Stella Henson

From Exile to Revolutionary: The Impact of Khomeini’s Exile on the 1979 Iranian Revolution 

The 1979 Iranian Revolution was one of the most significant events of the 20th century as it led to the toppling of the Pahlavi monarchy and the establishment of the Islamic Republic in Iran. Simply put, the Iranian Revolution was a pivotal event that forever changed Iran and the rest of the world. Although there are many events and incidents that were causes of the revolution including the 1953 Coup, White Revolution, and growing Western influence—it is without a doubt that Ayatollah Khomeini played a significant role, even being dubbed the architect of the revolution. Khomeini was a Shi’a cleric and prominent religious scholar who became increasingly popular during the White Revolution of the 1960s, where Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi’s rapid modernization movement angered many Iranians due to the increase in human rights violations, urbanization, and the destruction of traditional social values. Through his conservative interpretations of Shi’a Islam and the fact that he championed the idea of velayat-e faqih, his support base continued to expand to the point that when Khomeini arrived from exile in Tehran on February 1, 1979, he was declared the religious leader of Iran’s revolution and shortly after became Iran’s supreme leader. 

When studying the influence of Khomeini, one of the most fascinating elements is that he spent sixteen years in exile, from 1963 to 1979. Although some might believe that during this time, he would struggle to gain support as he was physically not in the country he was advocating for, the time that Khomeini spent in exile only strengthened his command as leader of the Iranian Revolution. Ayatollah Khomeini’s exile in Iraq and France from 1965 to 1979 was crucial to the success of the 1979 Iranian Revolution as he gained the power needed to take control of Iran in 1979. During this time, he appealed to both radical and moderate Muslims through his extensive development of the concept of velayat-e faqih and his ability to adapt his political and religious messaging based on the support he needed.  

Ayatollah Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini was born on September 24, 1902. He came from a family of Shi’a mullahs, which influenced him to become a prominent religious scholar in Qom, Iran’s intellectual center for Shi’a scholarship (“The White Revolution” 730). From an early age, Khomeini was drawn to the more traditional practices of Islam, and his conservative interpretations were fostered as Iran became increasingly Western and “modern” throughout the Pahlavi dynasty. The Pahlavi shahs were more focused on increasing secularism throughout the country—isolating Iranian religious scholars, such as Khomeini, as they struggled to practice their religion freely. During this time of the White Revolution, Khomeini gained prominence as he began to speak out against the Shah’s domestic and foreign policies, including the “mingling” of Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts, the economic collaboration with Israel in 1959, and the talks of giving women the right to vote (“The White Revolution” 736). Many traditional and conservative Iranians found Khomeini a beacon of hope for a world where they could practice their religion how they wanted to and be free of the oppressive Shah’s government. 

In the early 1960s, there was an increase in demonstrations in Qom in support of Khomeini and his teachings, resulting in violent responses from the government. One crucial day was on June 3, 1963, when the Ayatollah gave an emotional speech that denounced Iran’s involvement with Israel and accused the Pahlavi state of corruption and the accumulation of illegitimate wealth (“The White Revolution” 738). This speech resonated with many Iranians, leading to a bloody uprising in Tehran, resulting in the death of 125 people and the shah enacting martial law. Because of his role in the riot, Khomeini was arrested on June 5, 1963, and held in army barracks in Tehran for nearly two months. After his release in August, he continued to have altercations with the government until it was decided in late 1964 that he was too great of a national security threat, resulting in his exile. He spent 11 months in Turkey before he was allowed to relocate to Najaf, a holy city in Iraq (MacLean 164). 

