Constitutionalism, social democracy, and nationalism, and the first Communist movement in Iran, 1905--1921

Western expansion into Iran during the latter half of the nineteenth century had a significant impact on the country's social, economic, and political development. By the turn of the century, Western ideas of constitutionalism and social democracy had infiltrated Persian society, which set the foundation for modern revolutionary movements to emerge and challenge the traditional social and political order of Persian society. This thesis analyzes the revolutionary movements in Iran during the first two decades of the twentieth century and argues that the failure of these movements can be attributed to internal factionalism in Persian politics and foreign involvement on the political scene in Iran.