Background and causes of the Iranian

Revolution
The Iranian Revolution was a populist, nationalist and Shi'a Islamic revolution that replaced a dictatorial monarchy with a theocracy
based on "Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists" (or velayat-e faqih).

Its causes – why the last Shah of Iran (Mohammad Reza Pahlavi) was overthrown and why he was replaced by an Islamic Republic –
are the subject of historical debate. The revolution was in part a conservative backlash against the westernization, modernization and
secularization efforts of the Western-backed Shah,[1] and a more popular reaction to social injustice and other shortcomings of the
ancien régime.[2] The Shah was perceived by many Iranians as beholden to – if not a puppet of – non-Muslim Western powers (in
particular the United States)[3][4] whose culture was contaminating that of Iran. The Shah's regime was seen as oppressive,
brutal,[5][6] corrupt and extravagant;[5][7] it also suffered from basic functional failures, like overly ambitious economic programs that
[8]
brought economic bottlenecks, shortages and inflation.

Contents
Background 1906–1977
Reza Shah
The last Shah of Iran comes to power
Rise of Ayatollah Khomeini
Opposition groups and organizations
1970–1977
General causes
Surprise and absence of customary causes
Causes
Policies and political mistakes of the Shah
Failures and successes of other Iranian political or cultural forces
Failures and successes of foreign forces
External factors
Doubts about causes
Special theories
Skocpol's cultural theory
See also
References and notes
Bibliography
Further reading
External links

Background 1906–1977
Shi'a clergy (or Ulema,) have had a significant influence in Iran. The clergy first showed themselves to be a powerful political force
in opposition to Iran's monarch with the 1891 Tobacco Protest boycott that effectively destroyed an unpopular concession granted by
the shah giving a British company a monopoly over buying and selling Tobacco in Iran. To some the incident demonstrated that the
Shia ulama were "Iran's first line of defense" againstcolonialism.[9]
Reza Shah
The dynasty that the revolution overthrew – the Pahlavi dynasty – was known for its autocracy, its focus on modernization and
Westernization and for its disregard forreligious[10] and democratic measures inIran's constitution.

The founder of the dynasty, army general Reza Pahlavi, replaced Islamic laws with western ones, and forbade traditional Islamic
clothing, separation of the sexes and veiling of women (hijab).[11] Women who resisted his ban on public hijab had their chadors
forcibly removed and torn. In 1935 a rebellion by pious Shi'a at the shrine of Imam Reza in Mashhad was crushed on his orders with
dozens killed and hundreds injured,[12] rupturing relations between the Shah and pious Shia in Iran.
[13][14]

The last Shah of Iran comes to power

Reza Shah was deposed in 1941 by aninvasion of allied British and Soviet troopswho believed him to be sympathetic with the allies'
enemy Nazi Germany. His son, Mohammad Reza Pahlaviwas installed by the allies as monarch. Prince Pahlavi (later crowned shah)
reigned until the 1979 revolution with one brief interruption. In 1953 he fled the country after a power-struggle with his Prime
Minister Mohammad Mossadegh. Mossadegh is remembered in Iran for having been voted into power through a democratic election,
nationalizing Iran's British-owned oil fields, and being deposed in amilitary coup d'état organized by an American CIA operative and
aided by the British MI6. Thus foreign powers were involved in both the installation and restoration of Shah Mohammad Reza
Pahlavi.

The shah maintained a close relationship with the United States, both regimes sharing a fear of/opposition to the expansion of
Soviet/Russian state, Iran's powerful northern neighbor. Leftist and Islamist groups attacked his government (often from outside Iran
as they were suppressed within) for violating the Iranian constitution, political corruption, and the political oppression by the SAVAK
(secret police).

Rise of Ayatollah Khomeini

Shia cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the Iranian revolution, first came to political prominence in 1963 when he led
opposition to the Shah and his program of reforms known as the "White Revolution", which aimed to break up landholdings owned
by some Shi’a clergy, allow women to vote andreligious minorities to hold office, and grant women legal equality inmarital issues.

Khomeini declared that the Shah had "embarked on the destruction of Islam in Iran"[15] and publicly denounced the Shah as a
"wretched miserable man." Following Khomeini's arrest on June 5, 1963, three days of major riots erupted throughout Iran, with
Khomeini supporters claiming 15,000 were killed by police fire[16] Khomeini was detained and kept under house arrest for 8 months.
After his release he continued his agitation against the Shah, condemning the regimes's close cooperation with Israel and its
"capitulations" – the extension of diplomatic immunity to American government personnel in Iran. In November 1964, Khomeini was
re-arrested and sent into exile where he remained for 14 years until the revolution.

A period of "disaffected calm" followed.[17] Despite political repression the budding Islamic revival began to undermine the idea of
Westernization as progress that was the basis of the Shah's secular regime and form the ideology of the revolution. Jalal Al-e-
Ahmad's idea of Gharbzadegi – that Western culture was a plague or an intoxication to be eliminated;[18] Ali Shariati's vision of
Islam as the one true liberator of the Third World from oppressive colonialism, neo-colonialism, and capitalism;[19] and Morteza
Motahhari's popularized retellings of the Shia faith, all spread and gained listeners, readers and supporters.[18] Most importantly,
Khomeini preached that revolt, and especially martyrdom, against injustice and tyranny was part of Shia Islam,[20] and that Muslims
should reject the influence of both capitalism and communism with the slogan "Neither East, nor West - Islamic Republic!" (Persian:
‫)ﻧﻪ ﺷﺮﻗﯽ ﻧﻪ ﻏﺮﺑﯽ ﺟﻤﻬﻮری اﺳﻼﻣﯽ‬

To replace the shah's regime Khomeini developed the ideology of velayat-e faqih (guardianship of the jurist) as government, that
Muslims – in fact everyone – required "guardianship," in the form of rule or supervision by the leading Islamic jurist or jurists.[21]
Such rule would protect Islam from deviation from traditional sharia law, and in so doing eliminate poverty, injustice, and the

[22]
"plundering" of Muslim land by foreign unbelievers.[22] Establishing and obeying
this Islamic government was "actually an expression of obedience to God",
ultimately "more necessary even than prayer and fasting" in Islam,[23] and a
[24]
commandment for all the world, not one confined to Iran.

