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• History of Christianization of Europe
• Soviet Union, Communist influence
• Map of European ethnic groups
• Map of Fascism in Europe (1922-75)
• History of Islamic conquest in Europe
• Religions & ethnic groups in Russia

--MORE & NON-ENGLISH--

• Muhammad cartoon crisis in pictures
• Stalin's private summer home
• Ravenna: capital of Gothic empire
• Czar Nicholas II's Ukrainian palace
• European traditional costumes/dress
• Inside the Vatican, house of all wealth

--MORE & NON-ENGLISH--

• Islamic Mujahidin vs. Spain & El Cid
• Poland-Lithuania vs. Teutonic Order
• Nevskiy's Russia vs. German Crusaders
• Mussolini vs. Libyan Islamic fighters
• Qadafi: Europe will soon be Islamic
• Ivan the Terrible vs. Muslim Tatars 

--MORE & NON-ENGLISH--

• Inside Albania, Europe's only Muslim culture (with rare pictures)
• History of Jihad in Chechnya
& Caucasus vs. Russians
• History of the Muslim Tatars in Russia
• Ethnic & religious history of Serbs, Croats, & Bosnians
• History of Italy: from Roman rule to Germanic barbarian
• The cost & bloodshed of the Serb-Albanian conflict in Kosovo
• Inside Bulgaria, 1st Slavic nation,
land of Thracian masters of gold
• Visual history of Yugoslavia
• Inside Muslim Turkey: right for the European Union? 

--MORE & NON-ENGLISH--

Muslim Mosques of European countries
by James Mayfield (Chairman, European Heritage Library)

Print this Article    •    About the Author    •    Bibliography/Sources

Mosques of the Islamic religion (almost exclusively Sunni or Sufi) have existed in Europe for over a thousand years, starting with the Muslim conquests of Christian Sicily, Sardinia, and Spain in the 8th century. After most of them were destroyed with the unification of Spain to expel the Muslim occupants that settled from North Africa and the Fertile Crescent, the nearly invincible Ottoman Turks delivered the blade of Islam into southeastern Europe, conquering Bosnia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania, southern Ukraine, Moldova, what is now Greece, Serbia, and almost Croatia and Hungary for nearly 500 years. See our exclusve History of Islamic Conquest in Europe Map. This led to the construction of many mosques in Europe, chiefly by the occupying Muslims but in less frequent cases by natives generally forced or relegated to convert to Islam in Albania and Bosnia. The greatest concentration of mosques in Europe, however, are recent constructions following World War II with the advent of liberalism and open-border immigration, which catalyzes the construction of mosques as ways to protect the identity and social needs of Muslim immigrants to Europe. As the two cultures collide, the construction of new mosques in Europe compliments the tide of immigration to Europe that further irritates a cultural incompatibility that is a growing problem in Europe. For some, new mosques means a victory for Islam against Europe. For others, new mosques means that these new immigrants refuse to assimilate to benefit European societies.

Click here to see our detailed Muslim Populations in Europe Map. If you have any images you want to add, or have any information or questions, notify us. Not all countries have been shown below either because no images could be found or because Islam is so insignificant there that it would not matter (such as Belarus or Poland).

QUICK VIEW:

England • France •  Switzerland • Germany • Austria • Spain •  Italy • Netherlands • Croatia • Albania • Kosovo • Serbia • Bosnia • Macedonia • Montenegro • Cyprus • Romania • Greece • Bulgaria • Denmark • Ireland • Norway • Sweden • Finland • Russia • Ukraine • Hungary

Mosques of England:

Due to the fact that the UK has been free of Islamic conquest for its entire history, all mosques in the country are the result of modern post-liberalization immigration in the last several decades after World War II. England has among the highest Muslim populations in Europe, with the main group thereof being from the Arab world and India. Nearly all of them are constricted to the large cities like London.

Mosques of France:

France has liberalized its culture only recently, though it has historically had an increasing tide of immigration from its Muslim-dominated colonies like Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, etc. France has the largest population of Muslims in Europe, though there are nations with higher percentages in proportion to the total population in the Balkans as a result of the Islamic assaults by the Turks for 400 years.

Mosques of Switzerland:

Mosques in Switzerland are the result of immigration from France, the Middle East, and also a large emigrating population from the Balkans due to the tumult of the Yugoslav wars (Bosnians, Albanians).

