On January 16, 1979, Iran was swept into a historic whirlwind. Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, the last monarch of the Pahlavi dynasty, was overthrown by the wave of the Islamic Revolution and forced into exile.
Reza Shah Pahlavi seized power in 1953 through a coup orchestrated by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). With Western support, he pursued modernization and industrialization in Iran, but his strong centralized governance and the influx of Western culture provoked resistance from Islamic fundamentalist forces. Corruption and inequality arising from oil resource development further fueled public discontent.
Anti-government protests intensified across Iran in 1978, and 1979, the Islamic Revolution, led by Ayatollah Khomeini, succeeded. Feeling the revolution’s threat, Reza Shah Pahlavi fled to Egypt with his family. The Pahlavi dynasty, which had lasted 25 years, ended, and Iran was reborn as the Islamic Republic.
Even in exile, Reza Shah Pahlavi dreamed of restoring Iran and engaged in various activities, but he failed to destabilize the Islamic Republic’s firm foundations. His reign is viewed with mixed historical evaluations, encompassing both the positive aspects of Westernization and modernization and the harmful elements of dictatorship and corruption. He passed away in Egypt on July 27, 1980.
The fall of Reza Shah Pahlavi marked the rise of Islamic fundamentalist forces, which led to the success of the Iranian Revolution and triggered the spread of Islamic fundamentalism throughout the Middle East. It also deepened anti-American sentiment in the region, becoming a lasting source of conflict in relations between the United States and Middle Eastern countries.
The downfall of Reza Shah Pahlavi was the result of gaining power with Western support while ignoring the voices of the people and continuing dictatorship. The Islamic Revolution is remembered as a historical event shaped by the complex interplay of religion, politics, and society in reaction to Western cultural influence and modernization.