Publicly, Khomeini focused on the socio-economic problems of the shah's regime

(corruption, unequal income and development),[25] not his solution of rule by
Islamic jurists.
One of Tehran's major hospitals is
He believed a propaganda campaign by Western imperialists had prejudiced most named after Iranian Islamist leftistAli
Iranians against theocratic rule.[26][27] Shariati

But his book was widely distributed in religious circles, especially among
Khomeini's students (talabeh), ex-students (clerics), and traditional business leaders (bazaari). A powerful and efficient network of
opposition began to develop inside Iran,[28] employing mosque sermons, smuggled cassette speeches by Khomeini, and other means.
Added to this religious opposition were secular and Islamic modernist students and guerrilla groups[29] who admired Khomeini's
history of resistance, though they were to clash with his theocracy and be suppressed by his movement after the revolution.

Opposition groups and organizations

Constitutionalist, Marxist, and Islamist groups opposed the Shah:

The very first signs of opposition in 1977 came from Iranian constitutionalist liberals. Based in the urban middle class, this was a
section of the population that was fairly secular and wanted the Shah to adhere to the Iranian Constitution of 1906 rather than
religious rule.[30] Prominent in it was Mehdi Bazargan and his liberal, moderate Islamic group Freedom Movement of Iran, and the
more secular National Front.

The clergy were divided, allying variously with the liberals, Marxists and Islamists. The various anti-Shah groups operated from
outside Iran, mostly in London, Paris, Iraq, and Turkey. Speeches by the leaders of these groups were placed on audio cassettes to be
smuggled into Iran. Khomeini, who was in exile in Iraq, worked to unite clerical and secular, liberal and radical opposition under his
leadership[31] by avoiding specifics – at least in public – that might divide the factions.
[32]

Marxists groups were illegal and heavily suppressed by SAVAK internal security apparatus. They included the communist Tudeh
Party of Iran; two armed organizations, the Organization of Iranian People's Fedai Guerrillas (OIPFG) and the breakaway Iranian
People's Fedai Guerrillas (IPFG); and some minor groups.[33] The guerillas aim was to defeat the Pahlavi regime by assassination
and guerilla war. Although they played an important part in the 1979 overthrow of the regime, they had been weakened considerably
[34]
by government repression and factionalization in the first half of the 1970s.

Islamists were divided into several groups. The Freedom Movement of Iran, made up of religious members of the National Front of
Iran who wanted to use lawful political methods against the Shah and led by Bazargan and Mahmoud Taleghani. The People's
Mujahedin of Iran, a quasi-Marxist armed organization that opposed the influence of the clergy and later fought Khomeini's Islamic
government.

The Islamist group that ultimately prevailed was that containing the core supporters of Ayatollah Khomeini. Amongst them were
some minor armed Islamist groups which joined together after the revolution in the Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution
Organization. The Coalition of Islamic Societies was founded by religious bazaaris[35] (traditional merchants). The Combatant
Clergy Association comprised Morteza Motahhari, Mohammad Beheshti, Mohammad-Javad Bahonar, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
and Mohammad Mofatteh, who later became the major leaders of the Islamic Republic. They used a cultural approach to fight the
Shah.

Because of internal repression, opposition groups abroad, like the Confederation of Iranian students, the foreign branch of Freedom
Movement of Iran and the Islamic Association of Students, were important to the revolution.
1970–1977
Several events in the 1970s set the stage for the 1979 revolution:

In October 1971, the 2,500th anniversary of the founding of the Persian Empire was held at the site of Persepolis. Only foreign
dignitaries were invited to the three-day party whose extravagances included over one ton of caviar, and preparation by some two
hundred chefs flown in from Paris. Cost was officially $40 million but estimated to be more in the range of $100–120 million.[36]
Meanwhile, drought ravaged the provinces of Baluchistan, Sistan, and even Fars where the celebrations were held. "As the foreigners
[37]
reveled on drink forbidden by Islam, Iranians were not only excluded from the festivities, some were starving."

By late 1974 the oil boom had begun to produce not "the Great Civilization" promised by the Shah, but an "alarming" increase in
inflation and waste and an "accelerating gap" between the rich and poor, the city and the country.[38] Nationalistic Iranians were
angered by the tens of thousand of skilled foreign workers who came to Iran, many of them to help operate the already unpopular and
expensive American high-tech military equipment that the Shah had spent hundreds of millions of dollars on.

The next year the Rastakhiz party was created. It became not only the only party Iranians were permitted to belong to, but one the
"whole adult population" was required to belong and pay dues to.[39] The party attempted to take a populist stand fining and jailing
merchants in its "anti-profiteering" campaigns, but this proved not only economically harmful but also politically counterproductive.
[40]
Inflation morphed into a black market and business activity declined. Merchants were angered and politicized.

In 1976, the Shah's government angered pious Iranian Muslims by changing the first year of the Iranian solar calendar from the
Islamic hijri to the ascension to the throne byCyrus the Great. "Iran jumped overnight from the Muslim year 1355 to the royalist year
2535."[41] The same year the Shah declared economic austerity measures to dampen inflation and waste. The resulting
unemployment disproportionately affected the thousands of recent poor and unskilled migrants to the cities. As cultural and religious
conservatives, many of these people, already disposed to view the Shah's secularism and Westernization as "alien and wicked",[42]
[43]
went on to form the core of revolution's demonstrators and "martyrs".

In 1977 a new American president,Jimmy Carter, was inaugurated. Carter sought to make American post-V
ietnam foreign policy and
power exercise more benevolent, and created a special Of
fice of Human Rights. It sent the Shah a "polite reminder" of the importance
of political rights and freedom. The Shah responded by granting amnesty to 357 political prisoners in February, and allowing Red
Cross to visit prisons, beginning what is said to be 'a trend of liberalization by the Shah'. Through the late spring, summer and autumn
liberal opposition formed organizations and issued open letters denouncing the regime.[44] Later that year a dissent group (the
Writers' Association) gathered without the customary police break-up and arrests, starting a new era of political action by the Shah's
opponents.[45]

That year also saw the death of the very popular and influential modernist Islamist leader Ali Shariati, allegedly at the hands of
SAVAK, removing a potential revolutionary rival to Khomeini. Finally, in October Khomeini's son Mostafa died. Though the cause
appeared to be a heart attack, anti-Shah groups blamed SAVAK poisoning and proclaimed him a 'martyr.' A subsequent memorial
service for Mostafa in Tehran put Khomeini back in the spotlight and began the process of building Khomeini into the leading
opponent of the Shah.[46][47]

