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Reza Shah Pahlavi
Shah of Iran
Reign	December 15, 1925 - September 16, 1941
Predecessor	Ahmad Shah Qajar
Successor	Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Issue	Fatemeh, Shams, Mohammad, Ashraf, Ali, Gholam, Abdul, Ahmad, Mahmud, Fatimeh, Hamid Reza Pahlavi
House	Pahlavi dynasty
Father	Abbas Ali Khan
Mother	Noush Afrin

Reza Shah, also Reza Pahlavi (Template:Lang-fa Rez̤ā Pahlavī), (March 16, 1878 – July 26, 1944), was Shah of Iran from December 15, 1925 until he was forced to abdicate by the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran in September 16, 1941 by British and Soviet forces, for his close ties with the Nazi Germany from the moment Hitler came to power in 1933 . and his relationships with European fascism. However, some have argued that his overthrow was in retaliation for his Declaration of Neutrality in World War II. His reign lasted almost 16 years.

Reza Shah is the overthrower of the last Shah of the Qajar dynasty, and founder of Iran's Pahlavi Dynasty. He was later designated by his successor to the throne, and son, the Shah M.R. Pahlavi as "Reza Shah the Great".

He established an authoritarian government that valued nationalism, militarism, secularism and anti-communism combined with strict censorship and state propaganda.

Reza Shah introduced many socio-economic reforms, reorganizing the army, government administration, and finances. However his attempts at modernisation reforms have been crticised by some for being "too fast" and "superficial".

Name

In the early stages of his life, Reza Shah was known as Reza Savad-Koohi, because of his birth place (see below). Later on, when he joined the military, he became known as Reza Khan, and later as Reza Khan Mirpanj (Persian: رضا خان میرپنج), his full military title at the time. Upon becoming minister of war, he was known as Reza Khan Sardar Sepah, which in Persian roughly means Reza Khan, head of the armed forces. Upon securing his position as the Shah of Persia, he chose the surname Pahlavi (surnames did not exist in Persia before this date, and were introduced as one of the modernization measures during his reign ). From then on, he was referred to as Reza Shah Pahlavi.

Early life

Reza Pahlavi was born in the city of Alasht in Savad Kooh county, Mazandaran in 1878. His father, Colonel Abbas Ali Khan, was an ethnic Mazandarani and had been a member of the provincial army. When Reza Khan was fifteen years old, he joined the Persian Cossack Brigade, in which, years later, he would become a commander. His mother was a Persian-speaker from Yerevan, Armenia.

He also served in the Iranian Army, where he gained the rank of gunnery sergeant under Qajar Prince Abdol Hossein Mirza Farmanfarma's command. He rose through the ranks, eventually holding a commission as a Brigadier General in the Persian Cossack Brigade. He was the last and only Iranian commander of the Persian Cossack Brigade. He was also one of the last individuals to become an officer of the Nishan-e-Aqdas prior to the collapse of the Qajar dynasty in 1925.

Rise to power

The 1921 Coup

On February 21, 1921, Reza Khan staged a coup d'état together with Seyyed Zia'eddin Tabatabaee, to get control over a country which had practically no functioning central government at the time.

Commanding a Russian-trained Cossack Brigade, Reza Khan marched his troops from Qazvin, 150 kilometres to the west of Tehran, and seized key parts of the capital city almost without opposition and forced the government to resign.

With the success of the coup, Tabatabaee became the Prime Minister of Iran. Reza Khan's first role in the new government was as commander of the army, which, in April 1921, he combined with the post of Minister of War. At the same time, he took the title Reza Khan Sardar Sepah (رضا خان سردار سپه).

In 1921 there were a number of revolts against the coup In June 1920, a soviet socialist republic had established in Gilan by Mīrzā Kūchak Khān, as the prime minister. Kurds of Khorasan also revolted in the same year.

According to some sources, the involvement of the British Empire through the office of General Edmund Ironside helped Reza Khan come to power in the 1920s. This was noted as early as March 1921 by the American embassy and relayed to the Iran desk at the Foreign Office A British Embassy report from 1932 even states that the British put Reza Shah "on the throne".

