Iranian Revolution

The Iranian Revolution was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the <a href="/facts/Pahlavi_dynasty/FDYMgMos">Pahlavi dynasty</a> in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the <a href="/facts/Imperial_State_of_Iran/WqU7j2W8">Imperial State of Iran</a> by the <a href="/facts/Islamic_Republic_of_Iran/24yukge8">Islamic Republic of Iran</a>, as the monarchical government of Shah <a href="/facts/Mohammad_Reza_Pahlavi/r2bcadLc">Mohammad Reza Pahlavi</a> was superseded by <a href="/facts/Ruhollah_Khomeini/y1kgDUoG">Ruhollah Khomeini</a>, an <a href="/facts/Islamist/4u3G2nEf">Islamist</a> cleric who had headed one of the rebel factions. The ousting of Pahlavi, the last <a href="/facts/Shah_of_Iran/NyYXHApF">Shah of Iran</a>, formally marked the end of <a href="/facts/List_of_monarchs_of_Persia/NyYXHApF">Iran's historical monarchy</a>.
In 1953, the CIA- and MI6-backed <a href="/facts/1953_Iranian_coup_d%2527%25C3%25A9tat/6poAfCcE">1953 Iranian coup d'état</a> overthrew Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister, <a href="/facts/Mohammad_Mossadegh/IAm34V5s">Mohammad Mossadegh</a>, who had nationalized the country's oil industry to reclaim sovereignty from <a href="/facts/British_Empire/hrsz0j7A">British</a> control. The coup reinstated Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as an absolute monarch and significantly increased <a href="/facts/United_States/P0sCdLe5">United States</a> influence over Iran. Economically, American firms gained considerable control over Iranian oil production, with US companies taking around 40 percent of the profits. Politically, Iran acted as a counterweight to the <a href="/facts/Soviet_Union/m7wWsPto">Soviet Union</a> and aligned closely with the <a href="/facts/Western_Bloc/RS9Ev5RJ">Western Bloc</a>. Additionally, the US provided the Shah both the funds and the training for <a href="/facts/SAVAK/7An0zo25">SAVAK</a>, Iran’s infamous <a href="/facts/Secret_police/1ea5u7R8">secret police</a>, with <a href="/facts/CIA_activities_in_Iran/tQEy5U2j">CIA assistance</a>.
By the late 1960s and early 1970s, with the US increasingly involved in the <a href="/facts/Vietnam_War/W0gfbGTE">Vietnam War</a> and unable to maintain its interests globally, it adopted the <a href="/facts/Nixon_Doctrine/kwe1B8wf">Nixon Doctrine</a>, effectively shifting the burden of regional security to allied states. Iran under the Shah, became "regional policemen" in the <a href="/facts/Persian_Gulf/W78AfnC1">Persian Gulf</a>, with Iran’s defense budget increasing around 800 percent over four to five years, as it purchased advanced weaponry from the US. This rapid militarization contributed to severe economic instability, including spiraling inflation, mass migration from rural areas to cities, and widespread social disruption. At the same time, the Shah’s regime grew increasingly authoritarian; those who spoke out were often arrested or tortured by SAVAK. Much of this repression unfolded with little scrutiny or challenge from the US. By the late 1970s, popular resistance to the Shah’s rule had reached a breaking point. Additionally in 1963, the Shah launched the <a href="/facts/White_Revolution/df5hNcCg">White Revolution</a>, a top-down modernization and land reform program that alienated many sectors of society, especially the clergy. Khomeini emerged as a vocal critic and was exiled in 1964. However, as ideological tensions persisted between Pahlavi and Khomeini, anti-government demonstrations began in October 1977, developing into a campaign of civil resistance that included <a href="/facts/Communism/PkUwa9xK">communism</a>, <a href="/facts/Socialism/U2kVoPaA">socialism</a>, and Islamism. By 1977, mass protests were underway. A key turning point occurred in August 1978, when the <a href="/facts/Cinema_Rex_fire/xlCSLyvf">Cinema Rex fire</a> killed around 400 people. While arson by Islamist militants was later alleged, a large portion of the public believed it was a false flag operation by the Shah's secret police (SAVAK) to discredit the opposition and justify a crackdown, fueling nationwide outrage and mobilization. By the end of 1978, the revolution had become a broad-based uprising that paralyzed the country for the remainder of that year.
