Women's Worlds in Qajar Iran

Tavus Khanum, known as Taj al-Dawlah, the forty-second wife of Fath ‘Ali Shah Qajar, was from Isfahan and was Gurji by ancestry. At fifteen, she became Fath ‘Ali Shah's temporary wife. On the occasion of this marriage, the name of Takht-i Khvurshid (the Sun Throne) was changed to Takht-i Tavus (the Peacock Throne). Taj al-Dawlah and Fath ‘Ali Shah had six children: Muhammad Mirza Sayf al-Dawlah, Ahmad Mirza ‘Azud al-Dawlah, Farrukh Siyar Mirza Nayyir al-Dawlah, Murassa‘ Khanum, Shirin Jahan Khanum, and Khvurshid Kulah Khanum. Fath ‘Ali Shah died on October 23, 1834 in Sa‘adat Abad, Isfahan in Tavus Khanum's lap. In 1838, Taj al-Dawlah decided to leave Iran and reside in Najaf, where she died in late-1850s or early-1860s.

Tavus Khanum, known as Taj al-Dawlah, the forty-second wife of Fath ‘Ali Shah Qajar, was from Isfahan and was Gurji by ancestry. At fifteen, she became Fath ‘Ali Shah's temporary wife. On the occasion of this marriage, the name of Takht-i Khvurshid (the Sun Throne) was changed to Takht-i Tavus (the Peacock Throne). Taj al-Dawlah's eagerness for playing music and singing made the shah to assign Mirza ‘Abd al-Vahhab Khan Nishat Isfahani (Mu‘tamad al-Dawlah) as her mentor. Tavus Khanum had her own house, storage, and stable. She was responsible for taking care of part of the shah's treasury. The shah gave her the title of Taj al-Dawlah along with precious jewelry. This jewelry was a gift from Katherine the Great to one of Fath ‘Ali Shah's other wives and he bought it from her to give to Tavus Khanum. Fath ‘Ali Shah assigned ‘Abd Allah Khan Mi‘mar Bashi [the royal architect] to build her a mansion. Taj al-Dawlah and Fath ‘Ali Shah had six children: Muhammad Mirza Sayf al-Dawlah, Ahmad Mirza ‘Azud al-Dawlah, Farrukh Siyar Mirza Nayyir al-Dawlah, Murassa‘ Khanum, Shirin Jahan Khanum, and Khvurshid Kulah Khanum. Fath ‘Ali Shah died in October 23, 1834 in Sa‘adat Abad, Isfahan in Tavus Khanum's lap. In 1838, the fourth year of Muhammad Shah's rule, Taj al-Dawlah decided to leave Iran for the ‘Atabat [holy shrines in Iraq] and Muhammad Mirza Sayf al-Dawlah asked the shah's permission to accompany his mother. Tavus Khanum became a resident of Najaf, where she died in late-1850s or early-1860s. Close

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