General causes
The Iranian Revolution had a number of unique and significant characteristics. It produced profound change at great speed;[48] and
replaced an ancient monarchy with a theocracy based on Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists (or velayat-e faqih). Its outcome – an
Islamic Republic "under the guidance of an 80-year-old exiled religious scholar from Qom" – was, as one scholar put it, "clearly an
occurrence that had to be explained.…"[49]

Surprise and absence of customary causes

The revolution was unique for the surprise it created throughout the world,[50] and followed the maxim of appearing "impossible"
until it seemed "inevitable".[51]
Some of the customary causes of revolution that were lacking include

defeat at war,
peasant rebellion,
gigantic national debt,
disgruntled military;[52]
The regime it overthrew was thought to be heavily protected by a lavishly financed army and security services.[53][54] As one
observer put it: "Few expected the regime of the Shah, which had international support and a modern army of 400,000, to crumble in
[55]
the face of unarmed demonstrators within a matter of months."

Another historian noted the revolution was "unique in the annals of modern world history in that it brought to power not a new social
group equipped with political parties and secular ideologies, but a traditional clergy armed with mosque pulpits and claiming the
[56]
divine right to supervise all temporal authorities, even the country's highest elected representatives."

Causes
Explanations advanced for why the revolution happened and took the form it did include actions of the Shah and the mistakes and
successes of the different political forces:

Policies and political mistakes of the Shah

His strong policy of Westernization and close identification with a Western power (the United States) despite the
resulting clash with Iran'sShi'a Muslim identity.[57] This included his original installation by Allied Powers and
assistance from the CIA in 1953 to restore him to the throne, the use of large numbers of US military advisers and
technicians and the capitulation or granting of diplomatic immunity from prosecution to them, all of which led
nationalistic Iranians, both religious and secular[58] to consider him a puppet of the West;[3][4]

Unpopular disregard for Islamic tradition in his 1976 change from an Islamic calendar to an Imperial calendar ,
marking the beginning of the reign ofCyrus the Great as the first day, instead of the migration of the Prophet
Muhammad from Mecca to Medina. Overnight, the year changed from 1355 to 2535. [59]

royal court.[5][7]
Extravagance, corruption and elitism (both real and perceived) of the Shah's policies and of his
[60][61]
His failure to cultivate supporters in theShi'a religious leadership to counter Khomeini's campaign against him.
Focusing of government surveillance and repression on thePeople's Mujahedin of Iran, the communist Tudeh Party
of Iran, and other leftist groups, while the more popular religious opposition organized, grew and gradually
undermined the authority of his regime.[62][63][64]
Authoritarian tendenciesthat violated the Iran Constitution of 1906,[65][66] including repression of dissent bysecurity
services like the SAVAK,[67] followed by appeasement and appearance of weakness as the revolution gained
momentum;[68][69] The idea of Alexis de Tocqueville that "when a people which has put up with an oppressive rule
over a long period without protest suddenly finds the government relaxing its pressure, it takes up arms against
it."[70]

Failure of his overly ambitious 1974 economic program to meet

expectations raised by the oil revenue windfall. A short, sharp period of
economic contraction and decline in 1977–78 following a considerable
period of economic growth, that according to scholar of revolutions
Crane Brinton creates disappointment much greater "than if people had
been left in poverty all along."[71]
Bottlenecks, shortages and inflation that were followed by austerity
measures, attacks on alleged price gougers and black-markets, that
angered both the bazaar and the masses.[8]
His antagonizing of formerly apolitical Iranians, especially merchants of Mohammad Reza Pahlaviand
the bazaars, with the creation of asingle party political monopoly (the Queen Farah
Rastakhiz Party), with compulsory membership and dues, and general
aggressive interference in the political, economic, and religious
concerns of people's lives.[72]
[73]
His overconfident neglect ofgovernance and preoccupation with playing the world statesman during the oil boom,
[68]
followed by a loss of self-confidence and resolution and a weakening of his health fromcancer [74] as the
revolution gained momentum. The shah's terminal illness was a secret at the time, but the shah knew he was dying
 of cancer, and his medication made him "depressed and listless". In addition several of the shah's closest advisers
had recently died, and palace personnel were reportedly fired wholesale in the summer of 1978. [75]

Underestimation of the strength of the opposition – particularly religious opposition – and the failure tofer of either
enough carrots or sticks. Efforts to please the opposition were "too little too late,"[76] but no concerted counter-attack
was made against the revolutionaries either .[68]
Failure to prepare and train security forces for dealing with protest and demonstration, failure to use crowd control
without excessive violence[77] (troops used live ammunition, not Plexiglas shields or water cannons), [78] and use of

the military officer corps more as a powerbase to be pampered than as a force to control threats to security .[79] This
lack of training turned many protests to disasters, the most notorious one being the events on 8 September 1978,
also known as Black Friday.[80][81][82][83][84][85][86]
The personalised nature of the Shah's government, where prevention of any possible competitor to the monarch
trumped efficient and effective government and led to the crown's cultivation of divisions iw thin the army and the
[87]
political elite, and ultimately to a lack of support for the regime by its natural allies when needed most (thousands
of upper and middle class Iranians and their money left Iran during the beginning of the revolution). [88] The monarch
"took a personal interest in the most picayune governmental matters, discouraged initiative by frequently overruling
and dismissing officials, and refusing to allowofficials to cooperate, for fear ofregicidal conspiracies. The shah was
careful to meet with each of his top aides and generals individually . In the absence of a fully functioning shah, the
system could not function."[75]

Failures and successes of other Iranian political or cultural forces

The Ayatollah Khomeini's self-confidence, charisma, and most importantly his ability to grip the imagination of the
masses by casting himself as following in the footsteps of the beloved Shi'a Imam Husayn ibn Ali, while portraying
the Shah as a modern-day version of Husayn's foe, the hated tyrantYazid I.[89] Alternately, while in distant Paris,
Khomeini filled the figure of theHidden Imam, sending his messages through special representatives. [90] In so doing
[91]
he was seen by millions as a savior figure, and inspiring hundreds to feats of martyrdom fighting the regime.
Success of modernist IslamistsAbolhassan Banisadr and Ali Shariati in presenting an Islamic ideology that
"appeared modern, liberal and appealing," and in so doing won over much of the Iranian middle class. [92]

