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The Life and Times of the Shah / Edition 1

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ISBN-10:: 0520253280
ISBN-13:: 9780520253285
Pub. Date:: 01/12/2009
Publisher:: University of California Press

ISBN-10:: 0520253280
ISBN-13:: 9780520253285
Pub. Date:: 01/12/2009
Publisher:: University of California Press

The Life and Times of the Shah / Edition 1

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Overview

This epic biography, a gripping insider's account, is a long-overdue chronicle of the life and times of Mohammad Reza Shah, who ruled from 1941 to 1979 as the last Iranian monarch. Gholam Reza Afkhami uses his unparalleled access to a large number of individuals—including high-ranking figures in the shah's regime, members of his family, and members of the opposition—to depict the unfolding of the shah's life against the forces and events that shaped the development of modern Iran. The first major biography of the Shah in twenty-five years, this richly detailed account provides a radically new perspective on key events in Iranian history, including the 1979 revolution, U.S.-Iran relations, and Iran's nuclear program. It also sheds new light on what now drives political and cultural currents in a country at the heart of today's most perplexing geopolitical dilemmas.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780520253285
Publisher:	University of California Press
Publication date:	01/12/2009
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	740
Product dimensions:	6.34(w) x 9.16(h) x 2.05(d)

About the Author

Gholam Reza Afkhami is Senior Scholar at the Foundation for Iranian Studies. Before the revolution of 1979 he was Professor of Political Science at the National University of Iran, Secretary-General of Iran's National Committee for World Literacy Program and Deputy Minister of Interior. He is author of The Iranian Revolution, among other books

Preface
Notes on Transliteration and Translations

PART I. FATHER AND SON
1. The Father
2. Father and Son
3. The Man

PART II. HARD TIMES
4. Ascending the Throne
5. Azerbaijan
6. Nationalizing Oil
7. Toward the Abyss
8. TPAJAX

PART III. SECURING THE REALM
9. A New Vista
10. The White Revolution
11. Women and Rights
12. Mastering Oil
13. Commander-in-Chief
14. Development and Dreams
15. Gas, Petrochemicals, and Nuclear Energy

PART IV. REVOLUTION AND IRONY
16. Politics and Terror
17. SAVAK
18. A Celebration and a Festival
19. The Rastakhiz Party
20. The Gathering Storm
21. “I Heard the Message of Your Revolution”
22. “Melting Like Snow”

PART V. EXILE
23. Trek to Nowhere
24. The Ayatollah's Shadow
25. Almost Bartered
26. Closing in a Dream

Brief Chronology of the Pahlavi Dynasty
Appendix 1: Iran's Prime Ministers under the Shah
Appendix 2: Principles of Iran's White Revolution
Appendix 3: U.S. Ambassadors to Iran, 1941-1979
Notes
Selected Glossary of Terms and Events
Index

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A comprehensive and well-researched reexamination of a well-meaning but tragic figure."—Booklist

"A magisterial biography . . . painstakingly researched and meticulously sourced."—Iranian Freedom Blog

"An easily accessible book, which should prove useful to people who are interested in the history and politics of modern Middle East."—The Historian

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Editorial Reviews

A comprehensive and well-researched reexamination of a well-meaning but tragic figure.

Booklist - Jay Freeman

An easily accessible book, which should prove useful to people who are interested in the history and politics of modern Middle East.

The Historian - Serpil Atamaz-Hazar

A magisterial biography . . . painstakingly researched and meticulously sourced.

Iranian Freedom Blog

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Iran's ruler from 1941 to 1979-and one of the 20th century's more controversial political figures-gets a spirited if not always compelling defense in this sprawling biography. Afkhami (The Iranian Revolution), an Iranian studies scholar and an official of the shah's regime, paints him as a moderate, progressive leader who championed women's rights, secularism and balanced economic development. He was his own man, not an American puppet, Afkhami argues, strenuously challenging interpretations of the 1953 ousting of the nationalist prime minister, Mohammad Mossadeq, as a CIA-engineered coup. And the crimes of his notorious SAVAK secret police, the author contends, were milder than commonly thought-and anyway, the shah knew little about them. Afkhami corrects conventional views of the shah's reign as merely a despotic prelude to the Islamic revolution, but his perspective seems blinkered by his subject's self-regard. The shah emerges as almost a paragon-devoted to his people and Iran's constitution, undone by his own misguided humanity and restraint in confronting Khomeini's cabal of Islamists and their liberal dupes. When all Iran rises to overthrow him, the reader is as surprised as the shah. Photos. (Jan.)
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Publishers Weekly

The Life and Times of the Shah / Edition 1

The Life and Times of the Shah / Edition 1

Hardcover

Overview

Product Details

About the Author

Table of Contents

What People are Saying About This

Customer Reviews

Overview

Product Details

About the Author

Table of Contents

What People are Saying About This

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Customer Reviews