Noble Blood - The Dinner Party at the End of the Iranian Monarchy

Episode Date: March 26, 2024

When Mohammad Reza Shah got into a helicopter in 1979, he had no idea that it would be the last time he would ever see his country again. Nor did he know that he would be ending a 2,500 year tradition of monarchy in Iran.Support Noble Blood:— Bonus episodes, stickers, and scripts on Patreon— Noble Blood merch— Order Dana's book, 'Anatomy: A Love Story' and its sequel 'Immortality: A Love Story'See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey, I'm Dr. Maya Shunker, a cognitive scientist and hosts of the podcast, a slight change of plans, a show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans. I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change. We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes. You can have opinions. You can have like a strong,

dance. And then there's your body having its own program. Listen to a slight change of plans on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of IHeart Radio and grim and mild from Aaron Manky. Listener discretion advised. January in Tehran can get pretty chilly, so it's no surprise that people often forsake the city for warmer locales. And on January 16th, 1979, that's exactly what the Shah claimed to be doing, leaving the capital of Iran for a, quote, extended vacation.

It wasn't publicly known yet, but the Shah had recently been receiving treatment for leukemia, and this trip to Egypt and then the United States was ostensibly to receive further treatment and recuperate. But even people in the know understood that there was more to the Shah's instinct to leave the country. It wasn't frigid temperatures or just the desire for medical treatment that drove the Shah of Iran, Mohamed Rizah, Pah, Lavi, to board a plane headed for Egypt. The real reason the Shah needed to get away was because of the monumental protests calling for his downfall,

that had reached a boiling point. In his 40 years on the throne, the Shah had survived turmoil before, and despite appearing to flee in the face of this unrest, he assumed that this time would be no different. In 1953, the Shah had fled the country after a botched coup to topple the then-prime minister, a coup which he, the Shah, had tacitly supported.

But once the pro-Shah U.S. government, and the staunchly loyal Iranian military stepped in, the Shah was able to return to the country, even more determined to maintain his hold on power. And so, as he got on the plane in January of 1979, he knew it was possible that he might need to be out of the country for a year or two, but he assumed that eventually he would return, only more popular and more supported than ever.

After all, the Iranian monarchy was over 2,500 years old. It could survive another round of protests. But by the start of 1979, the protests were particularly fierce. It had been a year and two days since the first wave of unrest in this bout of turmoil unfolded. In that year since, the demonstrations, which called for a representative government, free of corruption only grew in size and ferocity. What started out as a protest championed by outspoken anti-Shah activists turned into a bloody, nationwide clash between the general public and the military loyal to the Shah.

By January 1979, over 11% of the country was actively participating in anti-regime protests. Compare that to the estimated number of roughly 7% of citizens who were actively participating during the French Revolution. No wonder the Shah was feeling the heat. As the Shah and his wife, Queen Farah, stepped out of their car and walked toward their private plane, the two royal guards standing on the tarmac fell to their knees crying. They attempted to kiss the Shah's feet in reverend.

only for him to urge them back up to their own feet. Once standing, the guards held the Quran in the air above the royal couple's heads as they walked underneath and up the plain stairs. This traditional Muslim ritual is meant to ensure one's safety on a difficult journey. It's probable that the guards understood that this trip was not a regular vacation, and that the Shah would need all the support he could get in order to remain not just in power, but alive. Once boarded, the Shah sat down in the cockpit of his plane

and turned on its engines. Perhaps in an attempt to maintain control in the face of an uncertain future, the Shah had decided to pilot his own plane for at least takeoff and the first hour of the journey. The Shah turned his plane on and, for a moment, as the rumble of the engines filled the cockpit, he could forget the sound of his people, calling for his downfall. The Shah concentrated on the tarmac ahead as he moved the plane to the runway,

accelerated and lifted up. As the plane soared into the sky, the Shah looked down on Tehran and its surrounding areas. Even though no one could see him, he attempted to maintain a steely, disposition while tears rolled down his cheeks. Despite all of the stress, sadness, anger, frustration, and pure exhaustion of the past year, the Shah had had no idea that this would be the last time he would ever see his country. But as his plane flew westward, not only did the

symbolic, quote, peacock throne from which the Shah had reigned, crumbled in the face of the Iranian revolution, but so too did the centuries-old monarchical tradition in Iran. With his departure, Mohamed Reza Pahlavi, the, quote, king of kings, light of the Aryans, center of the universe, shadow of the almighty, could add a new name to that impressive list of titles, the last Shah of Iran. I'm Dana Schwartz, and this is Noble Blood. Now, before we dive into the Shah's life, I think it's worth clarifying how I'll be referring to him throughout the episode. Mohamed Reza Shah had many names throughout his life. When he was born in 1919, he was named Mohamed Reza with no surname.

