community was founded in 1889 and is established in 213 countries. It is entirely self-funded, has been in the UK since 1913 and has more than 150 branches. Its motto is ‘Love for All, Hatred for None’. Further information at www.ahmadiyyauk.org/1926Centenary
• Press contact: Mahmood Rafiq, Head of External Relations · Mahmood.Rafiq@ahmadiyyauk.org · +44 (0) 7971 060962