That Ye May Know Each Other

Late Victorian Interactions between British and West African Muslims

Bibliographic Data

ID6086178
AuthorsBrent Singleton (corresponding author), Brent D Singleton
Year2009
Volume29
Issue3
Pages369-385
Publication date2009-09-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueInstitute of Muslim Minority Affairs Journal (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0266-6952 • E-ISSN: 1469-9591
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13602000903166630
OpenAlexW2036688557
LanguageEN
Citations received4

From the early 1890s to 1908 members of the Liverpool Moslem Institute led by Sheik William Henry Abdullah Quilliam had extensive contacts with their West African Muslim counterparts. This era was marked by several trends including the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire, European colonialism, extensive overseas Christian missionary activities as well as the vast expansion of Islam in West Africa. In this milieu, the British and West African Muslims built a mutually beneficial relationship with equality, respect, and brotherhood as its cornerstone. Their contacts developed and flourished quickly, leading to extensive correspondence, visits, and general support for one another's causes. Some results of these interactions included the Turkish Sultan and West African Muslims entering each other's consciousness, acceptance of English education among West African Muslims, and creating a bulwark against Christian missionaries. Notes Yusuf Ali translation of the Holy Qur'an. Most accounts of Quilliam's travels to North Africa list the date as 1882, but the earliest published biographical work consulted put the year at 1884. John J. Pool, Studies in Mohammedanism: Historical and Doctrinal with a Chapter on Islam in England, London: Archibald Constable and Co., 1892, p. 395. John Wolffe, ed., Religion in Victorian Britain, Vol. 5, Culture and Empire, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1997, pp. 247–248. “A Short History of the Progress of Islam in England”, Crescent, January 19, 1898, p. 35. Ibid. Most works put the date of the move to Brougham Terrace as 1891; however Pool's earlier cited work corroborates the 1889 date (see Pool, Studies in Mohammedanism, op. cit.). “A Short History”, op. cit. “Departure of Brother Quilliam for Morocco”, Crescent, February 25, 1893, p. 43; Wolffe, Religion in Victorian Britain, op. cit., pp. 247–248. “A Visit to West Africa”, Crescent, December 7, 1898, p. 339. “Mr. Quilliam at Sierra Leone”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, July 7, 1894, p. 3. W.H. Quilliam, The Faith of Islam, Liverpool: Willmer Bros. & Co., 1892. “Christian Love for the Negro”, Crescent, April 3, 1895, p. 111. “A Mosque at Old Calabar”, Crescent, January 30, 1901, p. 75. Edward W. Blyden, Christianity, Islam and the Negro Race, Baltimore, MD: Black Classic Press, 1994. Kenneth Dike Nworah, “The Liverpool ‘Sect’ and British West African Policy 1895–1915”, African Affairs, Vol. 70, No. 281, 1971, p. 350. Quilliam was acquainted with the “Third Party” and later became a member of the group's affiliated Royal African Society in April 1903. “News Notes”, Crescent, April 15, 1903, p. 234. “Africa and Mohammedanism”, Lagos Weekly Record, March 11, 1893, p. 2. “Our Islamic Prospects”, Lagos Weekly Record, August 26, 1893, p. 2. This article was republished under the same title in the Liverpool Moslem Institute's monthly paper The Islamic World, October 1893, pp. 23–26. “A Native African Christian's Views of Islam”, Crescent, July 9, 1902, p. 30. “Islam in