Mehrangiz Dowlatshahi ( fa, مهرانگیز دولتشاهی; 13 December 1919 – 11 October 2008) was an Iranian social activist and politician, who held significant positions, including ambassador of Iran to Denmark during the Pahlavi era. She also served as a member of the Majlis for three terms.

Early life and education

Her family were major land owners based in

Kermanshah Kermanshah ( fa, کرمانشاه, Kermânšâh ), also known as Kermashan (; romanized: Kirmaşan), is the capital of Kermanshah Province, located from Tehran in the western part of Iran. According to the 2016 census, its population is 946,68 ...

and were progressive aristocrats. Her father was Mohammad Ali Mirza (also known as Meshkout Al Dowleh), majlis member and land owner. He was a member of the Qajar dynasty. Her mother was Akhtar ol-Mulk, daughter of Hidayat Quli Khan. Mehrangiz was the cousin of

Esmat Dowlatshahi Esmat Dowlatshahi ( fa, عصمت‌الملوک دولتشاهی; 1905 – 25 July 1995) was an Iranian royal and the fourth and last wife of Reza Shah. Early life Dowlatshahi was born in 1905. She was a member of the Qajar dynasty. Her father w ...

, fourth wife of

Reza Shah , , spouse = Maryam Savadkoohi Tadj ol-Molouk Ayromlu (queen consort) Turan Amirsoleimani Esmat Dowlatshahi , issue = Princess Hamdamsaltaneh Princess Shams Mohammad Reza Shah Princess Ashraf Prince Ali Reza Prince Gholam Reza P ...

. Concerning the birth date and birth place of Dowlatshahi there are some conflicting reports which were stated by herself.

Abbas Milani Abbas Malekzadeh Milani ( fa, عباس ملک‌زاده میلانی; born 1949) is an Iranian-American historian, educator, and author. Milani is a visiting professor of Political Science, and the Hamid and Christina Moghadam Director of the Ira ...

states that she gave two different birth years, 1917 and 1919. The same is also reported by Abbas Milani in regard to her birth city, which was given as both Tehran and Isfahan. Mehrangiz was one of the first Iranian girls who attended a

co-education Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

kindergarten. Then she graduated from the Zoroastrian School in Tehran. She held a bachelor's degree from

Berlin University Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative o ...

. She received a PhD in social and political sciences from

Heidelberg University } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, B ...

Career

Dowlatshahi worked at the social services organization and at the organization for support of prisoners. She established Rah-e No (New Way) society, which later became part of the International Women's Syndicate. The society offered training to women and advocated equal rights for them. She also launched adult literacy programs in southern Tehran. In 1951, she and woman activist Safeyeh Firouz met Mohammad Reza Shah to discuss the electoral rights of women in Iran. She was the director of the advisory committee on international affairs of the Women's Organization of Iran (WOI). In 1973, she was appointed president of the

International Council of Women The International Council of Women (ICW) is a women's rights organization working across national boundaries for the common cause of advocating human rights for women. In March and April 1888, women leaders came together in Washington, D.C., wit ...

and her term ended in 1976. She served as the member of the Majlis from 1963 to 1975, being the first woman in this post. She represented

at the Majlis for three terms. She significantly contributed to the passing of the family protection law in 1967 and to its expansion in 1974. She also served as the first minister of women affairs. She was also the first woman ambassador of Imperial Iran to

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

. She was appointed to the post in 1975.

Later years and death

Dowlatshahi was serving as the Iranian ambassador in Denmark when the

1979 revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

occurred. Soon after this incident she left the country and settled in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. In 2002, she published a book entitled ''Society, Government, and Iran’s Women’s Movement''. She died in Paris in October 2008.

Awards and honors

Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog (Denmark; 14 February 1979) In 1997, Dowlatshahi was named as the woman of the year by the Iranian Women's Studies Foundation in the United States.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dowlatshahi, Mehrangiz 20th-century Iranian women politicians 21st-century Iranian women writers 1919 births 2008 deaths Ambassadors of Iran to Denmark Exiles of the Iranian Revolution in France Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog Heidelberg University alumni Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Iranian emigrants to France Iran Novin Party politicians Iranian women activists Iranian women ambassadors Iranian women's rights activists Iranian women writers Leaders of organizations Members of the 21st Iranian Majlis Members of the 22nd Iranian Majlis Members of the 23rd Iranian Majlis Politicians from Isfahan People of the Iranian Revolution Qajar princesses Rastakhiz Party politicians Government ministers of Iran