The Mosque in Britain: British Heritage?

This thesis is primarily dedicated to evaluating British mosques and their standing within British Heritage; past, present and their potential in the future. I am arguing that the Mosque in Britain is misunderstood, under-studied, under-valued and under-threat. This situation is contrary to that of any building typology celebrated as British Heritage.

Further aims are to demonstrate and discuss:Historical roots and developments of mosques in Britain.Mosque architecture as a question. To be answered from the Islamic point of view that no mosque, regardless of its location would be considered to be ‘Islamic’ unless it is fully integrated with its surroundings both in time and loci. Therefore, in this case, no mosque is Islamic unless it is considered to be truly British.The opportunities of the Mosque in Britain, not only in contributing to British Heritage, but rethinking mosque architecture worldwideAims are achieved through:Presenting a brief account of Islam as a religion, its civilization, and main architectural principles.The principal sources for this account, are the writings of prominent scholars of Islamic studies, in addition to my life-long research as a practicing Muslim architect.Presenting a brief history of British Muslims and the establishment of their mosques, their different types, and development in writing and pictures; achieved through a literature search.Presenting three case studies of mosques in Britain, examining their setting, history, architecture,and conservation. This was achieved through literature search and field inspections of all three cases. The inspections involved examining the fabric and comparing my findings with the available data in documents, old drawings and photos. It also involved a full site analysis; measurements,identifying materials and photographic documentation of the exteriors and interiors.The study chapters that follow prove that the original hypotheses stated are generally accurate.The conclusion contains recommendations, which I believe should improve the situation for the Mosque in Britain, as well as that of British Heritage at large.