Africa”, The Liver, October 14, 1893, p. 6. “Christian Love for the Negro”, Crescent, November 20, 1895, pp. 323–324. “The Faith of Islam”, Lagos Weekly Record, October 3, 1891, p. 3. “A Mahomedan Funeral”, The Times, December 2, 1891, p. 13. “The Liverpool Mahomedans”, Times of India, October 3, 1892, p. 6. “Dr. Blyden and Mohammedanism”, Lagos Weekly Record, December 13, 1892. “News Notes”, Crescent, August 14, 1907, p. 105. Quilliam and others saw Blyden off as he boarded his steamer for Africa. David E. Skinner, “Islam and Education in the Colony and Hinterland of Sierra Leone (1750–1914)”, Canadian Journal of African Studies, Vol. 10, No. 3, 1976, p. 515. “Islam in Africa”, The Liver, October 14, 1893, p. 6. “The Late Al Hadj Haroun Al-Rashid”, Crescent, June 9, 1897, p. 357. Skinner, “Islam and Education”, op. cit., p. 515. ‘Aku’ refers to descendents of liberated slaves, usually of Yoruba heritage. “Death of Bro. Hadji Rashid”, Crescent, May 8, 1897, p. 283. “Distinguished Arabs in Liverpool”, Crescent, October 7, 1893, p. 301; “Editorial Notes”, Crescent, October 14, 1893, p. 307. Text of lecture in “Islam in Africa”, The Liver, October 14, 1893, p. 6; “Farewell to a Distinguished African Moslem”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, February 3, 1894, pp. 2–3. “Copy of Address Presented by the Liverpool Moslem Society to Bro. Raschid on His Departure for Sierra Leone”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, February 17, 1894, p. 6. Letters included: “Failure of Christian Missions in West Africa”, Islamic World, April 1894, pp. 13–15. “Interesting Letter from the Chief Imaum of Sierra Leone”, Islamic World, March 1894, pp. 7–8. “The Sultan of Turkey and West African Muslims”, Lagos Weekly Record, May 19, 1894, p. 2; “A New Departure in the Moslem World”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, June 9, 1894, p. 3. Abdallah Quilliam, “A Chapter in the History of Sierra Leone”, Journal of the African Society, Vol. 3, No. 9, 1903, p. 83. “A Visit to West Africa”, Crescent, December 7, 1898, p. 347. “Mr. Quilliam's Visit to West Africa”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, July 7, 1894, p. 2. Ibid. “Mr. W.H. Quilliam”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, June 25, 1894, p. 5; “Arrival of Mr. W.H. Quilliam”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, June 25, 1894, p. 5; “Mr. Quilliam at Sierra Leone”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, July 7, 1894, p. 3. “The Outward Voyage of the Cabenda”, Lagos Weekly Record, July 14, 1894, p. 3. Titilola Euba, “Shitta Bey and the Lagos Muslim Community 1850–1895 (Part II)”, Nigerian Journal of Islam, Vol. 2, No. 2, June 1972–June 1974, p. 13. “The Arrival of W.H.A. Quilliam, Esq.”, Lagos Weekly Record, June 30, 1894, p. 3. “The Consecration of Mr. Shitta's Mosque”, Lagos Weekly Record, July 7, 1894, p. 2; Euba, “Shitta Bey and the Lagos Muslim Community”, op. cit., p. 14. “Translation of an Arabic Address from the Muslims of Epe (West Africa) to Sheikh Abdullah Quilliam”, Crescent, August 14, 1895, p. 107. “Mr. Quilliam's Speech at the Opening of the Mosque”, Lagos Weekly Record, July 21, 1894, p. 2. Ibid. “Address of His Excellency Sir Gilbert T. Carter K.C.M.G.”, Lagos Weekly Record, July 7, 1894, p. 3. Quilliam, “A Chapter in the History”, op. cit., pp. 92–93. “News Notes”, Crescent, June 24, 1896, p. 825. Euba, “Shitta Bey and the Lagos Muslim Community”, op. cit., p. 14. “Sierra Leone”, Lagos Weekly Record, August 18, 1894, p. 3; “General News”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, July 28, 