ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the process of the Islamic Revolution, in particular the radicalization of the movement and the political alliances which led to the triumph of the Revolution and the seizure of political power by its religious leadership. From the outset of Islam, there were close connections and interdependencies between the bazaris and the ulama. In spite of the Shah's modernization program, the bazaar continued to dominate a large part of Iran's domestic economy. Many of those people, who confronted the military forces during the days prior to the Revolution, were the 'dispossessed'. Besides the establishment of an Islamic state with religious leadership, there were many other symbolic changes that marked the beginning of a new order. The victory of the Islamic Revolution of Iran depended on the revolutionary alliance between key groups in the traditional and modern civil societies. The challenge to democratic governance began the day after the transformation of power to the new revolutionary regime.
