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Important Events during the Pahlavi Period in Iran
Compiled by: Syed Ali Shahbaz
Reza Khan, whom the British installed as the first Pahlavi king of Iran
On July 25, 1944 AD, Reza Khan, whom the British installed as the first Pahlavi king of Iran, died in exile in South Africa at the age of 66 years, three years after being deposed by his masters, the British, for attempts to cooperate with Nazi Germany during World War 2. An illiterate soldier, who was set up as king in Iran by the British after their abolishment of the Qajar dynasty, he terrorized the people of Iran for sixteen years through his anti-Islamic policies that included repression of ulema, banning Iranian men from wearing the traditional dress, and the forced unveiling of women in public. In 1920, Reza Khan, as an officer in the Cossack Brigade, was ordered by the British to stage a coup, following which he was appointed minister of defense and later instated as the premier. Finally, in 1925, he was declared king by the British to implement their policies of imposing the decadent western culture on the Iranian Muslim people. During World War 2 his pro German views, made the Allied forces converge upon Tehran to replace him by his son, Mohammad Reza. Reza Khan was detained and deported, first to Mauritius and then to South Africa when he died.
The Goharshad Mosque Uprising in the holy city of Mashhad
On July 11, 1935 AD, the uprising of the Muslim people of the holy city of Mashhad, known as the Goharshad Mosque Uprising occurred against the repressive, anti-Islamic rule of the British-installed illiterate soldier, Reza Khan Pahlavi. Among the sinister moves of Reza Khan was to prohibit women from wearing the Hijab, but the Iranian people stood firm against him, while in Mashhad, the faithful inspired by the ulema, assembled at the historic Goharshad Mosque, adjacent to the holy Shrine of Imam Reza (AS), the 8th Infallible Successor of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). The ungodly Pahlavi forces desecrated the sanctity of the holy shrine and the Goharshad Mosque by using guns and artillery to kill people and to brutally suppress the popular uprising.
The police chief of Khorasan, Colonel Mohammad Taqi Khan Pesyaan
On October 1, 1921 AD, the police chief of Khorasan, Colonel Mohammad Taqi Khan Pesyaan, was killed by agents of the regime. He was a highly influential figure and strove for Iran’s independence. Following the British-engineered coup to install their agent Reza Khan as prime minister of the young Qajarid king, he commenced his struggle against infiltration by foreign powers and their local lackeys in government affairs.
He was joined by officers in Khorasan Province and soon took charge of all provincial affairs in the name of the beleaguered government of Ahmad Shah Qajar. As a result battles started with Reza Khan’s agents, leading to his martyrdom in one such clash.
"Jangal" or "Forest" Uprising in northern Iran by “Mirza Kuchak Khan”
On June 4, 1920, “Mirza Kuchak Khan” launched his "Jangal" or "Forest" Uprising in northern Iran against the injustices of the Qajar Dynasty, and the plundering of Iran’s wealth by the British and the Russians. The uprising was organized by the Committee for Unity of Islam, which was inspired by the ideas of Seyyed Jamal od-Din Asadabadi and Seyyed Abdur-Rahman Kavakebi of Iran, and Sheikh Mohammad Abduh of Egypt, for establishment of solidarity among Islamic lands against infiltration by colonial powers. After initial success, Mirza Kuchak Khan's bid to rescue Iran was foiled by infiltration of some Soviet communist agents who betrayed the movement. Finally the British-installed Reza Khan Pahlavi dealt the final blow to this anti-oppression and independence-seeking movement.
The fugitive dictator of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
On July 26, 1980 AD, the fugitive dictator of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, died in the Egyptian capital, Cairo at the age of 61. He was placed on the Peacock Throne in 1941 by the British who deposed his father, Reza Khan, for his pro German policies despite the fact that he owed his rule to Britain. Mohammad Reza loyally served the British and the Americans, who restored him to power in 1953 through the CIA coup following his ouster by the people's uprising during the movement for nationalization of Iran’s oil industry. The US wantonly plundered Iran’s wealth, while Mohammad Reza, acting as their agent, brutally suppressed the Iranian people. In February 1979, with the triumph of the Islamic Revolution under the leadership of Imam Khomeini (RA), the Pahlavi regime was thrown into the dustbin of history after some 54 years of illegal rule by father and son. In January Mohammad Reza had fled Iran; initially to Egypt and thereafter to several other countries. These countries did not allow him permanent residence, and he returned to Egypt where he died.
