Two Parties, One Coup · Episode 3 of 6 · 18 min
Four Days in 1953: How the CIA Toppled Iran
In four days in August 1953 the coup first failed, then succeeded. The Shah signed the decrees, Mosaddegh was tipped off and arrested the messenger, and the Shah fled. Roosevelt kept going with cash, paid newspapers and hired crowds, and a violent August 19 left roughly 200 to 300 dead before Mosaddegh surrendered.
Who's who
- Mohammad Mosaddegh+6 more episodesDemocratically elected prime minister of Iran who nationalized its oil
- Mohammad Reza Pahlavi+8 more episodesYoung Shah of Iran, pressured to sign decrees against Mosaddegh
- Kermit Roosevelt Jr.+3 more episodesCIA officer who refused to abandon the plot after it failed
- Fazlollah Zahedi+2 more episodesGeneral who took over as prime minister after the coup
- Allen Dulles+2 more episodesCIA director who flew with the Shah back to Tehran
Where it happens
- Tehran, Iran+7 more episodesScene of the street fighting and Mosaddegh's surrender
- Baghdad, Iraq+1 more episodeFirst stop of the Shah's flight
- Rome, Italy+1 more episodeWhere the Shah took refuge after the first attempt failed
Timeline
- August 15, 1953The Shah signs the decrees; Mosaddegh, tipped off, arrests the officer sent to deliver his dismissal.
- August 16, 1953With the plot collapsing, the Shah flees to Baghdad and then Rome.
- August 19, 1953Pro-Shah crowds and royalist army units overwhelm Mosaddegh's forces after hours of street fighting.
- August 19, 1953Roughly 200 to 300 people die; Mosaddegh surrenders and Zahedi takes over.
Still debated
Who really controlled the streets on August 19 is contested. Roosevelt's own cable from that morning suggests he did not foresee events he later took credit for.
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