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Qajar Iran and the Rise of Reza Khan 1796-1925

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Qajar Iran and the Rise of Reza Khan 1796-1925 Nikkie R. Keddie Mazda Publishers, 1999ISBN:1-56859-084-9

This is a short history of the Iran prior to the advent of the Pahlavis. It is a concise historical review of the cultural and political environment of the Qajar period. It is primarily about the Qajars and has very little background on Reza Khan or his actual rise; but rather, discusses the socio-political environment that allowed him to take over the reins of power.

The one area that the book treats very lightly is the economic conditions of Qajar Iran, specifically in the second half of Nasser-din Shah's reign which is critical in determining the ability of that government to withstand the onslaught of European politics. Also, the book fails to cover the influence of Western economics on early 20th century Iran. The ability of the English Government to buy and bribe government officials is briefly mentioned but the reasons for the impoverishment of the Iranian government that allowed this to happen is not as fully addressed. Furthermore, nothing is mentioned of the surrogate of the British Empire in Iran, i.e., the Anglo-Persian Oil Company which, in fact, was in a position to make major payoffs and carry out the policies of the British without directly involving the British Government. (The British government owned 51% of this company, since the Admiralty had changed the British Navy from coal to oil burning.) A brief chapter on this matter would have enhanced the value of this book.

All in all this is a must reading for anyone who is interested in contemporary Iranian History. It is short, to the point, detailed and above all extremely well written.