The Muslim Burial Ground, in the town of

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

in the English county of

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, was the original resting place of two dozen

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

soldiers who died during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It is now a peace garden dedicated to all the Muslim soldiers of the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

who died during both wars. The site measures about by and is located in the southeast corner of

Horsell Common Horsell Common is a open space in Horsell, near Woking in Surrey. It is owned and managed by the Horsell Common Preservation Society. An area of is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and part of the Thames Basin Heaths Special Pr ...

about off Monument Road. It is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

History

Cemetery

Large numbers of men from the Indian subcontinent fought on the Western Front during

. Some of those who were injured were moved to hospitals on the English south coast including one at

Brighton Pavilion The Royal Pavilion (also known as the Brighton Pavilion) and surrounding gardens is a Grade I listed former royal residence located in Brighton, England. Beginning in 1787, it was built in three stages as a seaside retreat for George, Prince o ...

. Of those, nineteen Muslims died and were buried here. The burial ground was created, at least in part, to counteract German propaganda that Muslim Indian soldiers were not being buried according to their religious rites. The site was on land compulsorily purchased from the

Earl of Onslow Earl of Onslow, of Onslow in the County of Shropshire and of Clandon Park in the County of Surrey, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1801 for George Onslow, 4th Baron Onslow. History The Onslow family descends ...

and chosen for its proximity to the Shah Jahan Mosque, the first purpose-built mosque in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. A further five men who died during

were also buried here.

Neglect and deterioration

In the 1960s the site was becoming subject to vandalism so, in 1968, the bodies were transferred to the Military Cemetery at Brookwood. However, this also meant that the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

ceased further maintenance of the site, which became overgrown and further vandalised. Ownership reverted to the Horsell Common Preservation Society, the owners of the surrounding common in succession to the Earl of Onslow.

Restoration

In the 1990s, work was undertaken to clear the vegetation and stabilised the walls, as a result of financial support from a local resident of

, the musician

Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...

. In 2011, Woking Borough Council, working in conjunction with the Horsell Common Preservation Society, received a grant from

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

, which enabled the restoration of the walls and chatri. In November 2015, the empty interior of the burial ground was landscaped to create a Peace Memorial Garden, dedicated to all the Muslim soldiers of the British Indian Army who died in World War I and II. The garden brings together the cultural expression of the traditional Islamic Garden with the natural elements of the Common. The original walls and

chhatri ''Chhatri'' are semi-open, elevated, dome-shaped pavilions used as an element in Indo-Islamic architecture and Indian architecture. They are most commonly square, octagonal, and round. Originating as a canopy above tombs, they largely ser ...

of the burial ground were retained and now surround a reflecting pond fed by a rill and small waterfall from an upper pool. By this is a memorial stone engraved with the names of the original burials, which acts as the garden’s focus. Himalayan Birch trees planted around the pool also symbolise the servicemen who died. The architect Jeremy Poll, of the Radley House Partnership, was responsible for the restoration of the walls and chatri, whilst Terra Firma Landscape Architects Ltd, were responsible for the design and implementation of the garden.

Gallery

File:Muslim Burial Ground TQ0159 224.jpg File:Moslem Cemetery - geograph.org.uk - 2266321.jpg File:View through entrance gates to Muslim Burial Ground.jpg

References

External links

A Muslim trail in Woking
on the untoldLondon website * {{NHLE , num=1236560
Information, with imagery, about the garden renovation and the integration between local English and Islamic landscape architecture and design elements
British military memorials and cemeteries Cemeteries in Surrey Grade II listed buildings in Surrey Grade II listed monuments and memorials Islam in the United Kingdom Muslim cemeteries Peace gardens Woking