The Iranian Revolution

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The Iranian revolution of 1979 has been one of the most significant developments in the Middle East and the entire Muslim world since the early years of the 20th century. The revolution brought a big transformation in Iran’s sociocultural society by overthrowing a centuries old monarchical system and establishing an Islamic republic based on the rule of a Shi’a Jurisconsult. The Iranian revolution has a lot of impact on several Islamic countries. There are many revolutions took place in history and the Iranian revolution was one of them. The Iranian revolution turned Iranian society upside down and became one of the defining moments of the 20th Century.
Revolution means to overthrow the established government or political system with another government by the people. The Iranian Revolution also known as the Islamic Revolution of Iran which refers to the events to overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty under Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, who was supported by the United States, and replace with an Islamic republic under the Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini was the leader of the revolution. He was supported by various Islamic organizations and Iranian student movements. While the Soviet Union immediately recognized the new Islamic Republic, it did not actively support the revolution, initially making efforts to salvage the Shah's government. Demonstrations against the Shah commenced in October 1977, developing into a campaign of civil resistance that was religious based and intensified in January 1978. Between August and December 1978 strikes and demonstrations paralyzed the country. The Shah left Iran for exile on January 16, 1979 as the last Persian monarch, leaving his duties to a regency council and an oppo...

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"White Revolution." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 07 May. 2014.

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"Ruhollah Khomeini." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 07 May. 2014.

Hooglund, Eric. "Iranian Revolution (1979)." Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Ed. Philip Mattar. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2004. 1125-1127. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 7 May 2014.

"The Islamic Revolution and Its Aftermath." Iran's Diverse Peoples: A Reference Sourcebook. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2005. Credo Reference. Web. 7 May 2014.

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