Reza Shah

Rezā Shāh , also known as Rezā Shāh Kabir (Reza Shah the Great) , or Rezā Shāh Pahlavi ( , ; March 16, 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 in September 16, 1941. In 1925, Reza Shah overthrew Ahmad Shah Qajar , the last Shah of the Qajar dynasty , and founded the Pahlavi Dynasty , which consisted of himself and ended with his son. He established an authoritarian government that valued nationalism , militarism , secularism and anti-communism combined with strict censorship and state propaganda . Known as quite intelligent despite his lack of formal education, Reza Shah introduced many socio-economic reforms, reorganizing the army, government administration, and finances. To his supporters his reign brought "law and order, discipline, central authority, and modern amenities - schools, trains, buses, radios, cinemas, and telephones". However, this became almost obsolete after the 1979 revolution.

Perso-Arabic text Reza Shah Pahlavi ( Persian : رضا شاه پهلوی; ) (15 March 1878 – 26 July 1944), was the Shah of Iran (Persia) from 15 December 1925 until he was forced to abdicate by the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran on 16 September 1941. Four years after a British-assisted coup, in 1925 Rezā Shāh deposed Ahmad Shah Qajar , the last Shah of the Qajar dynasty , and founded the Pahlavi dynasty . He established a constitutional monarchy that lasted until overthrown in 1979 during the Iranian Revolution . Reza Shah introduced many social, economic, and political reforms during his reign, ultimately laying the foundation of the modern Iranian state. His legacy remains controversial to this day: his defenders assert that he was an essential modernizing force for Iran (whose international prominence had sharply declined during Qajar rule), while his detractors assert that his reign was often despotic, with his failure to modernize Iran's large peasant population eventually sowing the seeds for the Iranian Revolution. Moreover, his insistence on ethnic nationalism and cultural unitarism along with forced detribalization and sedentarization resulted in suppression of several ethnic and social groups.

"Reza Khan" and "Shah Reza" redirect here. Reza Shah Pahlavi ( ; ; 15 March 1878 – 26 July 1944), commonly known as Reza Shah , was the Shah of Iran from 15 December 1925 until he was forced to abdicate by the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran on 16 September 1941. Two years after the 1921 Persian coup d'état , led by Zia ol Din Tabatabaee , Reza Pahlavi became Iran's prime minister. The appointment was backed by the compliant national assembly of Iran. In 1925, Reza Pahlavi was appointed as the legal monarch of Iran by decision of Iran's constituent assembly. The assembly deposed Ahmad Shah Qajar , the last Shah of the Qajar dynasty , and amended Iran’s 1906 constitution to allow selection of Reza Pahlavi. He founded the Pahlavi dynasty that lasted until overthrown in 1979 during the Iranian Revolution . Reza Shah introduced many social, economic, and political reforms during his reign, ultimately laying the foundation of the modern Iranian state. His legacy remains controversial to this day. His defenders assert that he was an essential modernizing force for Iran (whose international prominence had sharply declined during Qajar rule), while his detractors assert that his reign was often despotic, with his failure to modernize Iran's large peasant population eventually sowing the seeds for the Iranian Revolution nearly four decades later, which ended 2,500 years of Persian monarchy . Moreover, his insistence on ethnic nationalism and cultural unitarism, along with forced detribalization and sedentarization , resulted in the suppression of several ethnic and social groups. Although he himself was of Mazandarani descent , his government carried out an extensive policy of Persianization trying to create a single, united and largely homogeneous nation, similar to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk 's policy of Turkification .

