THE END OF MONARCHY & MODERNIZATION IN IRAN
Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi
was the Shah of Iran from 16th of September 1941 until his overthrow by
the Iranian Revolution on 11th of February 1979. He was the second and
last monarch of the House of Pahlavi of the Iranian monarchy. Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi held several titles, including that of “Shahanshah”
, Aryamehr and Bozorg Arteshdaran. The Shah had seen himself as heir to
the kings of ancient Iran, and in 1971 he held an extravagant and
magnificent celebration of 2,500 years of Persian monarchy. ( I have
gold and silver Commemorative coins from the celebration, which I
cherish ).
It has been
stated that The Shah’s regime suppressed and marginalized its opponents
with the help of Iran’s security and intelligence organization, the SAVAK, with the help of the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency
(the CIA). At its peak, the organization had as many as 60,000 agents
serving in its ranks. Relying on oil revenues, which sharply increased
in late 1973, the Shah pursued his goal of developing Iran as a mighty
regional power dedicated to social reform and economic development.
In 1976 The
Shah replaced the Islamic calendar with an “Imperial” calendar, which
began with the foundation of The Persian Empire more than 25 centuries
earlier. Unfortunately, these actions were viewed as anti-Islamic and
resulted in religious opposition.
It is truly
unfortunate that the US did not prevent the demise of this Dynasty,
which was on a strong road to vast improvements and much needed
modernization in vital areas of Iranian Culture and Society. In my post
titled, ‘ If Only… ‘ , I stated, ” ( Present day Iran ) struggles to own
it’s rich history. Since the installation of the Islamic Republic, Iran
has been forced backwards to the Dark Ages….all of the advancements
that both of The Pahlavi Shahs implemented to elevate Iran to a state of
modernization, are barely memories now. The Iranian youth of today,
which make up the majority of the present population, do not even know
about, nor are they educated about their own complete history. It is a
manipulated and tainted education, indeed. Ask any of them who The Shah
was, or mention the name Pahlavi…and you shall encounter blank stares.
The country is rich in so many ways….it saddens me to think of where
Iran would be today, had the Revolution never been allowed to take place
and the US would have watched The Shah’s back…instead of stabbing it.
Iran would have been a vibrant, modernized, glittering country with a
highly educated population. “
(available at: http://stephiepahlavizan.wordpress.com/2013/10/04/stephie-pahlavi-zan-if-only/ )
It came as an
enormous shock for me to witness how tragically and completely The
Shah’s life had transformed during the end of his once spectacular life,
” ( The Shah’s) entire world was turned upside down by the angst and
humiliation that he was subjected to by the withdrawal of the United
States’ anticipated assistance. Not only did the US promise him that
they were backing him up, but they were also long time allies who had a
history of reciprocity. They each needed each other. The US naturally
needed our rich oil and we were accustom to having their unwavering
support.” ( For more on the US’ / Jimmy Carter’s perfidy, refer to : http://thebetrayaloftheshah.blogspot.com/ )
Islamic leaders, particularly the exiled cleric Ayatollah Khomeini,
were able to focus this discontent with a populist ideology tied to
Islamic principles and calls for the overthrow of The Shah. The Shah’s
government collapsed following widespread uprisings in 1978 -1979 and
consequently an Islamic Republic succeeded his regime.
Hypocrisy in
the Islamic government: SAVAK was closed down shortly before the
overthrow of the Monarchy and the coming to power of Ayatollah Khomeini
in the February 1979 Iranian Revolution.
Following the departure of the Shah in January 1979, SAVAK’s 3,000+
central staff and its agents were targeted for reprisals; almost all of
them that were in Iran at the time of the Iranian Revolution were hunted
down and executed, only a few, those who were outside of Iran are
believed to have survived.
SAVAK was replaced by the “much larger” SAVAMA, Sazman-e Ettela’at va Amniat-e Melli-e Iran, also known as the Ministry of Intelligence and National Security of Iran.
SAVAK was never
dismantled but rather changed its name and leadership and continued on
with the same codes of operation, and a relatively unchanged “staff.”
Hossein Fardoust,
a former classmate of the Shah, was a deputy director of SAVAK until he
was appointed head of the Imperial Inspectorate, also known as the
Special Intelligence Bureau, to watch over high-level government
officials, including SAVAK directors. Fardoust later is rumoured to have
become director of SAVAMA, the post-revolution incarnation of the
original SAVAK organization.
After the
victory of the Islamic revolution, a museum was opened in the former
Towhid Prison in central Tehran called “Ebrat”. The museum displays and
exhibits the documented atrocities of SAVAK.
Beset by
advanced cancer, the Shah left Iran in January 1979 to begin a life in
exile. We lived in Egypt, Morocco, the Bahamas, and Mexico before going
to the United States for treatment of lymphatic cancer. His arrival in
New York City led to the Iranian takeover of the American Embassy in
Tehran by “Students of Imam’s Line” and the taking hostage of more than
50 Americans for 444 days.
The Shah died in Cairo, Egypt, on July 27, 1980.
Khoda Beyamorz ( RIP )
I Love and Miss You!
Stephie Pahlavi Zan
