uncouth, counterfeit line of caliphs, and themselves to be
defenders of justice and of the true Muslim faith. In late-
twentieth-century Iran, this ingrained division would play a
key role in breeding revolution. Shah Pahlavi would come
to be regarded as a successor of the despised Yezid. Ayatollah
Khomeini would be perceived as an avenger of Husain and the
true spiritual leader of Iran.
A succession of invaders and rulers changed the shape and
character of the Persian Empire during the twelve centuries after
the Arabs came to power. Different cities rose in prominence.
Eventually, Persia roughly could be defined as what is today Iran.
Tehran, initially only a village, became its capital.
Shiism became Persia’s official religion in 1501 with the rise
to power of the Safavid Dynasty. Shiism remains the dominant
religion of Iranians, despite many changes in political and
military domination throughout the past five centuries.
In 1794, a powerful chieftain named Aga Muhammad Qajar
seized control. The Qajar Dynasty he established ruled Persia
until 1925. It was led by a succession ofshahs. Wielding total
power, each shah was deemed king of kings and “the shadow of
God on earth.”^1
Persian shahs during the nineteenth century found themselves
at war with Russia and at odds with England over territorial
claims. As a result, Persia had to make important land con-
cessions. Outsiders—Russia, England, and Turkey—began to
influence Persia’s internal affairs.
During the 1700s and 1800s, the country’s religious teachers,
called ulema, acquired a special leadership role. They became, in
a sense, watchdogs over the policies of the ruler. Eventually, they
emerged not just as Islamic scholars but as political critics of
the Qajar shahs. They spoke out against trends and events—
particularly foreign influence in Persian affairs—that they
believed were weakening Islam within their society. History was
aligning the forces that, in the twentieth century, would wage a
climactic struggle for control over Iran: Muslim fundamentalism
versus a secular form of government.12 AYATOLLAH RUHOLLAH KHOMEINI
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