The fall of heaven : the Pahlavis and the final days of imperial Iran / Andrew Scott Cooper.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cooper, Andrew Scott, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, 1919-1980.

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

Farah, Empress, consort of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, 1938-.

Farah.

Iran--History--Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, 1941-1979.

Iran.

History.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xviii, 587 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), map ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Henry Holt and Company, 2016.

Summary:

" An immersive, gripping account of the rise and fall of Iran's glamorous Pahlavi dynasty, written with the cooperation of the late Shah's widow, Empress Farah In this remarkably human portrait of one of the twentieth century's most complicated personalities, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Andrew Scott Cooper traces the Shah's life from childhood through his ascension to the throne in 1941. He draws the turbulence of the post-war era during which the Shah survived assassination attempts and coup plots to build a modern, pro-Western state and launch Iran onto the world stage as one of the world's top five powers. Readers get the story of the Shah's political career alongside the story of his courtship and marriage to Farah Diba, who became a power in her own right, the beloved family they created, and an exclusive look at life inside the palace during the Iranian Revolution. Cooper's investigative account ultimately delivers the fall of the Pahlavi dynasty through the eyes of those who were there: leading Iranian revolutionaries; President Jimmy Carter and White House officials; US Ambassador William Sullivan and his staff in the American embassy in Tehran; American families caught up in the drama; even Empress Farah herself, and the rest of the Iranian Imperial family. Intimate and sweeping at once, The Fall of Heaven recreates in stunning detail the dramatic and final days of one of the world's most legendary ruling families, the unseating of which helped set the stage for the current state of the Middle East. "-- Provided by publisher.

"In this remarkably human portrait of one of the twentieth century's most complicated personalities, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Andrew Scott Cooper traces the Shah's life from childhood through his ascension to the throne in 1941. He draws the turbulence of the post-war era during which the Shah survived assassination attempts and coup plots to build a modern, pro-Western state and launch Iran onto the world stage as one of the world's top five powers. Readers get the story of the Shah's political career alongside the story of his courtship and marriage to Farah Diba, who became a power in her own right, the beloved family they created, and an exclusive look at life inside the palace during the Iranian Revolution. Cooper's investigative account ultimately delivers the fall of the Pahlavi dynasty through the eyes of those who were there: leading Iranian revolutionaries; President Jimmy Carter and White House officials; US Ambassador William Sullivan and his staff in the American embassy in Tehran; American families caught up in the drama; even Empress Farah herself, and the rest of the Iranian Imperial family. Intimate and sweeping at once, The Fall of Heaven recreates in stunning detail the dramatic and final days of one of the world's most legendary ruling families, the unseating of which helped set the stage for the current state of the Middle East"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

People

Events of the 1978-1979 revolution

Looking for rain. Back to Cairo ; The Shah ; Crown and kingdom ; The Old Lion ; Farah Diba ; The Ayatollah ; "Javid shah!" ; Royals and rebels ; The camp of gold cloth ; The Pahlavi progress ; Emperor of oil ; The turning ; Thirsty for martyrdom ; Last days of Pompeii

Farewell the Shah. Lights over Niavaran ; The caravan passes ; Five days in May ; Into the storm ; Ramadan rising ; The Great Terror ; Black Friday ; State of siege ; Tehran burning ; Sullivan's folly ; Swept away ; Flight of the eagle.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [501]-565) and index.

ISBN:

9780805098976

0805098976

OCLC:

922169321