The History of Iran: Constitution, Oil, and Revolution

For over a century, political movements in Iran have fought for national sovereignty, the rule of law, and political participation. External great powers have repeatedly interrupted or redirected this process. The Islamic Republic is the latest outcome to date, but likely not the final one.

The Constitutional Revolution: 1905–1911

Persia was an absolute monarchy at the beginning of the 20th century under the Qajar dynasty, which had been in power since the late 18th century. The state was politically weak, financially dependent, and heavily influenced by the Russian Empire and Great Britain.

The country financed itself mainly through foreign loans, especially from the Russian Empire and the United Kingdom, and in return granted economic concessions, including the tobacco concession of 1890. This dependence was further exacerbated by the Anglo-Russian Convention, which effectively divided Persia into two spheres of influence: the Russian-controlled north and the British-dominated south.

The Tobacco protest of 1891–1892 was directed against Qajar rule and against foreign companies' control of the domestic tobacco industry. Merchants, intellectuals, and the clergy organized a nationwide boycott. Women participated in it. This movement culminated in the Constitutional Revolution of 1905–1911, which abolished the absolute monarchy and introduced a constitution and parliament.

Even then, two political currents were opposed to each other: a secular-bourgeois wing that wanted to limit state power through laws, oriented towards Western models, and a clerical wing that aspired to a state based on Islamic legal principles. This fundamental conflict remained unresolved.

The new constitution did not apply to women

Women had contributed significantly to the constitutional movement, but were in the new constitution not taken into account. The document demanded equality for all citizens before the law but explicitly excluded women from the definition of „citizen.“ Comprehensive civil liberties, including freedom of religion and separation of church and state, also remained unachieved.

A state without a stable foundation

After the revolution, a constitution formally existed, but the state remained permanently unstable. Several coup attempts and parliamentary dissolutions followed. The economy remained dependent on foreign loans. After the discovery of significant oil reserves, in 1909 the Anglo-Persian Oil Company established. With the later renaming of the country to Iran, the company also changed its name to Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, the direct predecessor of today's energy group BP.

1911 the parliament brought in the American financial advisor Morgan Schuster, to reform state finances. Russia and Great Britain disapproved, invaded the country, and demanded his expulsion. Schuster resigned. Parliament was dissolved, and no budget was passed for the following years. Local governors, tribal leaders, and militias gained increasing control, while state institutions lost influence.

Between the Fronts: Iran in World War I

Persia declared itself officially neutral in World War I neutral. Great Britain and Russia nevertheless exploited the country's weakness to march in and wage war against the Ottoman Empire from there. The consequences were severe: Between 1917 and 1919 starved approximately two million people, millions more died of diseases.

Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, Russian troops withdrew. Britain pressured the Iranian government with bribes to sign the Anglo-Persian Treaty of 1919. The parliament rejected it. At the same time, the newly formed Soviet Union supported separatist movements in several provinces.

In this context, he/she/it distinguished himself/herself/itself Reza Khan Savadkuhi, Commander-in-Chief of the Cossack Brigade. After his 1921 coup, he suppressed separatist movements, built a central army, and had the Qajar dynasty overthrown in 1925. He ascended the throne himself, naming himself Reza Shah Pahlavi and founded the Pahlavi dynasty. Great Britain tolerated this, seeing him as a stabilizer for the region.

Modernization through centralization

Reza Shah relied on Centralization and Modernization from above. He expanded the state apparatus militarily and administratively, suppressed tribal structures, and eliminated regional autonomies. Criminal and civil law were reformed according to the French model, a national education system was expanded, compulsory schooling was introduced, and a central bank was founded. This deprived the British Imperial Bank of Persia of the right to issue banknotes. Between 1928 and 1938, significant oil reserves were developed and new trade and customs agreements were concluded.

Part of this centralization was the promotion of a unified national identity in the multi-ethnic state. From 1935 onwards, the designation „Persia“ was to be replaced internationally by „Iran“is to be replaced. Persian language and culture were forcibly imposed as the dominant force of the state, even on ethnic minorities. The Iranian solar calendar replaced the Arabic lunar calendar.

