The oldest and largest in France and a gift for Muslims after "Verdun"

In the video, mosques ... "Paris the Great" ... a hidden Andalusian masterpiece in the French capital

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When you know that the second largest religion in France is Islam, and that the French Muslim community is the first in Europe, it may be natural to discover that it embraces the third largest mosque in this continent, and the largest mosques in France, and one of its most beautiful monuments in design, and one of the hidden gems among its alleys Elegant for nearly 100 years, with classic Andalusian-Moroccan design, lush gardens with dancing fountains, adorned with classic decorations.

The Great Mosque of Paris, located in the Fifth Arrondissement, near the Paris Museum of Natural History, and the famous Botanical Garden, is the oldest mosque and an Islamic monument in France, where its first building was laid in 1922 on the ruins of the Mercy Hospital, which was moved to another place in 1911, and the mosque was completed In 1926, when the French state built it in honor of the Muslim soldiers who defended it during World War I, a decision that came immediately after one day of the famous Battle of Verdun, in which Muslim soldiers fought valiantly in the lines of the French army.

A visitor to the Grand Mosque in Paris can notice the extent of the architectural convergence between it and iconic mosques in the countries of the Maghreb, where the design of the mosque was inspired by the Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque in Fez in Morocco, while the design of the lighthouse was inspired by the Zaytouna Mosque in Tunisia, in a Maghreb-Andalusian style, and with wonderful decorations and inscriptions, With the reliance on the art of "zellij", which was executed by specialized craftsmen from Fez and Meknes, relying on traditional materials, the mosque's courtyard is also adorned with one of the most beautiful gardens, inspired by the Granadian gardens.

Paris cannot be imagined without its elegant cafes, and only in Paris, you can find an elegant café inside a mosque, and the mosque also includes a restaurant that serves dishes from Moroccan cuisine, in addition to a shop selling souvenirs and Arab-style handicrafts, and the place also includes an Islamic institute , A school, a library, a meeting room, a dispensary, in addition to apartments for the employees and supervisors of the place, and the mosque is considered one of the important tourist sites in the French capital.

The mosque and its workers presented a history of societal connection and human tolerance, as the incident of saving the Jews was considered one of the most famous historical situations associated with the mosque. Bin Ghabrit had the necessary protection by issuing them Muslim IDs, which allowed them to escape the Nazi pursuit.

• 7500 square meters of mosque area.

• 3500 square meters garden area.

• 500 thousand French francs, the cost of the project.

• 33 meters height of the minaret.

• Built by the French state in honor of the Muslim soldiers who defended it during the First World War.

• In the prayer hall, to the right of the mihrab, stands a valuable historical pulpit, which was a gift from the Egyptian King Fuad I to the mosque.

• The mosque is adorned from the inside and outside with inscribed poetic verses composed by the jurist and poet Ahmed Skirj, who was the imam of the first Friday prayer in the mosque.