History

It was one of those suffocating hot days in August 1935. The summer sun stood mercilessly over Tehran, beating down on the city with an intensity that seemed to silence even the wind. In those years, Tehran had no air conditioners, no electric fans in every home, and no mechanical cooling systems that modern life has since made indispensable. People …

Alinaghi Vaziri (October 9, 1886 – September 8, 1979), commonly remembered as Colonel Vaziri, occupies a unique and transformative place in the history of Iranian music. At once a soldier, intellectual, composer, educator, and reformer, Vaziri bridged the traditional musical culture of Iran with the notational and pedagogical methods of the West. His impact was so great that nearly every …

On 19 August 1953 (28 Mordad 1332 in the Iranian calendar), a dramatic political coup unfolded in Iran, reshaping the nation’s political trajectory and reverberating across the Middle East for decades. Known inside Iran as the Mordad 28th coup d’état (Kudeta-ye 28 Mordad), this operation toppled the democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, a nationalist leader who had sought to …

[custom_adv] In the mid-1930s, Iran stood at a crossroads between tradition and modernity. The reign of Reza Shah Pahlavi (1925–1941) marked a decisive period in which sweeping reforms reshaped every dimension of society—politics, economy, infrastructure, education, and culture. Among these transformations was a project that, while less known than industrial or military reforms, had profound significance for the nation’s cultural …

[custom_adv] Mahmoud Farshchian (February 22, 1929 – August 18, 1404) was one of the most celebrated Iranian painters and illustrators of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Renowned for his distinctive fusion of Persian miniature traditions with modern artistic techniques, he created a school of art that was both deeply rooted in the classical heritage of Iran and open to …

[custom_adv] Hojabr Yazdani: From Cattle Rancher to Economic Tycoon of the Pahlavi Era Hojabr Yazdani (June 13, 1934 – April 19, 2010) was one of Iran’s most remarkable and controversial economic figures before the 1979 revolution. His story reflects the rapid economic transformations and political complexities of the Second Pahlavi era, where opportunity, connections, and ambition could propel a man …

[custom_adv] Mir Sultan Ahmad Mirfundarski was born on Mehr 1, 1297, in a “family of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs” on Amiriyeh Street in Tehran and in Liwa-ol-Molk Alley, which was later renamed Ansari Alley. His father, Abdolrahim, was an official in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He had not yet received his primary education in Iran when his grandfather, …

[custom_adv] Mahmoud Jafarian: A Life in Power and a Tragic Fall in Revolutionary Iran Mahmoud Jafarian, born in 1928 in Tehran, Iran, emerged as one of the prominent figures during the late Pahlavi era. His political and administrative career intertwined with the most sensitive state institutions of his time, including the National Iranian Radio and Television Organization and the Rastakhiz …

[custom_adv] Abdolreza Pahlavi (October 22, 1924 – May 12, 2004), the seventh child and fourth son of Reza Shah, lived a life that mirrored the dramatic changes in Iran’s 20th-century history. Born into royalty but often relegated to the sidelines of political life, his story is one of quiet observation rather than direct governance—a prince whose life intersected with monarchy, …

Hulako Rambod was born into a distinguished lineage on November 18, 1298 (Persian calendar; corresponding to November 18, 1919 Gregorian) in the city of Tehran. His ancestry was deeply embedded in the political and tribal structure of Iran’s Qajar era. He was the youngest son of Mohammad Hossein Khan Karganroudi, widely known by his honorific Salar Asad. Salar Asad was the progeny of Nasratollah Khan …