Iran

Essential Question How does Iran’s history influence its present day government and economy?

Early History Ancient Persia Roots of Modern Iran traced to Sixth Century B.C. Islamic religion – Seventh Century Arab invasions

Ancient Iran (Persia) Iran was known as Persia until 1925 Throughout history Iran has been known as a crossroads country Consistently under invasion because of its location Indo-European-speaking invaders took over in the 15th Century B.C. Most famous kings of the Persian Empire 6th Century B.C. (Cyrus, Darius, Xerxes)

Ancient Iran (Persia) 3rd and 4th Century B.C. – Greek conquest under Alexander the Great 7th Century A.D. – Arab-Islamic Invasion 11th Century A.D. – Turkish Tribes invade 13th Century A.D. – Mongol Invasion

Questions What impact has the history of invasion had on Iran? What other country of study does Iran resemble? China Ancient and magnificent civilizations Both fell into the “sleep of nations” (partly at the hands of outsiders) Woke up far behind the West (both view West as adversary) Both struggle moving into modern times

Critical Junctures in Iranian History Safavid Dynasty – 1501 – 1722 Kajar (Qajar) Dynasty – 1795 – 1925 Pahlavi Dynasty – 1925 – 1979 Islamic Republic

The Safavids Practiced a minority version of Islam called Shia or Shiism Eventually declared Persia’s state religion – most subjects switched from Sunni to Shia and are Shiites to this day Immediately attacked by bordering Sunni countries and the Ottoman Turks Invasions by the Ottoman Turks caused Safavid rulers to seek out the assistance from early Dutch, English, and Portuguese sea traders in the late 16th early 17th Century

The Kajars (Qajars) Emerged in 1795 out of over 70 years of chaos Weak state of affairs allowed for Russia and Britain to dominate Persia Led to Constitutional Revolution 1906-1907 First Constitution and elected Parliament (Majlis) Led by Muslim clerics and liberals wanting a more Westernized form of gov’t Nasir-al-Din (1829-1896)

The Pahlavis Reza Khan – 1st Pahlavi Shah Illiterate cavalry officer Renamed the country Iran Modernizing Tyrant and Westernization Economic growth through close state supervision and oil Western style civil service and a national bank Western style universities and dress

The Pahlavis Reza Khan exiled by the British in 1941 and dies in 1944 – His son Mohammed Reza Pahlavi succeeds him “White” Revolution 1963 as opposed to “Red” Revolution Peasant land reforms Suffrage for women Literacy Excellent relations with the U.S. Oil – Prices soar during 1973 Arab-Israeli War

All these factors set the stage for the Islamic Revolution The Pahlavis With the rise in oil prices mass amounts of wealth came to Iran and the Shah New wealth caused disruption Education Few got rich, many stayed poor Corruption As the rural population migrated to cities they turned to the mosque for guidance – Pahlavis had alienated the Muslim clergy Ridiculous spending on military 17% of GDP All these factors set the stage for the Islamic Revolution

Islamic Revolution 1975 Resurgence Party Secular and Religious intellectuals alike were discontent The Shah’s over ambition made Iran a debtor nation Ruhollah Khomeini Exiled in 1964 to Iraq Forced to leave Iraq for Paris in 1978 – recorded tapes Jan. 1979 the Shah had fled 2 ½ millenia of monarchy ended in Iran with the introduction of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a new constitution in 1979

Islamic Republic Jurist’s Guardianship Shari’a – only senior clerics have the competence to understand 97% of 21 million voters endorsed the new Republic Constitution drawn up by the Assembly of Religious Experts Theocratic in nature Much power to Khomeini Despite being endorsed by 99% of voters, voter participation was down to 75%

Islamic Republic Clerics were able to consolidate power in the first decade after the revolution Khomeini's popularity and charisma Iraqi invasion of Iran – 1980 Rise in petroleum price During this time period modern amenities made a significant appearance in Iran Ayatollah Khomeini dies in 1989 – His successor is Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Islamic Republic Second decade of the Islamic Republic brought about problems for the clerics No more Iraq War No more Khomeini (Khamenei lacked charisma and credentials) World oil prices drops to under $10 a barrel by 1998 (oil prices were $30 a barrel in 1979) Ideological Crisis Some of Khomeini’s followers began to stress the importance of a democracy over theocracy in the 1990’s

9/11 and George Bush Islam is seen by the West as a threat Clash of civilizations