حرمخانۀ ارگ تهران در دورۀ قاجار

Today, no trace remains of the harem quarters of the Tehran Citadel, buildings that once served as the royal residence for Qajar kings and their wives. These spaces were where the royal family's domestic life unfolded, carefully guarded to prevent outside access. Consequently, the lives of the women who resided there were shrouded in mystery, hidden from public view. This secrecy sparked immense curiosity, particularly among foreign travel writers, who speculated about life within the harem. As a result, we only have limited pictures and maps to imagine its appearance, and there are few detailed descriptions of it. This article explores the structure of the citadel's harem and its interaction with the lives of its residents. By applying Rapoport's views, we found that the residents' lifestyle directly influenced the design and structure of the space, with the position of women playing a key role in shaping it. To address the article's central question, we focused on understanding the position and role of the king's wives within this unique environment. In this effort, we defined the concept of the harem and investigated the general status of court women, tracing the historical evolution of the harem system over time. We examined the evolution of the royal harem's structure based on primary sources, from the Karim-Khan Zand period to its eventual destruction during the Pahlavi dynasty. Through this investigation, we found that this section of the citadel developed into a glorified residence for the shah’s female associates during the reigns of Fath-Ali Shah and Naser al-Din Shah. This expansion was facilitated by the large number of wives they kept in their court and the financial resources available to support them. However, the glamour of the royal harem in the late Qajar period is less documented, largely due to the significant decline in royal income. In the final section, we identified key factors illustrating the position of the king's wives within the harem's dynamic and evolving structure. Ultimately, we concluded that the collective lifestyle of harem women contributed to its complexity and expansion. The divisions within this structure were shaped by the status of each court lady in relation to other women, the king, his mother, and the household's servants. Women of higher status enjoyed more privileges, including larger, more luxurious living spaces and a greater number of servants to attend to them. Residences for servants and eunuchs were carefully designed to support their responsibilities in serving and protecting the harem's women, ensuring the maintenance of their positions and status.