Mosques of Germany:

Mosques in Germany are a very new phenomenon. They are the result of recent post-World War II immigration that was opened in order to revitalize the shattered economy. The main group are the Turks, but Germany has large populations of Iranians, Afghans, and others from the Middle East. Though Nazism has of course been removed in Germany by and large, the presence of foreigners and Muslims in Germany is a major problem for much of the population, including among non-Nazis. It is worth noting that the Turkish immigrants in Europe have a much lower unemployment and have higher income and education than other immigrants from other Muslim countries, thus making Germany's and Austria's Muslims less objectionable to the locals by and large than the North and Sub-Saharan Africans in France, for example.

Mosques of Austria:

Islam is not new to Austria. Austria ruled Bosnia in entirety or in part for centuries after it annexed it from the Muslim Ottoman caliphate in the 19th century. As Bosnians today are 40% Muslim, and as Austria was the center of the Habsburg empire (Austria-Hungary), many Muslims came to Austria to enjoy its thriving economy despite persecution. With the advent of post-WWII liberalism during the period of American occupation and afterward, the new Muslim populations are not Bosnian, but mostly Turkish and Arab immigrants.

Mosques of Spain:

Mosques and Islam have been in Spain on and off for over 1,100 years. As a result of the Islamic conquest of Iberia in the 8th century, mosques appeared all over the country where Arabs ("Moors") exerted authority. From the 13th century onward, the unification of Spain and the Reconquista expelled all Muslims and Jews from Spain, and destroyed most mosques in the country except only those most beautiful. The Alhambra survived as a former mosque, though of course it became a museum. Most mosques and Muslims in Spain today are a result of immigration from adjacent North Africa. North Africa being Arab and Berber, most Muslims in Spain today are of Arab extraction and very rarely from the farther south. Spanish intrusion into Morocco in the colonial period, and still today in Ceuta, Morocco, leads to immigration to the wealthier Spain.

Mosques of Italy:

Italy's quality as a major maritime trading country of coastal nations and principalities means that Arab and Iranian traders have been present in what is now Italy for centuries, though only rarely settling. There have been Albanian immigrants in Italy for centuries, though originally it was to escape the Islamic conquest and forced Islamization of the Albanians by the Ottoman Turks. There remain large Albanian populations in eastern Italy today, who are largely Muslims. Most of the Islamic population in Italy is due to post-WWII liberalization and immigration from Arab North Africa, Libya, the Middle East, but primarily from the black regions of Africa, which are only rarely Muslims.

Mosques of the Netherlands:

As Europe's most liberal state, and a former major colonial power, the Netherlands has a huge population of Muslims, especially from Morocco and Arab North Africa, from Somalia, and from Indonesia. This amalgam has caused a great social rift, and dormant hatred between the two groups exacerbates the conflict because Muslims become more strongly bound to more conservative Islam as a vehicle for collective struggle, justice, etc. Nearly all of the mosques are brand new, dating from the 20th century and especially after World War II due to immigration. The largest mosque in Europe (outside Russia) is being planned at Rotterdam.

Mosques of Croatia:

Almost free of mosques, having been spared the Islamic conquest and Jihad of the Ottomans by merging with the Austrian Empire, Croatia has a few mosques that are a result of the Bosniak and Albanian populations, as few immigrants come to Croatia because of the superior benefits that can be enjoyed in nearby countries that are more liberal.

Mosques of Albania:

As Europe's only Muslim-majority culture, the Albanians have a long history of Islam. Islam came to Albania via the Jihad of the Turks, who ruled what is now Albania for 400 years. 70% of Albanians today are Muslim, though a very secular form thereof (see my Inside Albania article). Because of the communist domination and "atheization" of Albania under dictator Enver Hoxha, few mosques survived. Today, Islam is making a resurgence, including from Arab immigrants from Saudi Arabia seeking to revitalize Islam in Europe. Kosovo is also majority Muslim, a much more conservative population because of their polarity to the Serbian Christian populations as well as the freedom from communism in the region.

