Madina Mosque, Horsham

Madina Mosque is a

Horsham developed from the 10th century as a market town at a point in the High Weald of north Sussex where the River Arun could be crossed.^[3] Religious worship was focused on the 12th-century parish church of St Mary at first,^[4] but Protestant Nonconformism thrived from the 17th century. One of the many denominations for which chapels were founded between then and the 19th century^[5] was the Strict Baptist community. During a spate of church-building in the 19th and early 20th centuries, three chapels opened for followers of the cause.^[5][6]

A pastor called Mr Raynsford founded the first of these in 1814. His congregation worshipped in a room in a private building at first,^[7][8] but in 1857 a permanent building was erected in nearby Park Terrace East. It was called Jireh Independent Baptist Chapel,^[9] although the name Jireh Strict Baptist Chapel was sometimes used as well.^[6] The congregation was called "Free Baptist" by 1882.^[7] Horsham's second Strict Baptist Chapel, named Rehoboth, was founded in 1834 by seceders from the congregation;^[7][8] it remains in use by Strict Baptists,^[9] but the Jireh Chapel cause failed in the mid-20th century.^[10] It was still in use in 1938,^[5] but on 9 September 1953 the marriage licence it had been granted in December 1860 was cancelled.^[11] The building passed into commercial use and was altered internally and externally, in particular by the addition of a porch.^[9] By the start of the 21st century, it was a hairdressing salon.^[12]

Meanwhile, a small Muslim community had developed in the growing town. In about 1994, they first attempted to get permission to open a place of worship. The congregation used an industrial building and then a private house on the Brighton Road, but planning permission to register these permanently was refused in each case, and there was opposition from local residents.^[12][13] Permission was granted to hold prayer meetings and other activities at the house in 2005, but Horsham District Council rescinded this in 2008, citing complaints about noise and a reluctance to allow a permanent change of use from residential to non-residential.^[12] An application was then submitted for conversion of the former Jireh Chapel from a salon into a mosque, and this was approved in May 2008.^[12]

Architecture

The former chapel is a simple Classical-style building with a painted stucco façade.^[5][9] The ground floor is rusticated, and there are round-arched windows at first-floor level. The exterior was painted after the building's conversion to commercial use, and a Classical-style porch with a pediment and columns was added.^[9]

Current status

The chapel originally had a capacity of 150,

• Islam in the United Kingdom
• Islamic schools and branches
• Islamism
• List of mosques
• List of mosques in the United Kingdom
• List of places of worship in Horsham (district)

References

Further reading