Official State portrait of Empress Farah of Iran, taken during the visit of American president Richard Nixon to Iran on May 30, 1972.

Farah Pahlavi, Empress of Iran (née Farah Diba, Persian: فرح دیبا Faraḥ Dība, born October 14, 1938), widow and third wife of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, last Shah of Iran, and only Shahbanu (Empress) of modern Iran. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 371 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1168 × 1888 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 371 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1168 × 1888 pixel, file size: 1. ... Federal courts Supreme Court Circuit Courts of Appeal District Courts Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Local Government Other countries Atlas  US Government Portal      For other uses, see President of the United States (disambiguation). ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... “Farsi” redirects here. ... is the 287th day of the year (288th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran (Persian: ) (October 26, 1919, Tehran – July 27, 1980, Cairo), styled His Imperial Majesty, and holding the imperial titles of Shahanshah (King of Kings), and Aryamehr (Light of the Aryans), was the monarch of Iran from September 16, 1941 until the Iranian Revolution on February... Shahbanu (in Persian: شهبانو) means Empress in Persian. ...

Though the titles and distinctions of the Iranian imperial family were legally abolished by the new government, she often is styled Empress or Shahbanou, out of courtesy, by foreign media as well as by supporters of the former monarchy. She does use the title Empress Farah Pahlavi, a combination of title and surname that has no dynastic precedent, though her children do not use their former titles in any official manner.^[1]

Birth

She was born in Tehran as Farah Diba, the only child of Sohrab Diba and his wife, Farideh Ghotbi. Her mother was originally from Gilan and her father, who died when she was a child, was an officer in the Imperial Iranian Army whose family was originally from Iranian Azarbaijan. For other uses, see Tehran (disambiguation). ... Guilan (گیلان in Persian) is one of the 30 provinces of Iran, during antique time known as part of Hyrcania, with a population of approximately 2 million and an area of 14,700 sq. ... Azerbaijan or Azarbaijan, also Iranian Azarbaijan, Iranian Azerbaijan, or Persian Azarbaijan (Persian: آذربایجان ایران; Ä€zārbāijān-e Irān; Azerbaijani language: آذربایجان), is a region in northwestern Iran and south of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan. ...

Education and marriage

She studied at the French school in Tehran and École Spéciale d'Architecture in Paris, where she was a student of Albert Besson. While a student, she was introduced to the recently divorced Shah by his son-in-law, Ardeshir Zahedi. The two were wed on December 21, 1959 and had four children: The École Spéciale dArchitecture is a private school for architecture in Paris, France. ... This article is about the capital of France. ... Albert Besson (1896-1965) was a French hygienist, physician and member of the French Medecine Academy. ... His Majesty Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi (اعلیحضرت محمدرضا شاه پهلوی; October 26, 1919 – July 27, 1980) also knows as Aryamehr, was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 until... Ardeshir Zahedi Ardeshir Zahedi (born October 16, 1928) was an important Iranian diplomat during the 1960s and 1970s, serving as the countrys foreign minister and its ambassador to the United States and the United Kingdom. ... is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

• Reza Pahlavi (born October 30, 1960)
• Farahnaz Pahlavi (born March 12, 1963)
• Ali Reza Pahlavi (born April 28, 1966)
• Leila Pahlavi (March 27, 1970 - June 10, 2001)

Even after her marriage and coronation, the queen continued to be active in the field for which she had trained, designing several buildings in Iran including the national Carpet Museum. Reza Pahlavi (Persian: رضا پهلوی, born October 31, 1960) is the former Crown Prince of Iran, the eldest son of late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and his Empress Consort, Farah Diba. ... is the 303rd day of the year (304th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Farahnaz Pahlavi (born March 12, 1963) is a daughter of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran and his third wife Farah Diba. ... is the 71st day of the year (72nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Ali Reza Pahlavi (born April 28, 1966), a former Prince of Iran, is a younger son of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and his third wife, Farah Diba. ... is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ... Leila Pahlavi (March 27, 1970 – June 10, 2001) was a Princess of Iran. ... is the 86th day of the year (87th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 161st day of the year (162nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... Carpet Museum of Iran, Tehran Located in Tehran, beside the Laleh Park, and founded in 1976, the Carpet Museum of Iran exhibits a variety of Persian carpets from all over Iran, dating from 18th century to present. ...

The Iranian revolution and exile

As it became clear that the Iranian Revolution would be successful, Empress Farah accompanied her husband into exile, departing from Iran on January 16,1979. Their children had been sent, a number of days earlier, to Farideh Diba, the queen's mother, who lived in the United States. After Islamic Conquest  Modern SSR = Soviet Socialist Republic Afghanistan  Azerbaijan  Bahrain  Iran  Iraq  Tajikistan  Uzbekistan  This box:      The Iranian Revolution (also known as the Islamic Revolution,[1][2][3][4][5][6] Persian: انقلاب اسلامی, Enghelābe Eslāmi) was the revolution that transformed Iran from a monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza...