Skanderbeg, Albania's national hero and defender of Albanians against the Islamic conquest, next to a mosque

Mosques of Kosovo:

Kosovo was part of Serbian national heritage for nearly 1000 years, even when it was ruled by the Muslim Turks for some 300 years. During the Muslim occupation, the Albanians in Albania converted to Islam partially by force and largely by relegation to survive their poor social status and economic hardships exacerbated by blood taxes the poor Albanian farmers could not afford. Serbs, with a vivid Christian heritage already established, refused to accept Islam, and almost no Serbs today adhere to the Sunnah (laws of Islam). Albanians, given preferential status because of their submission, populated Kosovo (Serbia), where they soon became the majority, thus making Kosovo then and now a majority Muslim and Albanian land. Kosovo, not suffering from Communism like Albania, is in many ways more religiously conservative. Much of the bloody revolt against Yugoslavia was under the banner of Islam, where terrorism was often attached with Jihad when Albanians searched for justification for their struggle, as the Albanians have very little independent history of nationhood. With the Clinton bombings in 1999, Kosovo was taken from Yugoslavia and has since been occupied and protected by US forces under the guise of the UN and NATO. In 2008, when Kosovo was given freedom without any approval of the Serbian nation of which it was an important part for almost 1000 years (see our History of Kosovo), Islam is still an important part of Kosovar and Albanian tradition despite the fact that their main national hero, the Christian Skanderbeg, spent his life rallying Albanians against the Islamic Jihad of the Turks. When Albanians declared independence in Kosovo, standing behind the president in the national speech of freedom was a mullah. With Kosovo now a proud and independent nation, at least in its own and America's eyes, Islam will likely make a comeback with more mosques being design since Serbs cannot intervene as before. It is rumored that some mosques in Kosovo are named after Usama bin Laden, as is common in the Muslim world.

Mosques of Bosnia:

Bosnia, which is 40% Muslim, has a great deal of mosques, most of which being centuries old as a result of the Jihad of the Ottoman Turks into the region, who ruled Bosnia-Herzegovina for nearly 400 years. As a result of the Ottoman Muslim invasion and the difficult tumult and division caused by the Yugoslav wars, Bosnia is today broken in three: Republika Srpska in the east for Serbian Christians, a Croatian enclave in the southwest, and the center is divided between Bosnian Christians and Bosniak Muslims.

by Alan Grant

A mosque destroyed during the Yugoslav wars by Serbs, Bosnian Christians, or Croats.

Mosques of Serbia:

Serbia's Muslim population -- and their mosques -- is due to the presence of Albanian Kosovars and Bosnian Muslims (Bosniaks), all of whom converted to Islam as a result of 400 years of Islamic conquest and Jihad of the Ottomans. Though there are mosques in Belgrade, most mosques are only in the south, where Albanians are the majority. Most Muslim Bosniaks fled west away from Serbia because of persecution. Mosques and Muslims in Serbia face routine harassment because of their association with "traitor" Bosniaks, and especially the very-hated Albanians to the south. Serbia arguably offered the most impressive resistance to the Islamic conquest, despite its eventual annexation by Istanbul, further imbuing Muslims in Serbia with an image of treason to their country (whether or not it is appropriate). What was perceived as theft of their land (Kosovo) by the United States in 2008 exacerbated this conflict.

A mosque in Serbia destroyed by Serbs in the Yugoslav wars

One of the oldest mosques in Europe, built during the Islamic occupation (by Ottoman Turks)

Mosques of Montenegro:

Because of the precarious division of the former Yugoslavia, large swaths of Bosnian, Montenegrin, and Macedonian lands overlap populations other than the dominant nationality. In Macedonia and Montenegro, there are large Albanian Muslim populations. In the eyes of more nationalistic Albanians, Montenegro can be described as occupying a large part of "Greater Albania". Most mosques were destroyed during the union with Serbia. Despite the large Albanian population, there are few mosques.

Mosques of Cyprus:

Cyprus today is split in half, with Muslim Turks occupying the north and Greeks occupying the south. After the 1974 invasion by Turkey, the nation has two governments, though the northern Turkish Cypriot Republic is not recognized. Muslims have lived in Cyprus for over 1000 years due to its proximity to the Middle East. It was a major rallying point for Crusaders until it fell to the Turks by the 16th century. Most of the mosques remain in the north with the Turkish Muslims, both old and new.

Mosques of Macedonia:

Macedonia's proximity to Turkey and Albania means that some 33% of Macedonia is Albanian, thus ~33% Muslim. Islam is making a renaissance among Albanians after freedom from communism came with the death of Enver Hoxha. Albanian Muslims in Serbia, Macedonia, and Greece are a major source of social conflict between Albanians and the Slavic population.

