Amir-Abbas Hoveyda | |
---|---|
70th Prime Minister of Iran | |
In office 26 January 1965 – 7 August 1977 Acting until 1 February 1965 |
|
Monarch | Mohammad Reza Pahlavi |
Deputy |
Ardeshir Zahedi Gholam Reza Azhari |
Preceded by | Hassan-Ali Mansur |
Succeeded by | Jamshid Amouzegar |
Deputy Prime Minister of Iran | |
In office 7 March 1964 – 26 January 1965 |
|
Prime Minister | Hassan-Ali Mansur |
Preceded by | Jafar Sharif-Emami |
Succeeded by | Ardeshir Zahedi |
Minister of Finance | |
In office 7 March 1964 – 1 February 1965 |
|
Prime Minister | Hassan-Ali Mansur |
Preceded by | Kamal Hassani |
Succeeded by | Jamshid Amouzegar |
Minister of Royal Court | |
In office 7 August 1977 – 6 November 1978 |
|
Prime Minister | Jamshid Amouzegar |
Preceded by | Asadollah Alam |
Succeeded by | Position abolished |
Personal details | |
Born |
Tehran, Iran |
18 February 1919
Died | 7 April 1979 Tehran, Iran |
(aged 60)
Political party |
New Iran Party (1964–1975) Rastakhiz (1975–1978) |
Spouse(s) | Rozita Mansur (1950–1952) Leila Emami (1964–1973) |
Signature |
Amir-Abbas Hoveyda (Persian: امیرعباس هویدا, translit. Amīr `Abbās Hoveyda; 18 February 1919 – 7 April 1979) was an Iranian economist and politician who served as Prime Minister of Iran from 27 January 1965 to 7 August 1977. He was prime minister for 13 years and is the longest serving prime minister in Iran's history. He also served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance in Mansur's cabinet. After the Iranian Revolution, he was tried by the newly established Revolutionary Court for "waging war against God" and "spreading corruption on earth", and executed.
Born in Tehran in 1919 to Habibollah Hoveyda (Ayn ol-Molk), a seasoned diplomat, most prominent during the latter years of the Qajar dynasty, and Afsar ol-Moluk, a descendent of the very royal family the senior Hoveyda would serve for much of his adult life. While Hoveyda's father had been a Bahá'í, he had left the religion and Hoveyda himself was not religious. He was the nephew of Abdol Hossein Sardari, also known as "Schindler of Iran". Because of the responsibilities borne by diplomats such as Ayn ol-Molk, the Hoveyda family was never fixed in one residence for any prolonged length of time. Studying in various countries gave Hoveyda a unique cosmopolitan flair that would remain being his most enduring characteristic. During the family's stay in Beirut, Lebanon, Hoveyda attended Lycée Français, an institution affiliated with the French government. His love for France and its culture are rooted in his tutelage at the lycée. French literary works by the likes of André Gide, André Malraux, Molière, and Baudelaire, captivated the young Hoveyda and gave way for his intellectual growth. Some pundits suggest that it was Hoveyda's intellectual prowess which initially attracted him into the Shah's folds.