When his father usurped the throne in 1921, his father adopted the surname Potlavi, which is also the name of the pre-Islamic language in Iran. Once king himself, the Shah became known as Muhammad Raza Shah. And so for this story's sake, I'll be referring to him either as the Shah or Muhammad Raza Shah. Mohamed Raza Shah was born a commoner, but by his 22nd birthday, he was the Shah of Iran and second Shah of the Pahlavi dynasty. He ultimately ruled Iran for almost 40 years, a period during which the nation underwent

dramatic cultural changes and grew in power, going from essentially a colony of England and Russia to one of the most powerful nations in the Middle East. Mohamed Reza Shah would contend that he was to thank for this growth. In striving to build, quote, the great civilization, the Shah undertook a series of modernizing reforms that he labeled the White Revolution. These wide-ranging reforms included land reform programs that dismantled the country's semi-feudal system of land management, equal rights for women, nationalization of forests and water, and illiteracy corps.

Many of these programs were not successful, due to either administrative ineptitude or poor public perception. But the country did still modernize in many ways. If you're wondering where Iran would have gotten the money to make these many reforms, the answer is, perhaps unsurprisingly, oil. In the 1950s, Iran nationalized oil and brought millions of dollars into the treasury. Iran appeared to be on the up and up, which the Shah attributed to his brilliant leadership and stewardship. of his country. When the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian monarchy rolled around, the Shah used that opportunity to celebrate Iran, himself, and all that he felt he had done for the country with an

extravagant week-long affair in 1971. The party took place at the ancient ruins of Persepolis, located in the arid landscape of southern Iran. Persepolis had been the capital of Cyrus the Great's empire. If the Shah was looking to celebrate Iran's millennium-spanning history, there was no better place to emphasize just how old Iran and its monarchy were. The guests for this festive occasion were notable in and of themselves. The Shah invited heads of government and state from across the globe, including, then-U.S. President Richard Nixon, Queen Elizabeth II of England, Princess Grace, and Prince Reneer of Monaco, as well as Soviet President Nikolai Podgourney. Not all of those people attended,

specifically Richard Nixon and Queen Elizabeth, who passed but sent lesser figures in their stead, Spiro Agnew, the Vice President of the United States, and Prince Philip, respectively. In all 69 countries representatives to the festivities. For the Shah, there was a lot riding on this event. With all the world's eyes on Persepolis, the Shah was eager to demonstrate just how strong and prosperous Iran had become. And he certainly delivered, sparing no expense and racking up a bill so big

that even today people still debate just how expensive the whole thing was. Robert Steele in his book on this bimennial celebration states that while landing on an exact number is difficult, we can tentatively estimate that the Shah spent around $16.8 million on the event, which would be equivalent to just over $128 million in today's money. Among the week's activities were a parade, a fireworks show, and the most well-known part of the celebration, a dinner party for all of the guests

that was so elaborate it became infamous. The dinner, which was five hours and featured six courses, took place under a massive tent. Each dish was an elaborate, decadent creation with a menu featuring roasted peacock, quail eggs, saddles of lamb, golden caviar, and domperignon. Of the six courses,

only one ingredient was actually from Iran, caviar during the first course. Everything else was flown in from Maxims in Paris. And it wasn't just the food that was imported. Basically everything the Shah needed for the entire week's festivities was brought in from Europe, including the waitstaff. Even at the time, the dinner party wasn't particularly well-received. The lavishness of the event appeared too many to be in poor taste, given that so many Iranians were still in poverty. Sure, the Shah might have previously put time, money, and energy into developing Iran,

but those investments hadn't necessarily resulted in material improvements in the lives of ordinary Iranian people. And so it wasn't a great look for him to be spending money on French champagne and a 33,000. kilogram birthday cake for his wife. Not to mention because they had imported almost everything for the event, they were sending all of that money abroad instead of investing it domestically. Iranians who were struggling saw the message plainly. The Shah would spend lavishly on himself and on dignitaries that he wanted to impress, but not on them.

