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Pre-1925
First Russo-Persian War -
Pre-1925
War eventually lost to Russia, with loss of territory. -
Pre-1925
Constitutional Revolution. Dabashi calls this event the beginning of modern Iran, when the absolute monarchy becomes a constitutional monarchy (71). -
Establishment of Tehran University, modern and secular.
Dabashi says of the university: “Tehran University would of course also function as the secular counterpart of religious seminaries in Qom and Mashhad – thus there were now two, diametrically opposed, educational systems, one almost exclusively under the control of the Pahlavi government, while the others thrived under a more or less autonomous clerical establishment” (121). -
Veiling of Women
Veiling of women in public is banned by the Shah. -
Second Pahlavi monarch
Second Pahlavi monarch, age 22, occupies the throne after his father is exiled to South Africa. Dabashi says of this transition: “The flirtation of Reza Shah with the Axis powers resulted in the Allied occupation of Iran soon after the war began, and he was forced to abdicate in favor of his son, Muhammad Reza Shah, who was installed and supported in power by the Allied forces” (123). -
Winston churchill
Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, and Joseph Stalin meet in Tehran; they promise Iran national sovereignty (Dabashi 124). -
Iranian Prime Minister
Iranian Prime Minister Mosaddeq nationalizes the Iranian oil industry, which foments a power struggle with the Shah. Dabashi notes that this is a time when anticolonial movements are active in the region, Jawaharlal Nehru in India, Nasser in Egypt (127). -
US CIA engineers
The US CIA engineers a coup (led by Kermit Roosevelt) that removes Prime Minister Mosaddeq, and brings the Shah back to power.
Dabashi notes that Iran served as a crucial logistical base for the American military during the US involvement in the Vietnam War (1956-1975) (123). -
SAVAK
The Shah establishes SAVAK, the secret police that act against political dissenters. -
White Revolution
The White Revolution, initiated by the Shah and supported by President Kennedy, implements further secularization. -
Ayatollah Khomeini
Ayatollah Khomeini, now Shi’ite leader, challenges the Shah, only to be arrested and exiled to Iraq. -
Shah Celebrates
The Shah celebrates 2500 years of Persian monarchy. -
Siahkal uprising
Siahkal uprising, armed struggle against the Shah by socialists. -
Iran doesnt Participate
Iran doesn’t participate in the Arab oil embargo, which means tremendous profits for the Shah. -
President Jimmy Carter
President Jimmy Carter on a visit to Iran proclaims Iran “an island of stability in an otherwise troubled Middle East” (Dabashi 157). -
Increasing Large Public Demonstrations
Increasing large public demonstrations against the Shah signify opposition of urban guerrilla movements and the clerics. On “Black Friday” in September the Shah’s army opens fire on protesters, killing and wounding many. In October Khomeini flies to France to direct the revolution from there. The Shah appoints a series on prime ministers in an effort to regain control of the country as demonstrations become increasingly violent. -
A Million of Iranians celebrate
a million Iranians celebrate in Tehran, calling for the formation of an Islamic republic and the return of Khomeini. -
Shah Leaves Country
The Shah leaves the country on January 16 for Egypt, Morocco, the Bahamas, Mexico, and then the US, where he undergoes treatment for cancer. He eventually settles in Egypt, where he dies on July 27, 1980. Dabashi: “Iran’s status as a client of the United States also necessitated the suppression of Marxist and socialist ideas, in a country that was in the immediate vicinity of the Soviet Union and serving as a major U.S. bulwark to check and balance Soviet expansionism in the region and secure. -
Rule of the Pahlavi Royal Family (Reza Shah and son Muhammad Reza Shah)
The rule of the first Pahlavi monarch comes about as a result of a military coup in 1921 supported by the British. Reza Shah crowned himself on April 25, 1926. Reza Shah was determined to modernize Iran, looking to imitate Ataturk’s modernization of Turkey (1895-1914, Young Turk Movement). -
Khomeini returns
Khomeini returns in triumph to Iran and appoints Mehdi Bazargan prime minister for a provisional government while the Islamic constitution is drafted. -
Militant Students
Militant students seize the American embassy in Tehran and hold 52 American diplomats hostage there for 444 days. A US attempt to rescue the hostages on April 24, 1980, results in humiliating catastrophe when the American helicopters and planes crash in the desert with heavy casualties. The hostages will finally be released on Reagan’s inauguration, January 20, 1981. -
First Iranian President
the first Iranian president, Abu al-Hassan Bani-Sadr, is inaugurated. He’ll be dismissed and exiled by Khomeini in June 1981. -
Saddam Hussein Invades Iran
In September, Saddam Hussein invades Iran, with the support of the US, Europe, and the Soviet Union. This is the beginning of the eight-year Iran-Iraq War.
Consider the other upheaval in the region:
The Russians invade Afghanistan
Military coup in Pakistan
Assassination of Saudi King Faysal
Peace treaty signed between Egypt and Israel followed by assassination of Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat.
Israel invades and occupies Lebanon.
During the war, the US sold arms to both Iraq and la -
Suddam Hussein Invades Iran cont.
later Iran (Dabashi 170). Dabashi writes of Khomeini’s rule: “The shah’s tyranny seemed pathetic in comparison to the violence Khomeini inflicted on the nation. He ordered the swift and brutal execution of anyone who even seemed to challenge his vision of an Islamic republic. Old army officers and aging former politicians were arrested and summarily executed, as were young revolutionaries, juvenile activists, Kurdish rebels, women protesting the imposition of a medieval code of conduct on th -
Suddam Hussein Invades Iran cont.
medieval code of conduct on them, leaders of religious minorities, poets, journalists – anyone and everyone who dared to make the slightest public protest against the cruel theocracy that Khomeini had dreamed, ordered, legislated, and institutionalized with unsurpassed punishment, ascetic precision, and mystical conviction”(163). Dabashi notes that at the time of the revolution, 50 % of the population of 35 million lived in “rural areas, with very limited and primitive means of transportation,
