Robe of honour

A robe of honour (Arabic: خلعة, romanized: khilʿa, plural khilaʿ, or Arabic: تشريف, romanized: tashrīf, pl. tashārif or tashrīfāt^[1]) were rich garments given by medieval and early modern Islamic rulers to subjects as tokens of honour, often as part of a ceremony of appointment to a public post, or as a token of confirmation or acceptance of vassalage of a subordinate ruler. They were usually produced in government factories and decorated with the inscribed bands known as ṭirāz. Were made of either (indigenous or foreign) high quality silks, gold-interwoven, figured, or plain silk cloth, circulation of the garments were in limited quantities.^[2]

The endowment of garments as a mark of favor is an ancient Middle Eastern tradition, recorded in sources such as the Hebrew Bible and Herodotus.^[1]

In the Islamic world, Muhammad himself set a precedent when he removed his cloak (burda) and gave it to Ka'b ibn Zuhayr in recognition of a poem praising him. Indeed, the term khilʿa "denotes the action of removing one's garment in order to give it to someone".^[1]

The practice of awarding robes of honour appears in the Abbasid Caliphate, where it became such a regular feature of government that ceremonies of bestowal occurred almost every day, and the members of the caliph's court became known as 'those who wear the khilʿa' (aṣḥāb al-khilʿa).^[1] The bestowal of garments became a fixed part of any investment into office, from that of a governor to the heir-apparent to the throne. As important court occasions, these events were often commemorated by poets and recorded by historians.^[1]

In Egypt, during the Fatimid Caliphate, the practice spread to the wealthy upper middle classes, who began conferring robes of honor on friends and relatives, in emulation of the aristocracy.^[1] Later, under the Mamluk Sultanate, the system was standardized into a system of classes reflecting the divisions of Mameluke society, each with its own ranks: the military (arbāb al-suyūf), the civilian bureaucracy (arbāb al-aqlām), and the religious scholars (al-ʿulamāʾ).^[1]

Militaristic values in daily life under the Mamluk Sultanate offered a new perspective on the ceremonial importance of robes of honor. It became the sultan's duty to provide and host lavish events for his subjects. Specifically, robes of honour were given as rewards for military rituals of everyday life, such as tournaments in horseback archery.^[3] The aforementioned military rituals could also reward a slave their freedom, so earning a robe of honour can be seen equivalent to a slave becoming a freedman. This established not only how robes of honor were rewarded to those upholding these militaristic values, but also shows how one’s freedom was earned by upholding these principles, however, it meant a whole new set of responsibilities for those who received a robe of honor. Those receiving a robe of honor were expected to begin a new career pursuing administrative, military, or courtly duties in subservience of the sultan.^[3] The color of the robes of honour dictated one’s position in society, red over a yellow atlas for senior amirs, white silk chenille for bureaucracy, and white wool for judges.^[3] The Sultan would often host hunting trips, providing robes of honour for any fiefdom he stopped at along his journey.

In India, robes of honor were considered to be a way to symbolically bind vassals to the service of the Mughal emperor. The Mughal Emperor Akbar presented a robe of honor to a rebellious vassal, the ruler of Bengal, Da'ud Khan Karrani.^[4] In his memoirs, the Jahangirnama, the Mughal Emperor Jahangir mentions giving at least 300 robes of honor to various subjects and vassals.^[4] A Mughal robe of honor presented to Raja Rai Singh of Bikaner in 1597 by Prince Salim (later known as Jahangir) is still in Bikaner, the only known surviving garment that can be securely connected to the early Mughal court. ^[4]

In colonial era India, robes of honour fulfilled multiple functions such as being a staple of political court, as well as serving as an extension of the giver to the recipient, and encapsulated the status and circle of influence of those in power. For example, robes of honour in India became a necessity for the vastly changing court life and certain aspects of trading.^[5] However, countries expanding their colonial influence, barred and censored robes of honour within their sphere of dominance. This is because robes of honour were often viewed with negative contexts to these imperial powers, as a practice perceived equal to that of bribery.^[6] Essentially because robes of honour were above all an admission of submission of the recipient to the provider. Colonial powers began to understand this practice and wanted to keep the tradition behind the action of gift giving to earn the loyalty of the recipient. This practice was remodeled to use other commodities, such as painted portraits. For example, the first Governor-General Warren Hastings (1772-1785) ordered British portraitists to indigenous courts to create portraits of Indian rulers and sent them to English East India Company authorities as a gift.^[6] These gifted portraits were successful in establishing English East India Company connections throughout the wealthy kingdoms of Mysore, Awadh, the Carnatic, and the Deccan.^[6] Ultimately, colonial powers sought to hijack this ceremonious gift giving process while establishing their own social circles with their own manufactured goods.

