6 The Oil Nationalization Movement, the British Boycott and the Iranian Economy 1951–1953

The Oil Nationalization Movement of 1951–53 was a most significant episode in modern Iranian history. Although nationalization of a foreign oil company was not without precedent (Mexico had nationalized its oil concerns in 1938), Iran's takeover of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company immediately precipitated an international crisis. Subsequent events —tacit approval of this nationalization by the International Court in the Hague, Britain's economic boycott of Iran, and the eventual downfall of Iranian Premier Mossadegh —profoundly affected future developments both in Iran and in the international oil market. ¹