Mughal Harem

The Mughal Emperors had a carefully guarded wing known as the Harem, a sacred or forbidden location. That was where the begums resided, in their vacuum-sealed universe. Many royal women were required to be nameless to the outside world under the Mughal code of honor, which they regarded as noble. Since the reign of Emperor Akbar, it has been customary to refer to the occupants of the seraglio by an epithet derived either from their place of birth or from the country or city in which they may have initially been regarded with affection by the Emperor. The Mughal Harem was a massive complex, befitting the Emperor's lofty rank. Akbar's Harem included almost 5,000 women, including spouses, concubines, female relatives, administrators, guards, cooks, and menials. At the end of the sixteenth century, female officers in Akbar's Harem got stipends ranging from twenty-seven to sixteen hundred rupees per month.

In comparison, an ordinary Mughal cavalryman received a maximum of thirteen rupees per month under Akbar, and these pays reflect the lady officers' elevated position. Including the salaries of eunuchs, Akbar gave the harem women a total of 852,000 rupees per year in cash stipends. Later, emperors increased harem payments much further.

The breadth of the Imperial Harem, its alleged richness, and the lack of actual knowledge about harem life led to a lot of hot speculation among the general population about what went on there, based on the colourful talk of eunuchs and palace servants. Exaggerations and distortions are unavoidable in their accounts. True, the Emperor had many wives and concubines because he needed to be polygamous to have as many children as likely so that at least some of them would survive the high infant mortality rate and grow up to succeed him to the throne and perpetuate the royal line. But this was not the only reason, and perhaps not even the main reason, for the Emperor to keep a large harem. The sum of his wives and concubines was often several times greater than what was required to meet the dynasty's procreative needs or even satisfy the Emperor's massive sexual appetite.

The Emperor spent a significant portion of his working day in the Harem, yet it was a productive time for him because it was here that he accomplished some of his most sensitive work. The Harem, which served as his home and private office, was administered as a full-fledged government department, complete with its budget, administrators, and accountants. The Mahaldar oversaw the lady supervisor. Outside authorities are obligated to send written reports to the mahal detailing everything the monarch should know. Women officials respond to these reports as requested, and eunuchs are assigned to take out and return sealed letters sent from one side to the other on these issues. In addition, the great begums dabbled in international trade on occasion. For example, Jahangir's mother, Maryam Zamani, undertook substantial abroad trade, as did Nur Jahan and Jahanara and several others. The royal ladies also played a significant part in the patronage of officials, as amirs courted them with gifts and sought their counsel and assistance. The begums had observed all of the top officers via the durbar hall's grill and knew who they were. Of course, there could be no direct contact between the begums and the amirs, so they had to rely on eunuchs to communicate. As a sign of high favour and profound closeness, the Emperor granted a senior amir the right to enter the Harem in exceptional situations.

The Mughal Harem was the Indian subcontinent's Harem of Mughal monarchs. The phrase comes from the Near East and means "forbidden place." The Turkish word seraglio and the Persian word zenana have the same meaning. It's also related to the Sanskrit word anthapura, which means "household's inner apartment." It came to refer to the domain of women in a polygynous family and their segregated rooms that were off-limits to men. Because it was a forbidden area, the Harem was always a source of mystery and intrigue. It was a lively and expansive physical environment where women were organized according to their proximity to the Emperor.

The Women

Harems were made up of the Mughals' wives and female relatives. Marriage, birth, appointments, or gifts were the most common ways for women to enter the Harem. Rigorous Purdah restrictions supervised the women, and they could not leave the Harem as they pleased, yet many women accompanied the Emperor on pilgrimages to local shrines, hunting and touring. They were always carried out in palanquins or on the backs of elephants. They lived a materially affluent and comfortable existence inside the Harem. The Harem was surrounded by gardens, fountains, and water canals. The Mughal Harem had many divisions that looked after the inmates' basic requirements. The Royal Kitchen prepared the meal, known as Bawarchikhana, while the Akbar Khanah gave drinking water and wine. The household's food was provided by the Ritab Khanah, while the Maywa Khanah provided its fruits. The Imperial Karkhanah provided personal clothing, jewellery, luxury accessories, and other home products.

Hierarchy

The Harem was more than just a place for ladies to stay. There were babies born there, and children grew up there. Markets, bazaars, laundries, kitchens, playgrounds, schools, and baths were all within Harem's confines. The Harem had a hierarchy, with the wives and female relatives of the Emperor in charge and the concubines below them. The Harem housed mothers, stepmothers, aunts, grandmothers, stepsisters, sisters, daughters, and other female relatives. In addition, Ladies-in-waiting, servants, maids, cooks, women, authorities, and guards were all present. The Mughal Empire's Harem was defended by eunuchs and female soldiers known as Urdubegis.

Reform of Akbar

Emperor Akbar perceived the necessity to centralize the administration of his Zenana with the construction of Fatehpur Sikri. More than 5,000 ladies were said to live in this section of the palace. In the Akbarnama, Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak states that each woman had her suite of chambers. However, it is more likely that only royal family members and the Emperor's favourites had their apartments. The Zenana was separated into sectors, with (female) daroghas looking after the residents' organizational requirements and keeping the peace. Other administrative posts inside the Zenana were the tehwildars, or accounts officers, who were in charge of the zenana residents' pay and financial requirements. The mahaldar, a high-ranking female servant, was frequently used as an intelligence source from the Zenana to the monarch. Though their purpose was not strictly administrative, the anagas, or royal wet-nurses, were promoted to status positions.

Business Activity

Mughal women were in charge of financial resources and participated in a variety of economic tasks. They had annual earnings and used eunuchs as commercial representatives. Several ladies also commissioned buildings and gardens. Jahanara Begum, Shah Jahan's daughter, was involved in many architectural projects in Shah Jahan's new city, Shahjahanabad. She and her sister, Roshanara, had annual incomes often high compared to those of top imperial mansabdars. They also had a powerful administrative grip on internal trade and reaped significant sums from numerous municipalities. Nur Jahan got 230,000 mahmudis from the port city of Surat, which was a thriving centre of overseas trade. Jahanara received earnings from the port city of Surat, which was a thriving centre of overseas trade. To strengthen the monarchy and the empire, they combined their economic and political acumen.

Humayun Nama

The Humayun Nama provides an insight into the lives of Mughal women. It was written by Humayun's sister, Gulbadan Begum. She goes into great depth on the empire's problems and tensions and how women helped resolve them. For example, when Salim revolted against his father in 1601, Gulbadan Begum and Hamida Bano brought peace to the home. She also implies that women were aware of the political developments taking place in their world and how these influenced them. For instance, the traitor Mirza Kamran contacted her and asked her to compose a letter to his brother, requesting that he join Kamran's battle against the Emperor.