Katana VentraIP

Iranian Revolution

The Iranian Revolution (Persian: انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân [ʔeɴɢeˌlɒːbe ʔiːɾɒːn]), also known as the Islamic Revolution (انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī),[4] was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution also led to the replacement of the Imperial State of Iran by the present-day Islamic Republic of Iran, as the monarchical government of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was superseded by the theocratic government of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, a religious cleric who had headed one of the rebel factions. The ousting of Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran, formally marked the end of Iran's historical monarchy.[5]

This article is about the 1979 revolution. For the 1905–1911 revolution, see Persian Constitutional Revolution. For the series of reforms launched in 1963, see White Revolution.

Iranian Revolution

7 January 1978 (1978-01-07) – 11 February 1979 (1979-02-11)
(1 year, 1 month and 4 days)

Overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty

After the 1953 Iranian coup d'état, Pahlavi aligned Iran with the Western Bloc and cultivated a close relationship with the United States to consolidate his power as an authoritarian ruler. Relying heavily on American support amidst the Cold War, he remained the Shah of Iran for 26 years after the coup, effectively keeping the country from swaying towards the influence of the Eastern Bloc and the Soviet Union.[6][7]


Beginning in 1963, Pahlavi implemented a number of reforms aimed at modernizing Iranian society, in what is known as the White Revolution. In light of his continued vocal opposition to the modernization campaign after being arrested twice, Khomeini was exiled from Iran in 1964. However, as major ideological tensions persisted between Pahlavi and Khomeini, anti-government demonstrations began in October 1977, eventually developing into a campaign of civil resistance that included elements of secularism and Islamism.[8][9][10] In August 1978, the deaths of between 377 and 470 people in the Cinema Rex fire — claimed by the opposition as having been orchestrated by Pahlavi's SAVAK — came to serve as a catalyst for a popular revolutionary movement across all of Iran,[11][12] and large-scale strikes and demonstrations paralyzed the entire country for the remainder of that year.


On 16 January 1979, Pahlavi left the country and went into exile as the last Iranian monarch,[13] leaving behind his duties to Iran's Regency Council and Shapour Bakhtiar, the opposition-based Iranian prime minister. On 1 February 1979, Khomeini returned to Iran, following an invitation by the government;[6][14] several thousand Iranians gathered to greet him as he landed in the capital city of Tehran.[15] By 11 February 1979, the monarchy was officially brought down and Khomeini assumed leadership over Iran while guerrillas and rebel troops overwhelmed Pahlavi loyalists in armed combat.[16][17] Following the March 1979 Islamic Republic referendum, in which 98% of Iranian voters approved the country's shift to an Islamic republic, the new government began efforts to draft the present-day Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran;[18][8][9][19][20] Ayatollah Khomeini emerged as the Supreme Leader of Iran in December 1979.[21]


The success of the Iranian Revolution was met with surprise around the world,[22] and was considered by many to be unusual in nature: it lacked many of the customary causes of revolutionary sentiment (e.g., defeat in war, a financial crisis, peasant rebellion, or disgruntled military);[23] occurred in a country that was experiencing relative prosperity;[6][20] produced profound change at great speed;[24] was massively popular; resulted in the massive exile that characterizes a large portion of today's Iranian diaspora;[25] and replaced a pro-Western secular[26] and authoritarian monarchy[6] with an anti-Western Islamist theocracy[6][19][20][27] that was based on the concept of Velâyat-e Faqih (or Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist), straddling between authoritarianism and totalitarianism.[28] In addition to declaring the destruction of the Israeli state as a core ideological objective of its revolution,[29][30] post-revolutionary Iran also aimed to undermine the influence of Sunni leaders in the region, by supporting Shi'ite political ascendancy and exporting Khomeinist doctrines abroad.[31] After the aftermath of the revolution, Iran began to back Shia militancy across the region in an attempt to combat Sunni influence and establish Iranian dominance within the Arab world, ultimately aiming to achieve an Iranian-led Shia political order.[32]

An injured revolutionary during protests against Pahlavi regime

An injured revolutionary during protests against Pahlavi regime

Protests in summer 1978

Protests in summer 1978

Revolutionary victims

Revolutionary victims

Current Iranian leader,Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a Revolutionary protest in Mashhad

Current Iranian leader,Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a Revolutionary protest in Mashhad

Shah visiting Bakhtiar cabinet before his exit from Iran

Shah visiting Bakhtiar cabinet before his exit from Iran

People celebrating Shah's exit from the country

People celebrating Shah's exit from the country

Removal of Shah's statue by the people in University of Tehran

Removal of Shah's statue by the people in University of Tehran

Ayatollah Khomeini at Mehrabad Airport

Ayatollah Khomeini at Mehrabad Airport

People accompanying Ayatollah Khomeini from Mehrabad to Behesht Zahra

People accompanying Ayatollah Khomeini from Mehrabad to Behesht Zahra

Ayatollah Khomeini in Behesht Zahra

Ayatollah Khomeini in Behesht Zahra

Ayatollah Khomeini before a speech at Alavi school

Ayatollah Khomeini before a speech at Alavi school

, starring Ben Affleck, a film on the US government rescuing Americans in Iranian hostage crisis.

Argo

is an autobiographical series of comics by Marjane Satrapi first published in 2000 that depicts the author's childhood in Iran during and after the Islamic Revolution. The 2007 animated film Persepolis is based upon on it.

Persepolis

is a movie about an Iranian Jewish family. After creating a prosperous life in Iran, they may be forced to abandon everything as a revolution looms on the horizon. It is based on the 2007 novel The Septembers of Shiraz by Dalia Sofer.

Septembers of Shiraz

, a 2016 video game set in the backdrop of the Iranian Revolution.

1979 Revolution: Black Friday

, a three-part British documentary series shown in February 2009 on the BBC.

Iran and the West

Portal The Iran Revolution.

Islamic Revolution

on Iran Chamber Society

"Iran after the victory of 1979's Revolution"

(Archived 28 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine 2009-10-31)

Islamic Revolution of Iran, Encarta

The Islamic revolution, Britannica

– audio slideshow by The Guardian

The Islamic revolution: 30 years on, its legacy still looms large