Summary: The 1979 Iranian Revolution

Iran is the only country in the world to have completely and truly succeeded in creating an islamic state using political Islam. The modern western tendency to separate church and state is frowned upon there, Islam is believed to be an integral part of politics, a way of life. This is evident through the 1979 Iranian revolution and institution of the Ayatollah Khomeini.

The catalyst to the period of modernization in Iran was the overthrow of the democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh in favour of strengthening the monarchical rule of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who had ruled since the end of the second world war, orchestrated by the United States and the United Kingdom under the title operation AJAX. This made Mohammad Reza Pahlavi

Leaders including Mehdi Bazargan and Ayatollah Taleqani established the liberation movement of Iran, which sought to bridge the gap between religiously and secularly oriented Iranians to create a more Islamic state and society. Ali Shariati, an intellectual and teacher, combined the Islamic spirit of Bazargan and Taleqani, the ideas of respected sociologists, and third world socialists. Ali Shariati emerged as part of the islamic reformation bringing ideas from socialism. He preached then when opposition to the shah grew, the solution was to turn to religion and aim for an ideal islamic state. Ali Shariati was the ideology behind the revolution and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini was its figure. He condemned the westernization of muslim societies and stressed the inseparability of Islam and politics. Once Muhammad Reza Shah had been overthrown, Khomeini returned to Iran where national vote was held and Khomeini won a landslide victory. He declared an Islamic republic and was appointed Iran's political and religious leader for life. Islamic law was introduced across the country. His denunciation of American influence led to militant Islamic students storming the US Embassy in Teheran in November