Given that criticism, it's not surprising that nowadays, a common, narrative about the celebration and the dinner specifically is that it was the catalyst for the Iranian Revolution, or the protest movement which would ultimately oust the Shah. A 2016 article in the British tabloid The Daily Mail went so far as to say, quote, The Great Irony is that the Shah's feast was supposed to reinforce the throne it ultimately toppled. That narrative is an oversimplification of the forces behind the Iranians. Iranian revolution, and bad as the optics were, to put it frankly, one dinner party did not cause the Shah to fall. Even though Iranians did not perceive the event positively, it wasn't

the sole foundation on which the later revolution developed. That being said, the event is an incredibly useful tool in understanding many of the factors which did lead to the Iranian revolution and the Shah's ultimate dethroning, namely his opulent spending practices, his desire to court the West, and his growing detachment from reality. You might recall that I mentioned in passing in the introduction that Mahamad Razah Shah ruled from a peacock throne.

The peacock throne wasn't a literal object, but a common metaphor to describe just how ostentatious the Shah was. He and his three wives had a habit of buying expensive cars, boats, planes, art, jewelry, and artifacts. The extremely lavish nature of the 2,500th anniversary celebration was completely on brand for the lifestyle that the Shah and his household led. But an important thing to bear in mind is that the money that the Shah was spending on luxury goods and palace renovations wasn't entirely his own. the line between the Shah's money and the country's treasury gradually blurred to the point where it was hard to deny that the Shah was using the country's oil money to fund his lavish lifestyle. And even when he did spend the country's money on things for Iran, he did so according to his whims.

For example, he was obsessed with the military, and so he ended up spending a higher percentage of the country's GDP on the military, than any other country in the world aside from the U.S. None of that was looked upon kindly by the Iranian public, many of whom were still living in poverty. The Shah also idolized the West almost to a fault. Recall that just about everything at the 2,500th anniversary celebration dinner was imported from France. That exemplifies just how much value the Shah placed on Western,

specifically European tastes. He essentially used the West as the benchmark, against which he measured himself and the country. He strove to make Iran equivalent in quality of life to European countries, and quite literally fashioned himself like a European monarch, wearing Western military regalia in all of his formal portraits. In a country with a long Muslim tradition and a history of being abused, and overlooked by the West, and a country with a deep sense of national pride, his outlook was not widely appreciated. But perhaps the quality that most Iranians took issue with

was that despite the progressive measures that the Shah championed during the white revolution, the Shah was an authoritarian ruler. During his reign, he consistently stripped the Iranian people of the right to exercise their political freedoms. For example, people could not express anything but positive feelings about the Shah. In 1957, in order to enforce that rule and generally maintain control over the population, the Shah created a secret police force called Savak.

For two decades, Savak agents instilled fear in society, as they had the authority to arrest, imprison, and torture, anyone who supposedly posed a threat to the monarchy or the Shah's Eventually, the Shah went so far as to abolish political parties in favor of his new party, the National Resurgence Party. And he directed that all Iranians, lest they wanted to be labeled, traitors, must join. There's no doubt about it. The Shah was an autocrat.

In 1974, the Shah was diagnosed with leukemia. Like many authoritarian, the Shah saw his power as dependent on. on not looking weak or replaceable. And so the Shah kept his diagnosis highly classified. Very few high-ranking officials in the government, let alone the general public, knew of the Shah's diagnosis. By 1978, the Shah started to become affected by the brutal nature of his cancer and his treatments.

While he had always been an indecisive man, because of the illness and treatments, his mood and opinions would violently swing from one extreme to the other within a day. This wouldn't necessarily be a problem, but because of the Shah's need to maintain complete control, the Iranian government hinged on his word and his word alone. So not only was the government at the mercy of the Shah's ever-changing mood, but the country was now being entirely led by a violent, weakened king, who was increasingly detached from.

reality. While there were many periods of unrest during the Shah's rule, the beginning of what became the Iranian Revolution came in early 1978, when the people of Iran took to the streets to protest a newspaper article. Published in the unofficial state newspaper, the article hurled a slew of insults at a dissident Ayatollah named Ruhalla Khomeini, which was a thinly-veiled attempt by the Shah to undermine Khomeini's popularity. Protesters were accustomed to the Shah's controlling regime, but they could not stand idly by as he attacked one of their most outspoken advocates for their freedom. During the protests over this news article, the Shah's security forces fired on protesters.