Nationalization of Iran’s oil industry
On June 18, 1951 AD, following nationalization of Iran’s oil industry on March 20, 1951, a board comprised of Iranian experts took charge of executive affairs of the National Iranian Oil Company, as per the recommendations of Ayatollah Seyyed Abu’l-Qassem Kashani and Iranian premier, Dr. Mohammad Mosaddeq, thereby dissolving the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company and dismissing the 450-odd foreign staff. The Iranian people achieved a landmark victory this day against domestic despotism and foreign hegemony in the face of British plots.
On July 20, 1952 AD, massive rallies were staged in Tehran and other Iranian cities in response to a call by senior religious leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Abul-Qasim Kashani, in protest to the ouster of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq and the appointment of the pro-British Ahmad Qavvam as premier by the Shah. Although the Pahlavi regime brutally suppressed the peaceful rallies, the Shah was forced to reinstate Mosaddeq as Premier. However, Mosaddeq's folly in alienating Ayatollah Kashani and the masses resulted in his overthrow 13 months later by a US-hatched coup on 19 August 1953 and the return of the fugitive Shah to the Peacock Throne.
CIA staged a coup in Iran
On August 18, in 1953, the US staged a coup in Iran to overthrow the government of Prime Dr. Mohammad Mosaddeq for nationalization of the oil industry and to return to the Peacock Throne the fugitive British installed Pahlavi potentate, Mohammad Reza. The coup plotters mobilized a number of thugs to take to the streets and attack government centres with the assistance of mercenaries in the security forces. General Fazlollah Zahedi, a US pawn, announced the collapse of the Mosaddeq administration and his appointment as the premier through the radio network. Following Shah’s return to Iran from Italy, censorship was intensified across the country. The other consequence of this US-plotted coup was Washington’s total domination over Iran’s sources, which continued until the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Tudeh Party of Iran
On May 3 in 1983, after fresh disclosures surfaced about the treacherous role of Iran’s Tudeh Party in collaboration with the Soviet Union to stage a coup against the Islamic Revolution, this party was disbanded. The vigilance of devout and revolutionary troopers in the army and security forces foiled this plot. Tudeh Party of Iran was formed in the year 1941 with a communist policy. Soon this party became the Soviet’s agent in Iran betrayed the nationalization of Iran’s oil industry by openly calling for the handing over of northern Iran’s oil sources to Soviet Union. The Tudeh Party leaders, in their confessions, admitted to collaboration with the Soviet Union against Islamic Iran.
The Islamic Coalition Group of Iran
On June 15, in 1965 AD, four members of the Islamic Coalition Group, namely Mohammad Bukharai, Sadeq Amani, Saffar Harandi, and Morteza Niknejad, were martyred by the British-installed and US-backed Shah, for protesting against his anti-Islamic policies. The Islamic Coalition was formed in the aftermath of the exile of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA) following the 15th of Khordad Uprising (June 5, 1963). This combatant group had earlier carried out the revolutionary execution of the then Iranian premier, Hassan Ali Mansour, the initiator of the scandalous Capitulation Law, which granted judicial immunity to Americans in Iran. More than hundred members of the Islamic Coalition Group were arrested, tortured and imprisoned after unfair trials.
The famous Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore in Iran
On August 7, 1941 AD, India's Bengali language author, poet, and philosopher, Rabindranath Tagore, died at the age of 80 years. He was born in Calcutta and was involved in the movement against British rule. He became the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913. He visited Iran in 1932, entering the country through Bushehr port, from where he travelled to Shiraz to pay homage to the great Iranian poets Hafez and Sa’di. At the mausoleum of Hafez, he wrote in his travelogue, “Sitting near the tomb, a signal flashed through my mind, a signal from the bright and smiling eyes of the poet on a long past spring day – akin to the springtime sunshine of today.” Tagore then visited Isfahan where he was entranced by the beautiful gardens and mosques. He arrived in Tehran on April 29. During his two weeks in Tehran, he participated in as many as eighteen public functions. He celebrated his 71st birthday in Tehran and wrote a beautiful poem titled: “IRAN”. Part of this poem reads:
“Iran, thy brave sons have brought
Their priceless gifts of friendship
On this birthday of the poet of a far-away shore,
For they have known him
In their hearts as their own.
And in return I bind this wreath of my verse
On thy forehead, and I cry: Victory of Iran!”
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