The Fall of Heaven
Page 82
Walters, Barbara
Warhol, Andy
“Warning to the Elements of Corruption” (pamphlet)
Washington Post
Watergate scandal
Westberg, Chris
Westberg, John
West Berlin
West Germany
White Revolution
Wilson, Harold
Window on Iran (TV show)
Winston, Harry
Women’s Organization of Iran
women’s rights
Women’s Wear Daily
Woollacott, Martin
World Health Organization
World War I
World War II
Wright, Denis
Xerxes, King of Persia
Yaquv, Sheikh Mohammad
Yasmine Etemad-Amini, Princess (wife of Crown Prince Reza)
Yazdi, Ibrahim
Yazid, Caliph
Year of Iran (1971)
Yemen
Young, Andrew
youth
Yugoslavia
Zahedi, Ardeshir
Zahedi, Fazlollah
Zaire
Zand Dynasty
Zenderoudi, Charles Hossein
Zia ul-Haq, Muhammad
Zoroastrianism
Reza Shah, seen here with his young son and heir, Crown Prince Mohammad Reza, founded the Pahlavi Dynasty. Through sheer force of will he revived the fortunes of the Persian monarchy. (Getty)
Following the 1949 attempt on his life, Iran’s young King broadcast a reassuring message to the nation from his hospital bed. (Corbis)
The Shah’s wedding to Soraya Esfandiary in 1951 was a sumptuous affair. (Getty)
In 1959 the Shah married Farah Diba, an architecture student. (Getty)
The birth of an heir, Crown Prince Reza, here with his parents in 1964, secured the Imperial succession. (Magnum)
In 1967 Iran’s glamorous Imperial couple attended a parade. (Magnum)
The Imperial coronation in 1967, an occasion for old-world pomp and pageantry. (Magnum)
The Shah of Iran was first among equals at the 1969 funeral of former U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower. (Corbis)
In 1971 the Pahlavis welcomed to Persepolis Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace of Monaco. (Getty)
The Imperial family visited Shiraz in 1971. While the Queen tended to Princess Leila, her husband posed with Prince Ali Reza, Crown Prince Reza, and Princess Farahnaz. (Getty)
In 1972 the Pahlavis enjoyed their winter ski vacation in St. Moritz. From left: Queen Farah, Prince Ali Reza, the Shah, Princess Farahnaz, Crown Prince Reza, Princess Leila. (Corbis)
The King and Queen of Iran, partners in marriage and in power. (Pahlavi family photograph)
Asadollah Alam, minister of the Imperial Court, was a shrewd political operator who kept a watchful eye over his master and the Iranian scene. In 1974 he supported the Shah at a formal court reception. (Getty)
Prime Minister Amir Abbas Hoveyda, who ran the government his way. (Getty)
The Shah was happiest in the company of his generals. In the midseventies he attended maneuvers with General Mohammad Khatami, Princess Fatemeh’s husband, and with General Nader Djahanbani, the “blue-eyed general” whose brother Khosrow married Princess Shahnaz. (Pahlavi family photograph)
Queen Farah, whose influence was felt throughout the old Persian kingdom. (Getty)
During a trip to the provinces, the Queen was surrounded by adoring schoolchildren. (Pahlavi family photograph)
In 1974 the Imperial family gathered for a family portrait: the Shah and Queen Farah, seated front row center; Princess Shahnaz, seated to her father’s right; to the Queen’s left, with Prince Ali Reza between them, Princess Ashraf; Princess Farahnaz and Crown Prince Reza behind their parents; Prince Gholam Reza and his wife, Princess Manigeh, fifth and sixth in from the left, second row from the rear; Khosrow Djahanbani, partially obscured in the back row, second from the right. Seated in the front row, far left, Princess Hamdamsaltaneh, the Shah’s rarely seen half-sister. (Pahlavi family photograph)
Throughout most of his reign the Shah enjoyed correct if strained relations with senior Muslim clerics. In this telling image he conversed with Seyyed Hassan Emami, a prominent Tehran clergyman. (Pahlavi family photograph)
Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, whose vendetta against the Pahlavi family led to rebellion and revolution. (Corbis)
Imam Musa Sadr, whose disappearance in 1978 sealed the Shah’s fate. (Sadr family photograph)
In late 1978 the Shah’s portrait was torched in the streets of Tehran. (Corbis)
The tearful scene at Mehrebad Airport on January 16, 1979, the day the King and Queen left Iran to avoid civil war and bloodshed. (Corbis)
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Researching and writing this book was a journey and a great adventure that took me to many places, including Iran, where I studied Shia Islam and toured the Pahlavi palaces, and also to Tyre in southern Lebanon where I walked in Musa Sadr’s footsteps. In Paris, I interviewed former ambassadors, ministers, and members of the Pahlavi family, then traveled the short distance to Versailles, the seat of the French kings, to interview Abolhassan Banisadr, the revolutionary who deposed them and went on to become the first elected president of the Islamic Republic of Iran. In Cairo, I viewed the Shah’s resting place, and in New York and Washington I met with former U.S. government officials and diplomats. Throughout my travels, I was extended a warm welcome and helping hand from Iranians who were happy to help with my investigation and eager to find out what I had learned. Almost all my interviewees, Iranian or American, royalist or revolutionary, understood that the time was right for a fresh perspective on the dramatic events of 1977–1979.