Mosques of Romania & Moldova:

Islam in Romania is not new. Before Romania was united after declaring independence from the Islamic Ottoman empire, the Turkish Muslims ruled the two provinces of Wallachia and Moldova. Muslim domination was experienced in Romania for nearly 400 years, leading to forced and relegated conversion to survive as third-class citizens. Many beautiful mosques are all over Romania that are centuries old. The first few photos below (with the EHL watermark) are from my vacation to Constanta, Romania (see my Inside Romania article). A glorious mosque in Constanta (my photos below) is one of the few mosques in the world that allows infidels (non-Muslims), and one of the only mosques that allows one to enter the minaret at the top to view the entire city. Muslims, most of whom fled Romania to Turkey after unification led to persecution, still settle on the eastern coast. It is odd that in Romania's hideously-poor city of Constanta, where few Muslims even live, there is one of the more beautiful mosques of the world because of Turkish private funding.

Mosques of Greece:

Islam has been present in what is now Greece for nearly 500 years, when the Muslim Ottoman empire obliterated the Byzantine empire and the regional Greek city-states, and converted its holiest sites like the Hagia Sophia into a mosque. Constantinople, formerly Greek land, became Islamicized as Istanbul. The Greeks united to create the first Greece in history in the 19th century. Today, Greece has much Muslim immigration from Turkey, the Middle East, North Africa, and especially the problematic Albanian Muslim population. Most of the old churches in former Greek territories (not part of the Greek nation, as there never was a Greek unified state until the 19th century) like in Anatolia were either demolished or converted to a mosque. When nearly all Greeks were expelled from Turkey after the Greco-Turkish War (and all Turks were expelled to Greece), more churches were destroyed along with them. So too, many mosques in Islamic-ruled Greece were converted to churches to celebrate the formation of the first Greek nation. Thus, most of the Greek churches are confined to the Greek state of today. A lot of mosques in both Greece and Turkey have a typical Orthodox look to them.

Photograph inside an allegedly radical and illegal mosque in Greece.

Mosques of Bulgaria:

Like all the Balkans, Islam came to Bulgaria via the Islamic conquests of the mighty Ottoman empire. Bulgaria has more Turks than any country in Europe except Germany, making ~10% of Bulgaria Muslim today. Many Turks were expelled after the unification of Bulgaria in the 20th century, and a process of "de-Islamization" occurred in this ancient Slavic Orthodox Christian nation. Today, Bulgaria still has some Turkish immigration. Most of the mosques are from the period of Islamic rule. Some Bulgarian Slavs connect their heritage (ethnically and historically) to a place in Central Asia along the Volga River today called "Volga Bulgaria" around modern Kazan/Tatarstan, where the population had a strong Islamic heritage and was of the Turkic race. This is a source of dispute because of nationalism and academic disagreement, and also because one of the only ways historians can connect modern Slavic Bulgarians with Volga Bulgaria is the name and nothing more.

Mosques of Denmark:

Islam in Scandinavia is a major problem, leading to serious conflicts in the native societies. Most Muslims in Denmark come from Africa, both the Arabs of the north and the blacks to the south. The Muslim population considers itself marginalized, and the natives criticize them for their low literacy, high proportion of welfare reciept, lack of employment, and refusal to integrate. The crisis of the Muhammad cartoons reveal a clash between the native culture and the immigrating ones. Denmark has recently worked to stop or reduce Muslim immigration, the construction of mosques, and the open benefits immigrants enjoy. There are few mosques overall in Denmark, largely because of an increasingly-disgruntled Danish government and society, and because so many of the Muslim immigrants in Denmark are from Somalia and Sub-Saharan Africa, and lack the money or ability to have mosques built. Most "mosques" end up being in small shops or warehouses like that shown below. The largest mosque in Europe is also being planned in Copenhagen (Koebenhavn), though it has yet to materialize due to the agitation of the natives and the lack of funds of the immigrants.

Mosques of Ireland:

Despite its geographic and political proximity to immigrant-rich England, Ireland is one of the most homogeneous countries of Europe. Its mosques and Muslim populations are all the result of post-war immigration.

Mosques of Norway:

In one of the most homogeneous countries in the world, Norway has almost no Muslims and no mosques outside of Oslo. The reason for such a small immigrant population in Norway is primarily because of the inability for immigrants to feel welcome in such a polar society, and also because most Muslims can simply immigrate slightly to the east to be among a more liberal society already full of Muslims: Sweden.

