Al Rifa’i Mosque is considered one of the most beautiful mosques in Egypt. It is a royal mausoleum dedicated to members of the family of Mohammed Ali Pasha.
Al Rifa’i Mosque is located in Midan al-Qal’a (Salah El-Din Square), in front of the Mosque and Madrasa of Sultan Hassan, overlooking the Salah El-Din Citadel.
The history of Al Rifa’i Mosque:
Hoshiyar Hanim, wife of Ibrahim Pasha and mother of Khedive Ismail, ordered to construct this building as a mausoleum for the members of the royal family.
The mosque was built in two phases:
The first phase: The engineer Hussein Pasha Fahmi became in charge of building this mosque. He used cement in the establishment of the mosque, as Al Rifa’i Mosque is considered the first Islamic building to be constructed with cement. Also, he used marble imported from Italy.
The second phase: After the death of Hussein Pasha Fahmi, the work in the mosque stopped. Then in 1905, the work resumed again by order of Khedive Abbas II.
The mosque is called the Al Rifa’i Mosque after Imam Ahmad Al Rifa’. Imam Ahmad Al founded the Rifa’i tariqa (Sufi path). Although Imam Ahmad al Rifa’i was not buried in this mosque, Sufi are celebrating, annually, commemorating his birth in the mosque.
The design of the mosque:
The building was built on an area of 7500 meters, but the part dedicated to prayer is 1767 meters. The mosque is characterized by the beauty of its decoration, the colored marble, and the inlaid wood. Its minarets and the dome are built in the Mamluk style.
The mosque is divided into two parts:
The first part: the mosque is dedicated to prayer and built in the style of the traditional Sufi path.
The second part: it is dedicated to the burial of members of the royal family of Mohammed Ali Pasha as Khedive Ismail, his mother Hoshiyar Hanim, Kings Fuad I, King Faruq, and Mohammed Reza Pahlavi (the last Shah of Iran). After World War II, the corpse of Reza Shah of Iran was transferred from Al Rifa’i Mosque to Iran. In addition, three shrines are dedicated for Al Rifa’I, Ali Abi-Shubbak, and Yahya al-Ansari.
