Revolutionary Iran: The Islamic Republic and Iran-Iraq War in Global History - Semester 1 - HIS00223H

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Module summary

The Iranian Revolution of 1979 was a major event in global history whose impact irrevocably transformed the politics and international relations of West Asia and beyond. The Shah of Iran, the United States’ foremost ally in the region was overthrown by a popular revolution led by the charismatic clergyman, Ayatollah Khomeini. This module explores the historical roots of Iran’s revolution, the political, social and religious dynamics that gave rise to an Islamic Republic, and its global ramifications. The module begins by examining the Pahlavi regime of the 1970s, its pursuit of a programme of authoritarian modernisation and the establishment of a one-party state, as well as the wide-ranging opposition movements that participated in the overthrow of the country’s last monarch. The module examines the events that gave rise to the formation of an Islamic Republic, the adoption of a new constitution, alongside the revolution’s transnational connections across the Arab and Muslim world, as well as the geopolitical earthquake unleashed by the U.S. embassy hostage crisis. 

The second module explores the history of the Islamic Republic in subsequent decades and the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), one of the most devastating conflicts of the second half of the twentieth century. We will analyse the various causes and legacies of the conflict, and the war’s enduring impact on gender, culture, public space, memory, literature and cinema. The module also examines key episodes in which the war was internationalised such as the scandal surrounding the Iran-Contra Affair. Finally, we will interrogate the longer-term consequences of the war and its impact on Iran’s evolving foreign policy as well as the regional alliances that continue to shape various conflicts across West Asia through to the present day. Together we will examine primary sources ranging from US government analyses and memoranda, leaked embassy documents, official congressional testimonies, memoirs, newspaper articles, theological tracts, political communiques, constitutions, as well as films and literature from the period.

Related modules

Students taking this module must also take the second part in Semester 2.

Module will run

Occurrence	Teaching period
A	Semester 1 2025-26

Module aims

The aims of this module are:

• To introduce students to in depth study of a specific historical topic using primary and secondary material;
• To enable students to explore the topic through discussion and writing; and
• To enable students to evaluate and analyse primary sources.

Module learning outcomes

Students who complete this module successfully will:

• Grasp key themes, issues and debates relevant to the topic being studied;
• Have acquired knowledge and understanding about that topic;
• Be able to comment on and analyse original sources;
• Be able to relate the primary and secondary material to one another; and
• Have acquired skills and confidence in close reading and discussion of texts and debates.

Module content

Students will attend a 1-hour briefing in week 1 and a 3-hour seminar in weeks 2-4, 6-8 and 10-11 of semester 1. Weeks 5 & 9 are Reading and Writing Weeks (RAW). Students prepare for and participate in eight three-hour seminars in all.

Seminar topics are subject to variation, but are likely to include the following:

 

1. The Pahlavi Regime in the 1970s: Authoritarian Modernisation and the One-Party State
2. The Opposition I: Liberals, Leftists and Nationalists
3. The Opposition II: Islamists and Muslim Revolutionaries 
4. Iranian Revolution, 1977-1979: From “Island of Stability” to the “Return of the Imam”
5. The Provisional Government, Dual Power, and the Emergence of Iran’s Revolutionary System
6. The Islamic Republic and the Battle for the Constitution
7. The U.S. Hostage Crisis and its Aftermath 
8. Transnational Connections in the Arab and Muslim World

Indicative assessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100.0

Special assessment rules

None

Additional assessment information

For formative work, students will produce a text commentary.

The summative assessment will consist of two parts, to be submitted together:
a) Two text commentaries of 500-750 words; and
b) One 1,500-word essay.

The commentaries comprise 50% and the essay 50% of the overall mark for this module. Summative assessments will be due in the assessment period.

Indicative reassessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100.0

Module feedback

Following their formative task, students will typically receive written feedback that will include comments and a mark within 10 working days of submission.

Work will be returned to students in their seminars and may be supplemented by the tutor giving some oral feedback to the whole group. All students are encouraged, if they wish, to discuss the feedback on their formative work during their tutor’s student hours. For more information, see the Statement on Feedback.

For summative assessment tasks, students will receive their provisional mark and written feedback within 25 working days of the submission deadline. The tutor will then be available during student hours for follow-up guidance if required. For more information, see the Statement of Assessment.

Indicative reading

For semester time reading, please refer to the module VLE site. Before the course starts, we encourage you to look at the following items of preliminary reading:

• Roy Mottahedeh, Mantle of the Prophet: Religion and Politics in Iran (London: Oneworld, 2014).
• Nikki R. Keddie, Modern Iran: Roots and Results of Revolution, Updated Edition (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2006).
• Pierre Razoux, The Iran-Iraq War, trans. Nicholas Elliot (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2015)