Overconfidence of the secularists and modernist Muslims, of liberals and leftists, in their power and ability to control
the revolution,[93] a belief that "the clergy would not be capable of governing the state ... and would have to hand
over power to others," so that "even the opponents of the Islamicists accepted their leadership of the revolution" at
first,[94] and failure to anticipate Khomeini's "total domination of the Iranian revolution" and to study his writings and
try to understand what his true goals were.[95]
The 40-day (Arba'een) cycle of mourning by Shia that commemorated with new street protests the deaths of earlier
protesters, thus strengthening and spreading the anti-Shah sentiments for many months. [75]

Shrewdness of the Ayatollah Khomeini in winning the support of these liberals and leftists when he needed them to
overthrow the Shah by underplaying his hand and avoiding issues (such as rule by clerics or "guardianship of the
jurists") he planned to implement but knew would be a deal breaker for his more secular and modernist Muslim
allies.[96]
Cleverness and energy of Khomeini's organizers in Iran who outwitted the Shah's security forces and won broad
support with their tactical ingenuity – amongst other things, convincing Iranians that the Shah's security was more
brutal than it was.[79]

Failures and successes of foreign forces

Policies of the American government, which helped create an image of the Shah as an American "puppet" with their
high profile and the 1953 subversion of the government on his behalf, but helped trigger the revolution by pressuring
the Shah to liberalize, and then finally may have heightened the radicalism of the revolution by failing to read its
nature accurately (particularly the goals of Khomeini), or to clearly respond to [97][98][99]
it.
Waning support for the shah among Western politicians and media—especially under theadministration of U.S.
President Jimmy Carter—as a result of the Shah's support for OPEC petroleum price increases. [100]

Alleged treachery of the Americans and other foreigners. Among those who blame American or estern W forces for
the collapse of the shah's regime include the director-general of the French intelligence service, who claimed that
American President Jimmy Carter `decided to replace` the Shah;[101] one of the shah's generals, who claimed the
[102] Iranian expatriates surveyed in
U.S. `took the Shah by the tail, and threw him into exile like a dead rat,`
Southern California",[103] and Iranians surveyed in Isfahan. [104] These beliefs have usually been mentioned by
historians as examples of how "Iranians hostile to the revolution appeared to feel more comfortable blaming outside
forces than their own compatriots," rather than as plausible explanations for the revolution. [105] Still another
conspiracy theory is that when American generalRobert E. Huyser, Deputy Commander of US forces in Europe,"
went to Iran to encourage the Iranian military to either support the new but non-revolutionary Bahktiar government or
stage a coup d'état, he was approached by "representatives of the revolutionary forces" who made it clear to him
 that "if the United States did not wish its personnel to be harmed or to allow uncontrolled, armed guerrillas, some
with pro-Soviet sympathies, to gain access to its sophisticated weapons" he had "better see to it that the military
surrendered to the popular revolutionary forces." Thus, according to Sepehr Zabih, Huyer chose between American
personnel/materiel, and America's strategic ally in the Persian Gulf, and this explains why Huyser's mission to Iran
[106] It has also been
was accompanied by "the disintegration of the Imperial Army" in final days of the revolution.
argued that the revolution could not have succeeded without help from inside of Iranian military at some level. [107]

OPEC policies that discouraged infighting among members in order to create a united front to best take advantage of
the oil boom. OPEC had Iran and Iraq sat down and made to work aside dif ferences, which resulted in relatively
good relations between the two nations throughout the 1970s. In 1978 the Shah made a request to then-V ice
President Saddam Hussein to banish the expatriate Ayatollah Khomenei from Iraq, who had been living there in exile
for the past 15 years. In light of keeping up good relations with Iran and that Khomenei was not overly supportive of
the current Iraqi regime, Hussein agreed to do this. From this point Khomenei moved to France, where he better
coordinated the nascent Islamic Revolution.

External factors
Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union long competed with each other for the domination of Iran. Britain maintained its
control of the Iranian oil industry for a long time using its alliance with power bloc, landlords and courts and was able to reduce the
power of the US and the Soviets in Iran. On the other hand, the United States and the Soviet Union were mainly interested in
logistically important location of Iran and wanted an oil concession in northern part of Iran. The United States used its influence in
the army and courts while the Soviet Union had the total support of the Tudeh Party and the CCFTU. The Shah himself was very
interested in involving the United States in Iran’s affair to reorganize the army and boost the economy with the US assistance. The
US also, could reduce the influence of the communism in Iran by its more open presence in Iran .[108] By the late 1950s the US was
fed up with the widespread corruption in Iranian government and started reducing in its financial assistance to Iran. In 1958, the US
also attempted, although turned out to be unsuccessful, to replace the Shah with Iran’s chief of staff, a reform orientated politician, to
push for the social reform in Iran .[109] As Shah realized that his government and the Iranian economic health were depended on the
US, he decided to liberalize his policies. Therefore, the Shah, with some pressure from the Kennedy administration, opted for Amini
group, which had no popular base, but a full US support and a clear reform program.

Amini’s agenda was to broadcast land reform, reduce corruption, stabilize the economy, limit the power of the Shah and reduce the
size and influence of the Army.. Despite having a reformist ideology, Amini did not gain popular support from the National Front,
identified with Mossadegh, and the Tudeh Party. Amini’s government was very distrusted by the people because of his infamous
backing of the Consortium agreement and was widely criticized by the Tudeh Party as spreading anti communism and being an
American puppet. Amini’s government fell apart after fifteen months of struggle with economic dilemmas, popular distrust and the
Shah trying to convince Kennedy to shift his support from Amini to him. In 1962, Amini resigned and Alam, a faithful friend of the
shah who had no intention of reform but to consolidate the power of the monarchy, became the new prime minister and laid the
[110]
ground for the Shah to reestablish his dictatorship in early 1963.

