The Structural Factors Which Made The Iranian Royal Army Weak To Defend The Pahlavi Dynasty

Document Type : Research Paper

Abstract

The Pahlavi royal dynasty was established in Iran by military coup-d’état, Reza Shah, its founding father, and his son Mohammad Reza Shah, reorganized and reinforced the army to protect their throne. This army had a vital role in the establishment and protection of Pahlavi dynasty. But, after the debut of Islamic Revolution, the royal army failed to defend the Pahlavi dynasty’s dominance and to prevent its collapse .This article seeks to answer why did the Iranian royal army fail to protect the Pahlavi kingdom? The article proposes that the answer lies in some structural factors/features of the Iranian royal army which made it too weak to defend the Pahlavi dynasty. These structural factors/features will be introduced and their effects on the royal army behavior in confronting of Islamic Revolution will be analyzed.

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