Abdullah Quilliam

William Henry Quilliam (10 April 1856 – 23 April 1932), who changed his name to Abdullah Quilliam and later Henri Marcel Leon or Haroun Mustapha Leon, was a 19th-century British convert from Christianity to Islam, noted for founding England's first mosque and Islamic centre, and Britain's oldest Muslim organization, the Association of British Muslims.

Early life William Henry Quilliam was born at 22 Eliot Street, Liverpool, on 10 April 1856, to a wealthy local family. He spent most of his childhood on the Isle of Man and was brought up as a Methodist. He was educated at the Liverpool Institute and the Manx King William's College.

He became a solicitor in 1878, specialising in criminal law, and practising at 28 Church Street, Liverpool. He defended suspects in many high-profile murder cases. In 1879, he married Hannah Johnstone.

Conversion to Islam

Quilliam converted to Islam in 1887 after visiting Morocco to recover from an illness. Quilliam purchased numbers 8, 11 and 12 Brougham Terrace, Liverpool, following his conversion, thanks to a donation from Nasrullah Khan, Crown Prince of the Emirate of Afghanistan. 8 Brougham Terrace became the Liverpool Muslim Institute, the first functioning mosque in Britain; it opened on Christmas Day, 1889. Quilliam also opened a boarding school for boys and a day school for girls, as well as an orphanage, Medina House, for non-Muslim parents who were unable to look after their children and agreed for them to be brought up as Muslims. In addition, the Institute hosted educational classes covering a wide range of subjects, and included a museum and science laboratory.

Quilliam's work in Liverpool ended when he fled to Turkey in 1908, ahead of being struck off the Roll of Solicitors for unprofessional conduct, including fabricating details to make a divorce legally enforceable. The Muslim community, which believed in khul' (contractual divorce), felt Quilliam's conduct was not offensive.

He died in Taviton Street, Bloomsbury, London in 1932, and was buried in an unmarked grave at Brookwood Cemetery near Woking. Prominent Anglo-Muslims Abdullah Yusuf Ali and Marmaduke Pickthall (both of whom translated the Qur'an), along with Rowland Allanson-Winn, 5th Baron Headley, were later buried near him in the M1 Muslim Section of the cemetery.

Political views Quilliam argued that Muslims should not "take up arms" against other Muslims on the behalf of non-Muslims. During the war in Sudan, Quilliam published a pamphlet stating that any British Muslim that decided to aid in some manner the expedition was acting in "contrary to the Shariat". His political views and allegiance to the Ottoman Caliph led some to denounce him as a traitor.

Legacy His legacy is principally maintained by the Abdullah Quilliam Society, which was founded in 1996. The society aims to complete the restoration of the Liverpool Muslim Institute on Brougham Terrace. The society has been assisted by academics including Ron Geaves, formerly of Liverpool Hope University, and Mehmet Seker of Dokuz Eylül University. The society also offers university student accommodation.

Quilliam, originally The Quilliam Foundation, a think tank aimed at challenging extremist Islamist ideologies, launched in 2008, was named after him.