1894, p. 5. “The English Muslims and the Widowed Princess”, Crescent, January 29, 1896, p. 492. “Kind Letter from Lagos”, Crescent, February 2, 1895, p. 46; “News From the Gold Coast”, Crescent, April 10, 1895, p. 119. Ibid. “Pilgrimage to Mecca from West Africa”, Crescent, August 1, 1906, p. 494. A similar appeal appeared in virtually every issue of the Crescent for the remainder of 1906. “Interesting Letter from West Africa”, Crescent, October 21, 1896, p. 1093. “Converted to Islam through Reading One of Mr. Quilliam's Books”, Islamic World, July 1894, pp. 95–96. “Sierra Leone Mohammedan in Liverpool”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, February 3, 1894, p. 5. “Twelve Reasons for Being an African Muslim”, Islamic World, December 1893, pp. 6–8. “The Late Mohammed Shitta Bey”, Crescent, August 21, 1895, p. 119 (reprinted from Lagos Weekly Record); “Death of Bro. Hadji Rashid”, Crescent, May 8, 1897, p. 283; “The Late Alhajj Harun-Ar-Rashid”, Lagos Weekly Record, May 15, 1897, pp. 2–3. “Death of Shitta Bey”, Crescent, July 10, 1895, p. 24. “Death of Mohammed Shitta Bey”, Crescent, July 31, 1895, pp. 71–72 (reprinted from Sierra Leone Weekly News); and “The Late Mohammed Shitta Bey”, Crescent, August 21, 1895, p. 119 (reprinted from Lagos Record). “Death of Bro. Hadji Rashid”, Crescent, May 8, 1897, p. 283. “The Late Hadji Rashid”, Crescent, May 19, 1897, p. 311. “A Voice from Sierra Leone”, Crescent, December 1, 1897, p. 765. “Annual Meeting of the Liverpool Muslim Association”, Crescent, August 21, 1895, pp. 115–116. Sanussi sent a letter of gratification that was published in the Crescent, “Kind Letter from Sierra Leone”, Crescent, October 30, 1895, p. 284. Skinner, “Islam and Education”, op. cit., p. 515. “Annual Meeting”, Crescent, June 22, 1898, p. 389. “An Equatorial African in Liverpool”, Crescent, April 29, 1896, p. 701. “West African Muslims in Liverpool”, Crescent, September 23, 1896, p. 1035. “News Notes”, Crescent, October 21, 1896, p. 1097. “A Distinguished African in Liverpool”, Crescent, January 4, 1899, p. 23. “Subscribers”, Crescent, November 28, 1900, p. 345. Writing under his former name, David Vincent Brown, Agbebi corresponded with Mohammed Alexander Russell Webb and once wrote about Islam in Webb's newspaper The Moslem World, “a religion which has dominated a large portion of my country, which has improved the condition of millions of my countrymen and afforded proper objects of aspiration to many—I shall always welcome with delight The Moslem World on my table. I wish you success in your efforts”. See “News Notes”, Moslem World, January 1895, p. 3. “Twelve Reasons for Being an African Muslim”, Islamic World, December 1893, pp. 6–8. David E. Skinner, “Islam in Sierra Leone during the Nineteenth Century”, unpublished PhD dissertation, University of California, 1971, p. 179. Gheirawani's appointment as headman was not without controversy due to unease about his young age and European education. His tenure caused a schism in the community, splitting his supporters from those of the elder Suleimana Johnson. Christopher Fyfe, A History of Sierra Leone, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1962, p. 609. “The British Press on the Visit of the Alimanni”, Crescent, June 18, 1902, p. 396 (reprinted from the Daily Dispatch, June 10, 1902). “Distinguished West African Mussulman in Liverpool”, Crescent, June 11, 1902, p. 378. “The British Press on the Visit of the Alimanni”, Crescent, June 25, 1902, p. 413; Edward W. Blyden, “Islam in Western Soudan”, Journal of the Royal African Society, Vol. 2, No. 5, 1902, p. 27. “News