A gilt-silver thread embroidered silk Kiswah fragment presented to Lord Headley on completion of the Hajj in 1923

Egypt or Mecca, circa 1923

Footnotes

Provenance
Rowland George Allanson Allanson-Winn, 5th Baron Headley (1855-1935), also known as Shaikh Rahmatullah al-Farooq, presented by Hussein bin Ali, King of Hejaz (reg. 1916-1924), and thence by descent.

Inscriptions: Qur'an, chapter II (al-baqarah), part of verse 144.

After completing the Hajj in 1923, Lord Headley witnessed the removal of the black and gold kiswah which covered the Ka'ba during the month of the Hajj. On his departure from Mecca, he paid his respects to King Hussein and was given several gifts including a gold-embroidered robe (lot 116) and two sections of the kiswah, which were traditionally cut into smaller pieces and presented to dignitaries. The larger piece was presented to Woking Mosque, whilst the smaller (the present lot) was displayed on the wall in his drawing room in Ivy Lodge, Twickenham. At the same time, he was also presented with the order of Al Nahda, First Class.

Born in London in 1855, Lord Headley was educated at Westminster School and Cambridge University before entering the Middle Temple and continuing his studies at King's College London. He subsequently became a civil engineer, and worked in India between 1892 and 1897. It was during his four years in Kashmir that he first encountered the Islamic faith, but it was not until 1913, the same year in which he inherited the peerage from his cousin, that he officially converted to Islam, adopting the Muslim name of Shaikh Rahmatullah al-Farooq. In 1914 he founded the British Muslim Society, which had the principal aim of demonstrating that Islam was not antagonistic or hostile to Christianity. He remained president of the society for life and went on to write several books on Islam, including A Western Awakening to Islam and Three Great Prophets of the World. He intended to undertake the Hajj the same year, but was prevented from doing so by the outbreak of war, and had to wait until 1923 when he completed the pilgrimage at the age of 68.

Very few Britons had made a pilgrimage to Mecca before Lord Headley, and it is possible that he was the first to do so legitimately. Despite the potential political implications of the situation, he was welcomed as a guest by King Hussein, who accompanied him on some stages of the pilgrimage and who is reported to have slept on the ground at Muzdalifah so that Headley might have a more comfortable rest on his own camp-bed. On his return to London, Headley gave numerous talks about his experience in Mecca including at the British Muslim Society, and became the subject of much press attention for the first time since his conversion in 1913. An image taken by a press photographer at his home in St Margarets depicts him wearing the robe and Order of Al Nadha while standing beside the larger fragment of Kiswah with which he was presented in Mecca, which he subsequently donated to Woking Mosque. This image was circulated and reprinted in newspapers and magazines worldwide.

After completing the Hajj his profile and status within the British Muslim community increased, and he became an unofficial ambassador for British Islam. In 1925, he was offered the throne of Albania by a Muslim delegation who desired a British aristocrat for their ruler, but Lord Headley declined the offer on the grounds that has assassination was practically certain should he accept.

Beyond his devotion to Islam Lord Headley was a keen boxer, having been a champion at Cambridge University, and was also one of the earliest exponents of martial arts. In 1890 he co-authored Broad-sword and Singlestick, one of the earliest self defence manuals and went on to write one of the first modern guides to boxing (Boxing, 1889).

A detailed account of the life of Lord Headley, the circumstances of his conversion to Islam and his attitude towards the Islamic faith is given in Jamie Gilham, The British Muslim Convert, Lord Headley, 1855-1935, London, 2020.