I would like to thank everyone who helped me in any way over the past four years. Due to privacy and safety concerns I can’t name you all. Some Iranian interviewees, usually those with family members living inside Iran, preferred to talk to me on background or off-the-record to avoid repercussions for their loved ones back in Iran. Others sat for hours, and in some cases days, reminiscing, while still others volunteered to place phone calls, write e-mails, and tap into their networks to locate interviewees and unpublished documents. As a historian, although I felt uncomfortable writing a book that included anonymous or unnamed sources, I felt compelled in this case to made exceptions. The religious revolutionary “Ali Hossein,” for example, is the pseudonym for someone who lives in Iran. Not knowing how the final book would be received inside Iran, I thought it best not to identify him. To provide balance, on the other hand, I respected the wishes of two former Savak officers who asked that they not be identified. To them, and to everyone who cooperated, I would like to extend a heartfelt thanks. I should add that any mistakes contained in this manuscript are my responsibility and not theirs.
From the very beginning, members of the Pahlavi family gave generously of their time and made themselves available for interviews and requests. Empress Farah Pahlavi and her private secretary Kambiz Atabai not only encouraged my research, but placed calls on my behalf and encouraged longtime friends and acquaintances to meet with me. Prince Reza Pahlavi reminisced about his childhood growing up at Niavaran. I am appreciative to the Shah’s surviving brother, Prince Gholam Reza, and his wife, Princess Manigeh, for answering questions and helping with illustrations.
Those who sat for formal interviews or provided statements and were prepared to be publicly acknowledged included Gholam Reza Afkhami, Mahnaz Afkhami, Amir Aslan Afshar, Ahmad Ahrar, Faoud Ajami, Fereydoun Ala, Parviz Alam, Iraj Amini, Abdul-Reza Ansari, Maryam Ansary, Elli Antoniades, Robert Armao, Ahmad Ashraf, Abolhassan Banisadr, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Roy Colquitt, Farhad Daftary, Layla Diba, Kiomars Djahinbini, Fereydoun Djavadi, Mansur Eqbal, Parvine Farmanfarmaian, Shahin Fatemi, Abdulwahab Forati, Reza Ghotbi, Reza Golsorkhi, Hekmat Hormoz, Ali Kani, Khalil al-Khalil, James Kirkendall, Jonathan Kirkendall, Libby Kirkendall, George Lambrakis, Javad Mansuri, Farhad Massoudi, Cyndy McCollough, Ha
ssan Ali Mehran, Mohammad Hossein Mehrman, Parviz Mina, Ray Moseley, Mortaza Mousavi, Charlie Naas, Assdollah Nasr, Hossein Nasr, Abbas Nayeri, Karen Oliver, Katie Oliver, Saideh Pakravan, Amir Pourshaja, Henry Precht, Jonathan Randal, Parviz Sabeti, Saeed Sanjabi, Hassan Shahidi, Hossein Shariatmadari, Gary Sick, John Stempel, Yakub Tavakoli, Bruce Vernor, Barbara Walters, Chris Westberg, Martin Woollacott, Ardeshir Zahedi, and Mahnaz Zahedi.
This book is dedicated to my friends and for good reason. The many individual contributions that made The Fall of Heaven possible were remarkable and selfless. During the writing of this book I lived in the wonderful Brooklyn home of Judy Popkin whose hospitality, patience, and sense of adventure are legend. The same is true of Jonnet and Pater Abeles who managed the singular feat of helping me in a thousand different ways during my winter stay on Shelter Island and also in New York City. Thanking them for everything they did and continue to do seems somehow inadequate.
During my many back-and-forth trips to Washington, DC, I stayed with my great friends Steve Parker and Jennifer and Michael Oko who now know more about the ins and out of late Pahlavi-era Iran than they could ever have imagined.
A new friend, Dariosh Afshar, who lives in Great Britain, translated Persian documents into English, while simultaneously translating The Oil Kings into Persian for my Iranian readers.