Overthrow of the Qajar dynasty

On October 26, 1923, Reza had seized control of Iran and forced the young Ahmad Shah Qajar to exile in Europe. As the Prime Minister, Reza Khan wanted to secure his power in opposition to any potential restoration of Qajar house. He now machinated for a republic and his military junta started a massive propaganda campaign for establishment of a republic. However, the idea of a republic was fiercely opposed by the powerful clergymen, and the feudal landlords.. Some leaders of the National Assembly of Iran, known as the Majlis, particularly Hassan Modarres and the young Dr. Mohammed Mossadegh forcefully opposed Reza Khan’s plan to consolidate his autocracy. His supremacy was imposed by 1925 with the subjugation of all tribal insurrections and nationalists’ unrest. He maneuvered against Qajar dynasty and in October forced the parliament to depose the young King. He assured the landlords and the conservative clergy that he would defend Islamic law and would not undertake any radical reform. The Majlis, convening as a constituent assembly on December 12, 1925, declared him the Shah.

Three days later, on December 15, 1925, he took his imperial oath and thus became the first Shah of the Pahlavi dynasty. It was not until April 25, 1926 that Reza Shah would receive his coronation and first place the Imperial Crown on his head. At the same ceremony his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was proclaimed the Crown Prince of Persia – to rule after his father.

Reign and modernization

During Reza Shah's sixteen years of rule, major developments, such as large road construction projects and the Trans-Iranian Railway were built, modern education was introduced and the University of Tehran was established. The government sponsored European educations for many Iranian students. These industrial reforms in Iran were often also advantageous for British interest. For example, in spite of the fact that economically an east-west railway system was justifiable, Reza Shah constructed an uneconomical north-south system that was beneficial for the British who had a military presence in the south of Iran and wanted to transfer their troops to Russia and the Indian subcontinent as part of their strategic defence plan.

On 21 March 1935, the ruler of the country, Reza Shah Pahlavi, issued a decree asking foreign delegates to use the term Iran in formal correspondence in accordance with the fact that "Persia" was a term used for a country called "Iran" in Persian. Opponents claimed that this act brought cultural damage to the country and separated Iran from its past in the West (see Iran naming dispute). The name “Iran” means “Land of the Aryans”.

Along with the modernization of the nation, Reza Shah was the ruler during the time of the Women's Awakening (1936-1941). This movement sought the elimination of the Islamic veil from Iranian society. Supporters held that the veil impeded physical exercise and the ability of women to enter society and contribute to the progress of the nation. This move met opposition from the religious establishment. The unveiling issue and the Women's Awakening are linked to the Marriage Law of 1931 and the Second Congress of Eastern Women in Tehran in 1932.

By the mid-1930s, Reza Shah's constructive, but dictatorial style of rule had caused intense dissatisfaction to the Shi'a clergy throughout Iran, thus widening the gap between religion and government. He forbade photographing aspects of Iran he considered backwards, like camels, he banned Iranian dress and chadors in favour of Western dress. Women who resisted this compulsory unveiling had their veils forcibly removed. He dealt harshly with opposition: troops were sent to massacre protesters at mosques and nomads who refused to settle; newspapers were closed and liberals imprisoned. He also used his power to vastly increase his fortune, becoming the biggest landowner in Iran, proprietor of nearly three thousand villages, as well as many factories and enterprises.

By the late 1930s, Reza Shah had become increasingly despotic and disliked . The parliament assented to his decrees the free press was suppressed, and swift incarceration of the political leaders like Mossadegh and murder of some like Teymourtash, and Davar halted the formation of any democratic process. He treated the urban middle class, the managers and technocrats with iron-hand, as a result his state-owned industries remained unproductive and inefficient . The bureaucracy fell apart before him since anyone could be whisked away to prison at any moment for disobeying his whims He confiscated land from the Qajars and from the rivals to usurp it into his own estates. The corruption continued under his rule and even became institutionalized. Progress toward modernization was spotty and isolated . He became totally dependent on his military force, and the army, wich in return regularly received up to 50 percent of the public revenue to guarantee its loyalty.

Relations with Germany

Template:Totaldispute

According to Terrill, Reza Shah had been impressed enormously with European fascism. Eubank and Black report that he started to cooperate with the Nazi Germany from the moment Hitler came to power in 1933 . He welcomed Nazi agents and other operatives to Tehran, allowing them to use the city as a base for Middle East agitation against the British and the region's Jews. This was directed by Hitler's ambassador to the Middle East, Fritz Grobba , a key figure among the Nazi agents, who promised a Pan-Islamic state stretching from Casablanca to Tehran . He became an ardent admirer of Hitler, Nazism and the concept of the Aryan master race. In 1935, at the suggestion of Hitler's trusted banker, Hjalmar Schacht, Reza Shah changed the name of the country to Iran. Reza Khan stirred the country to become a safe haven for German agents during the war years, and planted the seeds of the bungled 1941 pro-Nazi coup in Baghdad . When British entered Iraq in June 1941, German aircrews and the pro-Nazi Mufti of Jerusalem escaped into Iran, where they continued to call for the destruction of the Jews and the defeat of the British. In the summer of 1941, Reza Shah’s regime planned for a total diversion of oil from the Allies to the Nazis. Through the Anglo-Iranian Oil Co., Iran had already been supplying Hitler's forces in occupied Czechoslovakia and Austria.