The shah exiled Khomeini with the intent of diffusing his power and authority. He believed that in Najaf, the Iraqi religious authorities would overshadow his practice and presence; however, what happened could be farther from this as Khomeini established himself as a major religious force and increased his popularity through his teachings of velayat-e faqih at local seminaries (Khomeini 18). Velayat-e faqih, which translates to “guardianship of the jurist”, is a religious interpretation that means, according to true Islam, an Islamic jurist should serve as the Supreme Leader of the land, not a monarch. Khomeini argued that the Iranian monarchy was a pagan institution that was incompatible with true Islam. Because of this, he called for the destruction of the monarchy and advocated for the transfer of state power from the shah to the clergy (Abrahamian 214). To underscore the importance of velayat-e faqih, he used Iran to symbolize what happens to a society that is not run by an Islamic government. He highlighted that the dire economic and health situations in Iran were a result of the monarchy’s failure to meet the needs of the people. He preached that if an Islamic government were to be established, where the Islamic jurists could assume the roles of Muhammad, these problems would be solved (MacLean 166). This is because he claimed that jurists were the most virtuous members of a community and, therefore, were the fittest to lead an Islamic government (“The Guardian Jurist” 911). The evolution of velayat-e faqih is essential to study because, for one, the concept intrigued Iranians as they were attracted to the idea of deposing the shah, as many of them blamed Mohammad Reza Pahlavi for the crippling economy, the increase in shantytowns, and the continuous human rights violations. Furthermore, velayat-e faqih layed the framework for the Islamic government Khomeini established following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, in which he, the supreme leader, was the supreme law of the land. 

Despite the shah’s best wishes, Khomeini’s influence grew exponentially in Iraq.  Because of this, in 1978, Mohammad Reza Shah pressured the government of Iraq to expel Khomeini in hopes of cutting his power at the root source. This resulted in Khomeini ending up in France, where his network of supporters grew tenfold. Once in France, Khomeini recognized that if were to successfully establish an Islamic government, he would need the backing of “moderate clerics and secular groups” (MacLean 168). In order to accomplish this, he began adjusting his message to his followers on religion and government accordingly. For example, he started distancing himself from the concept of velayat-e faqih and gave “vague” details on the type of government he wanted to implement (MacLean 169). As Abol Hassan Bani-Sar, one of Khomeini’s closest advisors and the first post-revolutionary President, explained that in Paris, he “abandoned…vilayat-i faqih…and accepted that government was accountable to the governed and not to God” (MacLean 169). When asked about his lectures on velayat-e faqih in Najaf by the press, Khomeini’s advisors would explain how either a student misheard the Ayatollah or how it was a plot by SAVAK to paint him as an extremist (MacLean 169). 

Khomeini hoped that by altering his messaging and stated intentions, he could create an alliance with members of the moderate opposition. Well, he was correct, in Paris, Khomeini was so successful at distancing himself from his radical beliefs, that many moderates in Iran were completely oblivious to the Ayatollah’s desire to create a theocratic government and fully pledged their support to him. In early November, after meeting with moderate Iranians and Khomeini, they issued a joint statement declaring the shah’s monarchy to be illegitimate, that a new form of government would be decided via referendum, and how Islam and democracy were both principles in government (MacLean 169). The last statement shows how successful Khomeini was at adapting his beliefs to achieve his goals. This was a crucial strategy throughout the Ayatollah’s exile because he understood that in France he needed to be perceived as not overtly radicalized in order to gain the necessary support from the moderate clergy. 

When Ayatollah Khomeini arrived in Tehran in February of 1979, he assumed the gauntlet of power as supreme leader and transitioned Iran from a monarchy to a theocracy. The success of his transition of power can be attributed to the time he spent in exile, as it was in Iraq and France that he developed and refined velayat-e faqih, which ultimately became the framework for the new Iranian government. This concept, advocating for the rule of Islamic jurists, fundamentally reshaped Iran's political landscape and governance structure. Furthermore, by harnessing the power of Western news outlets, Khomeini appeared as a less radicalized leader than what was being portrayed by the shah’s government. His ability to adapt his teachings and image allowed him to spread his message to the masses and acquire the necessary backing for a successful revolution.