Mirza Mahmood Ahmad seated center with the scholars whoaccompanied him in his tour of the Middle East and Europe.
In 1924, accompanied by 12 eminent Ahmadis, Mirza Mahmood Ahmad visited various Middle Eastern and European countries. He traveled from Port Saeed to Cairo and from there to Jerusalem, Haifa and Akkā. He traveled to Damascus by train where he is reported to have attracted a lot of publicity as well as opposition.[17] Here he discussed Ghulam Ahmad's claims with leading scholars, and held various meetings with the intellectual community of Damascus.[18]
On August 16 he reached Italy and stayed in Rome for 4 days. He also visited France and England where he delivered numerous lectures, held meetings and was interviewd by numerous journalists. Upon arrival in London he proceeded to St Paul's Cathedral and Ludgate Hill to fulfill a prophetic Hadith which refers to the Bab al-Lud (the gate of Lud).[19] His speech on Ahmadiyyat, the True Islam was read out in The Conference of Living Religions Within the Empire held in Wembley, where he had been invited by the conveners of the conference to represent Islam. In London he also laid the foundation stone of the Fazl Mosque, an occasion which was well publicised.
The construction of the Mosque was completed in 1926 and the cost thereof was borne entirely by the women of the community.[20] He also visited Gravesend and Brighton and imitated William the Conqueror believing his visit to carry a mystical significance in fulfilment of its spiritual one in lieu of a vision he had seen before his departure, in India.[21] Whilst in Brighton he also paid a visit to the Memorial to Britain's Fallen Comrades-in-Arms from India during World War I known as Chattri (Brighton) and led prayers in the ground in front of the Brighton Pavilion.[22]