Deposition and Death

In August 1941, the Allied powers United Kingdom and the Soviet Union, occupied Iran by a massive air, land, and naval assault subsequently forcing Reza Shah to abdicate in favour of his son (see also Persian Corridor).

The invasion was allegedly in fear that Reza Shah was about to align his petroleum-rich country with Nazi Germany during the war: However, Reza Shah's earlier Declaration of Neutrality and refusal to allow Iranian territory to be used to train, supply, and act as a transport corridor to ship arms to Russia for its war effort against Germany, was the strongest motive for the allied invasion of Iran. Due of this event, Iran attained the war-time pseudo-name of "The Bridge to Victory".

The Shah's son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, officially replaced his father on the throne on September 16, 1941. Reza Shah was soon forced into exile, first to Mauritius, then to Johannesburg, South Africa, where he either died, or was allegedly poisoned by British agents, on July 26, 1944, aged 66. After his death, his body was flown back to Iran, and a mausoleum was built in his honor, where his body was buried. His son later designated the title "the Great" to be added to his name.

Following the Iranian Revolution in 1979, Reza Shah's mausoleum was destroyed under the direction of Ayatollah Sadeq Khalkhali, which was sanctioned by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Family

Reza Shah's first wife, whom he married in 1894, was Maryam Khanum (died 1904). They had one daughter:

• Fatemeh Pahlavi (1903-1992) (see, Aga Khan III)

His second wife was Tadj ol-Molouk, by whom he had five children:

• Princess Shams Pahlavi (1917-1996)
• Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (1919-1980)
• Princess Ashraf Pahlavi (b. 1919)
• Prince Ali Reza Pahlavi (1922-1954)

In 1922 (divorced 1923), Reza Shah married Turan (Qamar al Molk) Amir Soleimani (1904 – 1995), by whom he had one son:

• Gholam Reza Pahlavi (b. 1923)

Reza Shah's fourth wife was Esmat Dowlatshahi (1904-1995), by whom he had five children:

• Abdul Reza Pahlavi (1924-2004)
• Ahmad Reza Pahlavi (1925-1981)
• Mahmud Reza Pahlavi (1926-2001)
• Fatimeh Pahlavi (1928-1987)
• Hamid Reza Pahlavi (1932-1992)

See also

• Amir Abdollah Tahmasebi
• Mohammad Hosein Airom
• Abdolhossein Teymourtash
• Sar Lashgar Buzarjomehri
• Mahmud Khan Puladeen
• Amanullah Jahanbani
• Colonel Pesian
• Khaz'al Khan
• Sepahbod Ahmad Amir-Ahmadi
• General Fazlollah Zahedi
• A.P. World History Leader

