IRANIAN REVOLUTION

1
IRANIAN REVOLUTION

• MONARCHY TO THEOCRACY,
• SHAH TO AYATOLLAH

2
SHAH OF IRAN

• Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (1919 1980)
• Promised constitutional monarchy
• Increasingly took power from PM

3
GAINED POWER

• (Replaced father, Reza Pahlavi ?
• Forced to abdicate
• By Britain USSR
• Friendly relations with Nazi Germany)

4
KING OF KINGS

• Crowned himself
• Emperor
• In 1967
• Also crowned his wife empress
• (Note Peacock Throne-gt)

5
LEADERSHIP STYLE

• Manipulation
• Built loyal army
• Expansion of constitutional powers
• After assassination attempt
• 1949
• Secret police SAVAK
• Suppressed opponents
• Helped rich at expense of poor

6
WHITE REVOLUTION

• Reform policies
• Land reform
• Some land taken from religious leaders
• no income for them
• Voting rights to women
• Elimination of illiteracy
• Generally positive impact on some
• Resented by religious leaders

7
COLD WAR

• Ally of the West
• Not USSR bordering nation
• Oil deal with U.S.
• Opponents critical of subservience to US

8
INCREASED OPPOSITION

• From Shiite Muslims Western moderization
• Western clothing
• Eliminated Quranic oaths Lack of democracy
• Unresponsive to public opinion
• Uneven distribution of wealth
• Land reform

9
INCREASED DISCONTENT

• In 1970s
• Islamic clerics, esp. Ayatollah Khomeini
• built on popular discontent
• Demonstrations, riots, strikes
• Tied these ideas to Islamic principles
• Called for overthrow of the Shah

10
REVOLUTIONARY IMAGES
11
REVOLUTION!

• Widespread demonstrations
• 1978-79
• Shahs govt. collapsed
• Jan. 16, 1979
• Shah fled Iran
• Went to Egypt

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MORE..
13
AND MORE
14
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC

• Or theocracy
• govt which supports religion
• Led by Rouhollah Khomeini ..?
• Muslim ayatollah
• Based on Islamic fundamentalism