Women's policy between reform and control

The modernization policy also influenced the Women's movement. Independent women's organizations that had formed during the Constitutional Revolution were restricted or integrated into the state apparatus. In 1934, Reza Shah founded a state-controlled women's organization under the name Kaanoon-e Baanovaan, headed by his daughter Ashraf Pahlavi. The parliament introduced more progressive marriage and divorce laws and invested in girls' education.

At the same time, a state decree prohibited the Veil of Modesty, all Islamic veils by force until Reza Shah's abdication. The clergy used this law to legitimize their opposition to the women's movement.

The government increasingly acted repressively against the political opposition. Critical voices, intellectuals, and left-wing and communist groups were monitored, intimidated, and arrested. Independent parties had little room to maneuver. The press and public expression were subject to censorship.

Iran in World War II

In the 1930s, Iran, under Reza Shah, had expanded its economic and technological relations with Germany. By 1940, 47 percent of Iranian exports to Germany, 43 percent of imports came from there. When the Allies feared that Germany might use strategically relevant infrastructure in Iran, British and Soviet troops moved in in 1941 and forced Reza Shah to abdicate. He died in exile in South Africa in 1944.

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi

His son Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was appointed the new Shah. While British troops withdrew after the war ended, Soviet troops remained in the country and once again supported autonomy movements, including the declared Republic of Kurdistan in Mahabad. The young Shah sought help from the USA, which, under President Truman, exerted pressure on the Soviet Union. They eventually withdrew.

Parliamentarianism and the Nationalization of Oil

In the 1940s, parliamentarism gained importance. Various political parties, student, and women's organizations were formed. Different ideological currents, from nationalism through liberalism to socialist and communist approaches, openly competed in parliament. Marxist-Leninist Tudeh Party mobilized workers and intellectuals. An assassination attempt on the Shah in 1949 was blamed on party members, the party was temporarily banned, and many members fled to the Soviet Union. At the same time, a group formed with the National Front of Iran a broad coalition of nationalist and democratic forces.

Mohammad Mossadegh In 1951, based on a parliamentary majority, he was appointed Prime Minister by the Shah. He pushed through the nationalization of the oil industry: the National Iranian Oil Company was founded and took over the assets of the former Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. Iran's share in oil production had previously been around 20 percent.

The Abadan Crisis and the Overthrow of Mosaddegh

In the following years, Great Britain attempted to reverse the nationalization. The conflict escalated into the Abadan Crisis. Domestically, Mossadegh increasingly relied on emergency powers to support his government. In the context of the Cold War, the United States under President Eisenhower shifted 1953 The British position, after the Churchill government argued that Mossadegh might favor communist forces in Iran. Mossadegh dissolved Parliament by referendum in August 1953.

Operation Ajax

The British intelligence agency MI6 and the CIA organized in 1953 Operation Ajax with the aim of overthrowing Mossadegh. The operation included political influence, propaganda, the mobilization of demonstrations, and the support of loyal military and security forces.

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi eventually signed a decree dismissing Mossadegh, temporarily left the country, and returned after U.S.-backed forces gained control of Tehran. Mossadegh was arrested and put on trial. The Shah's power was significantly expanded, while the role of Parliament and democratic forces was sharply curtailed.

SAVAK and Political Repression

A central instrument of this consolidation was the [organization name], founded in 1957 with the support of Western intelligence agencies. Domestic intelligence service SAVAK. He monitored political opponents, persecuted Marxist and Islamist opposition groups, and took action against members of banned parties such as the Tudeh Party. As many women's organizations were closely linked to political parties during this period, the regime also dissolved them. In 1959, 14 organizations were centralized under the umbrella organization of the Federation of Women's Organizations.

After 1954, an international Oil consortium the promotion and marketing of Iranian oil. Several American companies as well as Royal Dutch Shell and a French company participated in the business, thereby reducing British influence. Initially, Iran received about half of the profits. However, the country did not retain direct control over production and distribution. Over the course of the 1960s and 1970s, state revenues continued to increase, also in the context of OPEC. The consortium agreement formally remained in effect until 1979.

