Mahmoud Reza Pahlavi ( fa, محمودرضا پهلوی; 5 October 1926 – 15 March 2001) was a member of Iran's

Pahlavi dynasty The Pahlavi dynasty ( fa, دودمان پهلوی) was the last Iranian royal dynasty, ruling for almost 54 years between 1925 and 1979. The dynasty was founded by Reza Shah Pahlavi, a non-aristocratic Mazanderani soldier in modern times, who ...

. He was a son of

Reza Shah Reza Shah Pahlavi ( fa, رضا شاه پهلوی; ; originally Reza Khan (); 15 March 1878 – 26 July 1944) was an Iranian Officer (armed forces), military officer, politician (who served as Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics (Iran), ...

and a half-brother of

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi , title = Shahanshah Aryamehr Bozorg Arteshtaran , image = File:Shah_fullsize.jpg , caption = Shah in 1973 , succession = Shah of Iran , reign = 16 September 1941 – 11 February 1979 , coronation = 26 October ...

Biography

Pahlavi was born on 5 October 1926 as the third child of

and

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 ...

. He received primary education in Persia (Iran) and then went to

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

for secondary education. He enrolled in Tehran's military school but following his father's abdication in 1941 he moved with him to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. After his father's death, he temporarily returned to Iran before moving to the United States to study business and industrial management at the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...

and

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. Upon his return to Iran he married Mehrdokht Azam Zangeneh in 1954 but the couple divorced after three years. In 1964, he married Maryam Eghbal, the 18-year-old daughter of

Manouchehr Eghbal Manouchehr Eghbal ( fa, منوچهر اقبال; 13 October 1909 – 25 November 1977) was an Iranian physician and royalist politician. He was the Prime Minister of Iran from 1957 to 1960. Early life and education Eghbal was born in 1909, and h ...

. This marriage also ended in divorce and Eghbal later married Pahlavi's nephew

Shahriar Shafiq Shahriar Shafiq ( fa, شهریار شفیق ; 15 March 1945 – 7 December 1979) was an Iranian Imperial Navy Captain and a member of the House of Pahlavi. He was the son of Shahdokht (equivalent to English term Princess) Ashraf Pahlavi, twin s ...

. Mahmoud Reza Pahlavi had activities in the agricultural sector and rural development in Iran during the Pahlavi era. His relations with his half-brother and the Shah,

Mohammed Reza Pahlavi Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monoth ...

, became strained due to his involvement in

opium Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which i ...

trafficking business. Thus, he was banned from participating in royal events by the Shah. After the

Iranian 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 ...

, Mahmoud Reza Pahlavi moved to the United States. In May 1992 he was arrested in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...

due to allegations of possessing and selling opium. He died on 15 March 2001 at the age of 74.

References

1926 births 2001 deaths Exiles of the Iranian Revolution in the United States Iranian royalty Iranian emigrants to the United States Mazandarani people Mahmoud Reza Sons of kings {{Iran-royal-stub