HISTORY
The ancient nation of Iran, historically
known to the West as Persia and once a major empire in its own
right, has been overrun frequently and has had its territory altered
throughout the centuries. Invaded by Arabs, Seljuk Turks, Mongols,
and others--and often caught up in the affairs of larger powers--Iran
has always reasserted its national identity and has developed
as a distinct political and cultural entity.
Archeological findings have placed
knowledge of Iranian prehistory at middle paleolithic times (100,000
years ago). The earliest sedentary cultures date from 18,000-14,000
years ago. The sixth millennium B.C. saw a fairly sophisticated
agricultural society and proto-urban population centers. Many
dynasties have ruled Iran, the first of which was under the Achaemenians
(559-330 B.C.), a dynasty founded by Cyrus the Great. After the
Hellenistic period (300-250 B.C.) came the Parthian (250 B.C.-226
A.D.) and the Sassanian (226-651) dynasties.
The seventh century Arab-Muslim
conquest of Iran was followed by conquests by the Seljuk Turks,
the Mongols, and Tamerlane. Iran underwent a revival under the
Safavid dynasty (1502-1736), the most prominent figure of which
was Shah Abbas. The conqueror Nadir Shah and his successors were
followed by the Zand dynasty, founded by Karim Kahn, and later
the Qajar (1795-1925) and the Pahlavi dynasties (1925-1979).
Modern Iranian history began with a nationalist uprising against the Shah in 1905 and the establishment of a limited constitutional monarchy in 1906. The discovery of oil in 1908 would later become a key factor in Iranian history and development.
In 1921, Reza Khan, an Iranian officer of the Persian Cossack Brigade, seized control of the government. In 1925, having ousted the Qajar dynasty, he made himself Shah and established the Pahlavi dynasty, ruling as Reza Shah for almost 16 years.
Under Reza Shah's reign, Iran began to modernize and to secularize, and the central government reasserted its authority over the tribes and provinces. During World War Two the Allies feared the monarch close relations with Nazi Germany. In September 1941, following the occupation of western Iran by the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom, Reza Shah was forced to abdicate. His son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, became Shah and would rule until 1979.
During World War Two, Iran had been a vital link in the Allied supply line for lend-lease supplies to the Soviet Union. After the war, Soviet troops stationed in northwestern Iran not only refused to withdraw but backed revolts that established short-lived, pro-Soviet separatist regimes in the northern regions of Azerbaijan and Kurdistan. These ended in 1946. The Azerbaijani revolt crumbled after U.S. and United Nations (UN) pressure forced a Soviet withdrawal. Iranian forces also suppressed the Kurdish uprising.
In 1951, the government of nationalist Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadeq (sometimes spelled Mossadegh) nationalized the British-owned Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC). The Shah fled to Rome from Iran before the U.S.-backed coup against Mossadeq in August 1953, during which pro-Shah army forces arrested the Prime Minister. The Shah returned soon thereafter. A few years later, AIOC was renamed British Petroleum, better known today as BP.
In 1961, Iran initiated a series of economic, social, and administrative reforms that became known as the Shah's White Revolution. The core of this program was land reform. Modernization and economic growth proceeded at an unprecedented rate, fueled by Iran's vast petroleum reserves, the third-largest in the world. However, his autocratic method of rule and pro-western policies alienated large sectors of the population, including the Shia clergy.
In 1978, domestic turmoil swept
the country as a result of religious and political opposition
to the Shah's rule and programs--especially SAVAK, the hated internal
security and intelligence service. In January 1979, the Shah left
Iran; he died abroad several years after.
On February 1, 1979, exiled religious leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned from France, to assume control of the revolution and established himself as Supreme Leader of a new, theocratic republic guided by Islamic principles. Following Khomeini's death on June 3, 1989, the Assembly of Experts chose the outgoing president of the republic, Ali Khamenei, to be his successor as Supreme Leader in what proved to be a smooth transition.
In August 1989, Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, the speaker of the Majles, was elected President by an overwhelming majority. He was re-elected June 1993, with a more modest majority. Some Western observers attributed the reduced voter turnout to disenchantment with the deteriorating economy. An overwhelming majority of Iranians elected Mohammad Khatami-Ardakani as President in August 1997, hoping he would usher in a new era of freedom and reform. Khatami had modest successes in broadening the participation of Iranians in government and politics through initiating popular elections for local government councils and encouraging the development of civil society. Many liberal-minded Iranians were disappointed that Khatami did not support student protesters in 1999, but he was nevertheless re-elected in June 2001.
In February 2004 flawed elections were held for the Seventh Majles in which many reformists were prohibited from contesting their seats, meaning that a much more conservative group of parliamentarians easily retook control of the Majles in May 2004. The next Majles elections are currently slated to take place on March 14, 2008.
None of the seven candidates in the presidential vote on June 17, 2005 received a majority, resulting in a two-candidate runoff between Tehran mayor Mahmud Ahmadi-Nejad and former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani on June 24. Ahmadi-Nejad, winning in the second round with almost 62% of the vote according to Iranian Government figures, took office in August 2005. The next presidential elections are scheduled for 2009.
