The classic study that anticipated the Iranian Revolution of 1979

Originally completed mere months ahead of the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Fred Halliday’s study of twentieth-century Iran was not only incredibly timely but a deeply researched, thought-provoking work. It takes in the nation’s uneven capitalist development, opposition movements, state repression, military apparatus and foreign relations. Even decades later it remains among the most sophisticated analyses of this period of Iranian history, as Halliday persuasively argues against the straightforward labelling of the Pahlavi regime as a military dictatorship and presents Iran’s relationship with the United States as far more complex than that of a developing nation subservient to a superpower.

This new edition features an extensive introduction from historian Eskandar Sadeghi-Boroujerdi, as well as six of Halliday’s essays on the Islamic Republic, demonstrating how his thinking on Iran and the revolution evolved over time.

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‘Remarkable...almost miraculously timely...a carefully written, well-researched and deeply serious account of modern Iran.’

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‘Well-timed and prophetic...thoroughly researched.’

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‘Much original analysis and relevant information not previously gathered together in any one book.’

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‘One of the most important scholars of his generation.’

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‘Present[s] a rigorous and comprehensive analysis of Iranian society in the 1960s and 1970s… Halliday’s volume is a most welcome addition to the literature. Written on the very eve of the revolution in 1978 (except for an appended twelve-page “Afterword” dated March 1979), Iran: Dictatorship and Development is a significant contribution toward an understanding of the ancien régime and also provides some insights into the causes of the revolution.’

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‘Halliday provides us both with a framework for understanding [the revolution] in Iran, and an acute insight into the social forces in struggle. His array of sources is impressive, including not only secondary works but a wide and significant range of first-hand interviews and accounts.’

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‘Published almost simultaneously with the climax of [the Iranian Revolution]…the second edition includes the added bonus of an account of the rebellion and its aftermath. Halliday’s book not only fills a gap in the serious literature…but provides a valuable analysis of the nature of the Pahlavi state and the roots of its instability.’