iran Flashcards
Iranians
are ethnically Persian, not Arabs, and are Shiite muslim
Reza Khan seized power
in 1925 and began to modernise and secularised the country
after WW2
Mossadeq seized power and tried to take over the oilfields from Western companies
1953
US, with British backing, toppled Mossadeq and put a more sympathetic government in place
The Shah’s new
government was pro-western during the cold war, but Islamic protest and opposition within Iran was growing
1979
Islamic revolution, led by Khomeini and an Islamic, Anti-Western state was subsequently set up
Khomeini’s new government
hijacked the US embassy in Tehran and began to look to help Shiites in neighbouring Iraq to topple their own government and set up an Islamic state
1980
Iran invaded Iraq, which drew in the superpowers to protect oil supplies, and Iran eventually surrendered to the US in 1988
up to 1925
oil fields were controlled by British
1930
Iran became the 4th largest oil producer
1951 nationalised oil industry
in the 1970s
the increasing opposition to the Shah’s regime culminated in the Shah leaving to get cancer treatment and never coming back
Iranian revolution resulted in
further instability in the region as the political foundations of neighbouring countries were shaken, especially those with Shiite majorities, like SA, Kuwait and Iraq
it also invigorated political ISLAM
