Zeynab Begum

She lived during the reigns of five successive Safavid monarchs, and apart from holding diverse functions, including at the top of the empire's bureaucratic system, she was also the leading matriarch in the royal harem for many years, and acted on occasion as kingmaker.

[1] At a young age, Zeynab Begum was assigned a guardian (laleh), Shah-Qoli Beg, a high-ranking member of the Shamlu Qizilbash faction.

[3] The marriage took place not long before 7 December 1577, but it was apparently never consummated, for Zeynab Begum continued to live in the royal harem in the Safavid capital of Qazvin.

[1] In the first years of Abbas's reign, Zeynab Begum continued to be a close confidant and acted, according to the Italian traveller Pietro Della Valle, as his foster mother.

[6] Several years later, in 1611–1612, she stood at the head of the royal banquet given on the occasion of the arrival of Wali-Mohammad Khan, the Uzbek ruler of Urgench, who had fled to the Safavid realm following an outbreak of civil war in Khwarezm.

According to historian Fazli Khuzani, this was the result of actions made by the leading mojtahed at the Safavid court, Mir Mohammad Baqer Damad.

During Abbas's terminal illness, Zeynab Begum reportedly was in close contact with the court physicians and was responsible for the supervision of his treatment at Farahabad.

[1] According to contemporaneous court chronicles, she played an important role in convincing Abbas on his deathbed to appoint his grandson Sam Mirza (later known by his regnal name of Safi) as his successor to the imperial throne.

[1] In the first few months of Safi's reign, Zeynab Begum stood on a daily basis at the head of the entire administrative organ of the country and had complete control over the management of the empire.

[1] On 12 February 1632, during the widespread bloody purges initiated by Safi, he ordered Zeynab Begum to move from Isfahan to Qazvin, banishing her from the court.