Iran and the Rise of the Reza Shah: From Qajar Collapse to Pahlavi Power [Hardcover]

Cyrus Ghani (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 15, 1998 | ISBN-10: 1860642586 | ISBN-13: 978-1860642586

The post-World War I years encompass one of the most important and engrossing chapters in 20th century Iranian history. The period begins with a triumvirate of Iranian political grandees, encouraged (and bribed) by the British government, attempting to shoe-horn Iran into the British Empire. This failed and clumsy episode is followed by a bizarre coup d’état engineered in great haste by a British general who knew virtually nothing of the country or her people. The coup brought to power a tough but obscure military officer from the backwoods, who became a Minister of War, disposed of the Prime Minister to take over the role himself, dabbled briefly with republicanism, then crowned himself as the Reza Shah Pahlavi, terminating 130 years of Qajar rule.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The 20th century has been cataclysmic for Iran. This book, written by a scholar well versed in modern Iranian history, covers the period 1919-26. Ghani describes in great detail the historical events that led to the downfall of the Qajar dynasty and the rise of Reza Khan, the founder of the Pahlavi dynasty. Ghani relies on documents from the British Record Office and extensive Iranian sources to describe how a British general with limited knowledge of Iran and the British Minister to Iran engineered a coup that catapulted an obscure military officer to the pinnacle of power. The author also provides a fascinating picture of Reza Khan's relations with his compatriots and foreign powers. This balanced and meticulously researched book sheds light on crucial events of the early 20th century that influenced the course of subsequent developments in Iran. Highly recommended for students of modern Iranian history.?Nader Entessar, Spring Hill Coll., Mobile, AL
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

A frustratingly limited analysis of the rise of Reza Shah, a nationalist who unified modern Iran after years of British control. Iranian historian Ghani (The Rise of the West, not reviewed) describes how Britain wielded her financial and military clout to dominate pre-WWI Iran. With the shah on the British payroll, Iran was ruled by a corrupt, pro-British oligarchy. So complete was Britain's domination that Foreign Minister Curzon referred to Iran's leaders as his ``puppets'' and ``performing dogs.'' WWI changed the political climate. As nationalism spread across the Arab world, the Iranian people claimed the right of national self-determination. In the face of this nationalist fervor, Britain demanded legal recognition of her power over Iran. The 1919 Anglo-Iranian Agreement, negotiated in secret and paid for with British bribes, ``cede[d] to Britain control of [Iran's] financial, military, and foreign affairs.'' Meanwhile, Britain attempted to install a puppet government in Iran that would not only ratify the humiliating Anglo-Iranian Agreement but also quell growing nationalist, anti-British unrest. This kind of shameless 19th-century imperialism proved difficult, and Iran became ungovernable. In 1921, Britain acquiesced to a coup d'tat led by Reza Khan, an Iranian military strongman trusted as safely pro-British. Reza Khan, however, would prove to be his own man. He reorganized the army under Iranian officers and ejected British financial advisers. Reza centralized and unified the nation, limiting British influence. Viewing the then shah as a tool of the British, Reza deposed him and installed himself shah in his place. By appealing directly to Iran's nationalist majority, Reza consolidated his power and ruled Iran for the next 20 years. Ghani has a great story to tell, but he gets mired in quotidian details. Readers will be exasperated by his scant discussion of larger themes, such as British imperialism. Perhaps academics will find value in the details of this account; general readers will long for a larger historical perspective. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: I. B. Tauris (December 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1860642586
• ISBN-13: 978-1860642586
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,264,941 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reza Khan based on British Archives - Five Stars, December 14, 1999

By 

Koroosh Sina (Berlin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Iran and the Rise of the Reza Shah: From Qajar Collapse to Pahlavi Power (Hardcover)

I read this book in both English and Farsi just to compare and also to refresh my mind with all the detail it provided. Call it strange, but I did not find a dull sentence in this book, nor did I think the material was just a cut and paste collage. C. Ghani has systematically presented material that needs time to be absorbed by our current knowledge of this issue. I think the book is excellent. Perhaps all the controversy would be eliminated if the book's title would have been, "Iran and the Rise of Reza Shah Based on The Archives of Imperialist England," or something like that.

I would suggest this book to anyone who has an interest in Reza Khan. I would hope that a similar book would be written based on the archives of Russia or Belgium as various readers have suggested, but that does not mean this book is not a grand contribution. I would like very much to read Eric Laurey's "Belge En Perzie." Maybe instead of criticzing Mr. Ghani, he should translate his work into English so that more people could read it. I for one would be very interested in reading the Belgian point of view.

As I browsed through the comments posted on this page, I kept wondering what all the controversy was about surrounding this book. From my point of view, all the criticism this book has received so far rests on very false foundations. I am very disappointed to see that in this stage of human history, people still molest a scholar calling his work `oriental history writing.' I'm so pleased to see that I am not the only person to be taken aback by this extremist remark. Maybe it is time that we too asked people to address our scholars with respect. Isn't it funny how every time an Iranian writes a book, someone from England employs this phrase to discount their effort (A similar comment is on Farmanfarmaian's book, Blood and Oil)? Why is that?

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book of history - not a biography, December 25, 2004

By 

SHAYAN (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Iran and the Rise of the Reza Shah: From Qajar Collapse to Pahlavi Power (Paperback)

This book is a must have for people interested in modern Iranian history.

As many reviewers fail to note, this book is an account of the RISE of Reza Shah and not a biography.

It offers a thoroughly researched account of the crucial period leading up to the fall of the corrupt Qajar dynasty, a period for which no books of this quality exist.

The book ends with the begining of the Pahlavi dynasty and only offers an epilogue on the achievements and failings of Reza Shah as king. It will leave you salivating for more on what happens in the next phase of history.

The tone and style of the book is academic and may turn some readers off, but the content will give readers a new perspective on where Iran came from why it is where it is today.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Faulty heuristics, November 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Iran and the Rise of the Reza Shah: From Qajar Collapse to Pahlavi Power (Hardcover)

It is not true that "no attempt has yet been made to piece together a narrative based on documents rather than hearsay" with regard to the period and the themes discussed in Ghani's book. At the risk of being narcissic I reccomend Ghani my own work "Belgen in Perzië" (available at Library of Congress) wich surprisingly is not mentioned in his bibliography. Belgian officials who worked in Iran from 1895 to 1934 (customs, finance, postal services etc.) and Belgian diplomats produced quite a few documents which provide an independent onlooker's analysis of what went on in Iran. Given the importance of the Belgian assistance in Iran, which was more successfull and lasted longer than Millspaugh's or Armitage Smith's, these documents are invaluable in studying this period of Iranian history. I do not believe it is permissible to leave the Belgian component almost unmentioned. Scores of policies, recommendations and cases of political and social assistance have been provided by Belgians to both the Qadjars and Reza Shah. Modernisation of the state was not made possible by the ephemeral Millspaugh tax-reform but rather by the long term and unrelenting Belgian efforts to render the customs system efficient. At one point these customs offices were the ONLY source of income for the Shah.