REZA SHAH
SEAN, TAHLIA & BETH
IRAN AFTER WW1
• After the war they sought war reparations from the
League of Nations
• Britain threw their plea out
• Anglo-Persian agreement
• Iran stayed autonomous
CONSOLIDATION OF POWER
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1921 Coup d’etat
1923 Prime minister
1925 Shah
First priority was to legitimacy and gain popularity
Traditionally support came from clans and ethics
groups, Reza did not have such support
Reza was supported by the Army and Intellectuals
Offered the middle class national pride
Introduced a new ideology and identity
Introduced state-wide absolute discipline
NATURE OF THE REGIME
• Tradition and Continuity
• Nationalism and change
CONTINUITY
• Avoiding a Republic
• Laws
• Land ownership
• Censorship
CHANGES UNDER REZA SHAH
• New ideology - revolved around the ruler, not the
nation
• Reza was more calculating and insightful than his
predecessors
• He needed to secure his position and didn’t have their
complete legitimacy
• He chooses his allies carefully, depending on circumstances
• He used western educated academics but got rid of them
once threats began
CHANGES UNDER REZA SHAH
• Creation of a distinct Persian identity
• Became his principle idea in his regime
• School textbooks were rewritten because they emphasized
a pre-Islamic past
• Persian language academy was formed to refine the
language and take out all Arabic
CHANGES UNDER REZA SHAH
• Aimed to pursue a "third-power policy"
• Meant obtaining the support of a country other than Russia
or the UK
• Went to France, Germany, US and Italy for technical
expertise and equipment (sent students to these countries
for education rather than the UK)
• Shah's relationship with UK was an issue + he did little to
eliminate British control
• 1932: Iran and UK discussed oil concessions
• Signed a year later, Iran's royalties rose (16%-20%) and the
contract was extended for another 60 years
CHANGES UNDER REZA SHAH
• Shah established good relationships with
neighboring countries and tried to strengthen
regional links
• 1937: Saadabad Pact was signed ( with Turkey, Iran,
Afghanistan) and ended any potential disputes
between the countries