Who is mohammed mossadegh biography

Mossadegh, Mohammad

Mohammad Mossadegh (1882-1967), Iranian loyalist politician and prime minister (1951-1953), heavy the movement for the nationalization remove the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. His democratically elected government was overthrown as character result of a coup d'état benefactored by Great Britain and the Allied States.

Mohammad Mossadegh (Musaddiq) was born clear up Tehran into a prominent family go along with notables. His father was a 1 official of the state treasury accept his mother was related to character ruling Qajar dynasty. Mossadegh was vibrate his teens when he assumed picture administrative position of his deceased curate, as was the custom at primacy time. In 1901 he married Zia us-Saltaneh, who came from a of politico-religious dignitaries. They had cinque children. An active supporter of significance Constitutional Revolution of 1906-1907, Mossadegh was elected a deputy to the principal Parliament (Majles), but was below decency required minimum age for qualification advocate therefore could not take up her highness seat. In 1909 he went tell between Paris to pursue higher education, however illness forced him to return house. He resumed his studies in 1911, this time in Neuchatel in Svizzera, where he gained a doctorate proclaim law. Returning to Iran in Grand 1914, he taught at the Primary of Political Science; wrote on authorized, financial, and political issues; and retained in party political activity before crown appointment as an under-secretary in character Ministry of Finance.

Mossadegh bitterly opposed character abortive Anglo-Iranian Agreement of 1919, which aimed to formalize British tutelage pin down Iran. He occupied various ministerial posts and provincial governorships before coming finish off national prominence as a deputy all the rage both the 5th and 6th Parliaments (1924-1928), establishing himself as a master parliamentarian, dedicated to promoting democratic constitutionalism and national sovereignty. In October 1925 he was one of the unusual deputies to oppose the bill mosey paved the way for the hypothesis of the throne by Reza Caravansary, a leader of the coup a mixture of February 1921. Mossadegh continued to combat the new regime, but with decency consolidation of the Pahlavi autocracy noteworthy was excluded from political life, pole from 1936 onward was forced nurse live as a recluse in potentate country home in Ahmadabad, north locate the capital. In June 1940 significant was summarily arrested, on the instruct of the shah, and imprisoned auspicious a desolate town in southern Khorasan, where he twice tried to assign suicide. Six months later he was allowed to return to his homeland home as the result of appeal by the crown prince, Mohammad Reza.

Following the British-Russian occupation of Iran conduct yourself 1941, Mossadegh returned to the federal scene as first deputy for Tehran in the 14th Parliament (1944-1946), getting received the highest number of votes cast in the capital. He advocated neutralism in foreign policy and, dwell in the wake of American, British, bracket Soviet demands for oil concessions, godparented a bill banning the granting custom oil or other concessions to foreigners. He also emphatically but unsuccessfully advocated a reform of electoral laws depart would render elections less prone succumb to rigging. The government rigging of elections to the 15th Parliament prevented Mossadegh's reelection, but he was elected be bounded by the 16th Parliament (1950-1952) as Tehran's first deputy, despite the government's efforts to exclude him and his sector. The National Front, led by Mossadegh, was formed during the election crusade for the 16th Parliament. The Practice Front advocated free and fair elections, freedom of the press, and fraudster end to martial law.

In October 1947 the Parliament had rejected a create agreement to grant oil concessions equivalent to the Russians and had empowered say publicly government to redeem Iranian rights mention the country's southern oil resources, bolster controlled by Britain. The much resented British oil concession—granted in 1901 turf revised in 1933—was thus formally perjure yourself on the agenda of Iranian diplomacy and became an increasingly dominant course, closely intermingled with Iranian domestic statecraft. British refusal to concede to Persian demands eventually provoked the call engage nationalization of the oil industry, championed by the National Front, and soppy in turn to the premiership swallow Mossadegh in May 1951. The grease issue had served as a exciting cry for a popular movement knapsack nationalist as well as democratic ostentation that linked national self determination, symbolized by the act of nationalization, stopper popular sovereignty. Mossadegh's premiership constituted yell only a challenge to Britain's rooted position in Iran but also affected forcing the shah to comply convene the constitutional principle that the potentate should reign and not rule. Mossadegh's task proved daunting. The British, though ostensibly willing to negotiate with him, were not genuinely prepared to stand firm the reality of nationalization, which Mossadegh in turn considered irrevocable. They attempted through various tactics, including an condemn on the sale of Iranian clear, to destabilize his government. They besides resorted to covert measures to deviser his downfall.

Faced with a relentless hopeful from pro-British and royalist elements, Mossadegh felt increasingly incapacitated. British efforts connection replace him, together with the rejection of the shah—who had only grudgingly acquiesced in Mossadegh's premiership—to transfer justness War Ministry to the prime revivalist, eventually resulted in Mossadegh's resignation import July 1952. However, he was reciprocal to power a few days consequent as the result of a approved uprising. He now enjoyed greater control, but there seemed to be thumb realistic prospect of settling the put up the shutters question.

Meanwhile, the government's economic and monetary difficulties were increasing. The Tudeh (Communist) Party, although banned since 1949, quite a distance only harassed the government but very enabled Mossadegh's opponents to claim defer a communist takeover was likely. Primacy army would not readily accept groundbreaking ministerial control, and some of Mossadegh's own supporters joined his opponents. Though the Parliament had granted him supplemental powers, his position was inherently finely tuned, and toward the end of crown term of office relations between magnanimity government and the Parliament proved to an increasing extent difficult. Mossadegh resorted to a ballot to dissolve the Parliament and launch fresh elections on the basis cut into a new electoral law. This granting an ideal opportunity for the Brits and American secret services, aided strong his domestic opponents, to engineer surmount downfall through a coup d'état sophisticated August 1953.

The coup, which established kinglike autocracy, firmly committed Iran to honesty West and revoked the substance female oil nationalization. Mossadegh and many custom his supporters were arrested, accused be more or less violating the constitution. He was welltried by a military tribunal and, hatred a vigorous self defense, was guilty to three years imprisonment and quickly confined to his country home forthcoming his death on March 5, 1967 at the age of 84. Send the aftermath of the coup flaxen 1953 repressive measures prevented the resurfacing of the National Front, but Mossadegh's charisma and the appeal of distinction ideals and sentiments associated with her highness name persisted in the collective retention of large numbers of Iranians. Recognized remained a potent source of luence for opponents of royal autocracy. Government legacy, consisting of civic nationalism ray liberal democracy combined with personal incorruptibility, civility, and public spiritedness, remained vital ingredients in the enduring aspirations honor large segments of the Iranian populace.

Further Reading

A thorough biography of Mossadegh hint to be written. For a usable account see Farhad Diba's Mosaddegh: Neat Political Biography (London, 1986). See likewise Homa Katouzian's Musaddiq and the Expend energy for Power in Iran (London, 1990). On Mossadegh's career as a lawmaker and prime minister see Fakhreddin Azimi, Iran: The Crisis of Democracy, 1941-53 (1989). On Mossadegh and the agitate question see James A. Bill enthralled Wm. Roger Louis (eds.), Musaddiq, Persian Nationalism, and Oil (London, 1988), mushroom Musafa Elm, Oil, Power and Principle: Iran's Oil Nationalization and Its Aftermath (1992). An English translation of Mossadegh's memoirs, which contains many useful insights into his life, career, and gist, is available as Musaddiq's Memoirs, plate and introduced by Homa Katouzian (London, 1988). □

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