Notes”, Crescent, June 18, 1902, p. 394. Sir Alfred Jones was the owner of a well-known steamship company in West Africa and also participated in several other significant colonial ventures in the region. “News Notes”, Crescent, July 9, 1902, p. 26. “News Notes”, Crescent, September 10, 1902, p. 170. “The Late Alimanny Mohamed Gheirawanni of Sierra Leone”, Crescent, September 9, 1903, p. 166. Akintola J.G. Wyse, The Krio of Sierra Leone: An Interpretive History, Washington D.C.: Howard University Press, 1991, p. 52. Sankoh was formerly known as Isaac Augustus Johnson; Edward W. Blyden, Christianity, Islam and the Negro Race, op. cit. “Evolution of the Negro Race”, Crescent, April 22, 1908, pp. 262–264 and 266–270. Continued on April 29, 1908, pp. 275–278; “Struggle of the Negro Race”, Crescent, May 20, 1908, pp. 323–327. “Members of the LMI are Scattered in Various Parts of the World”, Crescent, December 1, 1897, p. 761. “Islam v. Christianity in West Africa”, Crescent, March 22, 1899, p. 186. “Departure of a British Muslim for the West Coast of Africa”, Crescent, March 22, 1899, p. 186. “A British Muslim at Fernando Po”, Crescent, June 21, 1899, p. 391; “Bro. Yusuff Nunan at Sierra Leone”, Crescent, May 3, 1899, p. 279. “Fernando Po”, Crescent, August 27, 1902, p. 140. “Editorial Notes”, Crescent, October 22, 1902, p. 265; “Another Letter from Bro. Yussuf Nunan”, Crescent, November 12, 1902, p. 314. Nunan gave a lecture on his impressions of Northern Nigeria at the Liverpool Mosque in 1906; see “Northern Nigeria”, Crescent, May 16, 1906, pp. 307–311. “Glorious News from West Africa”, Crescent, March 19, 1902, p. 187. “The Haj”, Crescent, January 30, 1907, p. 909. “Editorial Notes”, Crescent, October 10, 1906, p. 649. Christopher Fyfe, A History of Sierra Leone, op. cit., p. 498. “The English Mahommedan School in Lagos”, Crescent, August 11, 1897, p. 506. “Interesting Fraternal Letter from West Africa”, Crescent, January 17, 1900, p. 45. “Editorial Notes”, Crescent, August 29, 1900, p. 137. “Interesting Letter from the Alimanni Mohamed Gheirawani”, Crescent, October 15, 1902, p. 253. “The Sheik's Liberian Degree”, Crescent, May 22, 1907, p. 1164. Eric Germain, “Southern Hemisphere Diasporic Communities in the Building of an International Muslim Public Opinion at the Turn of the Twentieth Century”, Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, Vol. 27, No. 1, 2007, p. 129. “An Appeal from Lagos”, Crescent, October 16, 1907, p. 253. “A Voice from Sierra Leone”, Crescent, December 1, 1897, p. 765. “Proclamation”, The Crescent, April 22, 1896, pp. 681–82. Arsh refers to the throne of God. “Glorious News from West Africa”, Crescent, March 19, 1902, p. 187. “A Turkish Decoration for Dr. Blyden”, Crescent, February 15, 1905, p. 109. “Dr. Blyden's Turkish Decoration”, Crescent, May 24, 1905, p. 323. Ibid., p. 326. “The West African Muslims and Dr. Blyden's Turkish Decoration”, Crescent, June 21, 1905, p. 398. Provides the text of an illuminated address from the headmen of the Sierra Leone Muslim communities. “British Muslims and the Queen's Birthday”, Crescent, May 31, 1899, p. 346. “British Muslims' Foreign Policy”, Crescent, July 25, 1906, p. 467. “An Address”, Sierra Leone Weekly News, July 10, 1897, p. 6. “Translation of an Arabic Address ...”, Crescent, September 1, 1897, p. 557. “Opening of the Moslem School at Isale Gangan”, Crescent, January 2, 1907, p. 843. “Some West African Problems”, Crescent, June 24, 1903, p. 389. “The Triumph of Islam in West Africa”, Crescent, May 24, 1899, p. 323

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