The making of the state, religion, and the Islamic Revolution in Iran (1796--1979)

A common view of revolutions that bring religious authorities to power is that popular fanaticism allows priests to dominate the masses. Contrary to that view, Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution demonstrates the fundamental importance of political processes, and especially of the ulama's relation to political power. To demonstrate the contrary requires reconstruction of the long-term history of the formation of the Iranian ulama, a history much obscured by retroactive mythmaking. This dissertation undertakes that reconstruction and applies it to a fresh analysis of the 1979 revolution.;The centralized tribal monarchy of the Qajar, which depended on a coalition of Turkish-speaking tribes, divani-bureaucrats, and the elite of settled agricultural communities, evolved into the Pahlavi militarized buffer state through revolution, civil war, international intervention, military coups, and repression. This trajectory replaced coalition rule with a despotic monarchy, formed a polity vulnerable to national and international pressure, and created fertile ground for radical politics.;The ulama institutionalized as an independent body, but one closely connected to state formation. In the process, the newly constructed Shi'i orthodoxy became dominant over revivalist trends. The institutionalization process transformed the ulama's social and financial connections, theological orientation, hierarchy, resources, and power; it also homogenized popular religious practices and reshaped popular loyalties. The state's systematic use of the ulama and religious teachings in public education led to nationalization of religious morality during the Pahlavis' reign.;In general, politics serves as the major arbiter of cultural transformation in times of crisis. The Islamization of the initially secular Iranian Revolution resulted from a political process. Khomeini exploited changes in national and international political environments by proposing radical policies and making strategic alliances. By wrapping the intellectual tradition of heterodoxy in the language of orthodoxy, Khomeini mobilized the religious establishment for radical causes. Radical Islam constructed ideological and cultural values for the new regime as the old regime disintegrated. The revolution further Islamicized state and society by suppressing challengers and by total mobilization in war against Iraq and during the hostage crisis. Against views that emphasize the weight of cultural and religious inspirations for the 1979 Revolution, this dissertation argues that the fundamental process was political.