Reza-shah Pehlevi Iranian Shah of the Pahlavi dynasty Country: Iran

Biography of Reza Shah Pahlavi

Reza Shah Pahlavi was an Iranian ruler of the Pahlavi dynasty. He commanded the Cossack Brigade from 1916 and organized a military coup in February 1921. He removed the degenerate Turkic Qajar dynasty from power and resisted English attempts to impose a protectorate over Iran. The Cossack Brigade, trained and armed by Russian Cossack officers, was the most formidable part of the Iranian army in the late 19th century. However, it was led by an Iranian military leader. The Muslim Cossacks excelled in horsemanship, marksmanship, and combat skills, but they also enjoyed drinking Russian vodka and using Russian profanity.

In December 1925, the obedient Constituent Assembly proclaimed Reza Shah as the new Shah of the new Pahlavi dynasty. He idolized Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the ruler of neighboring Turkey. Following Atatürk's example, Reza Shah implemented a series of secular reforms in land relations, finance, judicial system, and education. He abolished many medieval institutions and introduced European-style clothing. However, he did not dare to touch religion and the clergy. Shia Iran remained a country where governors ruled in the capital and cities, while the mullahs held power in the rest of the territory.

Reza Shah desperately maneuvered between Russia, looming from the north, and England, approaching from the south. He chose Germany as a counterweight and became so close to them that Hitler referred to him as "our ally in the Middle East." It is not surprising that after Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union, Soviet troops occupied the northern part of Iran in August 1941 (according to the 1921 agreement), while the British occupied the south without any agreement. Humiliated, Reza Shah abdicated, and his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, took his place. Mohammad Reza remained on the throne until February 1979 when he was overthrown by the Islamic "mullah" revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini.

It is said that in 1943, during the Tehran Conference, the former Shah observed Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill and remarked, "These are powerful rulers. But one will die like a dog; another will die suddenly and easily; the third will die in wealth and peace, but far from power." And so it happened.

Reza Shah himself peacefully passed away at the age of 66 in his luxurious residence on the shores of the Caspian Sea. He leaned his head on the balustrade of a fountain, listening to the reading of verses by Ferdowsi. Despite being semi-literate, the former soldier had a great love for poetry.