Sums of money or other valuables were also given as part of the bestowal ceremony, or, in some cases, in lieu of the robe.^[4] In the Ottoman Empire, such a sum was known as khilʿet behā ('price of khilʿa'); most commonly this referred to the donativum received by the Janissaries on the accession of a new sultan.^[7]

The distribution of the robes of honour was the responsibility of the Keeper of the Privy Purse (nāẓir al-khāṣṣ), who supervised the Great Treasury (al-khizāna al-kubra), where the garments were stored.^[1] Al-Maqrizi provides a detailed description of the garments worn by the various classes and ranks; in addition, Mamluk practice included the bestowal of arms or even a fully outfitted horse from the Sultan's own stables as a tashrīf.^[1] The practice remained very common until the early 20th century; in 19th-century India, the bestowal gift or khillaut (khelat, khilut, or killut) might comprise from five up to 101 articles of clothing.^[8]

Due to the earlier, 1427 invasion of Cyprus by the Mamluk Sultanate, Caterina Corner, last queen of the Lusignan dynasty of Cyprus, who ruled from 1474 to 1489, was a Mamluk vassal, and her overlord was Sultan Qaitbay. Cypriot ambassadors who traveled to Cairo were given ceremonial robes to wear in audience with the sultan.^[9] Upon her coronation, Caterina was given rich presents by the Mamluk sultan, including a robe of honor trimmed with fur and woven with gold, Arabian horses, Syrian incense burners, and Chinese porcelain. According to the Flemish nobleman and traveller, Joos van Ghistele, such gifts showed that the sultan "holds the king or queen of Cyprus as his slave, who cannot possess riches except with his permission". The weaving of robes of honor was done on a grand scale within the Sultanate due to gifts such as these. ^[9]

As the practice spread in the Muslim world, and robes began to be given for every conceivable occasion, they also acquired distinct names. Thus for example the khilaʿ al-wizāra ('robe of the vizierate') would be given on the appointment to the vizierate, while the khilaʿ al-ʿazl ('robe of dismissal') upon an—honourable—dismissal, the khilaʿ al-kudūm might be given to an arriving guest, while the khilaʿ al-safar would to a departing guest, etc.^[8]

As opposed to the Arabic word khilat, meaning "cast-off", in the Persianate cultural sphere, robes of honor were referred to as sarāpā, or "head-to-foot", referring to the complete ensemble of gifts given to someone favored by the ruler. ^[4]In Safavid Persia, richly embroidered robes of honor were bestowed on ambassadors, such as Sir Robert Shirley (a portrait by Van Dyck shows Shirley in Persian dress, wearing his Safavid robe of honor) and Nakd 'Ali Beg. ^[10]A surviving Safavid coat or robe of honor given to Queen Christina of Sweden is in the Royal Treasury Museum in Sweden.^[11]

An example of a contemporary robe of honor is which Lionel Messi received on December 22, 2022, commemorating his world cup win with Argentina national football team during the 2022 world cup against France in the finals. During the trophy ceremony the Tamin Bin Hamad Al Thani the Emir of Qatar covered a traditional cloak called Bisht over Lionel Messi's shoulders before Messi lifted the trophy.

A Bisht is a light cloak that is long and trimmed with gold and traditionally worn with a white thobe. The Bisht is a symbol of honor, status, prestige and respect. It is historically worn in the Arab world for special occasions by royalties, grooms at wedding or even graduation ceremonies.

Messi was presented the Bisht by the Emir as a gesture to honor Messi, not only was it placed on him for his achievement for winning the world cup and a major celebration but it was also a mark of honor as a cultural acceptance and welcoming. Placing the Bisht on Messi was meant to show respect and to celebrate a moment of global sports victory associated with cultural tradition.

During the moment Messi was honored with the Bisht during the trophy ceremony it received mixed global reactions. Many of those in the Arab world felt prideful, and saw it as a powerful symbol of honor from the Emir of Qatar. Even in Argentina, many viewed Messi receiving the Bisht as Messi being crowned royalty. However, the western media criticized the moment and claiming that the Bisht covered the Argentina jersey and that  Qatar stole the moment, these criticism were drawn due to the lack of understanding of the cultural significance of the Bisht, once the significance of the Bisht was clarified, many western media retraced their statements.

• Tiraz
• Chelengk
• Khalat

• Mayer, Leo Ary (1952). Mamluk Costume: A Survey. A. Kundig.
• Stillmann, N. A. (1986). "K̲h̲ilʿa". In Bosworth, C. E.; van Donzel, E.; Lewis, B. & Pellat, Ch. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Volume V: Khe–Mahi. Leiden: E. J. Brill. pp. 6–7. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0507. ISBN 978-90-04-07819-2.
• Stillman, Yedida Kalfon (2003). Norman A. Stillman (ed.). Arab Dress, A Short History: From the Dawn of Islam to Modern Times (Revised Second ed.). Leiden and Boston: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-11373-2.