Mosques of Sweden:

With France, USA, Canada, and the Netherlands, Sweden is one of the most liberal societies in the world. It has one of Europe's largest Muslim populations, leading to many conflicts with the natives who are tired of an open society and free economy that they believe Muslims exploit. Most of Sweden's Muslims are from the Middle East and Africa, though it is a haven for Afghans, Somalis, and those liberal Iranians fleeing the Islamic piety of post-revolutionary Iran. Sweden often underreports their Muslim populations, officially reporting anywhere from 2% Muslim to 5%, whilst it is in fact much more. All of the Muslim populations here are, of course, post-WWII results of liberalization. Many Muslims in Europe go to Sweden to avoid the strong cultural resentment and persecution they often meet in places like Germany or other parts of Europe.

Mosques of Finland:

As the most homogeneous nation in Europe (with Iceland), like Norway, Finland has almost no mosques outside of the capital (Helsinki). Finland has been criticized by the US and EU for not taking in "enough" immigrants. Like Norway, Muslims can much more easily immigrate to Sweden to the west to enjoy a more liberal and Muslim-populated society.

Mosques of Russia:

Islam has been in Russia for centuries as a result not of immigration, but of Russian conquest of nearly a hundred million Muslims in the course of its repulsion of Muslims "in the way" of Russian expansion to become the largest nation on earth. Russia conquered Kazan, Astrakhan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Chechnya, Dagestan, and other Muslim countries for centuries of rule. The Muslims of Russia are largely not a part of Russian society, but rather are secluded to Muslim areas in what Russia (but not they) considers the territory of the Russian Federation. The Jihad of the Chechnyans (read my article on the history of Chechnya) has been particularly angering to Russian Christians, leaving hundreds dead on both sides anywhere from the battlefields of Grozniy (the capital) to Moscowite theatres. Islam is the largest-growing religion in Russia and Europe. Click the link to learn about the History of the Tatar Muslims in Russia. Almost no mosques exist outside of the Muslim south or the major province of Tatarstan/Kazan by comparison. View our exclusive Ethnic & Religious Map of Russia.

(from dawaatelislam.com)

Mosques of Ukraine:

The regions of today's Ukraine -- especially the Crimea -- have been populated by Islamic states for centuries, primarily Turkic Tatar people (see my article on the History of the Tatars in Russia/Ukraine). With the Russian conquest of the Tatar Muslim states and the Ottoman empire along the Black Sea, the Tatar Muslims became exterminated, especially under Stalin when they were expelled en masse to Kazakhstan. Today, Tatars are making a return to their faith, though their tiny population is insignificant. Ukraine sees little immigration because its society is less liberal and its economy less successful, and also because Ukraine is one of the most homogeneous countries in the world as a less hospitable society for Muslims.

NOT a mosque. This is the rear entrance of a Ukrainian palace built by a major Russian general who helped conquer Muslim Central Asia.

from serg-klymenko.narod.ru

Mosques of Hungary:

Islam has been present on the borders of Hungary since the Islamic attacks against the Kingdom of Hungary by the Muslim Ottoman empire from the 16th century onward, after which it merged with Austria. Hungarian rule of much of the Balkans during the Austria-Hungarian period meant that many white Muslims came to Hungary. Today, Hungary has few Muslims or mosques as a result of immigration because immigrants can simply move to the much wealthier Austria next door. Many of the mosques in Hungary have been converted to Catholic churches, as most of the mosques were built during the Islamic conquest of Hungary (that was ultimately unsuccessful), and were demolished when the Hungarians were liberated from the Ottoman assault by the Germans.

A former mosque during the Islamic conquest that was converted into a Catholic church thereafter.

________________________________________

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

James Mayfield is the owner and Chairman of the European Heritage Library. I am working for a doctorate in history, with a specific emphasis on Islamic and European histories. I am well versed in all world cultures, ethnicities, religions, languages, politics, and historical evolution in relation to and against each other.

BIBLIOGRAPHY/SOURCES USED:

If you know the original owner of one of these images, feel free to tell us, and we will add a citation reference. It is difficult to pinpoint the original origin of images that are so widely reused. If any of the works you have found are originally yours and are protected, please tell me and I will remove them if necessary.