1919–80, shah of Iran (1941–79). Educated in
Switzerland, he returned (1935) to Iran to attend the military
academy in Tehran. He ascended the throne in 1941 after his
father, Reza Shah
Pahlevi, was suspected of collaboration with the Germans
and was deposed by British and Soviet troops. He narrowly
escaped assassination (1949) by a member of the leftist Tudeh
party, and in 1953 he briefly fled the country after a clash
with the supporters of Muhammad Mussadegh. A moderate, the
shah launched (1963) a reform program with U.S. assistance
called the "White Revolution," which included land
redistribution among citizens, extensive construction, the
promotion of literacy, and the emancipation of women. However
in the process, the grassroots population became increasingly
isolated as wealth, emanating from the oil industry, was
unequally distributed among Iranians. The shah faced further
criticism from the internal religious clergy, who disfavored
his pro-Western policies. As popular discontent grew,
particularly in the early 1970s, the shah became more
repressive, calling upon his brutal secret police (SAVAK) to
put down domestic strife. Massive rioting erupted in Iran, and
widespread support for the exiled religious leader Ruhollah
Khomeini grew by 1978. On Jan. 16, 1979, Shah Pahlevi fled the
country; Khomeini returned to Iran and took control. When in
Oct., 1979, Iranian extremists stormed the U.S. embassy in
Tehran, they demanded the shah in return for the American
hostages being held in the embassy. The shah, however,
remained abroad; he died in Egypt in 1980.