In the mid 1970s, the Shah was once again taken under the US pressure for violation of the human rights and mistreatment of the
political prisoners. The paralyzing crisis of the state made the Shah concerned about the future of his throne. Although, very
undesirable for Shah to introduce another round of liberalization policies, the first round being in the early 1960s, he had no other
choice but to do so. Therefore, in the early 1977 Shah announced liberalization policies to gain the US support once again and resolve
the crises of the state. In the mid 1977, Shah allowed open discussion forum for the Rastakhiz Party to discuss the social issues
publicly. As Amjad quotes Tocqueville in his book, the political liberalization following a long period of repression results in a social
upheaval and revolution. In the Iranian case, although the aim of the policy was to appease the oppositions and gain the US support,
instead it provided the suitable condition for the opposition to organize its forces against the regime. Following the liberalization
policies, the network of 80,000 mosques run by 180,000 mullahs played a crucial role in mobilizing the people against the regime.

Doubts about causes

Charles Kurzman, author of The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran [111] has postulated that the explanations offered by observers for
why the revolution occurred "are only partially valid," and that "the closer we listen to the people who made the revolution - the more
anomalies we find." [112]
Kurzman points out that one explanation for the Shah's overthrow - the 40-day (Arba'een) cycle of commemorating deaths of
protesters - "came to a halt" on June 17, 1978, a half year before the revolution's culmination. Moderate religious leaders
(Mohammad Kazem Shariatmadari) called for calm and a stay-at-home strike which prevented more casualties to commemorate 40
days later.[113] Kurzman also argues that the mourning rituals inIran had been a political act only once before.

Could we have said in early 1977 that because Iranian culture includes a forty-day mourning cycle, the country was
more likely than other countries to undergo a revolution? I think not. Rather, a knowledgeable observer would
probably have noted that this mourning cycle had been put to protest purposes only once in Iranian history, in 1963,
and that movement had come to naught.[114]

Alexis de Tocqueville's idea that "steadily increasing prosperity, far from tranquilizing the population, everywhere promoted a spirit
of unrest", has been offered by several observers as an explanation for the 1978–79 revolt. But this does not explain why "there was
very little oppositional activity" in the recession of 1975–76 when unemployment and inflation were at similar levels to those of
1978.[115] Furthermore, revolutions were conspicuously absent in other "high-growth autocracies" – Venezuela, Algeria, Nigeria,
Iraq – in the 1970s and 1980s despite the fact that those countries also suffered from oil wealth problems (corruption, debt, fraud,
repression).[116]

Another cause, or partial cause, in doubt is the Shah's liberalization as a result of the encouragement of President Jimmy Carter.
Kurzman points out that "even as the shah arrived in Washington" for a state visit in late 1977, "his regime's partial tolerance of
oppositional activity was disappearing. ... In November 1977, as the shah ingratiated himself with Jimmy Carter, liberals were in
retreat." [117]

Another author, Moojan Momen, questions whether Carter "could have said or done" anything to save the Shah – aside from
foregoing his human rights policy – since "any direct interference by America would only have increased resentment" against the
pro-American Shah.[92]

Special theories

Skocpol's cultural theory

Theda Skocpol, an American socialist specializing in study of social revolutions, proposed an unprecedented cultural theory to
account for the unique aspects of the Iranian Revolution which she admit falsified her past history-based theories on causes of social
revolutions.

Skocpol argued that the revolution diverges from past revolutions in three distinct ways:

1. The revolution does seem to have been solely caused by excessively rapid modernization by the state that led to
social disruption. Skocpol’s studies on the past modern social revolutions had falsified this popular but simplistic
theory.
2. In a departure from historical precedents, the regime’s large, modern army and the police were defeated by an
internal revolution without the occurrence of a military defeat in foreign war and without external pressures aimed at
causing fracture between the state and the dominant social classes.
3. The Iranian Revolution is the only modern revolution which was deliberately and coherently fomented by a
revolutionary movement consisting of different social classes united under the leadership of a senior Shia cleric
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. This was achieved through demonstrations and strikes advancing with fervor against
even lethal military repression. As thus the revolution achieved “what the W estern socialists had long only dreamed
of doing.”
Although the Shah’s regime had several political vulnerabilities none of them could have mattered as the Shah was still wealthy and
powerful enough to overcome waves of social discontent just as other even less wealthy Third world despots had been able to. The
fact that the revolution was successful can only be explained by reference to sustained extraordinary efforts by the urban Iranians to
wear down and undermine the regime.
Despite the negative impact of Shah’s hectic modernization on the traditional form of urban life, it caused more people, consisting of
the displaced villagers and farmers, to come into contact with members of traditional urban communities such as bazaaris and
artisans. Bazaars in particular became centers of associational life, with Islamic groups and occasions tying people together through
clerics' interpreting Islamic laws to settle commercial disputes and taxing the well-to-do to provide welfare for devout poorer
followers. An endless succession of prayer-meetings and rituals were organized by both clergy and the laity. Bazaars also enjoyed ties
with more modern sectors of Iranians society as many Iranian university students were from the merchant class. But since 1970s,
Shah aroused the defense and oppositions of the bazaar by attempts at bring under control their autonomous councils and
marginalizing the clergy by taking over their educational and welfare activities.

In the mass revolutionary movements during 1977-8 the traditional urban communities played an indispensable role in making
sustained mass struggle possible. The workers relied on economic aid from bazaar during their strikes and the secular opponents
depended on alliance with clerics and lay leaders of the bazaar to mobilize the masses. Without these autonomous sources of support
and sustenance, successful resistance against the modern political and economic power holders would’ve been impossible.

The next question is how as part of a unique historical precedence, millions of Iranians were willing to face death in the mass
demonstrations against brutal suppression by the army and how the clerics could rise as the leaders of the revolution. This is
explained by the potential role of the Shia beliefs and clerical organization in the Iranian society. Shi'a Islam embodies substantial
symbolic content to inspire resistance against unjust rule and to justify religious leaders as alternative to secular authority. As Shah
aimed to marginalize the Shia clergy and eliminate their influence by its modernization policies, clerics in Qom and their followers
developed a populist, anti-Imperialist interpretation of Shia theology to delegitimize Shah for his injustice and his reliance on the
anti-Islamic foreign imperialists. The story of Husayn's just revolt against the usurper caliph, Yazid I, and his eventual martyrdom, as
well as the belief in the Islamic Messiah, Muhammad al-Mahdi, who clerics claim to represent during his Occultation, were
particularly influential in victory of the revolution. As protests against the Shah began, the Shi'a clerics could claim legitimate
leadership of the protests and the Husayn legend provided a framework for characterizing the Shah as a modern incarnation of the
tyrant Yazid. The revolution also attracted secular Iranians who saw Shi'a Islam and Khomeini's unwavering moral leadership as an
indigenous way to express common opposition to an arrogant monarch too closely associated with foreigners. Khomeini’s message
and appeal spread through existing networks of social links with the urban life and gradually resonated with the majority who saw
Shah as being subservient to foreign powers instead of the indigenous demands of his own people. With the inspiration found in
Hussein, the devout Iranians consistently defied the army with an audacity unprecedented in European revolutions and despite
sustaining casualties. This sustained resistance, gradually undermined the morale of the military rank-and-file and their willingness to
continue shooting into the crowds, until the state and the army succumbed before the revolution. As such a very "traditional" part of
Iranian life could forge a very modern-looking revolutionary movement. This represented the first revolution to ever be deliberately
“made” by a revolutionary ideology and organization that mobilize mass followings.[118]

