In 1971, Mohammad-Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran, held a celebration that was unprecedented throughout the twentieth century. The celebration that took place on 12–16 October for a week, turned Iran into an important news centre in the world. Leaders and heads of several countries around the world attended this celebration. Among them were President Nikolai Padgorny of the Soviet Union, President Marshal Tito of Yugoslavia, King Hussein of the Kingdom of Jordan and Elizabeth II, the Queen of the United Kingdom. In addition to the authorities, dozens of scientific, cultural, artistic personalities and media representatives from around the world also attended the celebration.
The celebration intended to emphasize Iran’s ancient civilization for a period of 2,500-years and to maintain it until his reign. Another goal was to gain international credibility for his government and to consolidate the legitimacy of the Pahlavi dynasty to gain the confidence of foreigners to invest more in Iran. Putting Iran as the first power in the Middle East was the Shah’s other goal. This was especially important for the Shah when the news broke in 1968 that the United Kingdom would withdraw all forces by the end of 2001. Since then, the Shah was plotting a plan for Iran’s entry to the Middle East empty scene of power. He was trying to show that as much as he could host heads of state for a week, he was also able to control the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea.
Aerial view of the location of the celebration of the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian Empire
News of ceremony organizing was announced in 1958 by the court. But due to budget deficits and a lack of reliable funding, the government had to postpone its history until 1971 several times. Most of the Pahlavi government’s activities were dedicated to organizing this celebration after the coronation ceremony of 1967.
The celebration organizing committee invited all the top European ornamental organizations and hairdressers and tailors to collaborate. At the bottom of Persepolis, about 650,000 square meters were covered by almost seventy tents and French designer Jansen decorated the tents with crystals, silk liners, red velvet and sparkling chandeliers. These tents were set up to accommodate guests. Most of the special guard supplies and clothing were made in France and sent to Iran. For example, the court ordered France’s Arthus Bertrand Institute to make 20,000 commemorative medals. About 10,000 kilometres of cabling and 32 kilograms of ornamental garland and 130,000 flame lamps were used to provide lighting to the festivals and cities of Tehran and Shiraz.
But the important thing was the security measures and the protection of the celebration place. Three military centres and units of the Air Force were carefully guarded around Persepolis. At the beginning of the ceremony, many students with political backgrounds were detained as a precaution. There was no disturbance to Persepolis within 120 kilometres. Even Fars Province local tribes were moved further away.
The 2,500-year celebration of the Persian Empire began on October 12, 1971, with the arrival of the Shah, the military authorities to Pasargad (Capital of ancient Iran). On that day, the king read a famous sermon in front of Cyrus’ tomb which ended with the following words: “Cyrus the Great King, the King of Kings... Sleep peacefully as we are awake and always awake.” On 13th and 14th October, the Shah welcomed his foreign guests and held a large banquet in the large tent on the night of 14th October. Persepolis Party dishes were prepared by Maxim’s restaurant (the most expensive French restaurant). The meal included quail eggs with caviar, crab feed, roast lamb with mushrooms, grilled peacock and raspberries.
October 15 in the afternoon, the royal celebration reached its critical stage. On this day, six thousand members of the army, wearing clothes of any historical period, the Iranian army demonstrated the developments of the Iranian Army from the Achaemenid to the Pahlavi period in the form of a parade. Shahyad Square (Azadi) and Aryamehr Stadium (Azadi) in Tehran were inaugurated during a ceremony by the Shah on 16 and 17 October respectively. When the 2,500-year celebration of the Persian Empire was held in Persepolis, hunger forced children in Sistan and Baluchestan and Fars provinces to eat grass and root. In large cities like Tehran and Shiraz, some people lived in humble barracks in deplorable conditions. In Khorasan province, some people had died in drought and many livestock were killed.
The Shah talks to Cyrus
Meanwhile, a number of foreign reporters filmed in the south of Tehran and surrounding slums and took the films to their home countries. In Sweden and Denmark, footage of the festivities was shown along with images of eating palm kernels in Baluchestan, child rubbish among rubbish and scenes from the south of Tehran. Members of the Confederation of Iranian Students Abroad attempted to provoke public opinion in Europe and the United States against the celebration by distributing letters, leaflets, and distributing publications.
The most important opposition to the 2,500-year celebrations was Imam Khomeini, who lived in the city of Najaf. Imam Khomeini made a speech on June 22, 1971, addressing the kings’ crime and said, “We do not want 2,500-year celebrations, we are hungry, eliminate the hunger of the Muslims, do not celebrate, do not celebrate the dead... The Iranian nation is obliged to fight this holiday negatively… don’t come out of the house. Do not participate in these celebrations... It is not permissible to attend these celebrations. The speech made the Shah angry so that after the celebration in an interview with a journalist from Le Monde, the Shah said: “The Iranian people are reluctant to accept Khomeini.”
The actual cost of the celebration was not fully known. The Minister of the Court, Amir-Asadollah Alam, announced the full cost of the celebration at 16/8 million dollars. But unofficial and foreign sources have announced much more than this figure.
This celebration was, above all, the victory song of the Pahlavi dynasty rather than the Iranian nation. In the case of the Shah, the result of Persepolis celebrations was his complete separation from the facts. Over the next few years, none of the court officials and agents tried to bring him closer to the facts. Everyone tried to respect him with flattery, praise his thought and action. This continued until the Islamic Revolution, a revolution that completely destroyed the Imperial Throne in Iran. The only result of 2,500-year imperial celebrations for people from Tehran was the construction of several highways, squares and parks.
The Shah and none of his guests who attended the celebration never imagined that the 2,500-year history of the Persian Empire would end up with Mohammad-Reza Shah himself. This great celebration should be regarded as the end of the 25th century of the Persian Empire.
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