Shahpur Gholamreza Pahlavi was an Iranian prince and a member of the Pahlavi dynasty, as the son of Reza Shah and half-brother of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran. Following the death of his half-sister Ashraf Pahlavi on 7 January 2016, Gholamreza became the only living child of Reza Pahlavi. He resided in Paris with his family. He died on 7 May 2017 at the age of 93, eight days before his 94th birthday.
Early life and education
Pahlavi was born on 15 May 1923 in Iran. He was the fifth child and third son of Reza Shah, the founder of the Iranian Pahlavi dynasty. His mother, Turan Amirsoleimani, was related to the Qajar dynasty deposed in 1925 in favor of Reza Shah. More specifically, she was the daughter of a Qajar dignitary, Issa Majd al Saltaneh. She was also the granddaughter of Majd ed-Dowleh Qajar-Qovanlu Amirsoleimani, Naser al Din Shah's maternal cousin. Gholamreza's parents were married in 1922 and divorced shortly after his birth in 1923. He received primary education in Persia and then went to Switzerland for secondary education. In 1936, he returned to Iran and attended military school. He accompanied his father, Reza Shah, to his exile in Mauritius when he was forced to abdicate in September 1941. In the aftermath of Reza Shah's abdication, the British and Russian envoys attempted to put Gholamreza on the throne, bypassing then Crown Prince Mohammad Reza when their efforts to end the Pahlavi dynasty and reinstate the Qajar dynasty failed. It, however, also did not work. Gholamreza graduated from Princeton University. Upon returning to Iran, he attended military officers' training college for a military career. He retired as a brigadier general.
Career and activities
Pahlavi began his career in Iran's armed forces., serving as inspector general. After holding different positions in the army he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general in 1973. In 1955, he became a member of the International Olympic Committee. He also served as president of the Iranian National Olympic Committee. He was a member of the Royal Council which ruled Iran during the international visits of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. From December 5 to 13, 1973, he and his wife officially visited China just before the first Iranian ambassador, Abbas Aram, began to serve in that country. As president of the Iranian national Olympic committee, he supported China's objection to Taiwan's participation in the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games. However, he never tended to play an active role in domestic politics. During the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, he owned land in Iran and was a large shareholder in six firms.
Personal life and later years
Pahlavi married Homa Aalam on 4 April 1947 in Tehran. They had a daughter, Mehrnaz, and a son, Bahman. They divorced in 1956 and he married Manijeh Jahanbani, a Qajar princess, in Tehran on 6 March 1962. This marriage produced two daughters and a son. Pahlavi left Iran before the 1979 revolution along with other relatives. He settled in Paris. In the immediate aftermath of the revolution, Ayatollah Sadegh Khalkhali, a religious judge and then chairman of the Revolutionary Court, informed the press that a death sentence was passed on the members of the Pahlavi family, including Gholamreza and other former Shah officials. He died at the age of 93 in the American Hospital of Paris on 7 May 2017.
Book
Pahlavi published a book, Mon père, mon frère, les Shahs d'Iran, in 2005, dealing with both his experiences and thoughts about the future of Iran. The book was published in French and Persian.