References

1. ^ The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition: Reza Shah
2. Keith Eubank, Summit at Teheran (New York, NY: William Morrow, 1985), pp. 161-197
3. ^ Edwin Black Holocaust nothing new in Iran: Ties to Hitler led to plots against British and Jews, San Francisco Chronicle, Sunday, January 8, 2006
4. W. Andrew Terrill, Regional Fears of Western Primacy and the Future of U.S. Middle Eastern Basing Policy, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College, December 2006
5. Mohsen M. Milani (1994), The Making of Iran's Islamic Revolution: From Monarchy to Islamic Republic. ISBN 0813384761
6. Michael P. Zirinsky; "Imperial Power and Dictatorship: Britain and the Rise of Reza Shah, 1921-1926", International Journal of Middle East Studies 24 (1992), 639-663, Cambridge University Press
7. The Origins of the Iranian Revolution by Roger Homan. International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-), Vol. 56, No. 4 (Autumn, 1980), pp. 673-677 Link
8. Richard W. Cottam, Nationalism in Iran, University of Pittsburgh Press, ISBN o-8229-3396-7
9. Albrecht Schnabel and Amin Saikal (2003), Democratization in the Middle East: Experiences, Struggles, Challenges URL pp91
10. Christopher Buyers, Persia, The Qajar Dynasty: Orders & Decorations
11. ^ Error in Webarchive template: Empty url. para. 2, 3
12. Makki Hossein, The History of Twenty Years, Vol.2, Preparations For Change of Monarchy, Mohammad-Ali Elmi Press, 1945 pp, 87-90, 358-451,
13. On these postwar movements see especially Cottam, Richard W Nationalism in Iran: Updated through 1978, 2nd ed. Pittsburg. University of Pittsburg Press. 1979
14. Zirinsky M.P. Imperial Power and dictatorship: Britain and the rise of Reza Shah 1921-1926. International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies. 24, 1992. p.646
15. FO 371 16077 E2844 dated 8 June 1932
16. Ansari, Ali M. Modern Iran since 1921. Longman. 2003 ISBN 0-582-35685-7 p.26-31
17. For fine discussions of this period and Ironsides's key role, see R.H. Ullman, Anglo-Soviet Relations 1917-1921, 3 (Princeton, 1972)
18. D. Wright, The English amongst the Persians (London, 1977), pp. 180-84. Ironside's diary is the main document
19. ^ Nikki R Keddie (1981). Roots of Revolution; An Interpretive History of Modern Iran. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. Page 91. ISBN 0300026064. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
20. ^ Makki Hossein (1324 (1945)). History of Iran in Twenty Years, Vol. II, Preparation for the Change of Monarchy. Tehran: Nasher Publication, Printed by Mohammad Ali Elmi. pp. PP 484-485. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
21. ibid, keddie, page 91 and Makki page 497. See also Sullivan, William H, Mission to Iran, W.W.Norton and Company,1981 page48
22. "Timeline: Iran; A chronology of key events". bbc.co.uk. January 22, 2007. Retrieved 2007-02-04.
23. : Recent History, The Education System
24. Suspect, POV, not from Pier Reviewed Source,John Stanton, Iran's Reza Pahlavi: A Puppet of the US and Israel?
25. Rajaee,Farhang, Islamic Values and World View: Farhang Khomeyni on Man, the State and International Politics, Volume XIII (PDF), University Press of America. ISBN 0-8191-3578-X
26. ^ Kapuściński, Ryszard. Shah of Shahs. Translated from Polish by William R. Brand and Katarzyna Mroczkowska-Brand. New York: Vintage International, 1992.
27. Nikki R. Keddie and Yann Richard, Roots of Revolution, 1981, Yale University, ISBN 0-300-02606-4
28. Barry Rubin, Paved with Good Intentions: The American Experience and Iran, Oxford University Press Inc. 1980, ISBN 0-14-00-5964-4 and Richard W Cottam, Nationalism in Iran, University of Pittsburgh Press 1979. ISBN 0-8229-3596-7
29. See: Barry Rubin Paved With Good Intentions: The American Experience and Iran, Oxford University Presss. Inc. 1980, and also Penguin Books 1981 pages 14 and 15
30. Barry Rubin, Paved with Good Intentions: The American Experience and Iran, Oxford University Press Inc. 1980, ISBN 0-14-00-5964-4
31. Nikki R. Keddie and Yann Richard, Roots of Revolution, 1981, Yale University, ISBN 0-300-02606-4
32. See: Barry Rubin Paved With Good Intentions: The American Experience and Iran, Oxford University Presss. Inc. 1980, and also Penguin Books 1981 pages 14 and 15
33. W. Andrew Terrill, Regional Fears of Western Primacy and the Future of U.S. Middle Eastern Basing Policy, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College, December 2006
34. Keith Eubank, Summit at Teheran (New York, NY: William Morrow, 1985), pp. 161-197
35. Paul D. Mayle, Eureka Summit: Agreement in Principle and the Big Three at Tehran, 1943 (Newark, DE: University of Delaware Press, 1987), pp. 40-59;
36. Robert Nisbet, Roosevelt and Stalin: The Failed Courtship (Washington, DC: Regnery Gateway, 1988), pp. 44-51
37. Paul D. Mayle, Eureka Summit: Agreement in Principle and the Big Three at Tehran, 1943 (Newark, DE: University of Delaware Press, 1987), pp. 40-59
38. Obituary: Ayatollah Sadeq Khalkhali – Hardline cleric known as the "hanging judge" of Iran by Adel Darwish, The Independent, Nov 29, 2003.
39. History of Iran: Reza Shah Pahlavi at the Iran Chamber Society

External links

• A Genealogy of the Pahlavi Dynasty he founded

• Mazandarani people
• Monarchs of Persia
• Prime Ministers of Iran
• Field Marshals of Iran
• 1877 births
• 1944 deaths
• Iranian anti-communists
• World War II political leaders
• Pahlavi dynasty