Shah of Persia/Iran from 1925 to 1941 Not to be confused with Mohammad Reza Pahlavi , his son, or Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince of Iran , his grandson. "Reza Khan" and "Shah Reza" redirect here. Reza Shah Pahlavi ( ; ; 15 March 1878 – 26 July 1944) was an Iranian military officer , politician (who served as minister of war and prime minister ), and first shah of the House of Pahlavi of the Imperial State of Iran and father of the last shah of Iran . He reigned from 15 December 1925 until he was forced to abdicate by the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran on 16 September 1941. Reza Shah introduced many social, economic, and political reforms during his reign, ultimately laying the foundation of the modern Iranian state. Therefore, he is regarded by many as the founder of modern Iran. At the age of 14 he joined the Iranian Cossack Brigade , and also served in the army. In 1911, he was promoted to first lieutenant, by 1912 he was elevated to the rank of captain and by 1915 he became a colonel. In February 1921, as leader of the entire Cossack Brigade based in Qazvin, he marched towards Tehran and seized the capital . He forced the dissolution of the government and installed Zia ol Din Tabatabaee as the new prime minister. Reza Khan's first role in the new government was commander-in-chief of the army and the minister of war. Two years after the coup, Seyyed Zia appointed Reza Pahlavi as Iran's prime minister, backed by the compliant national assembly of Iran. In 1925, Reza Pahlavi was appointed as the legal monarch of Iran by the decision of Iran's constituent assembly. The assembly deposed Ahmad Shah Qajar , the last Shah of the Qajar dynasty , and amended Iran's 1906 constitution to allow selection of Reza Pahlavi as the Shah of Iran. He founded the Pahlavi dynasty that lasted until overthrown in 1979 during the Iranian Revolution . In the spring of 1950, he was posthumously named as Reza Shah the Great ( رضا شاه بزرگ ) by Iran's National Consultative Assembly . His legacy remains controversial to this day. His defenders assert that he was an essential reunifying and modernizing force for Iran, while his detractors assert that his reign was often despotic, with his failure to modernize Iran's large peasant population eventually sowing the seeds for the Iranian Revolution nearly four decades later, which ended 2,500 years of Iranian monarchy . Moreover, his insistence on ethnic nationalism and cultural unitarism, along with forced detribalization and sedentarization , resulted in the suppression of several ethnic and social groups. Although he was of Iranian Mazanderani descent, his government carried out an extensive policy of Persianization trying to create a single, united and largely homogeneous nation, similar to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk 's policy of Turkification in Turkey after the fall of the Ottoman Empire . "Reza Shah Pahlavi | Biography" . 29 May 2023. "ظهور رضا شاه از دروازه نوسازی قاجارها" . رادیو فردا (in Persian) .

Shah of Iran from 1925 to 1941 Not to be confused with Mohammad Reza Pahlavi , his son, or Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince of Iran , his grandson. "Reza Khan" and "Shah Reza" redirect here. Originally an army officer, he became a politician, serving as minister of war and prime minister of Iran , and was elected shah following the deposition of the last monarch of the Qajar dynasty . In order to reduce foreign influence by Britain and Russia he partnered with Germany and used German expertise to modernize Iran's infraestructure during the 1920's and 1930's. Reza Shah's reign ended when he was forced to abdicate after the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran in 1941, during the Second World War , and was succeeded by his eldest son, Mohammad Reza Shah . A modernizer, Reza Shah clashed with the Shia clergy and introduced social, economic, and political reforms during his reign, ultimately laying the foundations of the modern Iranian state . Therefore, he is regarded by many as the founder of modern Iran, though the Pahlavi dynasty he established was later overthrown in the Iranian Revolution in 1979. At the age of 14, Reza Khan joined the Persian Cossack Brigade. He rose through the ranks, becoming a brigadier general by 1921. In 1911, he was promoted to first lieutenant; he was elevated to the rank of captain by 1912, and he became a colonel by 1915. In February 1921, as leader of the entire Cossack Brigade based in Qazvin province , he marched towards Tehran and seized the capital . He forced the dissolution of the government and installed Zia ol Din Tabatabaee as the new prime minister. Reza Khan's first role in the new government was commander-in-chief of the army and the minister of war. Two years after the coup, Seyyed Zia appointed Reza Pahlavi as Iran's prime minister, backed by the compliant national assembly of Iran. In 1925, the constituent assembly deposed Ahmad Shah Qajar , the last Qajar shah, and amended Iran's 1906 constitution to allow the election of Reza Pahlavi as the Shah of Iran. He founded the Pahlavi dynasty that lasted until it was overthrown in 1979 by the Iranian Revolution . In the spring of 1950, he was posthumously named as Reza Shah the Great ( رضا شاه بزرگ ) by Iran's National Consultative Assembly . His legacy remains controversial to this day. His defenders say that he was an essential reunifying and modernising force for Iran, while his detractors (particularly the Islamic Republic of Iran) assert that his reign was often despotic, with his failure to modernise Iran's large peasant population eventually sowing the seeds for the Iranian Revolution nearly four decades later, which ended over 2,500 years of Iranian monarchy . Moreover, his insistence on ethnic nationalism and cultural unitarism, along with forced detribalisation and sedentarisation , resulted in the suppression of several ethnic and social groups. Although he was of Iranian Mazanderani descent, his government carried out an extensive policy of Persianization trying to create a single, united and largely homogeneous nation, similar to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk 's policy of Turkification in Turkey after the fall of the Ottoman Empire . "Reza Shah Pahlavi | Biography" . 29 May 2023. "ظهور رضا شاه از دروازه نوسازی قاجارها" . رادیو فردا (in Persian) . (1998), Iran and the rise of Reza Shah : from Qajar collapse to Pahlavi rule. The Kian Collection (Machine Struck Coins and Medals of the Qajar and Pahlavi Dynasties . The Origins of the Iranian Revolution ," International Affairs 56/4: 673–677. Iran Between Two Revolutions . Iran: A Modern History . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).