Due to this position, Iran found itself within the crosshairs of world powers competing for ideological partners and foreign allies in the aftermath of World War II. When the Qajars were gone after 1925, Iran stood between “two great imperial powers, Britain and Russia” (Kinzer 28). During the first quarter of the 20th century, Iran was ruled by a Turkic tribe known as the Qajars. Furthermore, the form of Islam adopted by Iranians would be Shiite, which is a tradition rooted in the belief that Mohammad’s cousin Ali was the successor as caliph i.e. At the same time, Kinzer underscores the fact that Iranian pride in their history and culture is also deeply rooted in their opposition to hostile invaders to include Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan’s Mongol hordes, and Arab conquerors, who spread Islam to Iran.

He also talks about the collective social consciousness and sense of justice that can be traced to the influence of Zoroastrianism in Persian history. Kinzer harkens back to the era of the Persian empire “built by Cyrus, Darius, and Xerxes” and remarks that Iranians possess an abiding sense of inspiration in “their heritage” (Kinzer 17-18). “All the Shah’s Men” provides a broad overview of Iranian history to set the stage for Iran’s present-day resentment and mistrust of foreign powers. The story of how America became heavily involved in a plot to overthrow Iranian Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh represents a fascinating chapter in American history, and one that is frequently overlooked and sadly misunderstood. In his 2003 book, “All the Shah’s Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror”, Stephen Kinzer attempts to lay the groundwork for an explanation. How could an event like this happen? What were the roots of the crisis in Tehran? Iranian students scale the walls of the US embassy in Tehran. For 444 days, Americans were kept in captivity, and the United States fumed with justifiable anger, resentment, and confusion.

They remained captive until Januwhen President Ronald Reagan was inaugurated. Ayatollah Khomeini, leader of the Iranian Revolution which overthrew the Shah’s rule, refused to release the American hostages. They were paraded before cameras and broadcasted around the world by international news outlets. In the harrowing hours after the American embassy was overrun, fifty-two Americans were taken hostage. It wasn’t long before these students brazenly scaled the walls and stormed the embassy. Outside the American embassy throngs of radical Iranian students pushed against the embassies’ walls shouting in visceral disgust at the American diplomats inside. On November 4, 1979, shouts of “death to America” and “death to the Shah” roared from the streets of Tehran.

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