The couple first went to Egypt, then later stayed in Morocco, the Bahamas, Mexico, the United States and Panama, before finally returning to Egypt, where they remained until the Shah's death on July 27, 1980. Some years later, Farah bought a home in Greenwich, Connecticut, but has not lived there since the death of her daughter, Princess Leila Pahlavi. In 2001, she bought a home in Potomac, Maryland, near Washington, D.C., to be near her son and grandchildren; she now divides her time between Washington D.C., New York City, Paris, and [Cairo], where she has a palace. Reza Pahlavi, her son, is politically active with the goal of reinstating the monarchy in Iran. Farah currently has three grandchildren through Reza and his wife Yasmine: Iman (1992), Noor (1993), and Farah (2005). is the 208th day of the year (209th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar). ... Location in Connecticut Coordinates: , NECTA Region Settled 1640 Joined Connecticut 1656 Government  - Type Representative town meeting  - First selectman James A. Lash  - Town administrator Edward Gomeau  - Town meeting moderator Thomas J. Byrne Area  - City 174. ... Leila Pahlavi (March 27, 1970 – June 10, 2001) was a Princess of Iran. ... Potomac is a census-designated place and an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. ... For other uses, see Washington, D.C. (disambiguation). ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... This article is about the capital of France. ... Reza Pahlavi (Persian: رضا پهلوی, born October 31, 1960) is the former Crown Prince of Iran, the eldest son of late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and his Empress Consort, Farah Diba. ... Yasmine Pahlavi (Yasmine Etemad Amini prior to her marriage) is the wife of Reza Cyrus Pahlavi, former crown prince and current pretender to the throne of Iran. ...

Memoir

Farah Pahlavi with her family, immediately after being crowned Empress of Iran in 1967.

In 2003, Farah Pahlavi wrote a book about her marriage to the Shah entitled An Enduring Love: My Life with the Shah - A Memoir. It was published in the United States in 2004 by Miramax Books. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Logo used on Hyperion Books for Childrens official site Miramax (also known as Hyperion Books for Childrens) is the childrens division of Hyperion, the book publishing division of the Walt Disney Company. ...

The publication of the former empress's memoirs resulted in international interest. It was a bestseller in Europe, with excerpts appearing in news magazines and the author appearing on talk shows and in other media outlets. However, opinion about the book, which Publishers Weekly called "a candid, straightforward account" and the Washington Post called "engrossing", was mixed. Publishers Weekly is a weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. ... ...

Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, and his wife, Empress Farah, wave goodbye prior to boarding an aircraft after a visit to the United States.

In The New York Times, Elaine Sciolino, the paper's Paris bureau chief, described the book as "well translated" but "so full of anger and bitterness that her memoir distorts more than it enlightens." She also questioned the author's accuracy regarding historical events, noting that the former empress declined to explain "the fact that it took a coup orchestrated by the Central Intelligence Agency to restore the shah to the throne in 1953 ...." In the end, Sciolino described the book as promotional device, "an emotional appeal to restore the crown to her [son] Reza, who is leading an opposition movement against the Islamic Republic from his residence and his office, outside Washington, and a Web site."^[2] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... His Majesty Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi (اعلیحضرت محمدرضا شاه پهلوی; October 26, 1919 – July 27, 1980) also knows as Aryamehr, was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 until... The New York Times is a daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed internationally. ... Elaine Sciolino is an American journalist who has been the Paris bureau chief of The New York Times since August of 2002[1]. Sciolino joined the Times in 1984. ... “CIA” redirects here. ...

In The National Review, however, Iranian writer Reza Bayegan praised An Enduring Love, stating that the former empress' "memoirs abound with affection and sympathy for her countrymen. Even a prime minister like Dr. Mohammad Mossadeq, who nearly caused the shah's overthrow in 1953, is treated with fairness and praised for his courage and firmness."^[3] National Review (NR) is a conservative political magazine founded by author William F. Buckley, Jr. ... ...

Titles

• Miss Farah Diba (1938-1959)
• H.I.M. Malekeh (Queen) Farah of Iran (1959-1967)
• H.I.M. Shahbanou (Empress) Farah of Iran (1967-1979)
• Empress Farah Pahlavi (1979-), the title she has chosen for herself but which does not conform to dynastic usage

See also

• Iranian women

17th century painting of Safavi Iranian royal court depicting woman pouring wine at Chehel Sotoon Palace, Esfahan. ...

References

1. ^ See her website, noted below.
2. ^ Elaine Sciolino, The Last Empress, The New York Times, 2 May 2004.
3. ^ Reza Bayegan, "The Shah & She", The National Review, 13 May 2004.

External links

• A web site dedicated to Reza Shah Kabir (the great) including video clip and photos
• Farah Pahlavi's official website
• Farah Pahlavi, Iran's Ex-Empress, Receives the Anne Morrow Lindbergh Grace and Distinction Award 2005
• Shahram Razavi's online photo album "Imperial Iran of the Pahlavi Dynasty"