Mohammad Shah Qajar in the context of "Naser al-Din Shah Qajar"

Naseraddin Shah Qajar (Persian: ناصرالدین‌شاه قاجار, romanized: Nâser al-Din Shâh-e Qâjâr, pronounced [nɒːˌseɹ æl‿ˈdiːn ˌʃɒːh‿e qɒːˈd͡ʒɒːɹ]; 17 July 1832 – 1 May 1896) was the fourth Shah of Qajar Iran from 5 September 1848 to 1 May 1896 when he was assassinated. Initially seeking to modernise Iran, his style of governance became more dictatorial over the course of his reign. His reign saw the Second Herat War (1856), the subsequent Anglo-Persian War (1857) and internal unrest, Tobacco Protest (1890-1891).

He allowed the establishment of newspapers in the country and made use of modern forms of technology such as telegraph, photography and also planned concessions for railways and irrigation works. Despite his modernising reforms on education, his tax reforms were abused by people in power, and the government was viewed as corrupt and unable to protect commoners from abuse by the upper classes which led to increasing anti-governmental sentiments. He was assassinated at Shah Abdol-Azim Shrine in Rey near Tehran. He was the first modern Iranian monarch who formally visited Europe and wrote of his travels in his memoirs.He was the son of Mohammad Shah Qajar and Malek Jahan Khanom and the third longest reigning monarch in Iranian history after Shapur II of the Sasanian dynasty and Tahmasp I of the Safavid dynasty. Naser al-Din Shah had sovereign power for close to 48 years.

Kamran Mirza Durrani (Pashto/Persian: کامران میرزا دورانی) was the last Durrani ruler of Herat from 1826 to 1842. He was the son and successor of Mahmud Shah Durrani (r. 1801–1803, 1809–1818). During Kamran Mirza's early life, a lengthy struggle for control of the capital Kabul occurred between his father and his father's half-brother, Shah Shujah Durrani (r. 1804–1809). In this period, Kamran Mirza governed the city of Kandahar, while his uncle Firuz al-Din Mirza ruled Herat under Iranian suzerainty. When Firuz al-Din rebelled in 1814, Kamran Mirza suppressed the revolt.

In 1818, the Durrani minister Fateh Khan Barakzai deposed Firuz al-Din as ruler of Herat; his troops then plundered the city, and his brother Dost Mohammad Khan raped Kamran Mirza's sister. In revenge, Kamran Mirza captured Fateh Khan and had him executed, which prompted a rebellion by Fateh Khan's brothers. This forced Mahmud Shah and Kamran Mirza to retreat to Herat, the last Durrani stronghold. In 1826, Kamran Mirza became the ruler of Herat after defeating his father, who then withdrew from politics. In an attempt to strengthen Iranian control of Herat, the Iranian crown prince Abbas Mirza besieged Herat in 1833. Although Abbas Mirza died during the siege, Kamran Mirza acknowledged Iran's nominal suzerainty. A second siege took place in 1837–1838 under Mohammad Shah Qajar (r. 1834–1848), but British intervention forced the Iranians to withdraw. After the British embassy left Herat, Kamran Mirza renewed his allegiance to Iran in 1841.

Malek Jahan Khanom (Persian: ملک‌جهان خانم; 26 February 1805 – 2 April 1873) was one of the wives of Muhammad Shah Qajar and the mother of Naseraddin Shah. She was the de facto regent of Iran for one month, from 5 September until 5 October in 1848, between the death of her husband and the accession of her son.