See also
Timeline of Iranian revolution
Organizations of the Iranian Revolution
History of political Islam in Iran
Iran and Red and black colonization
Anniversary of Islamic revolution

References and notes

1. Del Giudice, Marguerite (August 2008). "Persia: Ancient Soul of Iran".National Geographic.
2. Abrahamian, Iran Between Two Revolutions, (1982), 534-5
3. Brumberg, Reinventing Khomeini (2001).
4. Shirley, Know Thine Enemy (1997), p. 207.
5. Harney, The Priest (1998), pp. 37, 47, 67, 128, 155, 167.
6. Iran Between Two Revolutions by Ervand Abrahamian, p.437
 7. Mackay, Iranians (1998), pp. 236, 260.
8. Graham, Iran (1980), pp. 19, 96.
9. Nasr, Vali, The Shia Revival, Norton, (2006), p. 117
10. http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Iran_const_1906.doc
11. Mackey, The Iranians, (1996) p.184
12. Bakhash, Shaul, Reign of the Ayatollahs: Iran and the Islamic Revolutionby Shaul, Bakhash, Basic Books, c1984
p.22
13. Taheri, Amir, The Spirit of Allah: Khomeini and the Islamic Revolution, Adler and Adler
, c1985, p. 94-5
14. Rajaee, Farhang, Islamic Values and World View: Farhang Khomeyni on Man, the State and International oPlitics,
Volume XIII (http://webstorage1.mcpa.virginia.edu/library/mc/forums/published/americanvalues13.pdf)
Archived (http
s://web.archive.org/web/20090326213807/http://webstorage1.mcpa.virginia.edu/library/mc/forums/published/america
nvalues13.pdf) 2009-03-26 at the Wayback Machine. (PDF), University Press of America.ISBN 0-8191-3578-X
15. Nehzat by Ruhani vol. 1 p. 195, quoted in Moin,Khomeini (2000), p. 75.
16. Islam and Revolution, p. 17; Later, much lower estimates of 380 dead can be found in Moin, Baqer, Khomeini: Life of
the Ayatolla, (2000), p. 112.
17. Graham, Iran 1980, p. 69.
18. Mackay, Iranians (1996) pp. 215, 264–5.
19. Keddie, Modern Iran, (2003) pp. 201-7
20. The Last Great Revolution Turmoil and Transformation in Iran (https://www.nytimes.com/books/first/w/wright-revoluti
on.html?_r=1), by Robin WRIGHT.
21. Dabashi, Theology of Discontent(1993), p.419, 443
22. Khomeini; Algar, Islam and Revolution, p.52, 54, 80
23. See: Velayat-e faqih (book by Khomeini)#Importance of Islamic Government
24. khomeinism (http://almashriq.hiof.no/lebanon/300/320/324/324.2/hizballah/warn2/shiism.html#khomeinism)
25. Abrahamian, Ervand, Khomeinism : Essays on the Islamic Republic, Berkeley : University of California Press, c1993.
p.30,
26. See: Hokumat-e Islami : Velayat-e faqih (book by Khomeini)#Why Islamic Government has not been established
27. Khomeini and Algar, Islam and Revolution (1981), p.34
28. Taheri, The Spirit of Allah (1985), p. 196.
29. Graham, Iran (1980), p. 213.
30. Abrahamian, Iran Between (1980), pp. 502–3.
31. Mackay, Iranians (1996), p. 276.
32. Abrahamian, Iran Between (1980), pp. 478–9
33. "Ideology, Culture, and Ambiguity: The Revolutionary Process in Iran"(https://www.jstor.org/stable/658050), Theory
and Society, Vol. 25, No. 3 (Jun., 1996), pp. 349–88.
34. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, (2004), p. 145-6
35. Moin, Khomeini (2000), p.80
36. Hiro, Dilip. Iran Under the Ayatollahs. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. 1985. p. 57.
37. Wright, Last (2000), p. 220.
38. Graham, Iran (1980) p. 94.
39. Moin, Khomeini (2000), p. 174.
40. Graham, Iran (1980), p. 96.
41. Abrahamian, Iran (1982), p. 444.
42. Moin, Khomeini (2000), p. 163.
43. Graham, Iran (1980), p. 226.
44. Abrahamian, Iran (1982), pp. 501–3.
45. Moin, Khomeini (2000), pp. 183–4.
46. Moin, Khomeini (2000), pp. 184–5.
47. Taheri, Spirit (1985), pp. 182–3.
48. Amuzegar, Jahangir, The Dynamics of the Iranian Revolution,SUNY Press, p.10
49. Benard, "The Government of God"(1984), p. 18.
50. Amuzegar, The Dynamics of the Iranian Revolution,(1991), p.4, 9-12
51. Sachs, Albie (1990). The Soft Vengeance of a Freedom Fighter(https://books.google.com/?id=A1bOAwAAQBAJ&pg
=PA164&dq=all+revolutions+are+impossible+until+they+become+inevitable#v=onepage&q=all%20revolutions%20ar
e%20impossible%20until%20they%20become%20inevitable&f=false) . University of California Press. p. 164.
ISBN 9780520959446. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
52. Arjomand, Turban (1988), p. 191.
53. Harney, Priest (1998), p. 2.
54. Abrahamian Iran (1982), p. 496.
55. Iran’s tide of history: counter-revolution and after. Fred Halliday, 17 July 2009 (http://www.opendemocracy.net/article/i
ran-s-tide-of-history-counter-revolution-and-after)
56. Iran Between Two Revolutions by Ervand Abrahamian, p.430-5
57. Mackay, Iranians (1998), pp. 259, 261.
58. Khomeini's speech against capitalism(http://www.irib.ir/worldservice/imam/speech/16.htm), IRIB World Service.
59. Persian pilgrimages By Afshin Molavi(https://books.google.com/books?id=Yxd3E-_AqSEC&pg=PA13&lpg=PA13&dq
=shah+calendar+change&source=bl&ots=54acfUnJpk&sig=dNuo-nwbrJdjzi9ChMJQT yOJyzU&hl=en&ei=TAjmSfeiIZ
vpnQf3lJ2nCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3)
60. Taheri, The Spirit of Allah (1985), p. 136.
61. Arjomand Turban (1998), p. 192.
62. Moin, Khomeini (2000), p. 178.
63. Hoveyda Shah (2003) p. 22.
64. Abrahamian, Iran (1982), pp. 533–4.
65. Mackay, Iranians (1998), p. 219.
66. Katouzian (1981), The Political Economy of Modern Iran(https://www.amazon.com/dp/0814745784): Despotism and
Pseudo-Modernism, 1926–1979.
67. Kapuscinski, Shah of Shahs (1985).
68. Taheri, The Spirit of Allah (1985) pp. 234–5.
69. Harney, The Priest (1998), p. 65.