In Shia Islam, the majority religion in Iran, memorial services are held four. 40 days after someone dies. And so 40 days after this first protest, Iranian took to the streets again to mourn their lost loved ones and further the protest against the regime. Again, directed to do so by the Shah, his security forces fired on and killed protesters, which led to another round of protests 40 days later.

This 40-day cycle kept the protest movement alive and, in fact, grew it. while only making the Shah and his brutality more apparent. The Shah could not comprehend how his people could be so ungrateful for all of the good he had accomplished, how prosperous their country was becoming. In reality, despite any of the public works the Shah had achieved, he had also purged his government and court of anyone who might have been able to offer a true representation of the will of the general public. There was no one who would tell the Shah that, in fact,

much of the Iranian population was deeply upset with his lavish spending, with his government's corruption, with the government's ineptitude, and the lack of political freedoms they had. The Shah just thought these protesters were Islamic Marxists, supported by foreign agents looking to rile up the country. And so he urged his forces to crack down, continuing the cycle of deadly protests, of brutality toward the people the Shah claimed to love.

After a helicopter ride over one of the massive protests in Tehran, when the Shah was able to see the hordes of people who had come out against him, the Shah seemed to come to his senses. He started to offer concessions, like releasing political prisoners who had been arrested by Savak. But it was too late. His brutality had offered kindling to the most extreme factions of his dissidents. The revolution was snowballing and had picked up too much energy and manpower to

stop. Protests continued with a renewed fervor to topple the Shah. The Shah's foreign allies, particularly those in the U.S., saw the writing on the wall and began to urge him to leave the country. As 1978 turned to 1979, the Shah saw fewer and fewer viable paths ahead. Despite this, and even as he ordered his staff to begin packing up his belongings, the Shah could not have fathomed that this unrest would be capable of dismantling 2,500 years of monarchy. Mohamed Reza Shah left Iran on January 16, 1979, and never returned. As news of his departure broke, the Straits of Tehran became the scene of a massive party, Hordes of people flooded to the streets to celebrate cheering,

the Shah is gone forever. People drove around aimlessly, blasting music, honking their horns. Others handed out candy to passers by. A few days later, Ayatollah, Rukhala, Khomeini, returned to Iran after 14 years in exile, and he began consolidating power in the vacuum that the Shah had left. His return marks the beginning of the government that he created, the Islamic Republic of Iran, which still controls Iran today with its own deep, deep problems with corruption and violent oppression.

But this is not the story of Ayatollah Khomeini. This is the story of the Shah. After leaving Iran, the Shah was shunted from country to country, as fewer and fewer people were willing to be responsible for an unpopular ousted monarchy. He first arrived in Egypt where he received a royal welcome, complete with honor guards and the welcoming arms of longtime friend on whereal Sadat. After a short time in Egypt, which was the home of his first wife, he was sent to Morocco. Expecting a similarly royal reception in Morocco, the Shah was immediately disappointed by a lackluster greeting from King Hassan II. From Morocco, the Shah traveled to the Bahamas and then Mexico. He had gone from being treated like a precious crown jewel to being tossed around like a hand grenade ready to blow.

He certainly did not appreciate the change. He believed himself to still be royal and expected appropriate treatment. Unfortunately, however, like any ousted monarch, the Shah didn't have the luxury to reject what he was given. During this time, the Shah's health deteriorated quickly. Very few people knew of the Shah's true diagnosis, so upon his arrival to Mexico, doctors actually started treating him for malaria.

Without proper cancer treatment, the Shah lost 30 pounds. People close to the monarch described his appearance as emaciated and jaundiced. Soon, it was obvious he needed surgery, and he would only get adequate medical treatment in the United States. United States. But the Shah had soured on his previous ally and for good reason. The United States had originally declared that they would accept the exiled king, and the Shah was slated to fly to the United States after leaving around for Egypt. But U.S. President Jimmy Carter reneged on the deal

after Ayatollah Khomeini threatened to storm the U.S. embassy should the Shah enter the United States. Due to the Shah's worsening cancer condition, however, Carter was convinced to accept the Shah into the United States in October 1979, nine months after the Shah's exile began. And so the Shah and his entourage flew from Mexico to New York and were secreted away to a hospital room at New York Hospital. The humanitarian act by the United States would prove disastrous, as Iranians. Iranian students would soon storm the U.S. embassy in Tehran and hold embassy officials hostage in response to the Shah being accepted into America. Because the Shah's arrival had resulted in an active hostage situation, the Shah's stay in the United States was uncomfortable beyond the medical. After only one month in the United States, he made it known that he would