Reforms from above: The White Revolution

In 1963, the Shah announced the „White Revolution”a reform program with land reforms, nationalization of forests, privatization of state-owned enterprises, a profit-sharing model for industrial workers, and the establishment of a literacy corps for rural areas. Under the Family Protection Act, women were granted the right to vote, the minimum age for marriage was initially raised to 15 and later to 18, and their rights in divorce and child custody matters were improved.

Parts of the Shiite clergy offered resistance. Religious leaders criticized the land reforms, which weakened their economic base, as well as the changes in family law. The cleric Ruhollah Khomeini led the protests from June 5, 1963. Authorities violently suppressed students at a religious school in Qom, resulting in several deaths. Khomeini was exiled in 1964, first to Iraq and later to France. There, he developed the state principle of Velayat-e Faqih, the governance of the supreme jurist, and recorded speeches and interviews on tape, which were secretly distributed in Iran.

Social inequality despite growth

Between 1963 and 1979 Social inequality grew despite economic expansion. Rising oil revenues fueled infrastructure and urban development. However, profits were unevenly distributed. Wealthy, often Western-oriented, middle class and a small elite, who greatly benefited from the state and the oil sector, emerged in the large cities. At the same time, a large part of the population, especially in rural regions and growing urban peripheries, lived in precarious conditions with insufficient access to education, housing, and social security.

The state simultaneously promoted education both domestically and abroad. Many students returned with a critical attitude against the authoritarian system. In urban academic circles, oppositional networks developed, encompassing secular, religious, socialist, and nationalist currents.

The 1979 Revolution

The Islamic Revolution of 1979 arose from a socially heterogeneous opposition movement. It united religious circles and parts of the Shiite clergy around Khomeini, urban workers from the oil sector, students and intellectuals with democratic and social reform demands, as well as parts of the urban middle class and the merchant class (Bazaris). What united these groups was their rejection of the authoritarian system, their criticism of social inequality, and their dissatisfaction with political repression.

Ab 1978 strikes, demonstrations, and nationwide mobilization expanded. In February 1979 The army declared its neutrality in parts. The Shah was no longer supported by his previous allies the USA, Great Britain, France, and Germany, and fled into exile in Egypt.

The Islamic Republic

For almost 50 years, the Islamic Republic of Iran as a political system in which those forces have prevailed that Rule of the Jurist built. In their early phase, they massively against political opponents and imprisoned and executed leftist and communist groups. The system made it possible for parts of the previously economically disadvantaged rural population, who had migrated to informal settlements in the big cities, to have new opportunities for advancement. Over time, an economically privileged elite has emerged from these groups, which today benefits from the system.

At the same time, a broad, young middle class is facing persistent unemployment, rising inflation, and limited prospects. The number of political prisoners has significantly increased compared to the Shah era. Political freedoms Freedom of opinion and the press are severely restricted, as are the rights of women, sexual, religious, and ethnic minorities.

Ideology and practice diverge.

The Islamic Republic sees itself as an axis of resistance against the West. How flexibly this positioning is managed in practice was demonstrated in the Iran-Iraq War of 1980–1988Despite anti-Western rhetoric, Iran accepted weapons from various sources, including Israel as well as European companies, also from AustriaNoricum Affair).

Parts of the elite are also closely networked with the West: Children of officials study at European and American universities, Wealth circulates about international financial structures.

Resistance as a Constant

The history of past decades shows that resistance in Iranian society always newly formed. Of the Student protests of 1999 about the green Motion 2009 up to the nationwide protests since 2017 and the „Woman, Life, Freedom“ movement following the death of Jina Mahsa Amini 2022 large sections of the population repeatedly resist the theocratic rule. According to Human Rights Organization HRANA came during the protests in January 2026 more than 6.000 People around the world 50.000 more were arrested.

Whether external military intervention whether it could bring about a revolution, as claimed by the US and Israel, is questionable. Such an intervention would interfere with a process that large segments of the Iranian population have been working on since the Constitutional Revolution of 1905–1911, and for which they have paid a high price over generations.

The Core requirements have remained the same: national sovereignty, political participation, the rule of law, equality before the law, individual liberties, and a limited government accountable to the people.