On 16 January 1979, Pahlavi went into exile as the last Iranian monarch, leaving his duties to Iran's <a href="/facts/Regency_Council_(Iran)/aQXqel09">Regency Council</a> and <a href="/facts/Shapour_Bakhtiar/BqnCTmhI">Shapour Bakhtiar</a>, the opposition-based prime minister. On 1 February 1979, <a href="/facts/Ruhollah_Khomeini%2527s_return_to_Iran/CrJ2JFpA">Khomeini returned</a>, following an invitation by the government; several million greeted him as he landed in <a href="/facts/Tehran/S8dmdwyG">Tehran</a>. By 11 February, the monarchy was brought down and Khomeini assumed leadership while guerrillas and rebel troops overwhelmed Pahlavi loyalists in armed combat. Following the <a href="/facts/1979_Iranian_Islamic_Republic_referendum/hpAfAKJj">March 1979 Islamic Republic referendum</a>, in which 98% approved the shift to an <a href="/facts/Islamic_republic/hE0SWdyj">Islamic republic</a>, the new government began drafting the present-day <a href="/facts/Constitution_of_Iran/EzYgBsgF">constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran</a>; Khomeini emerged as the <a href="/facts/Supreme_Leader_of_Iran/LXCaIbpY">Supreme Leader of Iran</a> in December 1979.
The revolution was fueled by widespread perceptions of the Shah's regime as corrupt, repressive, and overly reliant on foreign powers, particularly the United States and the United Kingdom. Many Iranians felt that the Shah's government was not acting in the best interests of the Iranian people and that it was too closely aligned with Western interests, especially at the expense of Iranian sovereignty and cultural identity. However others perceived the success of the revolution as being unusual, since it lacked many customary causes of revolutionary sentiment, e.g. defeat in war, financial crisis, <a href="/facts/Peasant_rebellion/MmWSlK6F">peasant rebellion</a>, or disgruntled military. It occurred in a country experiencing relative prosperity, produced profound change at great speed, and resulted in a massive exile that characterizes a large portion of <a href="/facts/Iranian_diaspora/FehpF9ny">Iranian diaspora</a>, and replaced a pro-Western secular and authoritarian monarchy with an <a href="/facts/Anti-Western_sentiment/YqUUNkgy">anti-Western</a> Islamic republic based on the concept of Velâyat-e Faqih (<a href="/facts/Guardianship_of_the_Islamic_Jurist/BwgJbGS6">Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist</a>), straddling between <a href="/facts/Authoritarianism/88Kfm2gU">authoritarianism</a> and <a href="/facts/Totalitarianism/Txc6sJvM">totalitarianism</a>. In addition to declaring the destruction of <a href="/facts/Israel/dEe3IcaY">Israel</a> as a core objective, post-revolutionary Iran aimed to undermine the influence of <a href="/facts/Sunni/WYo0zeq0">Sunni</a> leaders in the region by supporting <a href="/facts/Shi%2527ite/JIQl7ooz">Shi'ite</a> political ascendancy and exporting <a href="/facts/Khomeinist/cYPJKlWo">Khomeinist</a> doctrines abroad. In the <a href="/facts/Aftermath_of_the_Iranian_revolution/PVabz4cP">aftermath of the revolution</a>, Iran began to back Shia militancy across the region, to combat Sunni influence and establish Iranian dominance in the <a href="/facts/Arab_world/F8Jouq98">Arab world</a>, ultimately aiming to achieve an Iranian-led Shia political order.

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Iranian Revolution