Translation of articles from the French to English was done by Roger McKeon, one of the many friends who helped out on Shelter Island. To him, and to them, I am thankful for the words of encouragement, for the hot meals, and for car rides to the supermarket during more ice storms than I thought possible in a single winter season.
Photographer Hali Helfgott, my very talented Columbia Journalism School classmate, gave generously of her time and talents to snap my jacket portrait.
Historians owe a debt of gratitude to the academic institutions and libraries that are designed with our special needs in mind. Everyone who writes about United States foreign policy owes a big thank you to the men and women who staff America’s presidential libraries and the National Archives. Without them, and without the resources put at their disposal by the federal government, books like this could not be written.
I owe a special thank you to my friends and colleagues at the University of al-Mustafa’s Institute of Short Term Education & Sabbatical Leaves in Qom, where I was welcomed with such kindness and interest. It is my hope that as international tensions ease there will be many more cultural and educational exchanges allowing students and scholars to see and experience Iran, and vice versa.
My editors at Henry Holt, Gillian Blake and Caroline Zancan, understood from the beginning that The Fall of Heaven was a special book that, especially in the current overseas climate, deserved the widest possible readership. Holt’s editorial and design staff did a wonderful job in bringing my dream to fruition.
My literary agent, Sandra Dijkstra, and her wonderful team were always there to cheer me on and provide guidance whenever I needed it. I still find it hard to believe that together we have produced two books in the past seven years.
My family in New Zealand endured yet another long absence, but I think we agree that the wait was worth it.
As with The Oil Kings, it is my hope that The Fall of Heaven will inspire young people everywhere to read history books and take an active interest in the world around them. More than ever, recent events have shown how important it is for all of us, wherever we live, to develop that critical faculty we call historical awareness.
ALSO BY ANDREW SCOTT COOPER
The Oil Kings:
How the U.S., Iran, and Saudi Arabia
Changed the Balance of Power
in the Middle East
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ANDREW SCOTT COOPER is the author of The Oil Kings: How the U.S., Iran, and Saudi Arabia Changed the Balance of Power in the Middle East and an adjunct assistant professor at Columbia University. He is a regular commentator on U.S.-Iran relations and the oil markets, and his research has appeared in many news outlets including The New York Times and The Guardian. He holds a PhD in the history of U.S.-Iran relations and lives in New York City. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
DEDICATION
PEOPLE
EVENTS OF THE 1978–1979 REVOLUTION
MAP
PART ONE
LOOKING FOR RAIN
INTRODUCTION
1. THE SHAH
2. CROWN AND KINGDOM
3. THE OLD LION
4. FARAH DIBA
5. THE AYATOLLAH
6. “JAVID SHAH!”
7. ROYALS AND REBELS
8. THE CAMP OF GOLD CLOTH
9. THE PAHLAVI PROGRESS
10. EMPEROR OF OIL
11. THE TURNING
12. THIRSTY FOR MARTYRDOM
13. LAST DAYS OF POMPEII
PART TWO
FAREWELL THE SHAH
14. LIGHTS OVER NIAVARAN
15. THE CARAVAN PASSES
16. FIVE DAYS IN MAY
17. INTO THE STORM
18. RAMADAN RISING
19. THE GREAT TERROR
20. BLACK FRIDAY
21. STATE OF SIEGE
22. TEHRAN IS BURNING
23. SULLIVAN’S FOLLY
24. SWEPT AWAY
25. FLIGHT OF THE EAGLE
NOTES
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX
PHOTOS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ALSO BY ANDREW SCOTT COOPER
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
COPYRIGHT
THE FALL OF HEAVEN: THE PAHLAVIS AND THE FINAL DAYS OF IMPERIAL IRAN: Copyright © 2016 by Andrew Scott Cooper. All rights reserved. For information, address Henry Holt and Co., 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.henryholt.com
Cover design by Rick Pracher
Cover photograph © Keystone Pictures USA/Alamy Stock Photo
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Names: Cooper, Andrew Scott, author.
Title: The fall of heaven: the Pahlavis and the final days of imperial Iran / Andrew Scott Cooper.
Description: First edition. | New York, New York: Henry Holt and Co., 2016. | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2015046095 | ISBN 9780805098976 (hardback) | ISBN 9780805098983 (electronic book)
Subjects: LCSH: Iran—History—Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, 1941–1979. | Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, 1919–1980. | Farah, Empress, consort of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, 1938– | BISAC: HISTORY / Middle East / General. | HISTORY / Revolutionary. | HISTORY / Modern / General.
Classification: LCC DS318 .C655 2016 | DDC 955.05/3092—dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015046095
e-ISBN 9780805098983
First Edition: July 2016
Our e-books may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at (800) 221-7945, extension 5442, or by e-mail at MacmillanSpecialMarkets@macmillan.com.
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