70. economist Jahangir Amuzegar quoted T ocqueville in his book, Dynamics The Dynamics of the Iranian Revolution:
The Pahlavis' Triumph and Tragedy, SUNY, 1991, p.241, 243.
71. According to Kurzman, scholars writing on the revolution who have mentioned this include:
Sick, All Fall Down, p.187;
Fischer, Iran: From Religious Dispute to Revolution, Harvard University Press, 1980, p.189;
Keddie, `Iranian Revolutions in Comparative Perspective,`American Historical Review, 1983, v.88, p.589;
Bakhash, The Reign of the Ayatollahs, p.13
72. Abrahamian, Iran Between Two Revolutions (1982) pp. 442–6.
73. Taheri, The Spirit of Allah (1985) p. 205.
74. Moin, Khomeini (2000), p. 188.
75. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, (p.107)
76. Graham, Iran (1980) p. 231.
77. Graham, Iran (1980) p. 228.
78. Harney, The Priest (1998).
79. Graham, Iran (1980), p. 235.
80. The Persian Sphinx: Amir Abbas Hoveyda and the Riddle of the Iranian Revolution By Abbas Milani, pp. 292-293
81. Seven Events That Made America America, ByLarry Schweikart, p. (https://books.google.com/books?id=BMnUBQJ
BbgIC&pg=PT147&lpg=PT147&dq=shah+was+finished+after+Black+Friday&source=bl&ots=cO3GMfUWGj&sig=RG
Lg1EqzPDPZ1PoXL8bcle9__JM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=QP16UJ_7Cof7iwLpq4DY Ag&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage
&q=shah%20was%20finished%20after%20Black%20Friday&f=false)
 82. The Iranian Revolution of 1978/1979 and How W
estern Newspapers Reported It By Edgar Klüsener
, p. 12
83. Cultural History After Foucault By John Neubauer
, p. 64
84. Islam in the World Today: A Handbook of Politics, Religion, Culture, and Society By W
erner Ende, Udo Steinbach, p.
264
85. The A to Z of Iran, By John H. Lorentz, p. 63
86. Islam and Politics By John L. Esposito, p. 212
87. Arjomand, Turban (1998), pp. 189–90.
88. Taheri, The Spirit of Allah (1985), p. 233.
89. Brumberg, Reinventing Khomeini (2001), pp. 44, 74–5.
90. Momen, Moojan, An Introduction to Shi'i Islam, Yale University Press, 1985, p.288
91. Taheri, The Spirit of Allah (1985), p. 238.
92. Momen, Moojan, An Introduction to Shi'i Islam, Yale University Press, 1985, p.287
93. Schirazi, The Constitution of Iran(1997), pp. 293–4.
94. Schirazi, Asghar, The Constitution of Iran : politics and the state in the Islamic Republic
, London ; New York : I.B.
Tauris, 1997, p.292
95. Zabih, Sepehr, Iran Since the Revolution, Johns Hopkins Press, 1982, p.9
96. Moin, Khomeini (2000), p. 200.
97. Harney, The Priest (1998), p. 177.
98. Graham, Iran (1980) p. 233.
99. Zabih, Blah Blah Iran (1982), p. 16.
100. Andrew Scott Cooper. The Oil Kings: How the U.S., Iran, and Saudi Arabia Changed the Balance of Power in the
Middle East. Simon & Schuster, 2011. ISBN 1439155178.
101. Marenches, Alexander de.The Evil Empire: The Third World War Now, Interviewed by Christine Ockrent, trans
Simon Lee and Jonathan Marks, London: Sidgwick and Jackson, 1988, p.125
102. Air Force Commander Amir-Hossein Rabi'i quoted in Arjomand, Said Amir
, The Turban for the Crown, Oxford
University Press, 1988, p.114
103. a survey of which found the leading explanation for the Iranian revolution to be foreign plots, [Hakimfar
, Bahram Bob
`The Downfall of Late King Muhammad Reza Pahlavi: V iew of the Iranian Community in Southern California` Ph. D.
dissertation, U.S. International University
104. [interviews with the families of Iran-Iraq War Casualties, according to a sermon by Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati,
December 20, 2002, translated by BBC Worldwide Monitoring.]
105. Amuzegar, Jahangir, The Dynamics of the Iranian Revolution, Albany, NY: State University of New York Press,
1991, p.79-96
Daneshvar, Parviz, Revolution in Iran, St. Martin's Press, 1996, p.94, 126
Moshiri, Farrokh, The State and Social Revolution in Iran, NY, Peter Lang, 1985, p.220 ] *The Unthinkable
Revolution in Iran, (p.13)
106. Iran Since the Revolutionby Sepehr Zabih Johns Hopkins Press, 1982 p.12-15
107. dead link (http://kms1.isn.ethz.ch/serviceengine/Files/ISN/23563/ipublicationdocument_singledocument/272541C1-2
E49-4D94-A7E2-58E823584EED/en/mcnair48.pdf)
108. Amjad, Mohammed. Iran from Royal Dictatorship to Theocracy
. New York : Greenwood Press, Inc., 1989. p. 52
109. Amjad, Mohammed. Iran from Royal Dictatorship to Theocracy
. New York : Greenwood Press, Inc., 1989. p. 74
110. Amjad, Mohammed. Iran from Royal Dictatorship to Theocracy . New ork
Y : Greenwood Press, Inc. , 1989.p.74-79
111. Kurzman, Charles. The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran(https://books.google.com/books?id=bt2GiD5OkUUC&printse
c=frontcover&dq=Unthinkable+Revolution+in+Iran%27)(Harvard University Press, 2004)
112. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, p. 163
113. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, (p.51)
114. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, (p.57)
115. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, p. 99
116. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, p. 93
117. Kurzman, The Unthinkable Revolution in Iran, (2004), p. 25
118. Skocpol, Teda. "Rentier state and Shi'a Islam in the Iranian Revolution (Chapter 10) - Social Revolutions in the
Modern World" (https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/social-revolutions-in-the-modern-world/rentier-state-and-shia-
islam-in-the-iranian-revolution/56EE3B4F3B2BF0794C0D79BC78C71B4E) . Cambridge Core. Retrieved 2017-06-24.

