The Favorites, The Brides and the Page Boy: Islamic Conjugality and Everyday Practice within Nasir al-Din Shah’s Harem

The royal Qajar harem, under Nasir al-Din Shah’s reign (1848-1896), was a central site of negotiations between tradition and modernity in late 19th century Iran. As the most public site of the royal family’s display of piety, on the surface, the structure of the harem was determined through strict adherence to Sharia law. As such, Islamic conjugal practices such as polygamy, gender segregation, the categorization of men as lawful (mahram) or unlawful (na-mahram), and the classification of wives as permanent (aqdi) and temporary (sighah), were key elements of the social structure of the Qajar harem. However, the everyday life of the constituents of the Gulistan harem often undermined traditional conventions of Sharia law on several registers. This paper examines the ways in which Sharia law was both used and undermined by harem women in defining their familial and conjugal status within Nasir al-Din Shah’s harem, as well as more generally, in yielding power within the larger context of Qajar political culture. Through engaging with various archival sources of legal practice and everyday life within the harem, the paper examines how harem constituents experienced, navigated, engaged with, and at times moved beyond the limits of Sharia law through everyday encounters and affective intimate bonds. In doing so, this paper offers a window into perhaps the most complex familial structure within late Qajar Iran.