The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought

royal court

The royal court in Islamic societies encompasses bureaucracy, literary production, public display of sovereignty, and the patronage of arts, sciences, and religious institutions. One of the earliest models for the organization of an Islamic “royal court” comes from the Abbasid caliphate. Under the caliph Abu Ja‘far al-Mansur (r. 754–75), an elaborate bureaucratic system of government offices (dawāwīn) was established that would allow for the successful government and financial administration of his burgeoning empire. By the time of the caliph Harun al-Rashid (r. 786–809), this system had expanded to include a flowering court culture with the caliph at its center. Texts such as the 11th-century Rusum Dar al-Khilafah (The Rules and Regulations of the Abbasid Court) outline in great detail the extent of these bureaucratic responsibilities, as well as the colorful experience of everyday life at court. The royal court was governed by strict rules of behavior dictating highly controlled access to the caliph or ruler. Surrounding him were a number of figures (often formally employed as bureaucrats) such as the nadīm, or drinking companion, who joined the ruler in entertainments such as chess games and hunting. The adīb, an erudite man well read in science, culture, history, and languages, is perhaps best exemplified by the famous al-Jahiz (d. 868). Some of these men could be called ẓarīf to note their elegance and refinement. Over time, as Islamic societies began to expand into areas increasingly distant from the Hijaz, foreign court customs, notably Persian, were absorbed into the Islamic paradigm.

The royal household included numerous pages, servants, entertainers, cooks, and craftsmen. The palace of the Islamic world thus became an increasingly complex space, evolving from the early Umayyad dār al-imāra (palace of government) model into the more elaborate and formal dār al-khilāfah (caliphal palace) model. Architecture played an important role in court life as a means to regulate access to the ruler, as a public display of sovereignty, and as a locus for royal ceremonies. The Ottoman Topkapi Saray, constructed on the order of Mehmed II to be built on top of the Byzantine acropolis, provides an excellent example of these functions, with its multiple gates and courtyards and increasingly restrictive access to royal spaces culminating in the royal harem at the heart of the complex.

Artistic patronage was another important aspect of the outward expression of the royal court. Courtly patronage of the arts and sciences could include undertaking monumental building projects such as the Süleymaniye Mosque in Ottoman Istanbul or the Taj Mahal in Mughal Delhi. But while pious projects such as Qur’an manuscript production or the construction of a new mosque were important undertakings, all manner of luxury items were commissioned under the auspices of the royal court. Costumes, ceremonial weapons, poetic anthologies, culinary utensils, and jewelry were presented as gifts at court and produced in royal workshops closely associated with the palace. Luxury manuscripts of Abu al-Qasim Firdawsi’s Shahnama (Book of kings) demonstrate the central role that Persianate models of kingship and courtly life played in the development of the Islamic royal court. Examples such as the Safavid Tahmasp Shahnama or the Ilkhanid Demotte Shahnama lavishly depict the contemporary courtly milieu as the setting for historical episodes, thus creating a connection with the imagined royal past while underscoring the magnificence of the ruler’s court.