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Graham, Robert (1980).Iran, the Illusion of Power. St. Martin's Press.
Harney, Desmond (1998). The priest and the king: an eyewitness account of the Iranian revolution . I.B. Tauris.
Harris, David (2004). The Crisis: the President, the Prophet, and the Shah – 1979 and the Coming of Militant Islam .
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Hoveyda, Fereydoun (2003).The Shah and the Ayatollah: Iranian mythology and Islamic revolution . Praeger.
Kapuscinski, Ryszard (1985).Shah of Shahs. Harcourt Brace, Jovanovich.
Keddie, Nikki (2003). Modern Iran: Roots and Results of Revolution . Yale University Press.
Kepel, Gilles (2002). The Trail of Political Islam. Harvard University Press.
Mackey, Sandra (1996). The Iranians: Persia, Islam and the Soul of a Nation . Dutton.
Miller, Judith (1996). God Has Ninety Nine Names. Simon & Schuster.
Moin, Baqer (2000). Khomeini: Life of the Ayatollah. Thomas Dunne Books.
Roy, Olivier (1994). The Failure of Political Islam. translated by Carol Volk. Harvard UniversityPress.
Ruthven, Malise (2000).Islam in the World. Oxford University Press.
Schirazi, Asghar (1997).The Constitution of Iran. Tauris.
Shirley, Edward (1997). Know Thine Enemy. Farra.
Taheri, Amir (1985). The Spirit of Allah. Adler & Adler.
Wright, Robin (2000). The Last Great Revolution: Turmoil And Transformation In Iran. Alfred A. Knopf: Distributed by
Random House.
Zabih, Sepehr (1982). Iran Since the Revolution . Johns Hopkins Press.
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Further reading
Afshar, Haleh, ed. (1985). Iran: A Revolution in Turmoil. Albany: SUNY Press.ISBN 0-333-36947-5.
Barthel, Günter, ed. (1983). Iran: From Monarchy to Republic. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag. <!— ISBN ?? —>.
Daniel, Elton L. (2000).The History of Iran. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-30731-8.
Esposito, John L., ed. (1990).The Iranian Revolution: Its Global Impact. Miami: Florida International University
Press. ISBN 0-8130-0998-7.
Harris, David (2004). The Crisis: The President, the Prophet, and the Shah – 1979 and the Coming of Militant Islam.
New York & Boston: Little, Brown.ISBN 0-316-32394-2.
Hiro, Dilip (1989). Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism. New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-90208-8.
(Chapter 6: Iran: Revolutionary Fundamentalism in Power .)
Kapuściński, Ryszard. Shah of Shahs. Translated from Polish by William R. Brand and Katarzyna Mroczkowska-
Brand. New York: Vintage International, 1992.
Kurzman, Charles. The Unthinkable Revolution.Cambridge, MA & London: Harvard University Press, 2004.
Ladjevardi, Habib (editor), Memoirs of Shapour Bakhtiar, Harvard University Press, 1996.
Legum, Colin, et al., eds.Middle East Contemporary Survey: Volume III, 1978–79. New York: Holmes & Meier
Publishers, 1980. + *Legum, Colin, et al., eds.Middle East Conte
Milani, Abbas, The Persian Sphinx: Amir Abbas Hoveyda and the Riddle of the Iranian Revolution , Mage Publishers,
2000, ISBN 0-934211-61-2.
Munson, Henry, Jr. Islam and Revolution in the Middle East.New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988.
Nafisi, Azar. "Reading Lolita in Tehran." New York: Random House, 2003.
 Nobari, Ali Reza, ed. Iran Erupts: Independence: News and Analysis of the Iranian National Movement. Stanford:
Iran-America Documentation Group, 1978.
Nomani, Farhad & Sohrab Behdad,Class and Labor in Iran; Did the Revolution Matter?Syracuse University Press.
2006. ISBN 0-8156-3094-8
Pahlavi, Mohammad Reza, Response to History, Stein & Day Pub, 1980,ISBN 0-8128-2755-4.
Rahnema, Saeed & Sohrab Behdad, eds.Iran After the Revolution: Crisis of an Islamic State.London: I.B. Tauris,
1995.
Sick, Gary. All Fall Down: America's Tragic Encounter with Iran. New York: Penguin Books, 1986.
Shawcross, William, The Shah's last ride: The death of an ally, Touchstone, 1989, ISBN 0-671-68745-X.
Smith, Frank E. The Iranian Revolution.1998.
Society for Iranian Studies,Iranian Revolution in Perspective.Special volume of Iranian Studies, 1980. V
olume 13,
nos. 1–4.
Time magazine, January 7, 1980. Man of the Year (Ayatollah Khomeini).
U.S. Department of State,American Foreign Policy Basic Documents, 1977–1980.Washington, DC: GPO, 1983. JX
1417 A56 1977–80 REF - 67 pages on Iran.
Yapp, M.E. The Near East Since the First World War: A History to 1995. London: Longman, 1996. Chapter 13: Iran,
1960–1989.

External links
Islamic Revolution of Iran, Encarta(Archived 31 October 2009)
The Iranian revolution, Britannica
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