Rezā Shāh

Reza Khan, later Rezā Shāh, also known as Rezā Shāh Pahlavi ( رضا شاه پهلوی, and Rezā Shāh Kabir (Reza Shah the Great), (March 15, 1878 – July 26, 1944), was the Shah of the Imperial State of Iran from December 15, 1925 until he was forced to abdicate by the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran on September 16, 1941.

In 1925, Reza Shah overthrew Ahmad Shah Qajar, the last Shah of the Qajar dynasty, and founded the Pahlavi Dynasty. He established a system of government that revitalized the goals of the Constitutional Revolution of Iran where for the first time Iranians were seeking for rulers who do not remain in power for eternity. Known for being quite intelligent despite his lack of formal and academical education, Reza Shah introduced many socio-economic reforms, reorganizing the army, government administration and finances.

Reza was born in the village of Alasht in Savadkuh County, Māzandarān Province, in 1878.

His father Major Abbas Ali Khan (Dadash Beg) was born c. 1815, became commissioned in the 7th Savadkuh Regiment, and served in the Anglo-Persian War in 1856. He married more than once and his fifth marriage was in 1877, to Noush-Afarin Ayromlou (c. 1836 – Teheran, 1884). She was a second or third cousin of the notable Sar-Lashkar Muhammad-Hussein Ayrom's father. Despite being cousins, Muhammad-Hussein was generally fearful of Reza Shah because of Reza Shah's violent temperament. The Ayrums were a prominent family from Nakhchivan in Erivan Governorate of the Russian Empire who arrived in Iran in the late Eighteenth century. Upon arriving in Iran, they brought with them their strong military and political background into Iran. They once ruled the Caucasus from north to south, and despite coming from a higher-class family did not take pride in their wealth unlike most monarchs before them. One of their greatest leaders, Budogh-Sultan Ayromlou, was known for his strangely simple lifestyle.

In late 1920, the Persian Soviet Socialist Republic in Rasht was preparing to march on Tehran with "a guerrilla force of 1500 Jangalis, Kurds, Armenians, and Azerbaijanis", reinforced by the Soviet Red Army. This fact, along with various other disorders, mutinies and unrest in the country created "an acute political crisis in the capital." 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 Sardar Sepah (Persian: سردار سپه), or commander in chief of the army, by which he was known until he became shah.

On October 26, 1923, Reza Khan got control of Iran after a long period of efforts toward restoring the previous Qajar monarchy, and the young Ahmad Shah Qajar fled to exile in Europe, where he preferred to stay. Reza Shah's political court consisted mostly of intellectuals and highly-educated prominent Iranians such as Mohammad Ali Foroughi, Karim Taherzadeh Behzad and Hassan Taqizadeh. The reign of Reza Shah was a real "brain trust" that returned to the constitutional revolution's goals after almost 15 years.  Reza Shah created the foundation of a new Iran where people would participate in constructing the future of their homeland. He now called for establishment of a republic, and his educative system started a massive campaign for of a republic. However, the idea of a republic was fiercely opposed by the powerful clergymen and the feudal landlords. Therefore Reza Shah as the constitution of Iran determined became the King of Iran. He had to combat a numerous feudal aristocracy all over Iran who sought rural power in their territories. He put a collective pressure on the parliament against the Qajar dynasty, and in October made arrangements to depose the young Shah.

n 1935 he issued a letter to the League of Nations insisting that his country be refered to as Iran and not Persia, as the name "Persia" represented one ethnic group (Persians) in Iran (Reza Shah himself had some non-Persian ancestry) and others ethnic groups had contributed to Iranian heritage. This was not a change in the country's name but rather a demand addressed to the external world that the country be called by the historical name of the country, used by its native people.

Regarding modernization Reza Shah continued processes that had been started by Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, but which had been halted because of difficulties presented to the country during the First World War. 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.The number of modern industrial plants increased 17-fold under Reza Shah (excluding oil installations), and the number of miles of highway increased from 2,000 to 14,000.

