15. The Pahlavi Shahs Wanted to Westernize and Modernize Iran
During the reigns of Reza Shah and Mohammad Reza Shah, many circularizing reforms were introduced to Iranian society. Whereas education had formerly been in the hands of religious clerics, the Pahlavi shahs built secular schools, including the first European-style university in Tehran. He implemented a secular law that existed outside of Sharia and established secular courts and even banned Iranian women from wearing the hijab (the traditional headscarf that many Muslim women wear). Not everyone supported these secularizing reforms; in fact, many Iranians opposed them. One of the most outspoken opponents of these reforms was a cleric named Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
In addition to depolarizing the country, there was also a goal of modernizing. The Trans-Iranian Railway connected Tehran to the rest of the country, and the White Revolution was intended to modernize the country’s agriculture. However, the most far-reaching and consequential modernizing policy was that of the monarchy’s alliance with Western powers, mainly the British, who wanted control of Iran’s oil supply. This alliance led to the exploitation of Iran’s people, who were viewed as slave labor for the oil company, as well as the country’s natural resources. The Anglo-Persian Oil Company proved to be one of the most significant catalysts of the impending Iranian Revolution.