like to return back to Mexico. However, his former host no longer wished to extend their hospitality to him, and the Shah was instead forced to go to Panama, where he resided for a short time before going back to Egypt. When he landed in Egypt, the Shah was said to have teared up at the site of Anwar al-Sadat and military guards waiting to welcome him. Since he had fled his home country almost two years, years prior, Egypt had been the only place that welcomed him with the dignity that he felt he deserved. Once in Egypt, it became clear that the Shah's end was near. An operation revealed that his cancer had spread throughout his body. It was only a matter of time. On July 27, 1980, Mohamed Reza-Pot-Lavi passed away, leaving his dreams of returning to Iran one day, and he was

continuing the multi-millanium tradition of the monarchy unfulfilled. That's the story of the last Shah of Iran, but keep listening after a brief sponsor break to hear a little bit more about that wild last party that he threw. Will Ferrell's Big Money Players and IHeart Podcast presents soccer moms. So I'm Leanne. Yeah. This is my best friend, Janet. And we have been joined at the Hipsons High School.

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This is a podcast. We're recording it as we tailgate our youth soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey. With all the snacks and drinks. Sidebar. Why did you get hard seltzer instead of beer? They had a bogo. Well, then you got it. Do you want a white collar or something here?

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like a hot knife through sponge cake. That sounds delicious. Oh, you're lucky I'm not a drug addict. You're lucky I'm not an alcoholic. You're lucky I'm not a killer. I love this team and I'm really trying to be a figure in their lives that they can rely on. Oh. Listen to soccer moms on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

One of the most popular anecdotes used to illustrate the unnecessary opulence of the anniversary party the Shah through is that the Shah bought 50,000 exotic birds for the celebration, only to leave them to die once the dignitaries returned home. There's actually no evidence to indicate that this relatively famous act of animal cruelty actually happened, but there are so many other, true, fascinating historical, tidbits related to that 2,500th anniversary celebration at Persepolis. Being that the construction of Persepolis predated air travel, perhaps it's not surprising for you to hear that there was no airport at Persepolis for dignitaries to fly into for the event. As such, guests made their way to the event in a myriad of ways.

U.S. Vice President Spiro Agnew, for instance, flew in from the Shiraz Airport in a helicopter. That fact irked some Persian Gulf sheiks, however, because they had to travel the 30 miles in air-conditioned Mercedes limousines. An incredibly tough ride, I'm sure. The parade during the celebrations featured droves of men representing different eras of Persian civilization, from Cyrus the Great to the Sasanians to Parthians, Safavids, all the way to Cossack brigades of the early 20th century.

This last group paid tribute to Muhammad Reza Shah's father, who himself was a Cossack before his successful rise to power. There was also a troop 200 men strong representing the Acomenians, and these men were given a strict directive in the months leading up to the parade. No shaving. In order to accurately represent the styling of Ackomanian soldiers, these men would have to grow long beards. The Shah and the planning committee were so committed to authenticity

that they turned down a Japanese firm's offer to outfit all of the soldiers with fake beards, real beards only. My final anecdote relates to notable absences from the celebration. Even though the infamous five-hour dinner was almost entirely French, French President Georges Pompidou declined to go. In quite a backhanded statement, President Pompidou said, If I do go, they would probably make me head waiter. Noble Blood is a production of IHeart Radio and Grimm and Mild from Aaron Manky.

Noble Blood is created and hosted by me, Dana Schwartz, with additional writing and researching by Hannah Johnston, Hannah Zwick, Mira Hayward, Courtney Sender, and Lori Goodman. The show is edited and produced by Noemi Griffin and Rima Il Kali, with supervising producer Josh Thane and executive producers Aaron Manky, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. For more podcasts from IHeartRadio, visit the IHartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Hey, I'm Dr. Maya Shunker, a cognitive scientist and hosts of the podcast, a slight change of plans. a show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans.

I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change. We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes. You can have opinions. You can have like a strong stance. And then there's your body having its own program. Listen to a slight change of plans on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you at your podcast. This is an IHeart podcast.

Guaranteed human.