Reza Shah initiated change in foreign affairs as well. The Shah worked to balance British influence with other foreigners and generally to diminish foreign influence in Iran.

In 1931, as said before, he refused to allow Imperial Airways to fly in Persian airspace, instead giving the concession to German-owned Lufthansa Airlines. The next year he surprised the British by unilaterally canceling the oil concession awarded to William Knox D'Arcy (and then called Anglo-Persian Oil Company), which was slated to expire in 1961. The concession granted Persia 16% of the net profits from APOC oil operations. The Shah wanted 21%. Following a brief challenge by the British before the League of Nations, the British acquiesced. He previously hired American consultants to develop and implement Western-style financial and administrative systems. Among them was U.S. economist Dr. Arthur Millspaugh, who acted as the nation's Finance Minister. Reza Shah also purchased ships from Italy and hired Italians to teach his troops the intricacies of naval warfare. He also imported hundreds of German technicians and advisors for various projects. Mindful of Persia's long period of subservience to British and Russian authority, Reza Shah was careful to avoid giving any one foreign nation too much control. He also insisted that foreign advisors be employed by the Persian government, so that they would not be answerable to foreign powers. This was based upon his experience with Anglo-Persian, which was owned and operated by the British government.

Any serious discussion of the reign of Reza Shah would be meaningless without demarcating several distinct periods. During the first period, which lasted from 1925–1932, the country benefited greatly from the contributions of many of the country's best and brightest, to whom should accrue the credit for laying the foundations of modern Iran. All the worthwhile efforts of Reza Shah's reign were either completed or conceived in the 1925–1938 period, a period during which he required the assistance of reformists to gain the requisite legitimacy to consolidate this modern reign.

In August 1941, the Allied powers Britain 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 Shah received with disbelief, as a personal humiliation and defeat, the news that fifteen Iranian divisions had surrendered without much resistance. Some of his troops dispersed and went home, while others were locked up in their barracks by the Allies.

The British left the Shah a face-saving way out:

“ Would His Highness kindly abdicate in favour of his son, the heir to the throne? We have a high opinion of him and will ensure his position. But His Highness should not think there is any other solution.

Iranian Railway.

Iranian treasury.

Creation of the first university in iran.

Freeing women from the Hejab (Islamic head scarf).

Eradication of malaria.

Eradication of corruption in civil servants, paying wages in time so people didn't have to rely on bribes.

Creation of schoolbooks; before Reza Shah the Islamic madreseh was the only form of schooling and the Koran the only widely available book.

Creation of birth certificates for all Iranians.

Reza Shah's main critics were the so-called "new intelligentsia", often educated in Europe, for whom the Shah "was not a state-builder but an `oriental despot` ... not a reformer but a plutocrat strengthening the landed upper class; not a real nationalist but a jack-booted Cossack trained by the Tsarists and brought to power by British imperialists. His defenders included Ahmad Kasravi, an older intellectual who defended the Shah saying

Our younger intellectuals cannot possibly understand, and thus cannot possibly judge Reza Shah. They cannot because they were too young to remember the chaotic and desperate conditions out of which he arose.

Decoration of the Imperial Portrait, 1st Class of the Persian Empire-1923

Nishan-i-Aqdas, 1st Class of the Persian Empire-1923

Order of the Lion and Sun, 1st Class of the Persian Empire-1923

Grand Collar of the Order of the Supreme Sun of the Kingdom of Afghanistan-1928

Knight of the Order of the White Eagle of Poland-1929

Collar of the Order of Muhammad 'Ali of the Kingdom of Egypt-1932

Collar of the Grand Order of the Hashimites of the Kingdom of Iraq-1932

Knight of the Order of the Seraphim of Sweden-1934

Knight of the Order of the Elephant of Denmark-1937

Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold of Belgium-1937

Grand Cross of the Legion d'honneur of France-1937

Knight of the Order of the Most Holy Annunciation of the Kingdom of Italy-1939

Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus of the Kingdom of Italy-1939

Chain of Fuad I of the Kingdom of Egypt-1939