All the Shah's Men

All the Shah’s Men, by Stephen Kinzer, relates the story of the American coup in Iran in 1953. A significant portion of the book is devoted to describing Iran’s history, culture, and religion, written in a fascinating, almost novel-like fashion. It explains how Muslims invaded the Iran plateau and subjugated the Persian people, imposing their laws and religion.

After describing the ancient history of Iran, Kinzer goes on to discuss its relations with Britain, focusing mainly on the oil company. The Shahs in Iran were obsessed with personal wealth, and often sold whole industries to other countries, mainly Britain. One of these industries was the oil industry, which turned out to be extremely productive for the British. As the Shahs gained wealth and lost natural resources, Iran was making slow but steady progress towards democracy. By WWII, the people had forced the Shah into accepting a parliament and a prime minister. Mohammad Mossadegh was the first progressive, open-minded prime minister, and one of the most popular figures in Iran. He nationalized the oil industry, taking it away from the Anglo Persian Oil Company. After losing the case in Belgium’s International Court, they then blockaded the Persian Gulf, halting Iran’s trade and their economy. Since Mossadegh was a socialist and friendly with the Russians, the British convinced the US to assist them in a coup to depose Mossadegh and instate a more pro-Western prime minister. Unfortunately, they were successful with the help of the Shah and some military officers, and Iran lost all democratic progress.

The book attributes a lot of the problems in diplomacy between the Middle East and the United States to this singular piece of history, declaring that the United States destroyed democracy in the entire region. I really enjoyed how easy the book was to read, and found it an enjoyable though surprising and often sad story.

-Catherine of Aragon